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“For the first time in 23 years…”
Mark Murphy announcing the long-awaited first-round receiver to a mostly green and gold crowd of over 200,000 people was a special moment, but what made Matthew Golden out of Texas the receiver to end the drought?
At 5-11 even, 191 pounds, Golden has just enough size to be a viable outside receiver in the Packers’ eyes, with general manager Brian Gutekunst admitting he is "above the Mendoza line, but not by much” in that regard.
Gutekunst went on to say: “There are guys that have played out there that have been under that height, but they usually have to have some kind of special trait, and speed is one of them.”
Golden certainly has that. At 4.29 seconds, he ran the fastest 40 time among receivers at the NFL scouting combine this year, and elite speed has been a prerequisite for the Packers in their first-round picks.
After picking Golden, nine of the ten first-round players taken by Gutekunst have had "elite" speed using the Relative Athletic Score (RAS) model, with Jordan Love the only exception.
Green Bay covets elite athleticism with their premium picks, and Gutekunst spoke to Golden’s on Thursday night, saying: “His ability to stretch the field outside the numbers is really important, later adding: “He’s a premier athlete, he’s going to be able to do everything we ask”.
Golden is a great example of all measurables on paper not being the same. Golden is not big, but he is not undersized either. Gutekunst said: “He’s put together pretty well, so I don’t look at him as a small guy”.
The Packers’ talented offensive coaching staff, headed by Matt LaFleur, has allowed Gutekunst to open his mind to what a successful NFL perimeter receiver can look like.
He told the assembled media: “The way Matt and his staff are able to be creative and use these guys, that gives me a lot of flexibility with what I’m looking at”.
It sounds like Golden is a popular pick with LaFleur and the offensive staff. Gutekunst said: “All those guys on the offensive side are pretty fired up right now”.
Being big enough, and having the skill set to play outside at the NFL level, is crucial for the Packers in any receiver they draft. In the Gutekunst era, nine of the ten receivers he has drafted played more snaps outside than in the slot in at least one of their final two college seasons.
That even includes Jayden Reed, who has been almost exclusively a slot in Green Bay. Amari Rodgers, the only exception, also had a year where he played primarily outside, it just was not in his final two college seasons.
Comparing Golden to Emeka Egbuka, who went four picks before the Packers were on the clock, the former Texas receiver is a much better fit for what Green Bay looks for and would likely have been the pick even if Egbuka was still on the board.
Egbuka never played more of his snaps outside than in the slot in any college season, in addition to not having the same level of speed or upside to his game.
On that upside, Gutekunst said Golden’s “best football is ahead of him," before adding: “He’s got a lot of room for growth, he’s not at his ceiling”. He will not turn 22 until August.
Discussing Golden’s ability to move all over the field, Gutekunst said: “He’s really versatile. We certainly felt he could play outside and that was important to us." Versatility is a common buzz word for the Packers when talking about the players they have selected.
Another quality they look for in receivers specifically is kick return ability, not only because it can help out on special teams, but serves as an indicator of what kind of threat they can be after the catch.
Golden had two kick-return touchdowns at Houston in 2023, and Gutekunst praised him on Thursday for having “special teams and return ability that could help us."
From a production standpoint, Golden did not top 600 yards in either of his two seasons at Houston, but broke out with the Longhorns in 2024, specifically in the back half of the season, after starting out fairly slowly.
He exploded in the college football playoffs, putting up over 300 yards on 15 catches against Georgia and Arizona State specifically.
Golden ended 2024 with just under 1,000 yards and nine touchdowns, and this campaign will have mattered to Green Bay, who contrary to popular belief, do care about production, especially at receiver.
Speaking about Golden’s quiet start and ferocious finish to the 2024 campaign, Gutekunst said: “Early in the season his production with his reps and targets, it took a few games to get going, then once they realized what they had it kind of took off and he became a major part of what they were doing”.
He continued: “Making that jump to Texas and playing in some of the games he played in at the end of the year and producing like he did, certainly that helped him”.
On tape, Golden shows the skills which make him a legitimate first-round talent.
In terms of movement ability, he is a smooth mover who glides around the field and can get in and out of his breaks with ease and has the speed to get open deep and stack corners along the sideline.
