Packers fans in disbelief as franchise trades out to draft Jayden Reed over Jalin Hyatt - "Wtf are we doing"

Jayden Reed went to the Green Bay Packers and Jalin Hyatt followed later to the New York Giants. After the Packers did not take a wide receiver or tight end in the first round to help Jordan Love, them selecting receivers was always expected.

They got a behemoth of a tight end with Luke Musgrave first up in the second round. They then waited and moved to 50th overall to get their wide receiver. They chose Jayden Reed even when Jalin Hyatt was available.

It was a surprising decision because Jalin Hyatt was a consensus top-five or top-10 pick in that position. Last season, he had 15 touchdowns in 67 receptions for 1,267 yards.

Jayden Reed, by comparison, had 636 yards and 5 touchdowns last season. The season before that, he had more than 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns, but the production was still less than Hyatt.

Looking at this, Green Bay Packers fans were understandably furious with their team and management. This draft was supposed to be all about getting the best tools for new starting quarterback Jordan Love. They let their displeasure be known on social media.

@AlbertBreer OVER Hyatt?!?! Wtf are we doing.

@AlbertBreer WTH?!?!?

Jalin Hyatt is so much better than Jayden Reed that he’s still sitting on the board in a bad WR class as round 3 begins.

Point is, draft twitter is often wrong.

Jayden Reed over Josh Downs and Jalin Hyatt is…something.

If I’m there #Bears, I’d consider drafting Downs or Hyatt for 2024 and beyond at either 61 or 64 if they’re there. It’s becoming great value for both.

Luke Musgrave + Jayden Reed definitely isn't as exciting as Darnell Washington + Jalin Hyatt. But time will tell, both could end up better.

Jayden Reed in Round 2 seems too rich. Probably could have found him in the 4th round. Especially when you have Jalin Hyatt and Cedric Tillman still available. #Packers #NFLDraft

i really wanna know the explanation as to why we took jayden reed over jalin hyatt.

#Packers going Jayden Reed over both Josh Downs and Jalin Hyatt is interesting… twitter.com/mysportsupdate…

Don’t really get the Jayden Reed pick with Jalin Hyatt there #GoPackGo

I don’t know enough about Jayden Reed to comment but sure looks like they could have some fun with this one. Nice to see Twitter has already condemned the pick because he’s not Jalin Hyatt. 😂 #Packers

Possible explanations for why the Green Bay Packers chose Jayden Reed over Jalin Hyatt

Even though Twitter was surprised with the Green Bay Packers for selecting Jayden Reed over Jalin Hyatt, there may be some trends emerging here.

The Packers already have two young wide receivers in Christian Watson and Romeo Dobbs, who can play on the perimeter. Rather than going for a similar kind of commodity to Jalin Hyatt, the idea might have been to find a better slot receiver.

Jayden Reed fits that bill well and he is extremely versatile. He is also a good blocker, probably better than Hyatt, something they lost with Allen Lazard moving to the New York Jets. It also explains why they prioritized selecting a tight end before a wide receiver.

Aaron Rodgers' injuries to thumb and ribs last season meant he could not throw as deep as normally used to and even when he did, he was getting intercepted more often than at any time in his career. The offense was changed to run-heavy options, with short passes on the inside lines rather than going deep and long. While Jordan Love relieved Rodgers last season, he did well in a similar kind of offense.

Wk12 Jordan Love coming in for an injured Aaron Rodgers in a hostile Eagles stadium:

6/9 passing
113 yards
1 touchdown
146.8 RTG

Not bad for a bust. https://t.co/YRhByG6jij

So, it seems that the Packers will play a similar kind of offense this season. Defense will take a larger role like it did at the end of last season, and that could also explain why they took Lukas Van Ness first overall.