The Green Bay Packers didn’t have a receiver spot open on Sunday. Then Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed both went down with new injuries, and general manager Brian Gutekunst had a workout scheduled within hours.
Golden, the Packers’ first-round pick in 2025, sat out with a toe injury. Reed, Green Bay’s leading receiver each of the past two seasons, didn’t practice because of an ankle issue. According to FantasyPros, citing ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, both injuries came out of the team’s Family Night practice and left LaFleur without two of his top three wideouts for Sunday’s session.
That’s the backdrop for Green Bay’s roster move. The team announced it signed wide receiver Kisean Johnson, along with releasing safety Johnathan Baldwin II and cornerback Marlon Jones. Both released players will revert to injured reserve if they clear waivers, per Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper.
How Johnson Landed the Deal
Johnson wasn’t the only name in the mix. Green Bay worked out three receivers — Johnson, Kobe Hudson and Cornell Powell — between Friday’s Family Night practice and Sunday’s session, according to Acme Packing Company. Johnson impressed enough in that window to get added to the 91-man roster on the spot, then went straight from tryout to full practice participant, with coaches walking him through route concepts in real time.
This is Johnson’s second stint in Green Bay. He first signed to the practice squad on Jan. 6, 2026, ahead of the team’s playoff loss to the Chicago Bears, but wasn’t retained on a futures deal afterward — meaning he was cut loose as a free agent rather than tied to the roster.
Before that, Johnson was a UDFA out of Western Kentucky who signed with the Cleveland Browns in May 2025 and was released after training camp. His college resume carries weight: four seasons at Alabama State, where he earned first-team All-SWAC and third-team FCS All-America honors, followed by a graduate transfer year at Western Kentucky in which he caught 75 passes for 925 yards and seven touchdowns — good for second in Conference USA in receptions.
Where Johnson Fits on the Depth Chart
Even with Golden and Reed sidelined, Johnson is a long shot to make Green Bay’s 53-man roster when cuts come Aug. 30. The Packers’ receiver room already runs six deep with Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, Matthew Golden, Savion Williams, Skyy Moore and Bo Melton, and outlets projecting the roster before camp had that group essentially locked in.
| Receiver | Status |
|---|---|
| Christian Watson | Roster lock |
| Jayden Reed | Roster lock (ankle, day-to-day) |
| Matthew Golden | Roster lock (toe, day-to-day) |
| Savion Williams | Roster lock |
| Skyy Moore | Likely (kick returner) |
| Bo Melton | Bubble |
| Kisean Johnson | Camp body / practice squad track |
That’s the practical reality here: Johnson isn’t being brought in to compete for a starting job. He’s a body added because the Packers were down to four healthy scholarship-caliber receivers for a single practice, and Gutekunst wasn’t willing to run camp reps short-handed with the preseason opener four days out.
What’s Next
Green Bay opens its preseason schedule Thursday at Pittsburgh, and how Golden and Reed look in practice this week — both were held out again Monday, per FantasyPros — will matter more for the offense’s outlook than anything Johnson does. LaFleur has called neither injury a long-term concern, but the Packers have a roster cutdown to 53 players looming on Aug. 30, and every practice rep between now and then factors into who’s healthy enough to earn a spot. If Golden or Reed miss extended time, Johnson’s practice-squad case gets a little stronger; if both bounce back this week, he’s likely ticketed for the fringe of the roster or a return trip to the practice squad once cuts hit.
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