The Green Bay Packers are not going to give wide receiver Matthew Golden much runway in 2026 when it comes to figuring things out.
Many NFL players hit what is known as the “sophomore slump” in their second seasons. Golden will clearly not be afforded the opportunity to struggle as such.
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That’s not to say the Packers are going to ship him off if he starts off the 2026 season slowly. Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst recently placed some high expectations on his former first-round pick, though.
I thought [with] the opportunities that Matthew got, he performed at a very, very high level. Starting in training camp, all through the season,” Gutekunst said in a recent interview at the NFL Draft Scouting Combine. “I know he would have liked more, and I would expect that going into this season, he’s going to have more, and we’re excited about what he can do for the team next year.”
Clearly, Gutekunst wants, if not needs, Golden to quickly live up to his status as the No. 23 pick of the 2025 NFL Draft.
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The only question here is what Gutekunst and head coach and play-caller Matt LaFleur consider to be “more”.
More is certainly more than 44 targets, right? Golden was targeted 44 times as a rookie during the 2025 regular season. He caught 29 of those targets for 361 yards, averaging 12.4 yards per catch. He made some clutch catches, but also never found the end zone.
Golden did find the endzone in the playoffs, albeit in a loss to the Chicago Bears.
In that game, he was targeted by quarterback Jordan Love five times. He caught four catches for 84 yards and put together this slick fourth-quarter touchdown:
Don’t let Al Michael’s monotone deliver spoil it. This was a huge moment for both Golden and the Packers.
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So, more undoubtedly means more targets, but it also means more plays like that by Golden when he gets the football in his hands.
It also means he has to do his part in a deep wide receiver room.
Even with Romeo Doubs likely to leave in free agency, Golden is, at the moment, looking up at Christian Watson, Jayden Reed and likely Dontayvion Wicks on the depth chart.
Golden must, at least, become a better wideout for the Packers than Wicks as soon as possible in 2026, but the Packers didn’t select him as the first, first-round wide receiver since 2002 (Javon Walker) to be a depth player.
Gutekunst clearly has high expectations for Golden, and those expectations should be that Golden competes alongside Watson to be the true WR1 for this Packers team in 2026.
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Anything else would be a dissapointment.
No pressure, kid.
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