TE Tucker Kraft, WR Christian Watson, DL Devonte Wyatt Among Packers Extension Candidates
With the early phase of free agency basically done, the Packers will soon be shifting their attention to the draft. However, with a chunk of money remaining, the front office will also pursue extensions with some of their current players. When asked to identify the team’s top extension candidates, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic pointed to three players: tight end Tucker Kraft, wide receiver Christian Watson, and defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt.
We heard back in February that the Packers and Kraft were likely to engage in extension talks, and Schneidman believes the tight end will be prioritized. That’s because the player is currently working his way back from a torn ACL, and there’s an opportunity for the front office to secure a relative bargain. Of course, it takes two to tango, and Kraft may understand that his best opportunity to approach the top of the TE market is by proving he’s fully recovered.
The former third-round pick is set to enter the final season of his rookie contract. He had a breakout campaign in 2024, finishing with 50 catches for 707 yards and seven touchdowns. He took his production to another level in 2025, upping his yards-per-game mark from 41.6 in 2024 to 61.1 yards in 2025. He was also on pace for double-digit touchdowns, as he hauled in six scores through eight games. Unfortunately, that ACL tear ended his season early, but the Packers are still counting on Kraft to be a foundational part of their offense moving forward.
Last September, Watson inked a one-year extension that would keep him in Green Bay through the 2026 campaign. At the time, the wideout was recovering from his own ACL tear, and that deal bought the organization some time as they evaluated his comeback. Watson more than picked up where he left off, as he compiled some of the best numbers of his career, finishing with 35 catches for 611 yards and six touchdowns in just 10 games.
The Packers did lose Romeo Doubs to the Patriots this offseason, but they are also still rostering a pair of rookie-contract contributors in Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed. While the front office would naturally like to surround Jordan Love with as much talent as possible, they may not feel the same urgency to break the bank to keep Watson long-term.
Wyatt, a former first-round pick, is set to play the 2026 season on his fifth-year option. After appearing in less than 50 percent of his team’s defensive snaps through his first three NFL seasons, the defensive lineman took on a larger role in 2025. He started each of his 10 games last season, collecting 27 tackles and four sacks while appearing in more than 60 percent of Green Bay’s defensive snaps.
He suffered a fibula fracture and ankle ligament tear that ended his season prematurely, although he’s optimistic that he’ll be ready to go for training camp. The Packers may also want to get a longer look at Wyatt’s recovery before paying big, but they could find themselves priced out of the equation if the defender continues his upward trajectory.
NFC North Notes: Walker, Doubs, Tom, Wyatt, Byard
This past weekend, Packers left tackle Rasheed Walker was arrested at LaGuardia Airport on gun charges, per a report from multiple contributors at the New York Post. On Friday morning, Walker was taken into custody after trying to check a bag that contained a handgun and ammunition.
Arthur Aidala, Walker’s attorney, explained that Walker legally owned the firearm but that it is licensed in Wisconsin, and he didn’t know that he couldn’t travel with the gun to New York. It was actually Walker’s attempt to disclose the contents of the locked gun box in his luggage that led to his arrest.
Walker was charged with two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a firearm. After an appearance at criminal court, Walker was released on his own recognizance with a return date of March 19. Aidala is confident that the case will be dismissed.
Here are a few other recent rumors from around the NFC North:
- In the Packers’ young receiving corps, pending free agent Romeo Doubs has been perhaps the most consistent contributor in the talented position group. When asked if he would be returning to Green Bay in a recent appearance on the Up & Adams Show, Doubs wanted to make it known that he “would love to be a Green Bay Packer” but that he knows the nature of the business.
- Packers right tackle Zach Tom was unable to finish out the season with his team in the playoffs this year due to a knee injury, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. According to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Tom tried to get back on the field using a PRP injection, but he didn’t feel he would be able to pass block with it. He’s expected to undergo surgery to repair a partially torn patellar tendon with a recovery timeline of approximately six months.
