GREEN BAY, Wis. – Jayden Reed is arguably the Green Bay Packers’ best receiver. One of their other top receivers, Romeo Doubs, was inactive for Thursday night’s game against the Detroit Lions.

So, it stood to reason that Reed, who had a huge game against Detroit a month earlier, would be a focal point of the attack in Thursday night’s showdown.

Not so much.

Jayden Reed failed to catch the first pass of the game – it was low, but his mom told him it was a drop – and never saw another pass the rest of the game.

Reed and coach Matt LaFleur talked about it before Monday’s practice.

“I talked to Jayden,” LaFleur said, “just making sure that we have some of those plays for him in the game plan where he’s tagged to go in there and play wideout because, obviously, he’s a very impactful player. It wasn’t by design that we don’t want to throw him the ball. That’s never the case.”

Reed, with a typically mature approach, appreciated the conversation.

“I know they’re on my side at the end of the day,” Reed said. “But it’s a game we can’t control. Everything’s got to go right. It’s got to be blocked right, executed right, the timing’s got to be right. There’s a lot of stuff that goes into it. So, at the end of the day, I’ve just got to find a way to win.”

LaFleur said Reed was one of the primary options on the first play of the game, but Za’Darius Smith sacked Jordan Love. On the fateful offensive pass interference in the fourth quarter, the play was supposed to be a screen to Reed, but he got caught up in the mess at the line of scrimmage.

It wasn’t just a lack of opportunities. Sometimes, that’s going to happen. More confounding was the lack of snaps.

Reed played his fewest snaps of the season (25) and matched his lowest share of the snaps (50.0 percent; also against San Francisco). Even if Reed’s not getting the ball, his presence must be accounted for by defenders.

According to LaFleur, the Lions were “inviting” the Packers to throw the ball but he wanted to stick with a run-first attack centered on the power running of Josh Jacobs.

So, LaFleur went with a lot of two-receiver sets. Christian Watson played 46 of 50 snaps and Dontayvion Wicks played 39 of 50 while Reed, who is primarily a slot receiver, played only seven more snaps than backup tight end Ben Sims.

Combined with the Lions playing keepaway – it was 80-50 in plays – arguably the team’s best playmaker spent too much of the night standing on the sideline.

“As long as we’re winning, I don’t mind,” Reed said. “Hey, this is a game you can’t control all the time and you just control what you can. That’s what I try to do my best.”

With a deep and talented offense, Reed understands that he’s not going to get eight catches every game.

“The ball finds good energy,” he said during training camp.

However, the ball needs to find good players.

Of 84 receivers who have been targeted at least 40 times, Reed ranks fourth in yards after the catch per catch, according to Pro Football Focus. Before Thursday, he was first in passer rating when targeted and seventh in yards per route. On passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield, he’s No. 1 in catch rate and yards per route.

Reed is too good to be forgotten.

But he was forgotten on Thursday.

“I look at it as, this game ain’t all about me,” said Reed, who has seven catches for 73 yards the last four games. “At the end of the day, I just want to win. As long as we’re winning, I don’t care about targets, none of that. If we’re winning, that’s all I’m about.”

But the Packers didn’t win on Thursday.

Giving Reed more opportunities for an offense that gained one first in the first three series and converted one third down all night might have helped.

“I always want the ball in my hands,” Reed said.

The Packers have a talented group of skill-position players. Jacobs has changed the offense. Tucker Kraft is a menace at tight end. Watson is an explosive threat, Wicks appears to be breaking out of his slump and Doubs is a premier route-runner.

They all need their opportunities. But Reed is Reed, a game-changing performer on any down and in any situation.

Entering the final dash to the playoffs, which starts on Sunday night at the Seattle Seahawks, Reed needs to be a bigger focal point of the attack.

“At the end of the day, the sun’s going to shine in different places every day,” Reed said. “It’s not always going to be on you. I just come here and do my job and control what I can control at the end of the day.”

Latest Green Bay Packers News

During last night's On The Clock starring @rothchris, we discussed the #Packers' lack of a real quality win. I delved a bit further into that here.https://t.co/n83XR0tNi7

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) December 10, 2024