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WR Matthew Golden, GB (2 Viewers)

Bronco Billy said:
Then if you do have them you need to find the guys most capable of exploiting D matchups
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This, and Reed is used in a Deebo-light manner on sweeps and quick screens.

He’s their gadget guy. This also serves to give him a bit more opportunity to get the ball into his hands than the others.
 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
Bronco Billy said:
Then if you do have them you need to find the guys most capable of exploiting D matchups
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This, and Reed is used in a Deebo-light manner on sweeps and quick screens.

He’s their gadget guy. This also serves to give him a bit more opportunity to get the ball into his hands than the others.
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Savion Williams might have something to say about that.

It's risky to mess around with this group forsure. It's the unknown with Golden and his draft status that makes me want to gamble on him over the others. It's the only place I'm really seeing potential for higher upside, which could turn ugly pretty fast too if you have to over pay.

Eta. This is a team with holes at corner and on the edge, but saw enough in Golden to break a long standing rule and drafted a wr in the first even with the plethora of wrs already on the roster. It made me take notice.
 
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The Longtime Lurker said:
They're all good, but if one turns out better than good it's worth the gamble at the right price
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Reed’s 1st 2 NFL seasons:
2023: 94 targets, 64 receptions for 793/8. That was in just 13 starts. Also ran 11x for another 119 yards & 2 TD.

2024: 10 starts, he had 55 receptions on 75 targets for 867/6. Also ran 20x for 163 yards & 1 TD

So despite fewer targets, his YPC went from ~12.4 to ~15.6, while his success rate on targets increased from 68% to 73% normally folks see that sort of trend as a good thing.

I would also humbly suggest that Jordan Love has also been growing as a player, and we know that not all targets are equal. Love actually regressed a bit from 2023 to 2024, with 7 fewer PaTD & 770 fewer yards (-22% TDs, -19% yards)

I’m just saying that some of GB’s receivers issues could also be a QB issue. They also leaned into Jacobs in the red zone a ton last year, likely another big reason for the QB/receivers TD reduction.

If I were a betting man, I’d bet Reed has the most FF points of that receiving corps for 2025. Golden probably a close second. Watson seems unlikely to contribute much this year from what I’ve been seeing, and Doubs/Wicks aren’t a threat to either Reed or Golden, IMO. Probably Kraft is next in line after their top 2 WR.

Last I’d heard they were trying to move Doubs.

To those commenting on Reed’s drops, it’s worth noting that Golden has had drop issues of his own, and the sub 4.3 40 at the combine boosted his draft stock. Golden has a 7.4% career drop rate. 2024 really helped as his 2023 rate was 13%. Jayden Reed’s career drop rate is 9.6%, but that’s after 1 bad year in 2024. In 2023 it was 4.5%. Honestly, i don’t see a whole lot of daylight between them when it comes to drops. They each had a good and bad year over the last 2.

Hard to call either a trend - more of a “hey, I hope they both catch the ball better in 2025 than they have the last 2 years” sorta thing.

As some mentioned, much of this will come down to offensive philosophy and how much the ball gets spread around. Some will come down to who Love targets more.

I think everyone can agree that GB’s best 2025 lineup has Golden, Reed, & Kraft on the field together as much as possible.
 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
The Longtime Lurker said:
They're all good, but if one turns out better than good it's worth the gamble at the right price
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Reed’s 1st 2 NFL seasons:
2023: 94 targets, 64 receptions for 793/8. That was in just 13 starts. Also ran 11x for another 119 yards & 2 TD.

2024: 10 starts, he had 55 receptions on 75 targets for 867/6. Also ran 20x for 163 yards & 1 TD

So despite fewer targets, his YPC went from ~12.4 to ~15.6, while his success rate on targets increased from 68% to 73% normally folks see that sort of trend as a good thing.

I would also humbly suggest that Jordan Love has also been growing as a player, and we know that not all targets are equal. Love actually regressed a bit from 2023 to 2024, with 7 fewer PaTD & 770 fewer yards (-22% TDs, -19% yards)

I’m just saying that some of GB’s receivers issues could also be a QB issue. They also leaned into Jacobs in the red zone a ton last year, likely another big reason for the QB/receivers TD reduction.

