Christian Watson injury update: Latest on Packers WR for fantasy football Week 4 

Christian Watson had a slow start in 2022 and has followed the pattern in 2023 for entirely different reasons. The wide receiver has been battling injury as Jordan Love attempts to prove he's the long-term solution for the Packers in the wake of Aaron Rodgers' exit.

The wait has been agonizing for fantasy managers, as many spent a high pick on him. Will managers finally get a return on their investment in Week 4?

Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears

Christian Watson injury update

The wide receiver has a lingering hamstring issue that has dogged him for the entire season. On Monday, the wide receiver missed practice again because of the injury. Last week, he had two limited practices, but an absence has followed each showing.

Last week, on Wednesday, he was a limited practice participant. He didn't practice on the following day. On Friday, he was a limited practice participant again. This indicates that his injury is not healing as fast as he'd like. The hamstring might have felt good enough to get on the practice field but not healed completely to take full-speed work.

What happened to Christian Watson?

Christian Watson was injured before the season began. Information on the true location of where the injury happened is unknown, but it was sometime during a practice session in the lead-up to the season. Last year, he also had a hamstring injury that lingered.

Per Draft Sharks, the wide receiver had a thigh hamstring/pull unspecified grade 1. He missed a game with that injury and then aggravated it in Week 5. He then missed two games. It is unclear whether the two injuries are related, but it is clear that his hamstring has been his biggest enemy in the NFL thus far.

When will Christian Watson return?

Christian Watson has been week-to-week for the entire season. At seemingly every point, he's been close to returning and listed as questionable for multiple games. If one could have predicted the future back in Week 1, it would have been beneficial for the team to simply put him onto the injury reserve and call it a day.

Instead, the team and fantasy managers have unfortunately been at the mercy of Watson's hamstring on a weekly basis. The Packers play on Thursday Night Football this week against the Detroit Lions. As such, the window for a return is paper-thin.

With Watson missing Monday's practice already, the prospects of a sudden return to help Jordan Love are grim.

Hopefully, the mini-bye following the game will finally give him enough time to heal fully. Until then, it'll be up to Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed to pick up the slack. Doubs and Reed have put up about 300 combined total yards in their three games of action in relief of Watson.