GREEN BAY — As it turned out, Jayden Reed wasn’t the least bit offended. Instead, the Green Bay Packers wide receiver actually agreed with the premise. 

Although congratulations were certainly in order for Reed for the three-year, $50.25 million contract extension he signed with the Packers in April, the deal also was for far less than what Reed might’ve gotten on the open market had he played out the final year of his rookie deal.

And so, when asked during a break in the Packers’ organized team activity practices earlier this week if he might’ve undervalued himself and taken less than he should’ve, Reed didn’t get mad.

He got real.

“I mean … I don’t think you’re wrong. I don’t think you’re wrong. Most definitely,” Reed replied with a smile. “I know there was a lot of talk, of, you know, do I play it out? Do I? There was a lot of talk.

“But this the place where I wanted to be, so I don’t think it was really any issue. I’m not a greedy guy, man. I do this for the love of the game, and my teammates, and I work very hard for it. So it was just my decision, just to be in Green Bay. This is something I wanted to happen, and that was this decision we agreed on.”

Reed’s contract, which ties him to the Packers through the 2029 season, included a $20.5 million guaranteed signing bonus and averages $16.75 per season in new money — making him the 29th highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL.

Even though he led the Packers in receiving as a rookie second-round pick in 2023 (64 receptions, 793 yards, eight touchdowns) and again in 2024 (55 receptions, 857 yards, six TDs), Reed is making less than ex-Packers wideout Romeo Doubs, who left in March for a four-year, $68 million deal ($39 million fully guaranteed).

On Thursday, Reed got leapfrogged by another wide receiver — this one, though, is still his teammate: Christian Watson, who signed a four-year, $110.5 million extension that reportedly included a $31 million guaranteed signing bonus.

And much like Reed’s deal, Watson’s could wind up being one heck of a bargain before season’s end.

Watson was set to play this season on the one-year, $11 million extension he signed last September while still on the physically unable to perform list while working his way back from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that he’d suffered at the end of the 2024 regular season.

“I mean, just coming off of ACL, it wasn’t really, you know, that much of a possibility for me to do anything long term [last year],” Watson said of that one-year deal on Wednesday. “So it was just [about] security.”

And to some degree, that’s what his new deal was about, too.

Now, shelling out a potential $160.75 million — and at least $51 million in guaranteed money — is hardly bargain-basement financial planning.

But comparatively speaking, if Watson and Reed do what the Packers believe they will — starting with staying healthy — they’ll more than get their money’s worth.

Not to mention have the fiscal wherewithal — despite the megabucks deals they’ve given to quarterback Jordan Love and first-team All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons — to pay their next extension target: Tight end Tucker Kraft.

The top two highest-paid wide receivers in football — Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, whose deal is worth $168.6 million, and Cincinnati’s Ja’Marr Chase, whose deal is worth $161 million — make more by themselves than Watson and Reed combined.

With a $27.5 million per year average, Watson’s deal ranks 15th among wide receivers. After the four-year, $141 million extension the Atlanta Falcons gave Drake London earlier this week, there are 11 receivers whose contracts average $30 million or more per season, and three others (Tee Higgins, Alec Pierce, Jaylen Waddle) who are ahead of Watson according to Spotrac.

The reason Watson isn’t higher in the pay pecking order is his injury history. Of a possible 68 games in his first four seasons, Watson has missed 20 of them, including eight during a 2023 season primarily because of hamstring issues, and seven games last season while coming back from the ACL tear.

But after making his season debut on Oct. 25 at Pittsburgh, Watson wound up catching 35 passes for 611 yards and six touchdowns in just 10 games.

“I’m in a great spot. I feel blessed to be in this position that I’m in today. So, I’ve got no complaints,” Watson said. “[This year] really comes down to mindset. I think that [it’s about] just approaching it the right way in terms of knowing that there’s a lot of things I can still continue to get better at, continue to hone in on.

“Obviously, the best way I’m able to go out there and go out on the field is to play fast and play free. I feel like that helps the team come together and everything, too. I’m just excited to see where everything’s going this offseason.”

Like Watson, Reed took into account his own experience with injuries when deciding whether to push the contractual envelope or give up some earning power for real financial security.

After missing only one game despite various bumps and bruises during his first two NFL seasons, Reed was ready to play through a Jones fracture in his foot last season before breaking his collarbone in a Week 2 win over the Washington Commanders.

He returned to action on Dec. 7 against the Chicago Bears and finished the year having caught 19 total passes for 207 yards and one TD.

“It was definitely a lot of uncertainty. I’d never been injured to that caliber and been out that long. I’d never broke a bone. I’d never been out that long. So it was a lot different for me,” Reed explained. “[There were] a lot of thoughts going through my head, not knowing what was going to happen, not sure if I was going to come back.

“[Playing late in the year] helped me gain my confidence back, but I wouldn’t say really the money is the weight off my back, man. Just knowing I’m locked in here, and able to continue to learn this offense and continue to grow with the same guys that I’ve been with, I think that’s what’s most important — the chemistry with J-Love, and those little things.

“I think that’s going to take us a lot farther than anything else could.”

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