If I were a betting man, I’d bet Reed has the most FF points of that receiving corps for 2025. Golden probably a close second. Watson seems unlikely to contribute much this year from what I’ve been seeing, and Doubs/Wicks aren’t a threat to either Reed or Golden, IMO. Probably Kraft is next in line after their top 2 WR.

Last I’d heard they were trying to move Doubs.

To those commenting on Reed’s drops, it’s worth noting that Golden has had drop issues of his own, and the sub 4.3 40 at the combine boosted his draft stock. Golden has a 7.4% career drop rate. 2024 really helped as his 2023 rate was 13%. Jayden Reed’s career drop rate is 9.6%, but that’s after 1 bad year in 2024. In 2023 it was 4.5%. Honestly, i don’t see a whole lot of daylight between them when it comes to drops. They each had a good and bad year over the last 2.

Hard to call either a trend - more of a “hey, I hope they both catch the ball better in 2025 than they have the last 2 years” sorta thing.

As some mentioned, much of this will come down to offensive philosophy and how much the ball gets spread around. Some will come down to who Love targets more.

I think everyone can agree that GB’s best 2025 lineup has Golden, Reed, & Kraft on the field together as much as possible.
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Great points and i can't really argue any of it.

I know what i saw last year and though i would have preferred defense as a fan i was ok with a wr (though i admittedly hoped for Egbuka). The 15.4% drop rate last year was concerning enough and with Golden in the first and Williams in the 3rd i have to question the faith the staff has behind the scenes.

Time will tell and i certainly can't and won't argue you're wrong.
 
Inside Training Camp: Highlights, buzz from Tuesday, July 29

Excerpt:

NFL.com provides highlights and buzz below from Tuesday's training camps across the league.

Golden a future WR1?​

The Green Bay Packers finally fulfilled their fans' wishes when they spent a first-round pick on a receiver in 2025.
That selection, Texas product Matthew Golden, is starting to turn heads at Packers camp. Golden made an excellent grab by winning position in a one-on-one drill Tuesday and hauled in a pass to the delight of Packers fans.
Asked afterward about the rookie, Jordan Love had plenty of good things to say.
"I think that's one of his specialties that I've seen so far is just the aggressiveness in his hands and always trying to high point the ball," Love said after practice, via The Athletic. "He's got very strong hands and he's able to go up and be able to compete for that ball. I think that's one of those things that's going to separate him."
Love added: "He's been doing a great job. He's been in the book," Love said of Golden. "He's been getting more comfortable with knowing where he needs to be. Let's just keep building that. But I think the playmaking ability is there, you can see that. When the ball is in the air he's going to go get it and make that play."
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Golden certainly made a play Tuesday and sees many more in his future.
"I'm used to making plays like that," he said, via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal. "If the ball is in anywhere close to me, my mindset is to go get it no matter where the DB is. I feel like that's something in my game. Even though I'm not the biggest on the field, but I got the mindset to go get the ball. For me, that's a big part of my game. I can make contested catches, I can adjust to the ball well."
-- Nick Shook
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Hot Sauce Guy said:
The Longtime Lurker said:
Very true with raw, but as you said, he's the Deebo if he shows he can play and that cuts into Reeds production
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As a Jacobs shareholder I would have preferred they not draft this dude.
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How many of these "Deebo types" really do anything though? Deebo is pretty 1 of 1 in my eyes. Savion Williams is statistically much more likely to be Laviska Shenault than anything even close to Deebo.

As for Golden, I've found some of the comps to be pretty weird. I'm seeing more of a Brandin Cooks type, which is great for GB, and likely especially great for Jacobs as far as keeping safeties deeper.

I think the ideal run out for GB when everyone is healthy, is Golden and Watson outside, with Reed in the slot, and being a run heavy/PA deep shot kinda team.
 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
travdogg said:
I think the ideal run out for GB when everyone is healthy, is Golden and Watson outside, with Reed in the slot, and being a run heavy/PA deep shot kinda team.
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Thought Watson wasn’t due back for a while though.
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I've heard October is the expected timeline.

