The Green Bay Packers dismantled the Washington Commanders on both sides of the ball in the first Thursday Night Football of this season—offensively and defensively. The box score turns out to be in favor of the Green Bay team, 27-19, thanks to a powerful defensive performance that held Washington to just 230 yards in the game. But on the other side of the ball, there has been a wrinkle. It’s wide receiver Jayden Reed’s injury.

The third-year wideout, who was fresh off three receptions for 45 yards and a touchdown against the Lions last week, hurt his shoulder with less than five minutes remaining in the first quarter. Further reports confirmed that Reed has fractured his collarbone and might be out for the foreseeable future. But that optimism and fire to return on the field? It’s still there.

A few hours after the Packers walked out of Lambeau Field with a 2-0 lead, Reed took to his ‘X’ handle and expressed his intention to return as soon as possible. “I’ll be back 🙏🏾,” Reed, 25, wrote. The optimism around his return was followed by another social media post, as Reed appreciated all the prayers he received after the injury. “Appreciate the prayers Gods timing,” the wideout wrote in his IG story.

Because at this point, the Packers’ offense is clicking, and the defense is swarming.  But in the middle of what had been strong play on both sides, the Green Bay team took a scare when Reed went down clutching his shoulder. The third-year wideout landed awkwardly after hauling in what looked like a touchdown from Jordan Love. Only for the score to be wiped out by a holding penalty on rookie Anthony Belton.

One thing led to another, and Reed was eventually ruled out after he struggled to make his way down the Lambeau Field tunnel. Matt Schneidman, the Packers beat writer of The Athletic, added another layer to it. He noted that “his (Reed’s) right arm is in a sling,” which eventually turned out to be a fractured collarbone.

Since then, Jayden Reed has been optimistic about his return once he gets healthy. And why not? Because it might be too early to say, but at this point, the Packers, under the command of Jordan Love with Micah Parsons on the defense, started to look like a Super Bowl contender. The only question, though? How much time is Reed going to miss?

Matt LaFleur shared the worst Jayden Reed news

After the final whistle, all Packers faithful wanted was clarity on Jayden Reed’s status. Head coach Matt LaFleur later confirmed the third-year wideout had fractured his collarbone. But when it came to a timeline for his return, things got a little Murky. “He’s gonna miss a lot of time, unfortunately,” the HC said. “He broke his collarbone, so he’ll be down for quite some time. We’ll see how fast he can recover and heal. Certainly, I would expect him back at some point this season.”

While the exact timeline is still unclear, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport later added the rough reality. Reed is expected to miss at least 6 to 8 weeks. In other words, the first half of his season is already gone. “The hope is that it’s a 6–8-week injury for Jayden Reed, which would bring him back in November,” Rapoport wrote. Which naturally raises a question: How does Reed’s injury affect the Packers’ offense? The answer is: Dearly.

“Obviously it’s a big blow to us,” LaFleur added. “He’s a guy who’s a catalyst for our offense, and our football team quite frankly. The energy he brings; he’s a dawg. He comes out there and he’s gonna compete, and he plays tough, physical. And he’s a playmaker.” But amidst the skepticism around the wideout’s return, the seventh-year head coach remains content with Reed’s replacement. “Fortunately for us, I feel like we have a pretty deep wide receiver room and there’s gonna be opportunities there for other guys to step up and take advantage of,” he said.

Speaking of which, Dontayvion Wicks could be in the mix after pulling in 4 catches for 44 yards. Alongside rookies Matthew Golden and Savion Williams, plus fourth-year wideout Romeo Doubs, he’s part of the group now tasked with adding depth to the Packers’ receiving corps. As for Jayden Reed’s return? We’ll return with further updates.