Packers’ Christian Watson Discusses Hamstring, Almost-Dropped Touchdown

The Green Bay Packers were crushed by the Detroit Lions on Thursday night but at least Christian Watson felt good about his comeback from an injured hamstring.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Christian Watson was back in the lineup and back in the end zone for the Green Bay Packers.

Neither feat was easy.

After missing the first three games of the season with an injured hamstring, Watson made his season debut in Thursday night’s loss to the Detroit Lions. During the third quarter, his 24-yard catch set up his 1-yard touchdown reception that cut a huge halftime deficit to 27-11.

On the score, Watson lined up in the slot. The route combination – a rub route by Romeo Doubs – left him wide open near the sideline in the middle of the end zone. He bobbled the ball but hung on with his heels perilously close to the out-of-bounds white paint.

“Yeah, sometimes it's the easy ones that get you a little bit,” Watson said with a smile, “but nah, it was a good one still.”

Open by probably 10 yards when Jordan Love threw the ball, what was he thinking?

“I’m just thinking touchdown,” Watson said. “That one's a little too easy when they bust a coverage like that, but all I'm thinking is touchdown.”

.@ChristianW2017 with the TD! #DETvsGB | #GoPackGo

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He added, “I was kind of just drifting to the sideline and I kind of felt it at the last second, so I peeked back a little bit when the ball was in the air, so it made it a little awkward, but we're good.”

Those two catches were Watson’s only statistical contributions on a bleak night. He played 26 snaps in his first appearance since suffering a hamstring injury at practice exactly four weeks earlier.

A day later, Watson said he felt “good” and is eager for a bigger role after both he and Aaron Jones played limited snaps in their return to action.

Watson said he should be ready for a full workload when the Packers play at the Las Vegas Raiders next Monday night.

“I’m hoping so,” he said. “Definitely going to take advantage of these next couple days that we're off and just find ways to come back so I can just go out there, be 100 percent confident in where my body's at and just go out there and fly around.”

Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs celebrate Watson's touchdown :: Photo by Dan Powers/USA Today Sports Images

While Watson had been practicing, this was first game action since catching a 6-yard touchdown pass in the preseason finale against the Seahawks on Aug. 26.

For Watson, there’s nothing like game reps to prove to himself he was ready.

“I definitely felt good, but I think there's just in terms of not getting that many practice reps up until that point, just the subconscious confidence in my legs,” Watson said. “I’ve got to get past that and just go out there and get some more reps during practice and just fly around a little bit more so I can fly around during the game.”

Now that he has that confidence, Watson is eager to help the offense out of its funk. In the NFL’s version of the “Tortoise And the Hare,” the Packers in the first quarter have scored one touchdown (vs. Chicago in Week 1) and have averaged a 29th-ranked 3.3 yards per play. They had minus-6 passing yards in the first quarter vs. Detroit.

“I feel good after the game. I feel good today,” Watson said. “Now, I’ve just got to keep on stacking those reps. I definitely feel like I'm in a good spot.”

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On Thursday night, one team came to Lambeau Field with the desire to physically dominate. That team was not the #Packers. https://t.co/59BU33gKge

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) September 30, 2023

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