Is Jayden Reed A Starting Wide Receiver For The Packers When He Returns?

by John Johnson

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Will Jayden Reed start for the Green Bay Packers when he returns? John breaks down the Jayden Reed return timeline for Week 9 and fantasy football outlook.

In This Article hide

2. Jayden Reed Fantasy Football Outlook

3. Who Should I Start Tool

5. More Fantasy Football Analysis

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed (foot, clavicle) is currently recovering from surgeries to address a Jones fracture in his foot and a broken collarbone.

The foot injury was something he was playing through early in the year, but the broken clavicle occurred on a deep end zone shot when he was tackled to the ground. He decided to have both issues addressed by surgeries as a result.

The Packers' passing attack has a new first-round draft selection in WR Matthew Golden, an emerging tight end in Tucker Kraft, and plenty of other weapons they like distributing the ball to. So will Reed be the starter when he returns? Let's dive in.

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Will Jayden Reed Start For The Packers When He Returns?

Reed is likely to return to his role -- that of a slot receiver that pretty much only plays in the slot and only when Green Bay runs a formation that has three or more wideouts on the field. When they run 2TE sets, they have two WRs on the field, and those players are usually some combination of Christian Watson (knee), Romeo Doubs, Golden, and Dontayvion Wicks (calf).

Reed's services are typically not used in 2WR sets because he's not a good blocker. Wicks and Watson are better blockers, and so far it seems like Golden is, too. Reed's smaller stature makes him better suited for a slot role because he's able to make very sharp cuts and change direction on a dime.

JAYDEN. REED.

📺: CBS pic.twitter.com/xpxiwOAtZV

— Green Bay Packers Football Club (@packers) September 7, 2025

You can see on the above play that Reed is lined up in the slot -- between the team's outside receivers and the offensive line. His curvilinear acceleration allows him to speed past the cornerback guarding him and get ahead of him for the touchdown.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur runs an excellent offensive system that schemes his players wide open on a regular basis. Reed does have a prominent role there, but he's just not a full-time player.

Jayden Reed Fantasy Football Outlook

Reed was once seemingly a fantasy star in the making. He had a big breakout season in 2023, in which he scored 15 or more PPR fantasy points in seven of his last nine games and quickly became a must-start WR. he was drafted fairly early in the subsequent year's fantasy drafts.

Unfortunately, his production was largely buoyed by a lack of depth and the injury to Watson that year. The Packers now have far more pass-catching talent to distribute the ball to. And by distribute, I mean really spread it around.

Imagine thinking Matthew Golden would be the Packers WR1 when it's really Tucker Kraft

Seriously though, having a Packers WR is such a nightmare for fantasy. It feels like Matt LaFleur is mocking fantasy managers. Completions to 10 different receivers, 5 with exactly 3 rec pic.twitter.com/yxbkYvWSIk

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) October 31, 2025

Looking through the box scores to check the receiving stats for Packers players after the games, it's readily apparent that their fantasy values are significantly hampered by the target distribution. The emphasis seems to be much more on the scheme than it is forcing it to any specific wideout.

And the Packers have one of the most run-heavy offenses in the NFL, which further reduces overall passing volume and thus the upside of the team's WRs and TEs. It's not seemed to affect Kraft much, but the wide receivers have been mostly untrustworthy in fantasy leagues.

Reed is thus a very risky WR3/WR4 when he returns. On a week-to-week basis, he might not do much at all without a touchdown catch. He's hard to trust in starting lineups.