GREEN BAY \u2014 Jordan Love\u2019s interactions with his new rookie wide receivers have been limited to a few congratulatory welcome-to-the-team and not much more than that.<\/p>\n
So while the Green Bay Packers quarterback took notice when general manager Brian Gutekunst took the two wideouts \u2014 Texas\u2019 Matthew Golden in the first round and TCU\u2019s Savion Williams in the third \u2014 during the 2025 NFL Draft, Love is holding off on any grand pronouncements until he, you know, actually meets them in person.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were actually doing rookie minicamp this past weekend, and we (veterans) weren\u2019t here for that,\u201d Love explained Wednesday afternoon during the announcement of the 25th annual Green Bay Charity Softball Game<\/a> on May 23 at Fox Cities Stadium, an event that will benefit Love\u2019s Hands of 10ve Foundation<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI briefly shot all those guys a text after they got drafted, just congratulating them, telling them to get ready for work. But I think next week, once they get back in the building with us, we\u2019ll have some more communication and be able to see what those guys are all about.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I\u2019m excited to get to work with them.\u201d<\/p>\n The feeling is mutual.<\/p>\n The rookie minicamp consisted mostly of walkthroughs and meetings, with one quasi-practice on Saturday that lasted just over an hour and was limited to individual drill work, as the rookies arrived on Thursday just as the vets were leaving.<\/p>\n Among the 38 players in attendance \u2014 eight draft picks, 10 undrafted free-agent signees, 11 tryout players and nine holdovers from the roster \u2014 tryout quarterback Taylor Elgersma was the only QB there, and he didn\u2019t throw a single pass to Golden or Williams, who spent the session working with offensive passing-game coordinator Jason Vrable and wide receivers coach Ryan Mahaffey.<\/p>\n Instead, Elgersma threw to coaches and an equipment staffer and into nets, while the receivers working on their line-of-scrimmage releases and other footwork drills.<\/p>\n But both Williams and Golden spoke of how exciting it was to hear from Love after their selections and much they were looking forward to hooking up with him.<\/p>\n \u201cHe just sent me a message like right after I got drafted, and I can’t remember exactly what he said, but he was welcoming me to the team and everything,\u201d an excited Williams said. \u201c(When) your quarterback texts you, it feels great, man.<\/p>\n \u201c(He\u2019s) a great quarterback and I can’t wait to work with him.\u201d<\/p>\n Said Golden: \u201cHe texted me literally right after I got drafted, congratulated me and just told me \u2018It’s time to go to work.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Asked what he wrote back to Love, Golden replied, \u201c(I said), \u2018I\u2019m ready. I\u2019m ready.\u2019 I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life. To be here, I’m going to let my presence be known and I’m going to come in here and compete.\u201d<\/p>\n Love, who is heading into his third season as the Packers starter after his three-year apprenticeship behind four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, went into the draft with some existing pass-catching weapons, certainly.<\/p>\n But there was an argument to be made that his best existing weapon in the passing game was going to be tight end Tucker Kraft, who caught 50 passes for 707 yards and a team-best seven touchdowns last season.<\/p>\n At receiver, meanwhile, Love already knew he\u2019d be without Christian Watson, who is recovering from a torn ACL in his right knee suffered in the regular-season finale against Chicago.<\/p>\n There are also questions about Romeo Doubs, who sustained two late-season concussions and was suspended for one game earlier in the year because of conduct detrimental to the team after he stayed home from work to demonstrate his unhappiness with his role and didn\u2019t tell anyone.<\/p>\n Third-year wide receivers Jayden Reed and Dontavion Wicks are also heading into pivotal Year 3 seasons after Reed led the Packers in catches (55) and receiving yards (857) for the second straight season but disappeared late in the year and Wicks struggled with drops during the first half of the year before getting the problem under control down the stretch.<\/p>\n \u201cI think anytime you add competition to a room, that’s a good thing for our football team,\u201d head coach Matt LaFleur said. \u201cIt’s going to be a competitive room \u2014 we all know that, and I think that’s a positive. Our guys have got to embrace that competition and if they attack it the right way, I think collectively we’ll continue to improve.\u201d<\/p>\n It’s impossible to predict how much impact Golden and Williams, who nearly played together in college<\/a> when Golden came to TCU on a visit and was hosted by his future Packers teammate, will have as rookies. But they\u2019ll have opportunities, and that should only help Love, whose stat line dipped last season after his blazing finish down the stretch in 2023.<\/p>\n