Packers Sign First-Round Pick Matthew Golden; Only One Remains Unsigned
GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers have signed their first-round draft pick, receiver Matthew Golden, according to OverTheCap.com.
Long gone are the days of protracted contract negotiations and even holdouts with first-round picks. The collective bargaining agreement spells out what each draft pick is worth. Thus, Golden’s four-year deal as the 23rd overall selection of the draft is worth $17,575,338. Every penny of that is guaranteed, including a signing bonus of about $9.42 million. His Year 1 salary-cap charge will be almost $3.2 million.
As is the case with all first-round picks, there will be a fifth-year option for the 2029 season. The Packers will have to make that decision shortly after the 2027 draft.
The only unsigned draft pick for Green Bay is second-round choice Anthony Belton. The offensive lineman’s four-year contract will be worth $8.01 million with a signing bonus of just over $2.0 million. Unlike first-round picks, there is some negotiation involved for second-round selections in terms of amount of guaranteed money. Almost all of the second round is unsigned.
There are high expectations for what Golden can deliver as a rookie. The Packers’ young receiver corps fell flat last season, with dropped passes and injuries impacting the offense’s production. With 4.29 speed in the 40, Golden can at least replace the field-stretching threat provided by Christian Watson as he recovers from a torn ACL.
“Certainly, he’s going to be a speed threat right away, right?” general manager Brian Gutekunst said after the first round. “He is one of those guys that covering him from a man perspective is going to be extremely tough on teams. So, when we get to some of those third-down things where people are trying to mug us up and we need somebody to get open fast, he can do that.”
Golden is more than a speed threat, though. He’s a solid route-runner with excellent hands. At 5-foot-11, he is undersized, which could impact his NFL performance.
Golden opened his career at Houston before transferring to Texas for his final season. He became a go-to player down the stretch for the Longhorns. His ability to adapt to their offense in one season should bode well for his ability to learn Green Bay’s offense as a rookie.
“There’s definitely some carryover, for sure,” between the Packers’ offense and what Golden ran in college, offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said this week. “I think him going from Houston and then going to Texas for a year definitely helped him in terms of helping him be more ready for a pro-style offense, for sure. There is definitely some carryover of stuff he did in college at Texas to here, for sure.”
Golden caught 58 passes for 987 yards and nine touchdowns in 16 games for Texas. He had huge games against Georgia in the SEC Championship Game (eight catches, 162 yards) and Arizona State in the College Football Playoffs (seven catches, 149 yards, one touchdown).
“Being reliable, man,” Golden said. “In critical situations, I always showed up. When our back was against the wall, they could count on me to come out with a big play, and that’s something I kept doing continuously. Coming here, that’s definitely the same mindset I’m bringing – to make big plays and come out here and win games. I’m bringing that chip on my shoulder like I’ve got something to prove and putting my best foot forward.”
With contact in hand, he’ll be able to buy his grandmother’s house, which has been abandoned “for some years.” When he spoke to reporters at the Packers’ rookie camp, Golden said buying the house is “definitely in the works.”
“That’s the house I grew up in when I was younger and it got taken away from us a couple years ago,” he said. “Just knowing that I’m in the position to be able to get that back for all my family — my little cousins that grew up there — just for everybody to go back home, just feel that energy. That’s something my grandma always wanted and before my great grandma died, she always wanted one of her grandsons to make it to the NFL. I’m the last one standing and I made it, so I know she’s proud of me