Watson himself has said he hasn't ruled out week 1, and while he is running currently, that feels very unrealistic.
 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
travdogg said:
Watson himself has said he hasn't ruled out week 1, and while he is running currently, that feels very unrealistic
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Yeah, he tore it in January. It’s supposed to be a 10-month recovery. October sounds possible. Week 1 notsomuch.
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Yeah, there's no chance of that happening. The dude is made of glass and any pushing on a normal time frame would seem unwise, even expecting him to hit a normal time line might be expecting to much when it's all said and done.
 
After I thought about it more, it's makes even more sense for GB to draft Golden. Last season, Wicks and Reed were league worst in drop percentage, while Doubs was in the worst 15. And if you watch tape of Golden's college targets, pretty obvious he has great hands.

Golden doesn't play to his 4.29 40 time IMO, and has a smaller frame, but GB really needs a receiver who can catch the ball, which is where Golden shines. Previously, GB drafted a bunch of promising receivers hoping a couple of those guys would develop better hands, but none did, so they finally addressed WR in the first round this year. That's not to say Wicks and Reed can't hit the juggs machine and get better this year, but if they don't, there is a path to significant targets for Golden.
 
bluemanfoo said:
After I thought about it more, it's makes even more sense for GB to draft Golden. Last season, Wicks and Reed were league worst in drop percentage, while Doubs was in the worst 15. And if you watch tape of Golden's college targets, pretty obvious he has great hands.

Golden doesn't play to his 4.29 40 time IMO, and has a smaller frame, but GB really needs a receiver who can catch the ball, which is where Golden shines. Previously, GB drafted a bunch of promising receivers hoping a couple of those guys would develop better hands, but none did, so they finally addressed WR in the first round this year. That's not to say Wicks and Reed can't hit the juggs machine and get better this year, but if they don't, there is a path to significant targets for Golden.
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Just a random thought but if you have two guys who are worst in the league in drops and a third guy in the bottom 15, do you just write that off to bad luck or should we think about possible alternative explanations beyond just a crazy coincidence? Malik Willis only threw the ball about 55 times last year but his completion rate with that small sample size was 10 points higher than Love. I only really watch Packers games until the playoffs and my impression last season was that Love has an accuracy problem. He rarely hits guys in stride on the hands. My question is who makes the call as to whether an incompletion is a drop and how subjective is it? Sometimes it’s an obvious drop and I know Reed and Wicks each had a few of those. If a receiver has to slow down and reach back with a defender flying at him and barely gets a hand on the ball, is that a drop?
 
CletiusMaximus said:
Just a random thought but if you have two guys who are worst in the league in drops and a third guy in the bottom 15, do you just write that off to bad luck or should we think about possible alternative explanations beyond just a crazy coincidence? Malik Willis only threw the ball about 55 times last year but his completion rate with that small sample size was 10 points higher than Love. I only really watch Packers games until the playoffs and my impression last season was that Love has an accuracy problem. He rarely hits guys in stride on the hands. My question is who makes the call as to whether an incompletion is a drop and how subjective is it? Sometimes it’s an obvious drop and I know Reed and Wicks each had a few of those. If a receiver has to slow down and reach back with a defender flying at him and barely gets a hand on the ball, is that a drop?
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This is a thought I’ve thought before.

I’ve never come away from watching a Love / packers game thinking “wow, he put that right on the receivers hands in stride”. I usually come away thinking the opposite - some of the “great catches” Reed & Watkins make wouldn’t have to be great if the ball had better placement.

But then, I’m not a big Love fan.
 
Faust said:
Ryan Wood
Matthew Golden had elevated to marching Keisean Nixon in 1v1. Nixon blanketed Golden on a pair of deep routes, giving no separation, and dropping a pick on first rep. On their third, Golden beat Nixon on a slant. Strong catch with Nixon draped on his back. Great test for the rook.
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Got to love the offseason, guy makes catch on 1/3 balls…able to make a catch on a slant when well covered 1v1…season cannot arrive soon enough
 
This whole thing about not playing to his 4.29 speed. I'm not saying this is necessarily the case, but maybe he doesn't have to? There are guys, Steve Smith and Antonio Brown come to mind, where they could toy with defenders in terms of doing moves at less-than-full-speed in order to create space and to then "be twitchy" and turn on the gas. Requires a level of trust between the receiver and the QB though.

I remember a few long bombs to Steve Smith where he is basically covered (because he isn't going full) but then fakes and hesitates like he's looking back for the ball (that is still a long ways to go before it comes down but the defender doesn't know that and thinks it's imminent) and then turn on the gas and catches the ball in stride with at least a couple yards of separation and is on ESPN that night. Big Ben and AB used to do some silly fake out stuff. I'm not saying Golden is gonna be like those guys but he fits the profile IMO and I'm not sure that this notion of not playing to his 4.29 speed really carries any water. There is actually such a thing as running routes with *timing* and not just speed. You don't necessarily want to get to the spot too fast. I wouldn't know what that's like but I have known athletes that were correctly coached to go just a little bit slower, and it can be a hard mental thing to master. He might do it and be able to toy with defenders.

I would think there is always the matter of rookies (at all positions) needing the game to slow down at some point and the learning curve and so forth. Many have said the game didn't slow down for them until mid-season (and this is for rookies that did something or became something). The mental processing time certainly can have a direct effect on how fast a player actually moves. Anyway I'm super bullish.
 
The ability to change speed and direction quickly and fluidly is probably more important than top speed. Kind of like a baseball pitcher. That said his 4.29 is puzzling. Nowhere on any of the Texas highlights I saw did I see Golden erasing angles with his speed or pulling away in the manner sub 4.3 speed would suggest. Look at college highlight of Jamo, Achane, Worthy, Gibbs you can see this shot out of cannon effect they have in the open field. There is talk among some respected online football analysts that Golden’s 40 was mistimed. Maybe, maybe not. But whether he runs 4.29, 4.35, 4.41 it doesn’t matter. He’s more than fast enough for the NFL and it’s all the other skills he supposedly can bring to the table that will make him successful.
 
REDRAFT
Consensus projections are WR51
Current ADP is WR44 which slides into a Top 100 slot

Green Bay invested a lot into him, they were not satisfied with the production and attitudes of their current WRs and so they bring in Golden and put everyone on notice
They watched Love after paying him a king's ransom he likely did not deserve...dude wins a Playoff game and then threatens to hold out
Packers are going to do everything they can to help Love succeed even if his talent does not balance the paycheck right now

Anyone that thinks that Golden will not be a starting WR in this offense has Fruit Loops on the brain
I don't care what his 40-time, I don't care what people think they see in practice right now, the Packers are going to use Matt Golden
I have Golden conservatively at about 800-900-1,000 yds and maybe 6 TDs, 100 targets or close to it and perhaps a 60% catch rate
60/900/6 and I'll share where I get my targets from because everyone is still mesmerized by the 2024 numbers :rant:

Love threw 579 times in 2023 and the Packers made the Playoffs, won a game and almost pulled the upset at San Fran
Last year he tossed 425 times and like most everyone just keeps rolling on that number...FRUIT LOOPS on the brain
Where did last year take the Packers?

He has a very cheap price tag as your WR4/5 and I truly believe he has solid WR3/Flex written all over him, in fact if he clears the numbers I posted and gets the type of targets we associate with a WR1 on most teams, he could be a Top 25 WR easily IMHO...I'll close with this.

When you can see where players are likely to be drafted in 2026 and you are competing in 2025, I think it was DD(He's still the Phantom Menace here) that pushed everyone to get into VBD but another viewpoint into the center we are all looking at is being able to see into the future. Dodds use to call it the tea leaves and while not foolproof, i've seen this story before and when you factor in the price tag it feels like an absolute no brainer. At the least he should be the guy you initially say is a possible bye week fill in but quickly you're gonna see him move up the charts. Think of the value he could bring and other GMs like new shiny objects so if he does come out of the box quickly and you think he's over performing, you can trade him even as a combo addition to get the guy you want

Take the :moneybag: and run
 
A big reason they threw much less last year was simple: Jordan Love was hurt most of the year and he was playing sloppy. They had added Josh Jacobs and leaned on him. I would hope a healthy Love means better play and more throws. He’s a good value in fantasy. I would expect him to run a bit more as well.