- Silverstein also reported on the injury to Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, who reportedly suffered a broken fibula and torn ligament in his ankle. The soft tissue injury certainly lengthens any recovery time, but per Silverstein, Wyatt expects to be back in time for training camp.
- Following a surprising late-season run into the playoffs, Bears pending free agent safety Kevin Byard made it known that he “would love to be back” in Chicago on a new deal, according to Bears writer Gabby Hajduk. Byard expressed a desire to “finish what (the Bears) got started this year” as he “wants to be on a team that wants to win.” There’s no doubt Chicago will want to retain Byard, but the question will be if they can afford it. Byard led the NFL in interceptions this year for the second time in his career, earning a third first-team All-Pro selection as a result. Two picks in the two years before this season seemed to indicate a fall off as Byard ventured into his thirties, but he turned back the clock just in time for it to pay off in a big way on his next deal.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/5/25
Friday’s only minor transactions:
Green Bay Packers
- Claimed off waivers (from Seahawks): DT Quinton Bohanna
- Placed on IR: DT Devonte Wyatt (story)
Bohanna’s journeys continue as he finds himself on his fourth team in five years of play. A former sixth-round pick out of Kentucky, Bohanna became a starter for the Cowboys in his sophomore campaign. He was passed up on the depth chart the next year and failed to make the 53-man roster as a result. Since then, he’s bounced around, spending time on practice squads in Detroit, Tennessee, and Seattle. The Seahawks called him up to the active roster for a month before putting him on waivers yesterday.
To make room on the 53-man roster, the Packers put Wyatt on injured reserve following his recent ankle fracture.
Packers DT Devonte Wyatt Suffers Fractured Ankle
DECEMBER 1: LaFleur confirmed on Monday (via Demovsky) Wyatt will not return this season. In the absence of an extension being worked out, Wyatt will enter the 2026 campaign as a pending free agent.
NOVEMBER 28: Further testing has revealed an ankle fracture, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network report. As a result, Wyatt is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
NOVEMBER 27: The Packers came away with a critical division win during 2025’s first Thanksgiving game. Their defense appears to have been dealt a major blow in the process, however. 
Defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt suffered an ankle injury during the second half of this afternoon’s game against the Lions. He was carted off the field without being able to put any weight on his left leg. Shortly thereafter, Wyatt was ruled out for the remainder of the contest. No firm timeline is in place at the moment, but head coach Matt LaFleur‘s initial remarks are far from encouraging.
“It doesn’t look good, guys,” LaFleur said when speaking to the media after the game (via ESPN’s Rob Demovsky). “I’m sick for him. I’m sick for us. I mean, that’s a critical loss for our football team, for our defense, obviously.”
A first-round pick for the Packers out of Georgia back in 2022, Wyatt has been working as a full-time starter in Green Bay for the first time this season. Wyatt played a pretty minor role as a rookie, buried on the depth chart behind veterans Kenny Clark, Jarran Reed, and Dean Lowry. With Reed and Lowry out the next year, T.J. Slaton took over an open starting slot, while Wyatt got a bit more run in his sophomore campaign as a rotational third interior defender. At times he proved to be a bit of a liability in the run game, but Wyatt excelled as a pass rusher, logging 5.5 sacks, six tackles for loss, and 11 quarterback hits in 2023.
In Clark’s final year with the team last year, Wyatt and Karl Brooks, a sixth-round addition in 2023, worked as the main rotational options behind starters Clark and Slaton. Wyatt continued to excel as an interior pass rusher — five sacks, nine tackles for loss, and nine quarterback hits — but still struggled as a run stopper.
With Slaton making his way to Cincinnati in free agency over the offseason and Clark getting traded to Dallas in the Micah Parsons-trade, two new starting spots became available on the Packers defensive line. Wyatt claimed one spot while Colby Wooden, another 2023 draft addition, claimed the other. Brooks, though not running as a full-time starter, has actually surpassed both starters in snap count as a main rotational piece on the interior defensive line. With Wyatt seemingly out for the foreseeable future, Brooks is likely to step into the starting role next to Wooden, but without Wyatt, the pass rushing potential of the interior line takes a big hit.
