The Most Important Packers: No. 29 — Dontayvion Wicks
The Green Bay Packers went 11-6 last season, sweeping the NFC West and the AFC South along the way.
Overall, though, no one in the building was happy.
The Packers failed to build on their terrific finish to the 2023 campaign, settled for the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs, and lost a Wild Card game to eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia.
Afterwards, general manager Brian Gutekunst turned up the heat on everybody in the building.
“We need to continue to ramp up our sense of urgency,” Gutekunst said. “I think it’s time we started competing for championships.”
The Packers return 20 of 22 starters, and appear to have upgraded the roster via free agency and the draft. With several third and fourth year players trending upward, Green Bay should be poised to make a move.
“I think they’re ready,” Gutekunst said.
Now, it’s time for the Packers to prove their G.M. right.
Green Bay’s first training camp practice is July 23. Between now and then I will count down the ‘30 Most Important Packers’ heading into the 2025 campaign.
At No. 29 is wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks
Wicks led the Packers in targets (76), but was just fourth in receptions (39) and fifth in receiving yards (415). His catch rate of 51.3% was the second worst in football among wideouts.
Green Bay’s 31-29 home loss to Minnesota in Week 4 was a microcosm of what Wicks can be and how far he remains from getting there.
Wicks caught two touchdowns that day against the Vikings. But he also dropped four passes during that frustrating afternoon.
Wicks finished the year with eight drops and an unsightly drop rate of 17.0%.
Career to date
Wicks, a fifth round draft pick out of Virginia in 2023, finished third on the Packers during his rookie season with 39 receptions. He had 581 receiving yards, averaged 14.9 yards per catch and scored four touchdowns that season.
Wicks finished second in the league in yards per reception among rookies in 2023 and had a team-high 18 receptions of at least 16 yards — the most by a Packers rookie dating back to 2000.
Of his 39 catches, 29 went for first downs — a team-high 74.4%. That was also the highest percentage among rookies and ranked No. 9 in the NFL among all players that averaged at least 2.0 receptions per game.
“I just think it’s that short-area quickness,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said of Wicks late in the 2023 season. “The way I like to compare it is crossing somebody over on the basketball court. He’s got that ability to play on his insteps and he’s got that short-area quickness. I think the sky’s the limit for him, quite frankly.”
Outlook
Wicks played 586 snaps in 2024, third-most among Packers’ wideouts. He might have a hard time getting that many snaps in 2025.
Jayden Reed (685 snaps in 2024) and Romeo Doubs (660) are both ahead of Wicks in the pecking order. The Packers also drafted wideouts Matthew Golden in Round 1 and Savion Williams in Round 3.
Wicks is a Jordan Love favorite, but he’s also at an early career crossroads. If he can’t do a better job holding onto the ball, he could fall deep down the depth chart.
They Said It …
“I think early in the year, he wanted the results so bad. He wanted to catch the ball and score. He was getting open, and then he would have a bad drop and everybody would be so upset over him and he’d be down on himself. I think he really learned to just handle one play at a time.” — Packers passing-game coordinator Jason Vrable said of Wicks
“I mean, most of the time I’m out there, I feel like I’m open. So … I’ve got confidence in my routes, what I can do. I’ve got confidence in my catching. So just keep working … and I feel like I’ll see the light at the end.” — Wicks on his struggles with drops
“I’m excited about him and what he can become because we all see the talent. He is tough to guard on the line of scrimmage, and I know what he’s capable of doing, we just have to get it out on a consistent basis.” — Packers coach Matt LaFleur on Wicks
“I think he’s matured so much. You know, he’s always been a hard worker, he’s always practiced really, really hard, but it’s just, I think mentally I think some days he was kind of going like this (motions downward). You could feel, it was almost like the whole world’s weighing on him, and I just told him, ‘Man, just let your work take care of itself. And every day you show up, outwork everybody in this room.’ And you saw at the end of the year when the ball was coming his way there was a real confidence toward the end to get open and make the play.” — Vrable on Wicks
