“I feel like if it was the NFC Championship Game tomorrow, I would be able to go out there and feel confident, for sure,” Watson told The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman. Watson’s window to return, whenever it opens, would be 21 days long. So reading between the lines, it sounds like Watson could be ready for a return sometime before Week 10. That’d be great news for the Packers, who are now sans Jayden Reed for the short-term future and haven’t gotten much from first-round pick Matthew Golden in the early going.

Watson’s contract was set to expire at the end of the 2025 season, but now the Packers extend the 26-year-old to keep him for an additional year. He is currently on the physically unable to perform list with a knee injury, so the extension gives Watson more room to recover without dealing with an impending free agency. Meanwhile, the Packers keep together a crowded wide receiver room that saw five different wide receivers catch a pass in Week 1. Watson will return to this group, though he won’t be high on the pecking order given he is returning from a torn ACL. He has dealt with several leg injuries throughout his young career, totaling 98 receptions for 1,653 yards and 14 touchdowns over 38 games in three seasons. Fantasy managers should not count on Watson for fantasy-relevant play upon his return.

Watson must now sit out at least four games before he is eligible to return. The field-stretching wide receiver is rehabbing from a torn ACL from suffered last year. The Packers also placed DL Collin Oliver and G John Williams on the reserve/physically unable to perform list, and S Omar Brown was placed on injured reserve.

This confirms reporting from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler that Watson, who suffered a torn ACL last January, will begin the year on PUP. Look for the Packers to ease Watson into the wideout rotation when he’s eligible for return from PUP. He could be a strictly situational downfield option for Jordan Love — who’s undergoing thumb surgery — with Matthew Golden reportedly emerging as Green Bay’s No. 1 wideout. Jayden Reed (foot) could also be iffy for the start of the regular season. The Packers offense is a banged-up unit.