As for Golden, he’s definitely going to be on the field a lot as a starter but 4 different Packers had between 70 and 76 targets last year.
 
Ilov80s said:
A big reason they threw much less last year was simple: Jordan Love was hurt most of the year and he was playing sloppy. They had added Josh Jacobs and leaned on him. I would hope a healthy Love means better play and more throws. He’s a good value in fantasy. I would expect him to run a bit more as well.

As for Golden, he’s definitely going to be on the field a lot as a starter but 4 different Packers had between 70 and 76 targets last year.
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Someone call 9-1-1, is there a medic in the house?

-You plainly can see why the Packers/Love threw 425 times, injuries and perhaps some sloppy play due to those injuries after $250M contract or whatever he fleeced them for
Then have the cojones to jump on to the target distribution in 2024...what are the odds those lottery balls come in the same way this season?
About the same as the WSOP Main Event Champion, Michael Mizrachi winning again next year

You acknowledge Golden will be on the field a lot, the targets and production will take care of themselves
I edited this down, I made myself blush :lol:
 
Ministry of Pain said:
Ilov80s said:
A big reason they threw much less last year was simple: Jordan Love was hurt most of the year and he was playing sloppy. They had added Josh Jacobs and leaned on him. I would hope a healthy Love means better play and more throws. He’s a good value in fantasy. I would expect him to run a bit more as well.

As for Golden, he’s definitely going to be on the field a lot as a starter but 4 different Packers had between 70 and 76 targets last year.
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Someone call 9-1-1, is there a medic in the house?

-You plainly can see why the Packers/Love threw 425 times, injuries and perhaps some sloppy play due to those injuries after $250M contract or whatever he fleeced them for
Then have the cojones to jump on to the target distribution in 2024...what are the odds those lottery balls come in the same way this season?
About the same as the WSOP Main Event Champion, Michael Mizrachi winning again next year

You acknowledge Golden will be on the field a lot, the targets and production will take care of themselves
I edited this down, I made myself blush :lol:
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I like Golden, got him in dynasty. But for 2025 there are a lot of ways the targets could break. Love is still kind of an unknown IMO.
 
I think GB has depth, but little talent at WR. My guess is that if Golden turns out to be worth the draft capital, he and Kraft take most of the volume.
 
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A fully healthy Musgrave has to potential to take some looks aswell. There were high hopes for him before a couple weird injuries.

I'm buying into Golden as the #1, but after that it feels clear as mud. Even a guy like Wicks who had issues hanging on to the ball, but is seemingly always open has a chance to step up.
 
Is he picking up any steam in dynasty from this news or are people still looking at him a notch below Egbuka and as more of a back end 1st round rookie draft pick?
 
Ilov80s said:
Is he picking up any steam in dynasty from this news or are people still looking at him a notch below Egbuka and as more of a back end 1st round rookie draft pick?
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I like both, but I chose Golden over Egbuka. I think it is more about splitting hairs than anything else, but Golden reminds me of Chris Olave, and his ability to be clutch down the stretch for Texas against the best college football had to offer swayed me. Egbuka is more like JSN lite. He is one of the smartest players at the position coming out. They are both tremendous talents. You have to choose for me. I chose Golden.
 
Andy Herman
The WR room is being brutalized right now.

Watson - PUP

Wicks & Reed already out.

Savion Williams looked to be off to the side with something earlier and has not returned.

Doubs just went out with what looked like a back injury.
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Hayden Winks
the runway for matthew golden to be very good right away could not be clearer. i moved him to 53rd overall.
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Ilov80s said:
Is he picking up any steam in dynasty from this news or are people still looking at him a notch below Egbuka and as more of a back end 1st round rookie draft pick?
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One month ago I traded up to take him at pick 19 in a 10 team 2qb .5 ppr dynasty rookie draft. I thought that was good value for my rebuild plans.

Egbuka went with the 8th pick.
 
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