The biggest changes the Green Bay Packers made to their offense in the 2026 offseason were a reshuffling of the receiver depth chart. Dontayvion Wicks was dealt to the Philadelphia Eagles, while Romeo Doubs made his expected free agency exit, signing with the New England Patriots. This pushed Matthew Golden into an expected starring role and turned up the pressure on veteran Christian Watson in what is a contract season for the receiver.
However, one of the overlooked stories of the offseason is the fact that Green Bay has left itself little room to deal with any injury issues at the position. Jayden Reed is the team's projected third option with Savion Williams, Skyy Moore, and Bo Melton as the depth options. None of this trio has proven capable of stepping into the lineup and producing at the level of Watson.
This makes it clear that the franchise hasn't prepared for what history tells us is a frustrating inevitability. Watson was drafted in 2022 and has played the following number of games in his first four seasons in the league: 14, 9, 15, and 10. There is yet to be a single season that Watson has stayed completely healthy, with the receiver missing extensive time in half of his seasons in the league.
Packers Clearly Have Huge Christian Watson Injury Concern Heading Into 2026 Season
Players very rarely grow healthier as they age, and Green Bay's offseason seems to be banking on Watson doing just that. You're already counting on a massive leap from Matthew Golden; this appears likely, but there aren't any guarantees, leaving the depth at the position a major concern as we head into the summer.
It will be interesting to see if Green Bay shares this concern with Stefon Diggs, Keenan Allen, and Deebo Samuel, all notable names remaining in free agency. It would be wise for the front office to attempt to add at least one veteran capable of stepping into the starting lineup if and when Watson misses time in the 2026 season.
While you hope that this isn't the case, the receiver has been in the league four years and missed time in each of these seasons. It is hard to believe that this trend won't continue with higher expectations and wear-and-tear on a player now going to be more consistently featured in Green Bay's offense. There simply is no level of insurance or planning for what seems inevitable. It remains a clear weakness that fans can only hope the team opts to address in the coming days.
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