One of the big questions facing the Green Bay Packers was who and how many wide receivers would make the roster. As it turns out, the team will place a second-year wide receiver on the Injured Reserve with a designation to return. This will free up a roster spot for the team, allowing them to keep an extra wide receiver.
Savion Williams suffered an ankle injury in the Packers’ second preseason game against the Denver Broncos. He will now miss at least the first four weeks of the regular season, as the team will ease him back in.
Green Bay Packers Place Savion Williams on IR
The Packers’ wide receiver room was deep. They had their three starters set. Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, and Christian Watson were going to start for the team. Then, they had Williams, Skyy Moore, Bo Melton, J.Michael Sturdivant, Isaiah Neyor, and Will Sheppard.
Green Bay wound up releasing Neyor and Sheppard. They placed Williams on the IR, allowing them to keep Moore, Melton, and Sturdivant as the last three receivers on the depth chart.
All three provide special teams value. Moore is going to be their return option. Melton is the team’s top special teams gunner, and Sturdivant made the team with a strong ability to make plays on special teams.
Packers General Manager Brian Gutekunst discussed the possibility of keeping seven receivers on the roster. He noted that the team had done it before, but it is an uncommon strategy. Williams not being healthy enough put him in a position where the team did not need to make that decision.
Packers Keep Six Receivers
For Williams, it puts the brakes on what was expected to be a year where we learn what he really can bring to the table. He was a third-round pick, but fell to 87th overall because of questions about his usage and role. His first year did not quite ease concerns.
The versatile playmaker had just 11 rushes for 37 yards and 10 targets for 78 yards. His average target depth was 1.7 yards down the field, so he was not bringing much to the passing game. Green Bay was expected to put more on his plate in year two.
With the top three receivers defined in their roles, the team was expected to use Williams as the ultimate gadget weapon. Now, the gadget player missed the last week of the preseason and is going to miss the next four weeks. It will be even harder to integrate him into the offense when he gets back, given his specific role on the offense.
It is not going to completely derail the second-year of Williams, but it is going to put things on pause for what felt like a make-or-break season.
Packers Place Former 3rd-Round Pick on Injured Reserve