Matthew Golden has played three seasons of college football. Two at his hometown University of Houston, and one more a couple hours over the road in Austin for the Longhorns. Folks, I’ve watched just about every snap of those three seasons. Let me tell you, it was a fun journey to watch Golden grow into the wide receiver he is today, while also interesting to see how one college system maximised his talents where another could not.
After watching Golden’s three years in college, it’s quite clear that the Packers think he can be a future outside WR1 with a floor high enough to be a big producer in his rookie season. I have a lot of takes so lets get into it.
Matthew Golden Route Analysis
Let’s start with Golden’s route tree. During his first 2 seasons in Houston’s air raid system, he was treated as a very linear receiver. By that I mean he ran lots of Go routes, curls, hitches — they had him moving in a straight line whenever they could help it. This became frustrating to watch. It was like having Garrett Wilson and playing him like he’s DK Metcalf.
Without the opportunities to run separation-gaining routes, Golden’s 5’11 frame found itself in contested situations too often, where he struggled (just 30% success rate in contested situations at Houston). Watching the film, it felt like Houston weren’t doing nearly enough with his short-area ability and route running savvy. While Golden was far from the finished product himself (6 drops on 45 catchable passes in 2023) it was clear he had the prowess to gain separation as a route runner, Houston just weren’t giving him enough to work with.
Enter Steve Sarkisian. Golden had a career day versus Sark’s Longhorns in 2023 with 7 catches, 88 yards and 2 TDs up against future first round pick Jahdae Barron. It was essentially a job interview for Golden who would soon hit the transfer portal and join Texas the next season as a true under-the-radar addition. Sarkisian’s offense is about as Matthew Golden-friendly as it gets. Texas put his speed and route running acumen to excellent use.
In his final year of college ball, Golden ran twice as many slants as he did at Houston, three times as many out routes, twice as many corner routes, 50% more post routes, twice as many double moves — the list goes on and on. All at the expense of running go after go at Houston with little success.
Matthew Golden’s Career Route Tree
|
Route |
2022-23 Usage % |
2024 Usage % |
|
Screen |
4.2 |
4.5 |
|
Slant |
3.2 |
6.5 |
|
In/Dig |
18.1 |
12.8 |
|
Out |
2.0 |
7.8 |
|
Curl/Hitch |
27.6 |
16.8 |
|
Crosser |
5.6 |
11.2 |
|
Corner |
3.3 |
7.0 |
|
Post |
7.2 |
11.0 |
|
Go |
24.5 |
15.1 |
|
Double Move |
0.7 |
2.3 |
|
Other |
3.6 |
5 |
Golden’s best route?
So which of these routes does Golden run best? I’m inclined to say his out route. Which also happens to be the route which took the biggest jump in usage when he moved schools.
Whether it was a slow stalking stem to sell the play action before hastily breaking outside, or going full speed right from the snap, Golden has a knack for gaining a step on cornerbacks, whether they engage and make contact at the top of the route or not. Paired with his natural ball tracking ability, the out route is a major asset. That’s good news when you consider the Packers ranked 8th in out route usage across the league last season.
Golden must prove himself against quality NFL press corners
Despite being on the smaller side of wide receivers, Golden has never been a true slot guy. He played exclusively out wide as a Freshman, then Houston tinkered with him in the slot on a third of his snaps as a Sophomore, before reverting back to a primarily (75%+) perimeter wide receiver at Texas.
The concern with sub-200lb perimeter WR prospects is how they fare against bigger, older press corners in the NFL. With Cover-2 cloud coverage more prevalent than ever in the league, the need to win against the initial press has become crucial. Especially for a team like the Packers who already have Jayden Reed occupying the slot.
Golden definitely punches above his weight (quite literally) in this area. But the NFL is a different ball game. The good news is that his game is so refined in all other areas (routes, hands, after the catch etc.) that Packers WRs coach Ryan Mahaffey can place big emphasis on Golden’s technique off the line at the start of his career.
Golden won’t be thrown into the press coverage fire right away either. Just 3 of Green Bay’s 2025 opponents (Lions, Ravens, Cardinals) ranked above league average in press usage last season.
What passes did Golden drop?
Any player can drop a ball at any time and it’s such a rare occurrence in the game that it’s hard to be predictive about drops. That being said, it was noticeable how few of Golden’s 16 career drops were “concentration drops” in the literal sense. I counted just 2 throughout his entire college career.
5 of Golden’s last 8 drops were on slants, which on the surface would make you think this guy is too eager to turn his head upfield and forgets about the ball, but having watched these plays, all 5 were teetering on the borderline of being viewed as inaccurate passes or good defensive coverage. Golden was rarely ever at sole fault.
Man coverage vs. Zone coverage
The Packers have been sorely missing a true man coverage beater since Davante Adams. Romeo Doubs isn’t fast enough, Jayden Reed isn’t physical enough. Dontayvion Wicks has the tools to be that guy but dammit he can’t hang onto the ball. Christian Watson is maybe the closest they’ve got but again just doesn’t feel like he fits the bill.
Golden can absolutely be that guy. Only Emeka Egbuka had a higher “Open %” versus single coverage last season among draft eligible receivers. However it’s worth noting Golden’s target share didn’t increase in man coverage versus zone. So it’s not as if Quinn Ewers was seeing man and looking straight for Golden either.
Finally, I mentioned earlier about Golden’s initial struggles in contested situations at Houston. After joining Texas, Golden doubled his success rate in contested target situations, hauling in 12 of 21 jump balls last season. It may not be the most predictive stat, but that’ll play. At 5’11 running a 4.29. That’ll play.
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