It never feels like he is truly running full speed, which may be why his 4.29 speed was a bit of a surprise. Golden tempos his routes really well to lull cornerbacks to sleep before quickly breaking off his routes before they can react.
He creates easy separation on simple routes due to this understanding of timing and pacing, and his quick feet mean he can win at the line and get the inside or outside leverage he wants, even in congested areas, and also allows him to decisively snap guys off on the last cut of his route.
Golden is able to stop his feet efficiently on curl routes to create enough space, even if the corner is close to him initially. After the catch he does a great job of seamlessly becoming a runner, feeling where the defender is and weaving around them or hitting an instant dead leg to send them flying by.
Running a good variety of professional routes to all levels of the field, Golden can win short, intermediate and deep. He shows nuance in his route running, attacking leverage and using head fakes to get corners leaning the wrong way. He takes time to sell double moves effectively.
He is quarterback friendly in that he can adjust easily to wherever the ball is thrown, competes to bail out underthrown passes, as he often had to do this past season at Texas, and fights to get open when the play goes off-script, staying available to the QB.
Golden has impressive body control, tracks the ball well downfield and over his shoulder and can sky to get the ball with defenders jumping in front of him.
Despite not having ideal size, Golden does not play small at the catch point, which is evidenced by some impressive red zone plays and a contested catch win rate of 61.1% in 2024.
He plucks the ball with his hands and knows to then pull it away to prevent corners breaking it up, and has an impressive one-handed touchdown catch in the front corner of the end zone on tape. Gutekunst said Golden had arguably some of the best hands in the draft.
With 902 perimeter snaps and 226 in the slot, Golden has a good mix of outside/inside exposure, and is used to going in motion. He adapted to a more pro-style attack at Texas from Houston’s air raid scheme, which should give the Packers confidence he can pick up their offense quickly.
Importantly for the Packers in LaFleur’s scheme, Golden showed he can block with attitude and sustain it. He was asked to get involved in the run game regularly at Texas, lining up near the line of scrimmage and making important blocks.
While his stats against man coverage do not suggest he will be the ultimate solution to the Packers’ issues against it last year, Gutekunst is confident Golden will bring value in that phase.
He said: “Covering him from a man perspective is going to be extremely tough on teams. When we get to some of those third downs where teams are trying to mug us up and we need someone to get open fast, he can do that.”
The most underrated aspect of what attracts teams to players is how they fit within the culture of their organization. Gutekunst gave glowing reports about the person that Golden is.
He told the media Golden is “wired exactly how we want our guys," before adding that he is “authentic and genuine."
Gutekunst has spoken in the past about the value in adding people who have overcome adversity to the team. He said of Golden: “This guy’s been through some things in his young life and come out the other side of it. He loves football and I think he’s going to be a great teammate."
The GM also admitted there were several players they considered at pick 23, but ultimately: “The guy mattered."
There is not much to nitpick with Golden’s game in terms of negatives, but no prospect is perfect.
His size does bring some limitations, as he struggled to box out and bail out his quarterback at times, leading to interceptions as corners blasted through him on his curl routes, although often the quarterback should not have thrown him the ball as he was not "open."
It does not look great when Golden gets tackled at times due to his lack of mass, and he could stand to put on more muscle to withstand hits in the open field. He can also have trouble fighting through contact on his route at times, with the corner able to disrupt his rhythm.
The 4.29 speed does not translate to eye-opening burst as much as you might think, he is more smooth than explosive.
Due to his late ascent, Golden has never had a PFF receiving grade higher than the 75.6 he put up this past season, and without the two breakout playoff games, his production would look pretty underwhelming.
Golden does have good hands in general, but had four drops in 2024, six in 2023 and four in 2022. His career drop percentage is 9.4%, which is not a disaster by any means, but not anything to brag about either.
While he shows upside as a blocker, there are bad reps too. On one occasion he failed to block an opponent on a corner blitz and it led to a safety, another time he could have helped a teammate get yards after the catch but did not engage as a blocker.
Overall, getting a prospect like Golden, a true first-round talent at pick 23 represents excellent value for the Packers. There is room to grow, but he is no project. Golden will contribute for Green Bay right away and has the chance to develop into a high-end NFL receiver.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers draft pick profiles: Matthew Golden worth ending the WR drought
Continue reading...
