Should the Packers Extend Christian Watson Right Now?

The Green Bay Packers put their foot on the gas in the 2025 draft by selecting two wide receivers in the first three rounds. Matthew Golden and Savion Williams instantly provided a facelift to a group that underwhelmed down the stretch last season.

Christian Watson's torn ACL in Week 18 accelerated the urgency for the Packers to shore up the wide receiver room. With all the uncertainty about when Watson will be available in 2025, especially with it being a contract year, might it make sense to get an extension ironed out now?

Green Bay’s hesitancy is obvious. After tearing his ACL in the regular-season finale against the Chicago Bears, you'd like to assume that Watson will regain his form, but there's no guarantee. The soft-tissue issues that plagued him in his first two years finally subsided in 2024, only for him to suffer a more gruesome injury.

Given all this, it’s risky for Green Bay to open the checkbook. But broaden your perspective a bit.

Watson will be coming off a knee injury and entering a big season for his career. He's set to miss a large chunk of the year; we just don't know how much. From his perspective, having the safety net of a one- or two-year contract extension would provide a cushion for him to go out and show he can stay healthy and produce at a high level over the next two seasons before cashing in on a larger scale. The short-term benefit of that security could do wonders.

From Green Bay's perspective, Watson doesn't have a ton of leverage at the moment. He's rehabbing the torn ACL, and the injury designation will follow him until he shows he can hold up for a season. It may not be fair, but it’s true.

If the Packers started now, they could likely work out something affordable. Green Bay would be taking the risk that Watson would come back as expected, and it looks like he did before the injury. Even if he doesn't, a one- or two-year extension at a reasonable cost wouldn't break the bank.

Green Bay's offense is undoubtedly different when Watson is on the field. Head coach Matt LaFleur said as much in early May.

The Packers clearly value Watson. They addressed his upcoming absence in the regular season by drafting two wide receivers and signing veteran Mecole Hardman. That wasn't all because of the Watson injury, but it absolutely factored into the equation.

At the owners' meetings in April, general manager Brian Gutekunst

Remember that this was before the Packers drafted Golden and Williams, specifically Golden, a vertical threat who the Packers will task with filling Watson’s role to some degree.

Gutekunst knew what they would be missing.

Bringing in more bodies will help. Green Bay now has a ton of quantity and quality in the wide receiver room after the draft. It's been suggested that, given how the Packers conducted the draft, Watson and even Romeo Doubs may not be part of the long-term plan.

If Watson is to stay, getting a deal done now involves some risk but makes sense. Envisioning Golden and Watson on the field at the same time is nightmare fuel for an opposing defense. Sprinkling in Doubs, Jayden Reed, and tight end Tucker Kraft is a quarterback's dream.

If the blueprint for the Packers is to let this year play out with the idea that they don't feel they need to retain Watson or Doubs, by all means, let those chips fall where they may. But if the plan revolves around keeping Watson in the mix past 2025, getting a deal done now would benefit both sides — and provide a collective sigh of relief.