With the 2025 NFL regular season ending, the Green Bay Packers made a slew of roster moves this week as they prepare for another postseason run. The injury bug has plagued this team for several weeks at multiple spots, and it didn’t get better on Saturday as they officially put an end to wide receiver Savion Williams’ rookie season.
According to Jason B. Hirschhorn of The Leap, Green Bay placed Williams on injured reserve, forcing him to miss Sunday's loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The first-year pass-catcher could return if the Packers make a miracle run to the Super Bowl, as he must miss at least four games before he can suit up again.
However, based on how things have transpired for Green Bay, it's likely that his rookie season has come to a close. Williams has been battling a nagging foot injury, which has kept him off the field multiple times this season, limiting him to 91 offensive snaps across 12 games.
Williams played in Week 16 against the Chicago Bears, but was inactive for Week 17, despite being a full participant in practice and listed as questionable. Before that Bears’ game, Williams last played in Week 12 vs. the Vikings.
Savion Williams’ Latest Setback Throws Wrench into His Development
The 2025 season has not gone as planned for the third-round pick, as injuries have hindered his development. It also doesn’t help that the Packers have an abundance of talent at the WR spot, making it hard for Williams and even Matthew Golden to find their footing.
The Packers drafted Williams and Golden with the hope that they could contribute, with Christian Watson still rehabbing from his torn ACL at the time.
That didn’t happen, as Romeo Doubs and Tucker Kraft immediately established themselves as the top options in the passing game. The Packers also saw Jayden Reed get hurt earlier in the season, too, opening up another opportunity for the rookies to step in. But for one reason or another, it never happened.
Williams’ first year started on shaky ground as he dealt with a concussion and a hamstring injury in training camp and preseason. If and when Williams got healthy, the thought was that the Packers would try to utilize his speed on jet sweeps.
In theory, it was a good idea, but in reality, it never worked out. If anything, the Packers' use of the rookie wide receiver on jet sweeps just infuriated the fanbase, as they really didn’t get to see if his explosiveness or speed that was raved about before the draft.
With Williams missing multiple games, he also wasn’t able to build chemistry with Jordan Love, which hurts his development. Unlike Golden, who has played 401 offensive snaps heading into Week 18, Williams hasn't even seen a quarter of those opportunities.
This season, the 6-foot-4 Williams has 37 rushing yards on 11 carries, along with 10 receptions (10 targets) for 78 yards and a touchdown. He saw some time on special teams this season, averaging 25.6 yards per kick return on 28 attempts.
It was a mixed bag of results for the rookie, but if you’re the Packers, the hope is that he can get off to a better start in 2026. With Doubs’ impending free agency, the Pack could fill that void with Williams or Golden.
But based on what we’ve seen this season, the Packers might lean more towards Golden, who they drafted in the first round. And who’s to say that Green Bay doesn’t add another veteran WR to the mix this offseason, which could further put Williams in a hole.
In a perfect world, Williams would be healthy and playing in the postseason, further strengthening his case for 2026. However, that won't be the case as he'll watch his 2025 classmates, Luther Burden III, Kyle Williams, Jayden Higgins, and Jaylin Noel, who will get that invaluable playoff experience, which will help them heading into Year 2.