Packers-Bears Inactives: One Receiver Up, One Receiver Out

The Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears will close the regular season on Sunday at Lambeau Field. Here’s who’s in and who’s out for both teams.

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson (9) is active for Sunday's rematch against the Chicago Bears. / Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers will play without one of their starting receivers on Sunday against the Chicago Bears, but it’s not Christian Watson.

Watson is active for Week 18 at Lambeau Field but Romeo Doubs, who was added to the injury report on Saturday as questionable due to illness, is out.

Safeties Evan Williams (quad) and Zayne Anderson (concussion) and linebacker Quay Walker (ankle), who were ruled out on Friday, are inactive. Cornerback Jaire Alexander was placed on injured reserve on Saturday, so the Packers will be down three defensive starters.

The Packers didn’t fill Alexander’s spot on the roster so have only six inactives. The others are defensive end Brenton Cox, who was questionable with a foot injury and didn’t practice this week, and offensive tackle Andre Dillard (concussion).

Watson suffered a knee injury when a Saints defender fell on him as he slid out of bounds on an end-around. He played through the injury for a bit, then was inactive for Sunday’s loss at the Vikings.

Watson didn’t practice on Wednesday or Thursday this week. To play against the Bears, coach Matt LaFleur said Watson would need to practice on Friday. He did, as limited participation.

“I was able to get some team reps and everything. I got a decent amount in,” Watson said.

Watson was listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report but spoke with relative optimism that he could play.

“I’ve been feeling good about where I’m at,” he said. “It was obviously just the box I’ve got to check in terms of the higher-ups and the training staff to give me the green light to go. I’m going to approach it like I’m going. I’m going to approach every day like I’m trying to play, because I am.”

Having missed one game, Watson thought it would be important to get some work against the Bears to be fully ready for next week’s playoff game.

“It definitely matters, just to get back into the rhythm of things,” Watson said. “I think it’s important regardless.”

Watson was one of the heroes of Green Bay’s win at Chicago in Week 11, when he delivered 150 receiving yards, including a catch-and-run gain of 60 yards to set up the decisive touchdown.

“I think it’s huge,” Watson said in looking ahead to this game. “Rivalry games are always a little bit more chippy and a little bit more competitive. Regardless of records and standings and all that, we knew it was going to be a four-quarter battle, and it happened to be every last second of every quarter.

“We know that’s how it’s going to be. Our approach is to start a little bit faster and be able to be consistent throughout the entire game so it’s not close again.”

The Packers missed Watson’s field-stretching presence last week but Doubs stepped up with a productive game.

Asked on Thursday how the Packers could make up for the loss of Watson, offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich’s answer mostly holds up with how the team will play without Doubs.

“Other guys have got to step up,” he said. “The good thing is we’re pretty deep with the wide receivers. He obviously provides a big, vertical threat down the field, so we’ll have to find that with other guys, but I feel really confident and really good about the receivers that we have behind him. Those guys will step up.

With Williams and Anderson out at safety, the Packers elevated Omar Brown from the practice squad on Saturday.

One player the Packers could turn to is Jayden Reed. Reed leads the team with 53 receptions and 809 receiving yards. However, since a 113-yard game against Detroit before the bye, Reed has only one game of 35-plus receiving yards the last seven weeks.

“You’re always trying to get him the ball,” Stenavich said. “He’s one of those guys that, as you’ve seen, he can make a lot of special plays with the ball in his hands, so every game plan you go in there and he’s one of the guys that you’re like, ‘All right, this is how we’ve got to get him the ball.’

“So, yeah, I would say anytime you come out of a game and he doesn’t get his touches, you’ve got to make sure he does, for sure.”

For the Bears, starting left guard Teven Jenkins and starting safety Elijah Hicks are out.

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