The Green Bay Packers escaped MetLife Stadium with a 20-17 overtime win over the New York Jets on Sunday, but the victory came with two major injury scares on the opening drive.
Wide receiver Jayden Reed and right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele were carted off on consecutive plays in the first quarter. Both were ruled out almost immediately, leaving Green Bay waiting for answers even as the game continued.
Matt LaFleur provided the first significant postgame update on both players afterward, and the news was much more encouraging for Reed than Bako-Bewele.
Packers Wire’s Zach Kruse relayed LaFleur’s comments from the Packers Radio Network.
On Reed, LaFleur said: “J Reed is doing OK. He has movement in all his extremities. That’s a scary moment.”
On Bako-Bewele, LaFleur said: “That doesn’t look good. That could be a season-ender potentially.”
Jayden Reed Injury Update Brings Encouraging News
Reed went down on the second offensive play after catching a swing pass from Jordan Love and taking a hard hit from Jets linebacker Demario Davis.
Medical personnel surrounded Reed, and Packers players came onto the field while he was placed on a spine board. Reed was then loaded onto a cart and taken off with a neck injury.
The Packers ruled him out soon afterward.
LaFleur’s update that Reed had movement in all of his extremities was the first encouraging news after a frightening scene.
Reed signed a three-year, $50.25 million extension with Green Bay in April that included $20 million guaranteed. The 2023 second-round pick entered the season as a key piece of a receiving corps that also includes Christian Watson and Matthew Golden.
Reed was coming off an injury-shortened 2025 season in which foot and shoulder issues limited him to seven games. He finished with 19 receptions for 207 yards and one touchdown after leading Green Bay in receiving during each of his first two seasons.
The Packers didn’t provide a timetable for Reed’s return Sunday, and LaFleur’s comments didn’t amount to a diagnosis. But after Reed left the field immobilized on a cart, the update was significant.
Zach Bako-Bewele Injury Could Be Season-Ending
Green Bay barely had time to process Reed’s injury before Bako-Bewele went down on the next play.
The veteran right tackle suffered a right knee injury while blocking and required immediate attention from the training staff. His leg was placed in an air cast before he was carted off.
Bako-Bewele entered Sunday’s game listed as questionable because of a knee injury. Green Bay made him active before kickoff, but Anthony Belton replaced him at right tackle after the injury.
The concern is amplified by Bako-Bewele’s recent history.
He missed the final three regular-season games and Green Bay’s playoff loss last season because of injury. He returned to start Week 1 and again Sunday before leaving after only three offensive plays.
Bako-Bewele signed a four-year, $88 million extension with the Packers in July 2025 that included $30.2 million fully guaranteed, according to Over the Cap.
Before his injury-plagued 2025 season, he had become one of Green Bay’s most reliable offensive linemen, starting every game at right tackle in both 2023 and 2024.
The Packers still rallied from a 17-7 fourth-quarter deficit Sunday and won on Trey Smack’s 26-yard field goal in overtime.
The postgame mood, however, came with two very different injury updates.
Reed’s was encouraging after a scary scene. Bako-Bewele’s left Green Bay facing the possibility that one of its highest-paid offensive linemen may already be done for the year.
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