Heading into Saturday night’s playoff game against the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers fans wondered what new wrinkles could head coach Matt LaFleur and offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich throw at their NFC North rivals.
With wideout Dontayvion Wicks ruled out and the versatile Bo Melton placed on injured reserve, the most logical option would be to get rookie wide receiver Matthew Golden involved in some way, shape, or form.
LaFleur and Co. must’ve heard the fans' cries for more Golden, as the Packers finally unleashed the rookie wideout in Saturday night’s loss. Golden was second on Green Bay in receiving, with four receptions (five targets) for 84 yards and a touchdown.
Golden’s first NFL touchdown came on an RPO, which allowed the young wide receiver to use his speed. His touchdown couldn’t come at a better time, as it put Green Bay up 27-16 with 6:36 left in the game. However, we all knew what happened in the end for the Pack.
Matthew Golden’s Playoff Breakout Is Clear Indictment of Matt LaFleur
While the result on the scoreboard was disastrous, it was frustrating to see Green Bay wait until the last game of the year to figure out how to utilize Golden. All season, Packers fans have been clamoring for LaFleur to get Golden involved and put him in a position to succeed, which means not using him on bogus jet sweeps as they did with rookie Savion Williams.
But for one reason or another, the Packers couldn’t figure out Golden’s role, which is a stain on LaFleur and his offensive coaching staff. In fact, there’s no reason why Melton was getting more targets than Golden, who was your first-round pick, and projected to be an instant playmaker in your offense?
However, based on the Packers’ WR hierarchy, it seems like the young wideout had to wait his turn, which happened in the last game of the year. If you’re a Packers fan, you aren’t happy with LaFleur and his development of the young wide receivers.
While you know that you have a solid WR core with Jayden Reed, Romeo Doubs, and Christian Watson, you could make the case that Golden has skills and speed, where he should’ve been on the field more.
Golden played 35 offensive snaps against the Bears, which exceeded the snaps he played in the first two games vs. Chicago (27). Not including the regular season finale vs. the Minnesota Vikings, where he played 51 offensive snaps, the last time Golden had 30 or more snaps was in Week 8 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
That’s inexcusable and could be another reason to part ways with LaFleur. That said, if Green Bay keeps LaFleur around for next season, he’ll have no choice but to play Golden, especially with Doubs hitting free agency in March.