The other aspect of today’s injury concerns Wyatt’s contract. Green Bay picked up the former Bulldog’s fifth-year option on his rookie deal, but expectations were in place for extension talks to occur. If the two sides are unable to reach an agreement on a second contract, the fifth-year option would give them more time to work things out. In his fourth year of play, Wyatt had shown more of the same for the Packers defense with four sacks, five tackles for loss, and seven quarterback hits in a starting role. That being said, his struggles in the run game continued, as well.
If this injury ends Wyatt’s 2025 campaign, this leaves the Packers with a few options. They may try to work out an extension that rewards Wyatt for his pass rushing prowess without giving him top-end money due to the injury or his run-stopping struggles. They may try to make it a more incentive-laden deal to safe-guard against future struggles coming back from injury. They also might just let him play out his fifth-year option and make a determination on how to proceed off of his 2026 performance.
Regardless, it sounds like any plans for Wyatt may be a thought for the offseason. While testing will be done in the days to come, and his prognosis may change, at the moment, LaFleur’s comments seem to indicate that we’ve seen the last of Wyatt in 2025.
Ely Allen contributed to this post.
2026 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker
NFL teams have until May 1 to officially pick up fifth-year options on 2022 first-rounders. The 2020 CBA revamped the option structure and made them fully guaranteed, rather than guaranteed for injury only. Meanwhile, fifth-year option salaries are now determined by a blend of performance- and usage-based benchmarks:
- Two-time Pro Bowlers (excluding alternates) will earn the same as their position’s franchise tag
- One-time Pro Bowlers will earn the equivalent of the transition tag
- Players who achieve any of the following will receive the average of the third-20th-highest salaries at their position:
- At least a 75% snap rate in two of their first three seasons
- A 75% snap average across all three seasons
- At least 50% in each of first three seasons
- Players who do not hit any of those benchmarks will receive the average of the third-25th top salaries at their position
We covered how last year’s Pro Bowl invites affected the 2022 first-round class. With the deadline looming, we will use the space below to track all the 2026 option decisions from around the league:
- DE/OLB Travon Walker, Jaguars ($14.75MM): Exercised
- DE/OLB Aidan Hutchinson, Lions ($19.87MM): Exercised
- CB Derek Stingley Jr., Texans ($17.6MM): Extended through 2029
- CB Sauce Gardner, Jets ($20.19MM): Exercised
- OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux, Giants ($14.75MM): Exercised
- T Ikem Ekwonu, Panthers ($17.56MM): Exercised
- T Evan Neal, Giants ($16.69MM): Declined
- WR Drake London, Falcons ($16.82MM): Exercised
- T Charles Cross, Seahawks ($17.56MM): Exercised
- WR Garrett Wilson, Jets ($16.82MM): Exercised
- WR Chris Olave, Saints ($15.49MM): Exercised
- WR Jameson Williams, Lions ($15.49MM): Exercised
- DT Jordan Davis, Eagles ($12.94MM): Exercised
- S Kyle Hamilton, Ravens ($18.6MM): Exercised
- G Kenyon Green, Eagles* ($16.69MM): Declined
- WR Jahan Dotson, Eagles** ($16.82MM): Declined
- G Zion Johnson, Chargers ($17.56MM): Declined
- WR Treylon Burks, Titans ($15.49MM): Declined
- T Trevor Penning, Saints ($16.69MM): Declined
- QB Kenny Pickett, Browns*** ($22.12MM): Declined
- CB Trent McDuffie, Chiefs ($13.63MM): Exercised
- LB Quay Walker, Packers ($14.75MM): Declined
- CB Kaiir Elam, Cowboys**** ($12.68MM): Declined
- G Tyler Smith, Cowboys ($20.99MM): Exercised
- C Tyler Linderbaum, Ravens ($20.99MM): Declined
- DE Jermaine Johnson, Jets ($13.92MM): Exercised
- LB Devin Lloyd, Jaguars ($14.75MM): Exercised
- DT Devonte Wyatt, Packers ($12.94MM): Exercised
- G Cole Strange, Patriots ($16.69MM): Declined
- DE George Karlaftis, Chiefs ($15.12MM): Exercised
- DB Dax Hill, Bengals ($12.68MM): Exercised
- S Lewis Cine, Vikings: N/A
* = traded from Texans on March 11, 2025
** = traded from Commanders on August 22, 2024
*** = traded from Eagles on March 15, 2024; traded from Steelers on March 10, 2025
**** = traded from Bills to Cowboys on March 12, 2025
Packers To Pick Up DT Devonte Wyatt’s Fifth-Year Option
Another team with two fifth-year option decisions to make before Thursday’s deadline, the Packers will make one by deciding to extend a contract to 2026. They are picking up Devonte Wyatt‘s fifth-year option, per Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz.
