GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) \u2014 Jayden Reed acknowledges that the Green Bay Packers receivers didn\u2019t perform quite the way they wanted last season.<\/p>\n
That left them plenty motivated to take a step forward this season, even before the front office selected two more receivers in the first three rounds of the draft.<\/p>\n
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The additions of Texas\u2019 Matthew Golden<\/a> \u2014 the first Packers wideout drafted in the first round since Javon Walker in 2002 \u2014 and TCU\u2019s Savion Williams have made the competition at receiver one of the biggest stories to watch around Green Bay\u2019s training camp.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got so many different guys who can do so many different things, which makes us so dynamic,\u201d said Reed, whose 55 catches for 857 yards last season led the Packers in both categories. \u201cI think that\u2019s always how our room has been. We\u2019ve just added more talent to the room.\u201d<\/p>\n Christian Watson\u2019s eventual return from a torn anterior cruciate ligament<\/a> will only add to that talent. Even with Watson expected to miss the start of the season, the Packers face plenty of hard choices in determining which receivers to keep on the 53-man roster.<\/p>\n The Packers have enough depth at receiver that Bo Melton has spent much of the offseason working out at cornerback<\/a> instead. Melton caught 24 passes for Green Bay from 2023-24.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Green Bay\u2019s receivers also were garnering plenty of attention last training camp after the Packers made a late-season surge in 2023 that resulted in a surprise divisional playoff appearance.<\/a> The presence of Reed, Watson, Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks gave Green Bay plenty of young talent,<\/a> even if there wasn\u2019t a clear-cut No. 1 option.<\/p>\n But they didn\u2019t show much improvement a year ago. While the various statistical services offer different totals regarding dropped passes, Pro Football Reference<\/a> says Packers quarterback Jordan Love had 7.3% of his attempts dropped last season. Only Daniel Jones had a higher rate of passes dropped.<\/p>\n \u201cNot to the standard, for sure,\u201d Reed said. \u201cI do think we made a lot of plays, but we left a lot of plays out there as well.\u201d<\/p>\n They\u2019ve been making plenty of plays so far in camp.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Golden has been particularly impressive, showcasing his speed and demonstrating he has the traits of a future No. 1 receiver. Williams, drafted in the third round, is practicing as well after recovering from shoulder surgery that limited his offseason activity.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s starting to slow down for me,\u201d said Golden, the No. 23 overall pick in the draft. \u201cIt\u2019s starting to feel like I can go out there and just play and have fun, not have to think about what I need to do. It\u2019s just going out there getting open, knowing my assignment and alignment.\u201d<\/p>\n Some of the Packers\u2019 returning receivers also have made an impression.<\/p>\n Doubs, entering his fourth season, has produced plenty of highlights. He caught a deep touchdown pass<\/a> from Love on Tuesday and followed that up with another long reception in one-on-one drills Wednesday.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n \u201cI just love where he\u2019s at mentally right now,\u201d Love said. \u201cHe\u2019s playing pretty lights-out right now and making a lot of good plays when the ball\u2019s in the air, which is one of those things that\u2019s expected from Rome. He\u2019s done that so many times.\u201d<\/p>\n Mecole Hardman, a three-time Super Bowl champion with the Kansas City Chiefs, signed with the Packers<\/a> before they drafted Golden and Williams. Hardman has made plenty of plays as well, including a touchdown catch<\/a> from Malik Willis on a fourth down play Tuesday.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a very competitive room, a room that\u2019s hungry, a room that\u2019s going to work, that wants to play, that wants to make plays,\u201d Hardman said of the competition among the receivers. \u201cWhen you get a room like that, I think the sky\u2019s the limit.\u201d<\/p>\n That upside will become even more apparent whenever the Packers welcome back Watson, who has been the team\u2019s top deep threat since his arrival in 2022. Watson, who tore his ACL in the 2024 regular-season finale, says he isn\u2019t setting a target date for his return.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been doing cutting stuff already, some route stuff already,\u201d Watson said. \u201cI\u2019m letting the training staff and the strength staff tell me what I got that day. I\u2019m trying not to look too far ahead because then I\u2019m going to want to push for more and more, just how my mind works.\u201d<\/p>\n NOTES: The Packers signed wide receiver Isaiah Neyor and placed offensive tackle Travis Glover on injured reserve. Neyor signed with the San Francisco 49ers in May as an undrafted free agent from Nebraska but got released Monday. He also played college football at Wyoming and Texas.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n