“This is not normal;” Packers fans react to star offensive weapon returning to practice ahead of Week 6

The Green Bay Packers are hoping that their Week Five bye week will result in them having a much healthier team going forward. Through the first four weeks of the season, Green Bay saw multiple players go down with various injuries that have (and in some cases, will continue to) kept them out for multiple games. Among these are starting offensive linemen Zach Tom and Aaron Banks, as well as wide receiver Jayden Reed.

Now that the bye week is over, the Packers are busily preparing for their Week Six matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals. Fortunately for them, some of their injured players are finally back at practice, including star wide receiver Christian Watson, who missed the first four games of the season.

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson returns to practice

Last season, Watson was one of Green Bay’s most important weapons on offense. He had 29 receptions for 620 yards and two touchdowns in 15 games played, the most games he played in a single season during his short career.

Prior to the 2024 season, Watson visited a specialist at the University of Wisconsin to try and find out why he had so many soft tissue injuries. Tests revealed that one of his legs was significantly stronger than the other, which led to numerous hamstring issues.

And while he mostly avoided injury, missing just a couple games with a sprain, he was not able to participate in the Packers’ Wild Card loss to the Philadelphia Eagles due to tearing his ACL against the Chicago Bears in Week 18.

But while many fans expressed frustration with Watson’s injury, the Packers showed their faith in and commitment to him by giving him a one-year $13 million contract extension earlier this year. Green Bay had tried to trade up into the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft to take him, but could not do so, instead trading up high into the second round to get him.

The one-year contract is equivalent to the team picking up his fifth-year option had he been taken in the first round.

Green Bay Packers fans are impressed that Christian Watson is already back at practice

Typically, it takes players close to a year or more to recover and return from torn ACL’s. However, Watson is now primed to be able to come back as soon as Week Six, a little over 270 days since his injury. And while the likely will not face Cincinnati due to having to knock off some rust, the Packers now have to add him to their active roster within the next 21 days.

Obviously, Watson put in a great deal of work to get to this point, and fans are impressed with how quickly he has been able to return:

He’s not even wearing a sleeve on the knee.

This is not normal. https://t.co/I92V2G7ytf

— Jacob Morley (@JacobMorley) October 6, 2025

I’m feeling some type of way https://t.co/yAaPfBtHnE

— Danielle (@toepacktoe) October 6, 2025

Christian Watson tore his ACL 274 days ago…

Absolutely insane that he could be playing in the next week or two. https://t.co/OHS1ThG4os

— Eli Berkovits (@BookOfEli_NFL) October 6, 2025

Freak of nature https://t.co/IIig9KSVLW

— a…TIE?! (@Ferd_Turgeson) October 6, 2025

More Green Bay Packers news from Gridiron Heroics

• Packers WR could potentially return soon from torn ACL
• “This changes everything;” Packers caught massive break in Week 4 vs Cowboys
• “We didn’t exactly win the Super Bowl;” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones takes shots at Micah Parsons

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