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From the Green Bay Packers' point of view, they’re better off without Jaire Alexander. And they probably don’t lose much sleep that Rasul Douglas hasn’t re-signed with the team. However, moving forward, here is the Packers’ most fierce positional battle to watch during the 2025 training camp.
It shouldn’t be a surprise what position holds this distinction, and it's on the offensive side of the football. The Packers are loaded, maybe overloaded, at the wide receiver position. And it appears all starting positions are up for grabs, at least from an order standpoint.
Jayden Reed should hold one of those spots along with Matthew Golden. But the rest is a battle.
Packers WR Matthew Golden pushing everybody
The Packers made Golden their first-round pick. So the team is going to do everything it can in year one to make sure he gets a chance to shine. With the inconsistent play of Reed last season, it’s not inconceivable for Golden to slot in as WR1 right off the bat. The Packers didn’t think enough of Reed to even have him on the field all of the time later in the season, so the door is open for a WR1 challenge.
Golden joins the Packers with plenty of confidence, according to packers.com.
“Whenever I'm on the field, that's when I feel great,” Golden said. “I feel like nothing is stopping me from where I'm going, and I can just focus on football. It's definitely something that's keeping me motivated and keeping me grinding.
“I'm ready. I've been waiting for this moment my whole life. And to be here. I’m gonna be present, but I'm gonna let my presence be known and I'm gonna come in here and compete.”
And quarterback Jordan Love has landed in the Golden fan club, according to nytimes.com.
“He's a great dude,” Love said. “I'm excited to see just his potential on the football field. But just the start we've had, doing routes on air and things like that, he looks like a stud, looks like a very polished receiver, so I'm excited to see just how far he can take it.
“The speed speaks for itself. Running a 40-yard dash, any time you get a 4.2, that’s some blazing speed right there, so I’m excited to see how fast he is on the field. I’ve seen all the highlights, all the good stuff, so we’ll see once we get practice rolling and everything how good he is.”
Meanwhile, Golden said he wants to fit in with Love.
“Just gain his trust, man,” Golden said of developing a relationship with Love. “That’s from me just being able to put my best foot forward every day. Just go out there and create that chemistry with him.”
What about the rest of the receiver room?
The Packers have Romeo Doubs slotted at WR3 with Christian Watson, Dontayvion Wicks, and Savion Williams in the second-team mix. Also fighiting for a chance are Mecole Hardman, Bo Melton, and Malik Heath. Even down to nine deep, the Packers have some talent in the room.
And, of course, Reed still has a big-time say in who gets snaps. He said he wants the group to succeed, so he’s trying to help Golden, according to packers.com.
“That's what I'm trying to do because I've been in their position as well,” Reed said when asked about taking Golden under his wing, helping and coaching when necessary. “It's not easy to learn plays. And it's a lot of chaos as a rookie. He's been doing a phenomenal job.
“He's picked it up probably faster than I did. So I commend him on that, and Savion as well. They're always around. I try to stick around in the huddle to make sure they're good.”
Love said the competition is thick and intense.
“There's always going to be competition,” Love said. “I don't think any of those guys are shying away from competition. They all want to be the best and be out there on the field.
“We've got a great group of guys. They all know what the main objective is that we're trying to get done here, and they know they're going to get those (opportunities) that come their way. I’m going to try to find the guy who's open. They all know that. Nobody's being sensitive about the number of targets right now. Everybody's just working to get better.”
Overall, Reed said he wants the team to excel and make postseason noise.
“Since I've been here, I made the playoffs, but I'm not satisfied,” Reed said. “Every year, (the desire) is to elevate and be better, so my goal is to be even more hungry than I was last year. I feel like that's the whole team demeanor right now.”
Best of all, the Packers have a group that might be injury-proof but is still deeper than just about any team in the NFL. Over the grind of a NFL season, that could pay big dividends.