Mark Murphy announcing the long-awaited first-round receiver to a mostly green and gold crowd of over 200,000 people was a special moment, but what made Matthew Golden out of Texas the receiver to end the drought?
At 5-11 even, 191 pounds, Golden has just enough size to be a viable outside receiver in the Packers’ eyes, with general manager Brian Gutekunst admitting he is "above the Mendoza line, but not by much” in that regard.
Gutekunst went on to say: “There are guys that have played out there that have been under that height, but they usually have to have some kind of special trait, and speed is one of them.”
Golden certainly has that. At 4.29 seconds, he ran the fastest 40 time among receivers at the NFL scouting combine this year, and elite speed has been a prerequisite for the Packers in their first-round picks.
After picking Golden, nine of the ten first-round players taken by Gutekunst have had "elite" speed using the Relative Athletic Score (RAS) model, with Jordan Love the only exception.
Green Bay covets elite athleticism with their premium picks, and Gutekunst spoke to Golden’s on Thursday night, saying: “His ability to stretch the field outside the numbers is really important, later adding: “He’s a premier athlete, he’s going to be able to do everything we ask”.
Golden is a great example of all measurables on paper not being the same. Golden is not big, but he is not undersized either. Gutekunst said: “He’s put together pretty well, so I don’t look at him as a small guy”.
The Packers’ talented offensive coaching staff, headed by Matt LaFleur, has allowed Gutekunst to open his mind to what a successful NFL perimeter receiver can look like.
He told the assembled media: “The way Matt and his staff are able to be creative and use these guys, that gives me a lot of flexibility with what I’m looking at”.
It sounds like Golden is a popular pick with LaFleur and the offensive staff. Gutekunst said: “All those guys on the offensive side are pretty fired up right now”.
Being big enough, and having the skill set to play outside at the NFL level, is crucial for the Packers in any receiver they draft. In the Gutekunst era, nine of the ten receivers he has drafted played more snaps outside than in the slot in at least one of their final two college seasons.
That even includes Jayden Reed, who has been almost exclusively a slot in Green Bay. Amari Rodgers, the only exception, also had a year where he played primarily outside, it just was not in his final two college seasons.
Comparing Golden to Emeka Egbuka, who went four picks before the Packers were on the clock, the former Texas receiver is a much better fit for what Green Bay looks for and would likely have been the pick even if Egbuka was still on the board.
Egbuka never played more of his snaps outside than in the slot in any college season, in addition to not having the same level of speed or upside to his game.
On that upside, Gutekunst said Golden’s “best football is ahead of him," before adding: “He’s got a lot of room for growth, he’s not at his ceiling”. He will not turn 22 until August.
Discussing Golden’s ability to move all over the field, Gutekunst said: “He’s really versatile. We certainly felt he could play outside and that was important to us." Versatility is a common buzz word for the Packers when talking about the players they have selected.
Another quality they look for in receivers specifically is kick return ability, not only because it can help out on special teams, but serves as an indicator of what kind of threat they can be after the catch.
Golden had two kick-return touchdowns at Houston in 2023, and Gutekunst praised him on Thursday for having “special teams and return ability that could help us."
From a production standpoint, Golden did not top 600 yards in either of his two seasons at Houston, but broke out with the Longhorns in 2024, specifically in the back half of the season, after starting out fairly slowly.
He exploded in the college football playoffs, putting up over 300 yards on 15 catches against Georgia and Arizona State specifically.
Golden ended 2024 with just under 1,000 yards and nine touchdowns, and this campaign will have mattered to Green Bay, who contrary to popular belief, do care about production, especially at receiver.
Speaking about Golden’s quiet start and ferocious finish to the 2024 campaign, Gutekunst said: “Early in the season his production with his reps and targets, it took a few games to get going, then once they realized what they had it kind of took off and he became a major part of what they were doing”.
He continued: “Making that jump to Texas and playing in some of the games he played in at the end of the year and producing like he did, certainly that helped him”.
On tape, Golden shows the skills which make him a legitimate first-round talent.
In terms of movement ability, he is a smooth mover who glides around the field and can get in and out of his breaks with ease and has the speed to get open deep and stack corners along the sideline.
