Last April, the Green Bay Packers made the crowd just outside Lambeau Field erupt with glee when they selected Matthew Golden with the 23rd overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, thus making the Texas standout the first wide receiver taken by the franchise in the first round since Javon Walker was taken 20th overall in 2002.
But any Cheeseheads hoping for Golden to become the Packers' first genuine WR1 since Davante Adams was traded following the 2021 season were sorely disappointed, as the 22-year-old was targeted just 44 times throughout the 2025 campaign, ultimately recording only 29 catches for 361 yards in 14 games. And while a dozen different Green Bay players recorded at least one touchdown during the regular season, Golden was not one of them.
Now, there was a time early in the season when it looked like Golden was set to be a big part of Green Bay's passing attack. After catching just two passes for 16 yards in his first two professional outings, the former Longhorn tallied 16 grabs for 233 yards in the Packers' next four games. But over his final eight games, he recorded only 11 receptions for 112 yards. Of course, it should be noted that in those final eight games, Golden only took more than 25 offensive snaps on two occasions.
The dip in snap counts over the back half of the year could obviously be attributed to the returns of Christian Watson and Jayden Reed. Nevertheless, Golden's usage (or lack thereof, as the case may be) continues to be a bit baffling. And five-time Pro Bowler Steve Smith Sr. agrees.
Steve Smith Sr. isn't a fan of how the Packers have used Matthew Golden
In a recent episode of his podcast, 89, Smith, who believed going into the draft that Golden was the best wideout on the board, expressed his frustration with how the Packers run their WR room, as he believes the rookie simply hasn't been set up for success.
"How are you going to expect a young player to come in and take on the No. 1 wide receiver role when you have created your wide receiver room with no No. 1 wide receiver?" Smith asked co-host James Palmer.
"All of a sudden, now you give this young player...now he's just supposed to fix everything when you structurally have made it to where no one eats well. They all run different types of routes and are expected to do different things. Because he's the fastest out of the group, now, all of a sudden, he's supposed to fix all ailments.
"But the craziest thing...when I watched him in college, he knows how to get open and still knows how to get open at this level. He just doesn't get the ball thrown his way, and that's not his fault."
Now, to be fair, the Packers have had the "everybody eats" system in place since Adams' departure. Again, though, with Golden being the first wideout taken by Green Bay in the first round in 23 years, it's easy to see why Smith and so many others expected more.
Smith went on to say that he believes Golden has a shot to prove himself in the postseason, but he's going to be in for a rude awakening, as Packers offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich went on record a few days back to say that while he believes the rookie has a bright future, he will not play a premier role in the playoffs. Why a statement like that needs to be made publicly is anyone's guess, but that's where we are right now.
The Packers, of course, will square off against the Chicago Bears on Saturday night in the Wild Card Round, and it'll certainly be interesting to see what kind of role Golden ultimately plays in his first postseason action.