The young defensive tackle will lock in $12.94MM guaranteed for 2026 as a result of this transaction. The Packers still have a decision to make on linebacker Quay Walker, though recent history at the position points to that option being declined.
[RELATED: 2026 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker]
The No. 28 overall pick in 2022, Wyatt has notched 10.5 sacks across the past two campaigns while logging snap shares of 50% and 41% during that span. That usage left the Georgia alum — one of five Bulldogs defenders drafted in the 2022 first round — on the bottom tier among D-tackle option prices. Wyatt, 27, has rarely started in Green Bay. He made zero starts in 2022 or ’24 but still managed to make a steady impact over the past two seasons.
Pro Football Focus graded Wyatt 37th among interior D-line regulars last season, though the advanced metrics site assessed his interior pass rush as far better than his run defense. A heavier workload could result in stronger production, although improved play against the run would no doubt be needed for an uptick in usage to come to bear.
Wyatt has combined to total 20 QB hits and 15 tackles for loss over the past two seasons, making it interesting he has not served as a regular starter. The Packers still have veteran Kenny Clark on their payroll, and Wyatt’s option year will come when the longtime contributor’s contract has paid out its guarantees. The Packers, who pivoted from their long-held 3-4 scheme to Jeff Hafley‘s preferred 4-3 look last season, also lost nose tackle T.J. Slaton to free agency. Regardless of first-string status, Clark and Wyatt are Green Bay’s most valuable DTs. The team did not address the position until the sixth round this year.
Green Bay chose Wyatt with its own pick in 2022, doing so after drafting Walker with the first-round pick acquired in the Davante Adams trade. They will have until 3pm tomorrow to determine Walker’s 2026 status. The tea leaves point to the Pack declining Walker’s option, with Brian Gutekunst referencing the outside linebackers hiking the price of the off-ball LBs’ options. Still, the veteran GM wants to retain both players on second contracts.
Packers Aim To Retain LB Quay Walker, DT Devonte Wyatt
In the case of linebacker Quay Walker and defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, a decision will soon need to be made by the Packers. Their respective fifth-year options are due to be exercised or declined by the May 1 deadline, something general manager Brian Gutekunst spoke about during his pre-draft press conference. 
“We won’t deal with that until after the draft, but whatever mechanism we use, we’d like to keep those guys around for ’26 and beyond,” Gutekunst said (via the team’s website). “So whether that’s through doing the fifth-year option on these guys or extending them one way or the other, we’re planning to do that. We’d like to do that.”
In September, it was unclear whether or not Walker would have his 2026 option exercised. Middle and outside linebackers are grouped together for fifth-year option valuations, and as a result, a $14.75MM commitment would be made in the event Green Bay took that route with the 24-year-old. Teams have shied away from picking up the option for middle linebackers in recent years, and Gutekunst indicated last month the Packers will continue that trend.
