For all the excitement surrounding rookies, most of them are usually bad in their first year in the NFL. Taking a step from year one to year two is more important than whatever they do as rookies, and the Packers will be relying on several players to show improvement in 2026.

The most obvious example is Matthew Golden, the 1st round pick from a year ago who became the first wide receiver drafted in round one by Green Bay since 2002.

His stat sheet from 2025 is not particularly impressive, although anyone who watched the tape will know there is plenty to be encouraged about, and his lack of production was more due to veteran receivers blocking his path to playing time than a lack of talent on his part.

Now Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks are out of the picture, the road is clear for Golden to see the field, and the football, more often in year two, and the Packers need him to reward them for that opportunity.

Of course, even if Golden is not ready to make that jump, Jordan Love will still have plenty of pass catchers to throw to, with Christian Watson, Jayden Reed and Tucker Kraft a perfectly sufficient top three.

But given how big Doubs’ role in the offense was, and the fact Golden will essentially be replacing him in that role – across from Watson as the two boundary receivers with Reed mostly playing in the slot – makes his performance in 2026 of the utmost importance.

The floor for Green Bay’s offense will always be high with Love, a solid selection of weapons and Matt LaFleur calling plays, but in moving from Doubs to Golden, there is a chance to raise the ceiling. If he can break out in year two, it would be a huge boost.

Anthony Belton, taken in the 2nd round last year, looks locked in to start at right guard in 2026, after getting a lot of exposure there as a rookie.

Packers offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich admitted Belton had almost exclusively worked at tackle in the lead up to his rookie year, which cannot have made the transition easy on him when it occurred midseason.

Belton seemed to improve as the year went on though, and now with a full offseason under his belt, his arrow will hopefully keep pointing up. Green Bay certainly needs that to be the case, as the O-line was one of their biggest problem areas in 2025.

With Micah Parsons expected to miss multiple games to start the year, there is a good chance former 4th round pick Barryn Sorrell will start opposite Lukas Van Ness to begin the season.

Sorrell played well against the run as a rookie, but his impact as a pass rusher was almost nonexistent, so he will need to take a step to become more than just an early-down edge defender.

If the Packers are to generate some juice as a pass rush without Parsons, former 5th rounder Collin Oliver could also have a significant part to play in that as a designated rusher on obvious passing downs.

Having the likes of Sorrell and Oliver become legitimate contributors would be massive, even once Parsons returns, as it would give Green Bay waves of viable pass rushers, an asset which was key for last year’s Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.

The year-one to year-two jump is a crucial part of any player’s development, and in 2026 it could be vital if the Packers are going to challenge for a title.