It never feels like he is truly running full speed, which may be why his 4.29 speed was a bit of a surprise. Golden tempos his routes really well to lull cornerbacks to sleep before quickly breaking off his routes before they can react.
He creates easy separation on simple routes due to this understanding of timing and pacing, and his quick feet mean he can win at the line and get the inside or outside leverage he wants, even in congested areas, and also allows him to decisively snap guys off on the last cut of his route.
Golden is able to stop his feet efficiently on curl routes to create enough space, even if the corner is close to him initially. After the catch he does a great job of seamlessly becoming a runner, feeling where the defender is and weaving around them or hitting an instant dead leg to send them flying by.
Running a good variety of professional routes to all levels of the field, Golden can win short, intermediate and deep. He shows nuance in his route running, attacking leverage and using head fakes to get corners leaning the wrong way. He takes time to sell double moves effectively.
He is quarterback friendly in that he can adjust easily to wherever the ball is thrown, competes to bail out underthrown passes, as he often had to do this past season at Texas, and fights to get open when the play goes off-script, staying available to the QB.
Golden has impressive body control, tracks the ball well downfield and over his shoulder and can sky to get the ball with defenders jumping in front of him.
Despite not having ideal size, Golden does not play small at the catch point, which is evidenced by some impressive red zone plays and a contested catch win rate of 61.1% in 2024.
He plucks the ball with his hands and knows to then pull it away to prevent corners breaking it up, and has an impressive one-handed touchdown catch in the front corner of the end zone on tape. Gutekunst said Golden had arguably some of the best hands in the draft.
With 902 perimeter snaps and 226 in the slot, Golden has a good mix of outside/inside exposure, and is used to going in motion. He adapted to a more pro-style attack at Texas from Houston’s air raid scheme, which should give the Packers confidence he can pick up their offense quickly.
Importantly for the Packers in LaFleur’s scheme, Golden showed he can block with attitude and sustain it. He was asked to get involved in the run game regularly at Texas, lining up near the line of scrimmage and making important blocks.
While his stats against man coverage do not suggest he will be the ultimate solution to the Packers’ issues against it last year, Gutekunst is confident Golden will bring value in that phase.
He said: “Covering him from a man perspective is going to be extremely tough on teams. When we get to some of those third downs where teams are trying to mug us up and we need someone to get open fast, he can do that.”
The most underrated aspect of what attracts teams to players is how they fit within the culture of their organization. Gutekunst gave glowing reports about the person that Golden is.
He told the media Golden is “wired exactly how we want our guys," before adding that he is “authentic and genuine."
Gutekunst has spoken in the past about the value in adding people who have overcome adversity to the team. He said of Golden: “This guy’s been through some things in his young life and come out the other side of it. He loves football and I think he’s going to be a great teammate."
The GM also admitted there were several players they considered at pick 23, but ultimately: “The guy mattered."
There is not much to nitpick with Golden’s game in terms of negatives, but no prospect is perfect.
His size does bring some limitations, as he struggled to box out and bail out his quarterback at times, leading to interceptions as corners blasted through him on his curl routes, although often the quarterback should not have thrown him the ball as he was not "open."
It does not look great when Golden gets tackled at times due to his lack of mass, and he could stand to put on more muscle to withstand hits in the open field. He can also have trouble fighting through contact on his route at times, with the corner able to disrupt his rhythm.
The 4.29 speed does not translate to eye-opening burst as much as you might think, he is more smooth than explosive.
Due to his late ascent, Golden has never had a PFF receiving grade higher than the 75.6 he put up this past season, and without the two breakout playoff games, his production would look pretty underwhelming.
Golden does have good hands in general, but had four drops in 2024, six in 2023 and four in 2022. His career drop percentage is 9.4%, which is not a disaster by any means, but not anything to brag about either.
While he shows upside as a blocker, there are bad reps too. On one occasion he failed to block an opponent on a corner blitz and it led to a safety, another time he could have helped a teammate get yards after the catch but did not engage as a blocker.
Overall, getting a prospect like Golden, a true first-round talent at pick 23 represents excellent value for the Packers. There is room to grow, but he is no project. Golden will contribute for Green Bay right away and has the chance to develop into a high-end NFL receiver.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers draft pick profiles: Matthew Golden worth ending the WR drought
Continue reading...