As a result, an extension will be needed if team and player are to continue their relationship beyond next season. Walker has started all but one of his games in Green Bay, recording triple-digit tackles each season to date. The Georgia product has added 6.5 sacks, 12 pass breakups and three forced fumbles to his career statistical output. A long-term accord would take into account those totals, but one approaching the top of the position’s market (which now includes six players earning at least $15MM annually) could come as a surprise. Green Bay does not have a big-ticket contract on the books at the LB spot, though one could be in place down the road if Edgerrin Cooper develops as hoped.
The Packers’ defensive interior, by contrast, already has a lucrative pact in the form of Kenny Clark. The three-time Pro Bowler is on the books through 2027 with scheduled cap hits as high as $31.37MM along the way. Having a low-cost contributor in the form of Wyatt has thus proved to be valuable. The former No. 28 pick has notched 10.5 sacks across the past two campaigns while logging snap shares of 50% and 41% during that span. A heavier workload could result in stronger production, although improved play against the run would no doubt be needed for an uptick in usage to come to bear.
Picking up Wyatt’s fifth-year option would tie him to $13.92MM in 2026 earnings, a notable spike in pay compared to his rookie pact but a figure well short of what the top D-linemen are making around the league. Of course, a long-term accord could result in a lower cap charge than the cost of a fully-guaranteed option year, so it will be interesting to see if that avenue is explored on one or both fronts by the Packers once the draft has concluded.
Packers Rumors: Alexander, Walker, Wyatt, McManus, Nixon
At his season-ending press conference last month, Packers GM Brian Gutekunst left the door open for CB Jaire Alexander to return to the team in 2025.
“[W]e’re at the beginning stages of just kind of gathering information as a whole before we start looking at next year and how we’re going to lay this thing out,” Gutekunst said of Alexander’s status. “But we could (pay him). I mean, obviously, when he’s healthy and he’s ready to play, he’s a pretty good player” (via Matt Schneidman of The Athletic (subscription required)).
Clearly, that is far from a commitment to bringing Alexander back in 2025, and Schneidman believes the two-time Pro Bowler has already played his last snap for Green Bay. Alexander is technically under club control through 2026, but his $16.15MM salary and ~$25MM cap number for 2025 could prove unpalatable for Gutekunst & Co., who could create $6.84MM of cap space by cutting or trading the Louisville product before June 1 (a post-June 1 maneuver would clear over $17MM of room this year).
As Gutekunst noted, Alexander has plenty of value when healthy. Unfortunately, that has not been the case in recent history. The market-topping four-year, $84MM contract Gutekunst authorized for Alexander in May 2022 led to promising early returns, as Alexander played 16 games that season, intercepted a career-high five passes, and yielded a career-best 63.7 QB rating as part of a Pro Bowl effort. But Alexander played in just seven games in both of the last two seasons, with his 2024 campaign cut short by a PCL tear.
After the December 2023 coin-toss fiasco led to a one-game suspension and trade/release rumors last offseason, the Packers elected to keep their talented but injury-prone defender in the fold. This year, however, he may have a new employer.
As Schneidman notes, Gutekunst sounded much more positive when discussing the Green Bay futures of 2022 first-rounders Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt. The team must decide whether to exercise the fifth-year options on both players by May 1, an option that would keep them under club control through 2026.
“We’re super fired (up) about both those guys’ seasons this year,” Gutekunst said. “Quay continued to make a leap and another guy who had struggled through injuries at the end of the year, but he was really impactful for us this year. Continues to be a great leader for us. Certainly think we would love to have him around here for longer than just a couple years. He’s that kind of guy. And D-Wy was probably our most consistent pass rusher from the inside this year. Both of them dealt with some injuries and was really proud of how they attacked those and played through some things this year, but I think both those guys had their best years as pros so far.”
