The Packers finally have their first-round wide receiver, but will that be enough for Green Bay to leapfrog the other teams in a tough division?

It was one of the most memorable moments from the 2025 NFL Draft, hearing Mark Murphy announce that for the first time in more than 20 years, the Green Bay Packers were finally taking a wide receiver in the first round.

The hometown crowd at Lambeau Field went absolutely nuts, and Texas’ Matthew Golden became the streak-breaking pass-catcher Packers fans have been begging for since the prime of the Aaron Rodgers era.

But in an absolutely stacked division, will Golden’s arrival be enough to push the Packers over the top against the defending-champion Detroit Lions, the fellow playoff-contending Minnesota Vikings, and a much-improved Chicago Bears squad in 2025 and beyond?

Matthew Golden was a big-play machine for the Longhorns last season.

On the latest episode of “Best Podcast Available,” I sat down with Carmen Vitali of Fox Sports to break down how Golden fits into a receiver room that has plenty of depth, but still lacks the kind of presence that can take over a game and provide Jordan Love with a go-to option in any situation.

“If he’s treated like a true No. 1, which . . . Matt LaFleur last year was like, ‘I’m allergic to that phrase, I don’t like that phrase . . . well regardless, you’re going to have to choose someone that Jordan Love can rely on,” Vitali said. “And if Matthew Golden can be that guy, live up to his draft position and all of that, I think that can go a long way.”

Vitali noted that injuries prevented the Packers from developing the kind of consistent chemistry that would have allowed them to play up to their full potential, and adding another dynamic weapon to an offense that struggled to stay healthy should improve their chances of maintaining a high level of play through those bumps and bruises this time around.

“Green Bay’s strength last year was that they had so many options,” Vitali said. “But when you couple in quarterback injuries, and injuries to those options where you’re not fielding the same options, you’re not fielding the same quarterback all the time, then whatever continuity you had gets completely lost. Because there’s so many moving parts to that offense that when they’re not all available at the same time, you can’t into a rhythm, and that’s what we saw last year out of Green Bay.”

Jordan Love
Injuries kept Jordan Love and the Packers from reaching their full potential last season.

© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The glass-half-full perspective on Green Bay’s struggles last season? The fact that they still earned a postseason berth.

“They still made the playoffs, even without being able to get into a rhythm, even with the multiple injuries to Jordan Love throughout the season, him playing through a lot of pain, him losing receivers,” Vitali said.

Will LaFleur be able to keep all of those receivers happy in terms of targets, despite adding a first-round talent like Golden to the group? Will Josh Jacobs and the ground game remain the focal point of the offense, even if the passing game is healthier and more consistent in 2025?

Check out the full conversation here, along with full breakdowns of every other team in the NFC North coming out of this year’s offseason: