GREEN BAY, Wis. — After the Green Bay Packers suspended wide receiver Romeo Doubs for their Week 5 game against the Los Angeles Rams for conduct detrimental to the team, fellow wideout and 2022 draft pick Christian Watson was asked about putting individual goals aside, especially with a potential contract extension approaching this offseason.
Doubs skipped two practices preceding Green Bay’s trip to Los Angeles, reportedly because he was unhappy with his role in the offense, hence the question to Watson.
“I wouldn’t say it’s easy at all, to be honest,” said Watson, who had a meager eight targets in four games played to that point. “Everyone’s a different person. Everyone has their own views on everything. How I look at it is if I just keep on doing what I do and keep on striving to be the player that I’m going to be, at some point, whether it’s tomorrow or five years from now, I’m gonna get what I deserve.
“One way or another, whether it’s $1 million or $50 million, it is what it is. I think everyone has their own views on it. It’s definitely tough because it’s a business at the end of the day. Everyone’s their own corporation. Everyone’s trying to provide for their families and whatnot. It’s tough to go by when it seems like it’s never going your way, but I don’t really think that’s been the case here for a lot of us. I think we’ve gotten opportunities. All of us would love to get more, but I think that the team goal will come first and you gripe about the individual goals later.”
Watson got only 14 targets through the first six games he played this season. That included a Week 4 game against the Vikings in which Watson suffered an ankle injury late in the first quarter on his lone target. Those 14 targets resulted in nine catches for 157 yards and two touchdowns.
Amid summer debate about who the Packers’ No. 1 wide receiver was or whether they even had one/how important having one was, Watson was probably the closest thing to it because of his size, speed and ability to play every receiver position and be effective at all levels of the field. Yet in an offense that can feature a different leading receiver every week while remaining prolific, there existed the possibility that a player of immense physical talent like Watson could go a month or more relatively quiet.
It’s one thing to say in front of cameras that it’s important to keep your head down, work hard every day and wait for your opportunity — whatever other team-first cliche you want to throw in — but it’s another to actually do that behind closed doors.
“I think it’s very difficult,” quarterback Jordan Love said of Watson’s staying patient through a lack of targets early in the season. “I think as a receiver, obviously, you want to be the guy getting those targets, getting the rock thrown your way. Obviously, there’s so much that goes into the position, doing a great job blocking, different things like that. You do a good job blocking, you obviously want to be rewarded with the ball. When you’re not getting the amount of targets you might want, there could definitely be some frustration there. But Christian, just who he is, he’s a team guy, puts the goals and the wins and things like that of a team over his personal stuff. You know deep down he definitely wants the ball — wants it — but he’s never a guy who’s going to complain about that.”
The Packers have a simple saying to emphasize the need for wide receivers to block.
“No block, no rock.”
Watson certainly abides by that rule.
Watson’s seen an increase of passes coming his way with 37 targets in his last seven games. Those have resulted in 20 catches for 463 yards. He hasn’t caught a touchdown since Week 6, but his presence in the passing game is felt.
A big reason is Watson has managed to stay healthy late into the season. After recurring hamstring injuries through his first two seasons in the NFL, Watson saw a specialist in Madison early last offseason to rectify his soft-tissue problems. Since the start of the offseason program, Watson has missed only three practices and one game because of the freak ankle injury he suffered against the Minnesota Vikings when his leg got caught under another body.
He’s also been much better at catching the ball. Remember all those debates about his contested catch ability earlier in his career? Against the Seattle Seahawks alone, Watson hauled in a 36-yard bomb from Love over cornerback Tariq Woolen while tapping both feet inbounds down the left sideline, made a falling catch on a low throw near the Packers sideline to convert a third down and held on to a 9-yard completion in the red zone while absorbing a thunderous hit. And that’s not even including the 39-yard defensive pass interference penalty he drew on cornerback Josh Jobe down the right sideline.
Watson had seven drops in his first two seasons combined, according to Pro Football Focus, and a reception-to-drop ratio of about 9.9-to-1. That ratio is 29-to-1 this season because he only has one drop, the would’ve-been-49-yard touchdown that fell through his hands against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12. In the last five weeks, he also leads the NFL in yards per catch (29.8) with 13 grabs for 387 yards.
“We’ve been doing a good job to get those reps in practice, trying to hit on some of those deep balls,” Love said. “I think he’s doing a great job just making plays. He’s making contested catches and honestly, he’s blazing by some people.”
Watson’s early season patience is paying dividends.
“He’s been the same guy all year, man, just being a brother, sticking together as one,” receiver Jayden Reed said. “He just stayed down for his time to come. He’s done a great job with that and it’s come to light. The ball always gonna find great energy, so as long as you bring a great energy, the ball gonna find you. That’s my true belief, so he been doing a great job. We gotta keep him rolling because he’s been making those big plays for us to get down the field.”
Not only is Watson himself reaping the rewards of his patience, but so is a team that might need him like this to win a Super Bowl.
“I think he’s had a great probably last two months,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “He’s really showed up, and it’s showing up on game day. He’s made a lot of great plays … and not to mention, he’s blocking his butt off, as well. In every phase of the game, he’s been A-plus. The guy is extremely intelligent. We can move him around. He rarely will have a mental error and he’s doing a good job of winning his one-on-one opportunities.”