Nobody batted an eye when the Green Bay Packers extended Jayden Reed just before the 2026 NFL Draft. After all, he had been a mainstay of the offense before a collarbone injury held him back last year. However, general manager Brian Gutekunst just raised eyebrows across the NFL when he gave Christian Watson a top-market extension.
Adam Schefter of ESPN broke the news that Watson got a four-year contract extension worth $110.5 million, putting him in the top 20 of the highest-paid receivers in the NFL. Make no mistake, the 2022 second-round pick has been as consistent as they come, but you will be hard-pressed to find someone who believes he deserved top-market money.
This begs the question: Did the Packers overpay for Watson? Early signs point in that direction.
The Packers are paying a premium to retain Christian Watson
A player is worth whatever a team is willing to pay him, and it made sense for the Packers to re-sign Christian Watson before he became a free agent in 2027. Having said that it's hard to justify giving him a top-market contract when he may not even be the best receiver on the Green Bay roster.
For context, Jayden Reed got a three-year, $50.5 million extension early in 2026, and he's been more productive than Watson. Granted, the latter has been consistent the past four years, which is why the Packers gave him a one-year $11 million extension before the 2025 season.
What's surprising is that Green Bay gave the North Dakota State product yet another deal that pays him more (an annual average of $27.5 million) than established veterans such as Davante Adams ($22 M), George Pickens ($27.2 M, franchise tag), and DeVonta Smith ($25 M), even though he hasn't been nearly as productive.
Sure, Watson has crossed the 600-yard mark three times in his career, but he's never registered more than 700 yards in a season. However you look at it, his production doesn't warrant a premium deal.
The Packers had bigger priorities than extending Christian Watson
The Packers appear to be comfortable going into the 2026 season with the trio of Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, and Christian Watson as their top receivers. And perhaps general manager Brian Gutekunst wanted to get ahead of the curve by paying Watson before the market exploded. However, he was still under contract for another year, so Green Bay could have easily waited until 2027 to extend him.
Maybe the Packers think that Watson is going to break out, and you can make the case that he'll put up better stats with Dontayvion Wicks and Romeo Doubs out of the picture. But even then, it doesn't make sense to give him top 20 money, especially when you take into account that Green Bay has bigger needs than receiver, including the offensive line, the offensive backfield, and the pass rush.
In the Packers' defense, they had more than $25 million before extending Watson, and he should have a friendly cap hit in 2026. This means that they could still address other roster voids. Nevertheless, it was odd to see them prioritize getting a deal done with Watson.
Time will tell, and maybe the Packers will come out looking like geniuses, but it doesn't appear to be the case right now.
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