GREEN BAY — Dontayvion Wicks and Jayden Reed see each other as more than teammates, more than friends and more than roommates who split the cost of a Florida VRBO every offseason to work out together near Fort Lauderdale.

They see each other as brothers, and have felt that bond since they seemingly kept bumping into each other in the lead-up to the 2023 NFL Draft, long before they wound up together on the Green Bay Packers’ wide receiver depth chart.

“I want to say at first it was at the Senior Bowl. I sat down at a table with him — we kind of knew each other already — and we just talked for a little bit,” Reed recalled. “And then I was on a [pre-draft] visit with the [San Francisco] 49ers, I’m walking out — and he’s walking in. And I’m like, ‘I keep running into you. You’re following me, bro.’

“And then it all makes sense. I get drafted here, he gets drafted here. It’s crazy how it works. But, I mean, God put him in my life for a reason, and I’m blessed to have him as a brother.”

After neither Wicks nor Reed made the Year 2 jumps in 2024 that the Packers expected from them after the strong first impressions they made as rookies, their bond will be vital as they enter their pivotal third seasons together in the Packers’ crowded receiver room.

Reed has led the Packers in both receptions and receiving yardage each of his first two seasons, catching 64 passes for 793 yards and eight touchdowns on 94 targets as a rookie and 55 passes for 857 yards and six touchdowns on 75 targets last season.

But Reed also shared the Packers’ team lead in dropped passes with Wicks with nine, and he largely disappeared down the stretch, managing only 11 catches for 164 yards and no touchdowns over the final five games, which head coach Matt LaFleur attributed to Reed being “a little bit banged up” late in the year.

Wicks, meanwhile, caught 39 passes for 581 yards and four touchdowns on 58 targets as a rookie, then caught 39 passes for 415 yards and five TDs on 75 targets last season.

Although he had those nine drops, he seemingly fixed the issue during the second half of the season, as five came in the first five games but just two came in the final eight games.

He had at least four receptions in four of the final six games, catching 22 of 30 targets for 198 yards, giving quarterback Jordan Love a 101.8 passer rating on throws targeting Wicks.

“I think early in the year, he wanted the results so bad. He wanted to catch the ball and score. He was getting open, and then he would have a bad drop and everybody would be so upset over him and he’d be down on himself,” offensive passing-game coordinator Jason Vrable said. “It just happens to some guys. They want to score four touchdowns. They want to have 120 yards. You have a drop and then it weighs on you.

“You could feel [how] it was almost like the whole world’s weighing on him, and I just told him, ‘Man, just let your work take care of itself. And every day you show up, outwork everybody in this room.’ And you saw at the end of the year when the ball was coming his way, there was a real confidence to get open and make the play.”

If the Packers get more of that from both Wicks and Reed in 2025, the offense will benefit as a whole — and they’d both benefit individually.

Both Reed (Drew Rosenhaus) and Wicks (Athletes First) got new agents during the offseason, knowing they’ll be eligible for contract extensions after the season and will head into unrestricted free agency after the 2026 season.

“I tell all our guys, ‘I want all you guys to get your second contract, whether it’s here or somewhere [else],’” Vrable said. “I want them to have 10-year careers where they’re both financially and numerically successful.

“I’ve always said, ‘You get what you earn. No more, no less.’ Just [with] the laws of compensation of what you’re going to get, it usually works out that way in this league.”

About our “Most Important Packers of 2025” Series: When the Packers kick off their seventh training camp under head coach Matt LaFleur on July 23, they’ll do so with a host of players facing pivotal seasons. LaFleur clearly believes he has ample talent to be a Super Bowl contender — even if he didn’t want to say so as the offseason program came to a close — but turning that belief into reality will require many of those players to produce at higher levels than they have in the past. This series, which began in 2010 on ESPNWisconsin.com, examines each of those players and how the team’s success hinges on their contributions. The list is compiled with input from team observers, former players and NFL sources.

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