Next up on their slate, the Green Bay Packers have a primetime battle against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football. It'll be a reunion of sorts as Aaron Rodgers is on the other side.
Nonetheless, the Packers surprisingly added rookie WR Matthew Golden to the injury report on Friday with a hip issue, leaving him questionable to play. Thankfully for them, Christian Watson may be in line to make his 2025 debut. According to ESPN's Rob Demovsky, the Packers released tight end Ben Sims on Saturday, and the Packers' beat reporter believes that means Watson will be activated off the PUP list to take that roster spot.
Packers Christian Watson Will Likely Be Activated off PUP List
During the week, Watson revealed to the media that he planned to make his debut against Pittsburgh. On Friday, head coach Matt LaFleur wasn't committed to saying Watson would play, saying, "That’s going to be a medical decision.”
While the Packers still need to make the official move to activate Watson from the PUP list, it appears that it has been trending in this direction for a little while now. Green Bay opened up its 21-day practice window on Oct. 6, giving Watson the last couple of weeks to ramp up.
The veteran has reportedly looked good in practice, but gameday is a different atmosphere. Even if he does get activated for this game, he will be on a pitch count. Watson hasn't played a football game in 10 months, so the Packers won't be able to give him his normal workload.
Regardless, fans will love to see No. 9 over there, especially with all the injuries Green Bay is dealing with at the position. Dontayvion Wicks is already ruled out with a calf injury, with Jayden Reed still on IR. Now that Golden is dealing with a hip injury of his own, having another quality WR available would be ideal.
Even though Watson hasn't played in a while, the Steelers will still need to respect his speed and big-play ability. In his three seasons with the Packers, Watson has recorded 98 catches for 1,653 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns.
Last year, he finished with 620 receiving yards and a career-high 21.4 yards per reception. His straight-line speed and 6-foot-4 frame make him an enticing playmaker. It also doesn't hurt his cause that Watson already has a rapport with Jordan Love.
Considering the Packers have until Oct. 27 to activate Watson to the active roster or place him on season-ending IR, it looks like Watson will be back in uniform and on the sidelines again fairly soon, and could be on the field against the Steelers.