How Packers rookie Matthew Golden gives back to community, chasing Super Bowl, dedicated to craft: ‘How I was raised’

HOUSTON – Matthew Golden sprints up a steep hill, accelerating with explosiveness despite the tough incline at a Buffalo Bayou park.

Days before, the Green Bay Packers rookie wide receiver hosted several youth athletes and budding football players from NFL-NBA elite trainer Justin Allen’s gym for a $222 apiece shopping spree at Dick’s Sporting Goods. The monetary amount signified his love for a jersey number he’s sported since high school and currently dons No. 22 for the Packers.

A few weeks ago, Golden, a first-round draft pick and a former University of Texas and Klein Cain standout, was teaching the fundamentals of the game at a widely-attended football camp at Crump Stadium in Alief.

For Golden, 21, all of this is simply what he was raised to do growing up in the Houston area.

“Always had that vision, to always give back to the community,” Golden told KPRC 2. “Just growing up, I always wanted things and not understanding why I didn’t have the things that I didn’t have and not being in a position to be able to do it. Man, it’s truly a blessing.

“That’s how I was raised, always to give back. If I was in a position to give somebody the clothes off my back, that’s what I would do. For me, I’m in a great position to do that and just be myself. With my mom, that’s how she raised me. Man, it means a lot to me.”

The fastest receiver in the NFL draft with a 4.29 time in the 40-yard dash, Golden was selected 23rd overall in the first round. A University of Houston transfer, Golden excelled with the Longhorns as he led the team last season with 58 catches for 987 yards and 14 touchdowns. Texas defeated Clemson and Arizona State in the college football playoffs.

Golden visited the hometown Texans, Detroit Lions, Dallas Cowboys, Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Denver Broncos and the Los Angeles Chargers before the draft. He is now signed to a four-year, fully guaranteed $17.57 million contract that includes a $9.42 million signing bonus.

Golden joined a franchise and a city steeped in the best traditions of the NFL.

“Great organization to be around, great coaches, it’s a tight team,” Golden said. “It’s a real brotherhood there. I’m excited to see what we do this year."

Golden joined a team that owns four Super Bowl trophies, including the most recent one earned in 2010, with 11 championships earned prior to the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.

Golden is dedicated to one goal: winning a Super Bowl. The Packers, under the leadership of coach Matt LaFleur, finished 11-6 last season and made the playoffs as a wild-card entrant. They fell to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, 22-10, in the opening round of the playoffs.

Golden is part of a team quarterbacked by Jordan Love that returns Pro Bowl running back Josh Jacobs and safety Xavier McKinney.

“Definitely want to go get that Lambeau trophy, man,” Golden said. “That’s the question mark we got in our team room is just filling in that blank. That’s the last thing we need in that team room and, for us, that’s all we talk about at practice is getting that trophy. So, we’re doing everything we can each and every day to get to that point and just letting the rest be built up by itself."

Love, who signed a $220 million contact last offseason that averages $55 million annually, passed for 3,389 yards, 25 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last season. He struggled against the Eagles, throwing three interceptions in a playoff loss.

Perhaps, with the addition of Golden, the offense will become more dangerous. The chemistry between Golden and Love is already building.

“It’s going to be what it’s supposed to be, you know, over time, you got to build, you got to gain his trust,” Golden said. “So, for me, it’s just going out there, you just put my best foot forward each and every day and just allowing him to know that I’m going to be right where I need to be. So, I just feel like for me it’s going happen over time."

Golden visited the Texans and met with them throughout the draft process. They wound up trading out of the first round and selecting wide receiver Jayden Higgins in the second round along with offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery.

Did Golden ever think he would wind up in Houston where it all began for him as a football player?

“I just feel like you just never know really until that situation happens, so I’m right where I want to be,” said Golden, who caught 167 passes in high school for 3,242 yards and 32 touchdowns in high school. “That’s all I can say. I’m excited for where I am. I am now, for the team I’m about to play for. I’m just ready for this season.”

Golden frequently works out at Allen’s training facility in Houston.

Sometimes, he works out alongside the youth athletes he hosted for a shopping spree.

He sees himself in them.

"Just a little kid that loves playing football, I feel like for me it didn’t really start getting serious until probably like my freshman year of high school," Golden said. “That’s when I really started to perfect my craft, just understand the game.

“Right now, I just feel like, for kids, they just gotta go out there and have fun. They’re gonna grow into their bodies and get more mature. It’s cool for me because I was once in those shoes.”

His advice is simple and grounded in a blue-collar work ethic.

“Always, always stay committed to the process, just believe in yourself,” Golden said. “There’s people around you that you can look up to and try to follow in their footsteps. I feel like it’ll set you up for success.”

Golden isn’t big on setting statistical goals. He’s about team success, first and foremost. Make no mistake, though, he’s determined to establish his style of play and put a stamp on the offense.

“It’s just being able to contribute to the team, go out there and have fun,” Golden said. “Just my versatility, what I can do, I can play anywhere on the field. Just doing what the team needs me to do. That’s what I did at Texas and that’s what I’m going to continue to do. Just being in the position to play for the Green Bay Packers man, it means so much to me.”

Working and living in Green Bay, a mecca of football greatness, is significant for Golden. And being in a small town in Wisconsin translates to being ultra-focused on the task at hand.

“It’s good,” Golden said. “There’s no distractions for me, that’s a good thing. It just helps me lock in on football, what I really want to do on and off the field. On the weekends, I try to get a little fishing in.

“It’s unique up there. The fans, everything they have in general, it’s different. That’s why I’m glad I’m in a good spot with a community that cares about their football players. Every day, anytime I go out, there’s a fan that recognizes me. They want a picture or something. It’s cool for me.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com