The team fears the worst about the injury to their most explosive receiver.
One of the worst possible outcomes of a relatively meaningless week 18 game came true for the Green Bay Packers on Sunday. The team suffered two injuries to significant players on its offense in quick succession in the second quarter, with wide receiver Christian Watson and quarterback Jordan Love going down with knee and elbow injuries, respectively.
The news on Love is promising; the franchise quarterback apparently hit a nerve in his elbow, but expects to be 100% for Sunday’s Wild Card game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Watson, however, is a worst-case scenario.
According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, the Packers believe that Watson tore the ACL in his right knee, amid some other damage to that joint. If this is confirmed, the injury will keep Watson out for the entire postseason and could sideline him until well into the 2025 season.
Watson finished the 2024 season as one of the NFL’s most explosive receivers. His 21.4 yards per reception average ranked third in the NFL among players with at least 40 receiving targets on the season and his 620 yards was third on the team, despite ranking just fifth in targets and sixth in receptions. Often limited by injuries in his early NFL career, Watson also suited up in a career-high 15 games in 2024, missing only the week five contest against the Rams and the week 17 loss to the Vikings.
Now Watson faces the unenviable scenario of having to rehabilitate a torn ACL going into a contract year while playing a position that requires significant lateral movement on cuts and breaks in and out of routes. With a typical recovery timetable of 9-12 months, Watson could miss a significant portion of next season as well, limiting his earning potential while he approaches free agency in the spring of 2026.
Stay tuned for further updates on Watson’s status.