Christian Watson has always been a little bit behind the eight ball in Green Bay.
For starters, life is never going to be easy when you’re drafted essentially as the one-to-one replacement for a future Hall of Famer, but that’s what Watson walked into when the Packers took him in the spring of 2022, using draft capital they got for Davante Adams to do so.
It certainly didn’t help Watson when he dropped a sure touchdown on the first play of his career. Nor did the injuries that followed that season. Or the season after.
You get the point. Watson got off to a slow start.
But in 2024 he put his injury issues mostly behind him, posting a career high in yards. In 2025, he came back ahead of schedule from his ACL tear and put up a career high in catches, missing his career high in yards by just nine yards — less than a single catch, on average.
In short, when healthy, he’s been really good. But you may not even realize how good he’s been.
In 2024, among players with at least 50 targets, Watson was one of just two players in the NFL to average more than 20 yards per catch, putting up 21.4 yards per reception on 29 catches. Only Alec Pierce of the Indianapolis Colts was better at 22.3 per catch. (Curiously, Pierce was drafted 53rd overall in 2022 — a draft slot that originally belonged to the Packers.)
Then, in 2025, Watson repeated that feat. Again looking at players with 50 or more targets, Watson was once again second in the NFL in yards per catch, averaging 17.5 per catch. (Pierce again was tops in the NFL at 21.5 per catch.)
It’s just one stat, but I think this exemplifies exactly what the Packers were looking for in Watson. He has rare physical gifts, and as he’s gradually learned to harness those gifts, he’s turned into one of the most uniquely productive wide receivers in the NFL. Getting him more opportunities should be a top priority in 2026, and doing so would go a long way toward turning the Packers’ passing game loose.