Jordan Love emphasizes the importance of Christian Watson staying healthy

Jordan Love knows if the Green Bay Packers want to make a run at the Super Bowl, they need all their key players healthy, including Christian Watson. While speaking to the media last week, Love talked about the importance of having the veteran wide receiver healthy throughout the 2024 season.

“I think that’s for everybody,” Love said. “You want to be able to be out there, be available so we can build that chemistry, get a good feel. I think Christian is a guy that is playing really well as well. I’ve hit him on a couple of deep balls where I think that’s his bread and butter. He’s so fast, he can just get by the defense and is really that deep threat. Obviously, we’re getting back in that groove, and I think the biggest thing is that consistency we all got to keep building upon.”

Watson dealt with a hamstring injury last season, which led to him playing in only nine games. When the North Dakota State alum was healthy, he caught 28 passes for 422 yards and five touchdowns. Watson was selected by the Packers in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, the four-time national champion caught 41 passes for 611 yards and seven touchdowns in 14 games.

In May, Watson revealed how he’s dealing with his hamstring issues. “For me, it really was the asymmetry between the legs,” Watson said, per ESPN. “It comes from a lot of things. The issues I’ve had in the past with hamstrings, not fully recovering from those strength-wise. I’ve been attacking the strength side of it, trying to get that symmetry back and it’s been huge for me. I feel really, really good. I gotta continue grinding at it.”

Jordan Love says Chrsitian Watson makes a ‘huge difference’

What’s interesting is Love was more productive when Watson was not on the field. According to Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated, the Packers quarterback threw 18 touchdown passes and only one interception during the final eight games in 2023. Watson missed five of those games, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t make an impact when he’s healthy.

Love said that Watson makes a “Huge difference. That’s the key, is trying to stay healthy throughout the season, so we can have him out there every game, which is something I know he’s working hard on. He’s a difference-maker when he’s out there. He’s a playmaker.”