The Green Bay Packers still sit atop the NFC with a record of 5-1-1, and they have a great chance of staying on the perch when they host the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. Green Bay has navigated a slew of injuries in the early weeks to put itself in position to contend in the second half of the season, and the reinforcements are starting to roll in, including wide receiver Jayden Reed.
Reed was injured in the Week 2 win over the Washington Commanders when he broke his collarbone attempting to catch a pass from Jordan Love. Reed has been on the shelf ever since and even underwent surgery on his foot for an injury sustained during the preseason.
While Reed is expected to return sometime in the second half of the season, he was spotted by ESPN’s Rob Demovsky “running off to the side at Nitschke Field while practice was going on.” While Demovsky added that the Packers do not allow video of rehabbing players, The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman echoed the report, saying that Reed “was rehabbing with a trainer and catching balls off the JUGS machine with a helmet on.”
Jayden Reed’s Return Could Make Packers WR Corps Even Deeper
While there is no grainy, Bigfoot-esque footage of Reed working out, his return will be welcomed no matter the resolution. Over his first two seasons, Reed caught 119 passes for 1,650 yards and 14 touchdowns for the Packers. This season, he has caught three passes for 45 yards and a touchdown. Had he not been out of bounds on the play he got injured, Reed would have had a second touchdown and an opportunity to build on those numbers later in the game.
Instead, Reed went on injured reserve, took the opportunity to heal completely, and now rejoins a receiver room that seems to be getting deeper as the year progresses. Matthew Golden has 21 catches for 253 yards in the first seven games, and Jordan Love’s response to a quiet game against the Pittsburgh Steelers suggests he could be looking his way in the near future. Christian Watson also returned from a torn ACL with four catches for 85 yards in Sunday’s win, and Romeo Doubs has played his way out of trade conversations and into a possible extension in the coming months.
Although Reed’s 21-day window to return to practice hasn’t been activated, his presence at Wednesday’s session suggests it’s around the corner. It gives the Packers another acquisition without having to give up anything at the trade deadline and could help Green Bay remain one of the NFC’s elite teams.