Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson out of the NFL playoffs after tearing his ACL

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson has torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and will be unavailable for the postseason.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur confirmed the severity of Watson’s injury on Monday, a day after the 2022 second-round pick out of North Dakota State was carted into the locker room in the second quarter of a 24-22 loss to the Chicago Bears .

The injury leaves Green Bay without its top threat as the Packers (11-6) hit the road to face the NFC East champion Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) in the wild-card round Sunday.

Watson had 29 catches for 620 yards and two touchdowns this season.

“I hurt for him,” LaFleur said. “Obviously I hurt for our team, but even more so for him because I know how much he put into this thing, as do all our guys. You never want to see that.’

LaFleur also said he wasn’t sure if quarterbacks Jordan Love and Malik Willis would face any restrictions in practice this week.

Watson, 25, was running a pattern when he went down with a non-contact injury on Sunday

Love left the Bears game with what the team described as an elbow injury, and he said afterward that he had lost feeling in his throwing hand but that he would be fine for the Eagles game.

Love noted that he took some warm-up steps late in the game when Willis was dealing with a hand problem.

“I talked to both guys,” LaFleur said. “It looks like they’re doing well, but as far as their limits, I think they’re doing well, but we’ll find out in the next day or two.”

Watson, 25, was running a pattern when he crashed with a non-contact injury and began seizing his right knee.

Watson had missed the Packers’ 27-25 loss in Minnesota a week earlier with an injured left knee, but he practiced on a limited basis Friday.

LaFleur said Watson asked Friday if he wanted to play against the Bears as long as he could practice that day.

LaFleur acknowledged there was “a lot of discussion” about whether to play him and that the Packers planned to give him only limited snaps.

The Packers had been dealing with depth issues at receiver with Romeo Doubs absent due to an illness. LaFleur said Monday that Doubs is now feeling better.

The injury leaves Green Bay without a major threat for their wild-card matchup against the Eagles

Injuries have hampered Watson for much of his three-year pro career, although he has mainly dealt with hamstring problems in the past.

After appearing in just nine games in 2023, Watson worked on strengthening his hamstrings and appeared in a career-high 15 games this season.

Now he must deal with his most serious injury yet.

“I know he’ll attack it the right way,” LaFleur said.

‘He will be able to handle the setbacks. It will only be a bump in the road for him. I think he’ll come back better. That’s just how it’s built. That’s how he works.’