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The Green Bay Packers got the job done on Monday night, as they guaranteed themselves a spot in the NFL playoffs by destroying the New Orleans Saints in a 34-0 victory at Lambeau Field.
Despite how the final score reads, it was not a completely pleasant experience for Green Bay, with wide receiver Christian Watson suffering an apparent knee injury during a rushing play in the first half. Watson would get checked and later return to the game before being ruled out for the remainder of the contest.
Following the game, the 25-year-old Watson said that “he's hoping for the best” for his knee, according to Matt Schneidman of The Athletic, who also reported that the wideout will have the injured knee “checked” this Tuesday.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur also sounded off about Watson's injury.
“There’s some concern there, certainly,” LaFleur shared, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN). “We’re going to get some more testing done (Tuesday).”
Before his night ended, Watson had compiled a total of 23 rushing yards on two carries. He failed to secure the only target he got versus the Saints. Nevertheless, Green Bay barely felt Watson's absence the rest of the way, as the Packers continued to pummel the Saints on both ends of the field. Running back Josh Jacobs paced the Packers with 69 rushing yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, extending his streak of games with at least a touchdown to six. Meanwhile, wide receiver Jayden Reed grabbed three of four targets for 76 receiving yards.
Will Christian Watson be available for Packers-Vikings in Week 17?
While there's no concrete outlook yet on Watson's availability for Week 17's game against the Minnesota Vikings on the road, the Packers can perhaps be expected to give expanded roles downfield for the likes of Reed, Tucker Kraft, Dontayvion Wicks, Romeo Doubs and even Bo Melton if the former North Dakota State Bison star would need time away from the action to heal from his injury.
So far in the 2024 NFL regular season, Watson, selected in the second round of the 2022 draft by Green Bay, has 620 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 29 catches.
