After a slow start to the season, the Green Bay Packers are firing on all cylinders. A major reason for their recent success has been star quarterback Jordan Love's electrifying play and his dynamic wide receivers, Matthew Golden and Christian Watson.
The star quarterback is playing the best football of his career while overcoming the team's shortcomings.
Love wouldn't be playing at such a high level without Golden and Watson, both of whom have helped lessen the blow of losing Jayden Reed for the year after he suffered a neck injury in Week 2. Then again, the Packers aren't the only team in the NFC North with a prolific receiving tandem. All three of their division foes also have lots of fire at the position.
This begs the question: how do Golden and Waston stack up against other wideouts in the division? With this in mind, here's an NFC North WR power ranking.
NFC North Week WR power rankings: Matthew Golden, Christian Watson give Packers the top duo
- Justin Jefferson: 258 yards, 19 recs, 3 TDs (four games)
- Jordan Addison: 163 yards, 11 recs, 1 TD
If we ranked only the top receiver on each team, the Minnesota Vikings would be at the top of this list. However, Jordan Addison drags his teammate to the cellar. Not that he's bad, but you would expect him to be the No. 2 target in the offense.
Yet, that honor goes to tight end T.J. Hockenson, who's second on the Vikes in targets and receptions. Both of them are tied with one touchdown, while Jefferson leads the team with three.
It's also worth noting that Jefferson's numbers would be much better if he hadn't missed a game against the Miami Dolphins in Week 4. He was back the following contest, so he should have no trouble catching up.
- Luther Burden III: 491 yards, 35 recs, 2 TDs
- Rome Odunze: 381 yards, 24 recs, no touchdowns
You probably heard fantasy football bros rave about Luther Burden III all offseason. So far, he's certainly met expectations. Heck, by numbers alone, Burden would be the No. 3 receiver in the NFC North right now.
Make no mistake, Burden's 130-yard breakout game on Thursday Night Football was impressive, but it also padded his stats a bit. And even then, it wasn't enough to catch up to Golden and Watson.
On the other hand, Rome Odunze has managed to stay healthy this season. But he's been inconsistent and has yet to reach the end zone. That drags Chicago down in this receiver ranking.
- Amon-Ra St. Brown: 372 yards, 37 recs, 5 TDs
- Jameson Williams: 276 yards, 18 recs, 2 TDs
The truth is that depending on the season, or even the week, every NFC North team could claim that they have the best receiver tandem in the division. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams could certainly put up monster stats if the Detroit Lions offense is hitting its stride. But so far this season, both of them are trailing their Packers counterparts. Not by much, but neither has been nearly as productive as either Golden or Watson.
Then again, that's because tight end Sam LaPorta and superstar running back Jahmyr Gibbs are also a big part of Detroit's passing attack. That's most definitely a great problem to have if you're quarterback Jared Goff, but not great if you want the top spot in a receiver ranking.
Thus, the Lions land at No. 2 in this ranking.
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- Christian Watson: 538 yards, 29 recs, 6 TDs
- Matthew Golden: 501 yards, 30 recs, 3 TDs
Without further ado, behold the best receiver tandem in the NFC North: Christian Watson and Matthew Golden. Both of them enter the season with questions, but have passed every test with flying colors.
Watson had never crossed the 700-yard mark in his career but still got a multi-year extension in the offseason. He's close to setting new career bests for catches and receiving yards in a season, and should have no trouble racking up more than 1,200 yards receiving at this pace. Simply put, Green Bay is getting lots of bang for its buck.
On the other hand, there were questions about Matthew Golden making a leap in his sophomore campaign. He gave Cheeseheads reasons for optimism with a breakout playoff game against the rival Bears.
Golden has picked up where he left off in the playoffs and has gone on to give Love a dangerous weapon. What's impressive about the former's success is that he's putting up monster numbers while leading the league in drops. Imagine how much more dominant this quarterback-wideout combo, plus Watson, can be if they fix issues like this.
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