Will Savion Williams Become A Weapon After the Wicks Trade?

After weeks of speculation among the Green Bay Packers fanbase about whether they would or wouldn’t be interested in trading Dontayvion Wicks, Brian Gutekunst finally pulled the trigger. On Friday afternoon, he agreed to trade the fourth-year receiver to the Philadelphia Eagles for two fifth-round draft picks. Second-year receiver Savion Williams stands to benefit the most from the trade.

The trade made a ton of sense and helps the Packers with three things in 2026.

First, they get an extra draft pick. In a draft where they don’t have a first-round pick, the extra selection will give them a chance to add cheap and controllable talent to their roster in a round that Gutekunst has done quite well in (see Wicks circa 2023). It also clears up a logjam that developed at wide receiver, now with Watson, Reed, and Golden as the clear top three. The third thing this trade accomplishes is creating a clear pathway to get former top-100 pick Savion Williams on the field.

Williams didn’t have the rookie year that I’m sure he expected as the 87th-overall pick in last year’s draft. He managed only 10 receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown, while adding 37 rushing yards as a rookie. Of course, he primarily saw his action as the team’s starting kick returner for the duration of the season until a foot injury forced him onto the injured reserve list on January 3.

The 24-year-old showed some flashes as a kick returner but ultimately proved underwhelming, as the Packers finished with one of the worst kick return games in the league. Williams finished with 28 kick returns for 717 yards over 12 games. Skyy Moore was one of Green Bay’s additions, and he will be the team’s returner barring an upset, leaving Williams’ sole contribution coming on the offensive side of the ball.

When he got on the field on offense last year, the Packers pretty much only used him for gadget plays. The bulk of his touches were screen passes or jet sweeps. He basically saved Green Bay’s bacon in the win against the New York Giants in November with a wild 33-yard catch to help the Packers steal the lead late in the game. However, that proved to be an anomaly instead of a sign of what was to come.

With Wicks gone, the Packers have over 400 snaps from last season to fill, and as Williams is the fourth WR on the depth chart, most of those are going to him.

Green Bay added Skyy Moore to handle returns. Maybe they have a package for him in the offense, taking over the jet sweeps or screens that we saw Williams run last year, but that’s likely it. They also brought Bo Melton back. Still, if they use him on offense, it will be more of a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency option. He will be one of the team’s top gunners and provide depth at WR – and possibly cornerback?

The 6’4”, 222 lb. Williams brings size the Packers don’t otherwise have to the roster. Christian Watson is the same height but is 14 lbs. lighter at 208. Williams has the physical traits to go across the middle of the field against linebackers or the ability to outmuscle a smaller corner. Jordan Love is not afraid to stretch the field, and Williams’ 4.48-second speed and large frame could quickly make him one of Love’s favorite targets.

Coming out of TCU, Williams’ athletic testing numbers helped him shoot up draft boards. Two of his most impressive plays at TCU were a 75-yard touchdown reception against Texas Tech and a 20-yard fourth-down touchdown run against Arizona. Last year, once Tucker Kraft went down, it seemed like this Packers offense was lacking a go-to option on must-have downs. When given that chance against New York, Williams delivered.

Could Williams turn into Green Bay’s clutch weapon next year?

In a perfect world, Williams will fill the Wicks role next season and maybe bring a little extra juice with his size and speed. But one thing is for sure: This current wide receiver group is not the picture of health.

All three of Watson, Reed, and Golden have experienced injuries and have missed time throughout their careers. Not a single member of the trio played all 17 games last year. Watson missed the first chunk of the year while recovering from his ACL tear. A collarbone and foot injury that required surgery knocked Reed out in Week 2, and Golden missed a few games with a shoulder injury.

If any of those three go down over the course of the season, we could see Williams take on an even bigger role. In 2025, the Packers utilized three-wide-receiver sets on approximately 56% of their offensive plays. Green Bay would be wise to get him on the field and acclimated to the offense early in the season to make sure he’s ready in the event of a big-time injury.

The Packers wouldn’t have traded Wicks if they didn’t think Williams was ready for a bigger role on this team. They also wouldn’t have drafted him as early as they did last year if they didn’t think he could develop into a big-time contributor. Teams don’t draft kick returners 87th overall – but they draft high-end wide receivers there. Unfortunately for Wiliams, there were too many bodies on the 2025 squad for him to have an impact.

The landscape has changed, though, and it opens up a path for Williams to show that last year’s highlight-reel catches weren’t anomalies, they were forecasts of bigger things to come.