Matthew Golden finished as the WR3 for Week 9 so far, catching all 10 of his targets for 164 yards and a TD in a 45-27 win over the Patriots. He led the Packers with 10 of Jordan Love’s 29 pass attempts. His 49-yard catch was also Green Bay’s longest play of the day. Golden ran a team-high 32 routes on 49 snaps, so he drew a target on 31% of his routes.
2026 Fantasy Football Impact
The volume isn’t new. Golden came in averaging 10.3 targets per game (WR5) with a 27.2% target share (WR10). But he had been underperforming his expected fantasy points by 2.1 per game. A perfect catch rate fixed that. He also scored for the second straight week after finishing as the WR7 in Week 8.
Week 10 brings Minnesota, which allows the 29th-most fantasy points to WRs (25.9 per game). The Vikings rank 7th in our Pass Defense Power rankings and have the league’s best pass defense DVOA (-25.8%). Green Bay is on bye in Week 11. Week 12 is at the Rams, who allow the 26th-most points to WRs (27.6) and rank 8th in Pass Defense Power with PFF’s second-best coverage grade. Both matchups are tough, but Golden’s target share in the league’s most pass-heavy offense (65.7% pass rate) keeps him as a high-end WR2 with WR1 upside going forward.
