{"id":159217,"date":"2025-06-26T05:32:10","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T05:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/159217\/"},"modified":"2025-06-26T05:32:10","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T05:32:10","slug":"christian-watsons-early-return-stuns-insiders-as-packers-consider-trading-veteran-wr-romeo-doubs-nfl-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/159217\/","title":{"rendered":"Christian Watson\u2019s early return stuns insiders as Packers consider trading veteran WR Romeo Doubs | NFL News"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ChristianChristian Watson’s early return stuns Packers (Image via Getty) Injury setbacks have haunted Christian Watson since his NFL debut, but now the tide may be turning. The Green Bay Packers wide receiver, once viewed as a potential breakout star, is pushing toward an unexpected early return from an ACL tear. With his recovery speeding up, Watson\u2019s presence could reshape the Packers\u2019 entire offensive dynamic in 2025. And it\u2019s already causing ripple effects in Green Bay\u2019s wide receiver room.<\/p>\n

Watson eyes Week 1 return as Doubs faces trade risk in Packers WR shake-up<\/p>\n

Peter Bukowski of Locked On Packers has sparked excitement around Watson\u2019s health timeline. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s crazy for him to be back early in the season. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s crazy that he starts the season on the 53. Like, not on PUP… Because they think Week one, Week two, Week three, maybe he could be ready to go,\u201d he said in a video update. If that happens, Watson will beat typical ACL recovery timelines.Bukowski even likened Watson\u2019s path to that of former Packers lineman Bryan Bulaga, who returned within nine months. He labeled Watson\u2019s case \u201cjust juicy, deliciously ironic\u201d because of the WR\u2019s injury-prone history. Watson\u2019s early availability could mean more than just healthy depth\u2014it could unlock Green Bay\u2019s offense in ways the current WR group cannot. \u201cHe would have huge impacts on this offense,\u201d Bukowski emphasized.Beyond recovery, Watson\u2019s value lies in his rare deep-threat capability. \u201cFor whatever you think of Christian Watson, watch the tape and you will see a player that affects defenses… It is Watson\u2019s gravity that makes the play, even though he doesn\u2019t get the ball,\u201d Bukowski said. He cast doubt on rookie Matthew Golden replicating that skill: \u201cWe don\u2019t have any idea if Matthew Golden can actually generate that sort of gravity.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Watson targets early return, trade rumors swirl around trusted target Romeo Doubs<\/p>\n

With Watson trending toward a midseason return and young WRs crowding the depth chart, a shake-up seems imminent. Reports now suggest that Matt LaFleur is open to trading a familiar name: Romeo Doubs. \u201cI\u2019ve always said that I think Doubs is the guy that makes the most sense,\u201d Bukowski noted, citing Doubs\u2019 trade appeal.Also read: NFL\u2019s top 100 shocker: Ravens dominate list with budget superstars<\/a>Bukowski added, \u201cHe would be desirable to other teams, and the Packers would be more willing to give him up in a trade.\u201d Past off-field issues and comparative market value might make Doubs the odd man out. For Watson, though, a surprise comeback could be more than a feel-good story\u2014it could be his career-saving, contract-defining moment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Christian Watson’s early return stuns Packers (Image via Getty) Injury setbacks have haunted Christian Watson since his NFL…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":159218,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2072],"tags":[35816,35817,7,41,345,35819,2514,2513,6,24182,428,35818],"class_list":{"0":"post-159217","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-green-bay-packers","8":"tag-christian-watson-comeback","9":"tag-christian-watson-injury-recovery","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-green-bay","12":"tag-green-bay-packers","13":"tag-green-bay-packers-wide-receivers","14":"tag-greenbay","15":"tag-greenbaypackers","16":"tag-nfl","17":"tag-nfl-trade-deadline","18":"tag-packers","19":"tag-romeo-doubs-trade-rumors"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114748033981388470","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159217","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=159217"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159217\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/159218"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=159217"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=159217"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=159217"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}