Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst faces many difficult decisions this offseason. One of them concerns whether to offer tight end Tucker Kraft a contract extension now or to wait until next season to see how well Kraft has recovered from his season-ending knee injury. So, should the Packers sign Tucker Kraft to an extension this offseason? We examine the pros and cons of both options.

Should the Packers Sign Tucker Kraft to an Extension This Offseason: The Player’s Productivity

The Packers selected Kraft in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, one round after selecting tight end Luke Musgrave. Gutekunst hoped that by adding two players at the position on day two of the draft, he would give the team a better chance of addressing the team’s needs at the position.

Kraft started his rookie year as the backup tight end behind Musgrave. But when Musgrave suffered a mid-season injury, Kraft took over as the starter. He has not relinquished the starting job since.

After catching 31 passes for 355 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie, Kraft caught 50 passes for 707 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024. All those numbers were career highs.

This past season, Kraft caught 32 passes for 489 yards and six touchdowns before an injury ended his season after just eight games. He was on pace for a record-setting season for Packers tight ends before he tore his ACL against the Panthers.

The Packers offense saw a big drop in productivity after Kraft was lost for the season. The Packers average yards gained per game on offense dropped from 360.4 with Kraft playing to just 307.9 when he was unavailable.

Kraft gives the Packers a sure-handed target. The former South Dakota State star remains extremely difficult to tackle one-on-one. His ability to gain yards after the catch makes him an ideal short target for Jordan Love because those short throws can turn into big gains.

The Situation

The 2026 season will be the final year of Kraft’s rookie contract. At his season-ending press conference on Wednesday, Gutekunst told reporters he was already exploring an extension with Kraft’s agent.

“Obviously, he’s a really important part of this football team, and we would certainly like to have him around,” Gutekunst explained. “That’ll be something we work through with his people, and we’ll kind of see what’s best for us, best for them. Certainly, the impact that he has on our football team, not only as a player but as a leader, is very important to us. We’ve already been in contact with him, just letting him know how we feel, and we’ll kind of see where it goes.”

Musgrave, who stepped into the starting role after Kraft was injured, will also be entering the final year of his rookie contract. So, the Packers must decide which, if any, of their top two tight ends deserve second contracts with the team.

Should the Packers Sign Tucker Kraft to an Extension This Offseason: A Tough Decision

The key question facing Gutekunst remains when to best sign Kraft to a new deal. If the team tries to sign him to a second contract this offseason, they will not know how his recovery from the ACL injury will be. The extremes range from Christian Watson, who returned early and seems to be as good as he was before the injury, or David Bakhtiari, who never really fully recovered and saw his career end due to complications from his procedure.

If the recovery time from the injury is 9-10 months, we’re looking at August or September at the earliest for Kraft’s return to the field. Then the team would have to see how well he looks after that. If he’s fully recovered, obviously, he’ll ask for more money.

Right now, the cap hits for top tight ends in this league ranges from between $14 million to $19 million. Kraft will want to be paid like an elite tight end and probably will get top of market money from another team if the Packers don’t pay him.

However, because the cap goes up each year and salaries go up each year, if the Packers wait until the start of the 2026 season to negotiate a deal with Kraft, the price will only go up.

The best option would be for Gutekunst and cap expert Russ Ball to put together a deal with Kraft that would give the tight end money up front but also give the Packers a way to get out of the deal after one year if Kraft isn’t able to play up to his previous standards.

It will certainly be an interesting offseason for Tucker Kraft and the Green Bay Packers. Hopefully, they can work out a new contract that works for both parties.

 

 

 

 

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