The Packers slot receiver suffered an ankle injury and was ruled out by halftime.
Christian Watson and Matthew Golden have been the Packers' lead receivers all season. Jayden Reed has been the slot option over the last few seasons when healthy, but Reed is out for the season. This has left Moore as the team’s slot receiver. On the first two drives, Moore played all 11 snaps out of 11 personnel. This left Bo Melton as Green Bay’s slot receiver for the rest of the game, even though he hasn’t typically played in the slot during his career. The more the Packers need to go down the depth chart in the slot, the higher the target rate will be for their stars, including Watson, Golden and tight end Tucker Kraft. The three each tallied 5-to-6 receptions, with Watson and Golden both exceeding 120 yards.
Bill Huber·
On a sweltering day, Matthew Golden played 53 snaps – by far the most of the group. Christian Watson played 41, followed by 23 for Skyy Moore, 11 for Bo Melton and two for J. Michael Sturdivant. Including the Jets game in which Jayden Reed was injured, it’s clear the Packers are opting for more of a player-for-player replacement in the slot with Moore than a committee approach. Watson and Golden through three games were on a pace to blow by 3,000 combined receiving yards. The Bucs limited Watson to three catches for 47 yards and Golden to three catches for 21 yards. Golden caught a touchdown pass but had a drop that was oh-so-close to being a fumble. He has a drop in every game, which is stunning considering how well he caught the ball in camp.
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