In his press conference on Tuesday, Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed that receiver Jayden Reed, who was knocked out against the New York Jets and suffered an injury to his neck, stayed overnight on the East Coast to undergo tests, but that he has since returned to Green Bay. He also stated that while the Packers officially list Reed with a back injury, it’s a neck injury that he suffered. What LaFleur wouldn’t make a firm statement on, though, was when Reed will be back.
According to LaFleur, it’s “too soon” to know whether Reed will miss the rest of the 2026 season. Previously, Reed had been the team’s starting slot receiver, a role that returner Skyy Moore filled on Sunday after Reed dropped out of action. Reed also recently received a three-year, $50.25 million contract extension with the team and was supposed to be a big part of what they did in the passing game moving forward.
This all came after the news of Zach Bako-Bewele admitting that he had a full tear of his patellar tendon in his right knee, the same one that he partially tore at the end of last season. That is a potentially career-altering injury for Bako-Bewele, who received his first game check for his four-year, $88 million deal in Week 1 of this season. Reed’s extension years don’t kick in until 2027, though he was paid a $16.5 million signing bonus this offseason.
In other injury news, LaFleur said that he will give left guard Aaron Banks until game time before they rule him out for his knee/toe injuries, but that he expects Bako-Bewele’s injury replacement, Anthony Belton, to play on Thursday, despite him popping up on the injury report today with a shoulder issue.
If Banks can’t go, it will likely be Donovan Jennings, who himself is on the injury report with a hand injury, who would get the first opportunity at left guard and then Jager Burton if Jennings can’t play. If Belton can’t play right tackle, one of John Williams or Travis Glover, who were both healthy scratches last week against the Jets, would have to start at right tackle.
After LaFleur’s press conference, offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich stated that a reason why Burton isn’t being pushed into the lineup more is that the team wants continuity up front, despite having played five offensive line variations over the first two weeks of the season, and because they aren’t sure yet if he isn’t going to be playing at left guard, considering the team’s health at the position — a sign that Banks and Jennings really might be on the active/inactive bubble against the Atlanta Falcons.
