There were plenty of people excited to select Green Bay Packers WR Christian Watson in their fantasy football drafts this past offseason, but they’re still stuck waiting to see the explosive playmaker take the field here in 2023.
What’s the latest news on the Packers WR, and should fantasy managers expect to have him available for Week 3?
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Latest News Surrounding Christian Watson
Watson has missed the first two games of the 2023 NFL season due to a hamstring injury, but fantasy managers got some positive news on Wednesday when the second-year wideout returned to practice.
Christian Watson (hamstring) went through individual drills, while Aaron Jones (hamstring) did not.
Also in the rehab group: David Bakhtiari, Elgton Jenkins.
One other note: Lukas Van Ness took part after getting his elbow checked out earlier in the week. pic.twitter.com/3EWMXC0XBn
— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) September 20, 2023
It’s worth noting that — at the time of writing — we do not know the full extent of Watson’s participation in practice. All signs point to him being just a limited participant, but it’s a positive step forward.
Update: Watson did not end up participating in practice on Thursday, but he returned on Friday and is now listed as questionable for Week 3.
Will Watson Play This Week?
It’s too early to tell whether or not Watson will be back on the field this week against the New Orleans Saints. It’s trending in the right direction with him returning to practice, but it’s far from a guarantee as we are still several days out from that matchup.
The practice reports for Thursday and Friday will be critical to monitor for Watson to make sure he doesn’t avoid any setbacks and that he moves from a limited participant to a full participant, but there’s finally some optimism surrounding the explosive playmaker.
What Does This Mean for Watson’s Fantasy Ranking?
As of right now, I’d prefer to wait a week before I confidently start Watson in my fantasy league. We still have significant questions about who Jordan Love will feature in this passing attack, and Watson missing significant time to start the year certainly won’t help.
MORE: PFN Consensus Rankings
Additionally, the Saints’ defense figures to make life very tough on Love and this Packers passing game. As Watson is the presumed No. 1 option in this WR room, we could see Marshon Lattimore — the talented DB for the Saints — shadow him and eliminate him from the game plan altogether.
If you have Watson on your roster, it’s probably best to wait a week and see how he looks in this matchup before considering him as anything more than a Flex play.