At the start of the 2024 season, it sounded as if Walker would not have his option picked up. And in terms of the advanced metrics, his performance last year was fairly underwhelming, as his 57.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus positioned him as the 63rd-best linebacker out of 84 qualified players (which is roughly in line with his first two pro seasons). Given that he does not play a premium position, and given that his fifth-year option is worth a fully-guaranteed $16.06MM, it would not surprise if the option were declined. On the other hand, Gutekunst’s comments made it seem as if he values Walker more highly than the analytics do.
Wyatt’s fifth-year option would check in just north of $13MM, but after totaling 10.5 sacks over the 2023-23 seasons, he has established himself as a viable pass-rushing presence from the interior of the defensive line, even if his run defense could still use some improvement. Of course, getting after the quarterback is the name of the game in today’s NFL, and having an interior defender who can consistently put pressure on opposing passers is a luxury.
Gutekunst also made it plain that he would like to re-sign kicker Brandon McManus (via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). McManus, who recently faced sexual assault allegations stemming from his time as a member of the Jaguars, signed with the Packers in October and resolved the civil suit filed by his accusers (it is unclear if the suit was dismissed or if the parties reached a settlement). On the field, the 33-year-old specialist was terrific for Green Bay, nailing 20 of 21 field goal attempts and all 30 PATs last season.
Thanks in part to Alexander’s injury-related absences, Keisean Nixon has seen plenty of action at cornerback over the past two seasons. Although he has not necessarily thrived in that role, he wants to focus on his defense as opposed to his kick return duties moving forward.
Nixon, who will turn 28 in June, earned First-Team All-Pro honors in 2022 and 2023 for his efforts as a return man, but he ran back just 18 kickoffs in 2024, compared to 35 in 2022 and 30 in 2023. The recent rule changes relating to kickoffs played a major role in that development.
“I’m kind of over it,” Nixon said of his third phase work (as relayed by Schneidman in a separate subscribers-only piece). “I don’t really want to do it no more. There’s going to be talks with the coaching staff and stuff like that, but I think it’s over with for me.”
Nixon is under contract through 2026 and is due just $1.17MM in base pay this year.
Latest On Packers’ DL Competition
The Packers have made a few notable investments into their defensive line this offseason, as they try to bolster what has been one of the team’s weaker position groups in recent years. For both the short- and long-term future, there is cause for optimism. 
Green Bay still has Pro Bowler Kenny Clark as an anchor for the unit. The former first-rounder has totalled 22.5 sacks in the past five seasons, and figures to be a mainstay of the team’s defense for years to come. Another key veteran returning in 2022 is Dean Lowry, another 2016 draftee who has been a starter since his second NFL season.
The Packers have a few options to consider in terms of who joins those two as a first-team member. Many may have expected Devonte Wyatt to take on that role, given his status as a first round pick and his college production. A key member of Georgia’s lights-out defense, Wyatt teamed with fellow top pick Jordan Davis on the interior of the Bulldogs’ d-line and totalled 2.5 sacks and seven tackles for loss in 2021.
However, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic notes that Wyatt has strictly seen second-team reps so far this offseason (subscription required). He will likely begin his pro career as a backup to the likes of 2021 fifth-rounder TJ Slaton and free agent addition Jarran Reed. The latter had an underwhelming season in Kansas City last year, but displayed significant pass-rush ability during his time as a Seahawk.
Still, Schneidman adds that it wouldn’t come as a surprise if Wyatt sees himself “playing meaningful snaps not long from now.” He, along with the rest of Green Bay’s re-tooled defensive front could be in line for a productive campaign, something which would go a long way towards helping the team’s Super Bowl aspirations.
Packers To Sign First-Rounder Devonte Wyatt
Earlier this week, the first 2022 draftee signed his rookie contract. Today, the first prospect selected on Day 1 has inked his NFL deal. The Packers have agreed to terms with defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (Twitter link). 
Wyatt was the second of two Packers first-round choices, going 28th overall. He is set to join former Georgia teammate Quay Walker, who went at No. 22. Wyatt was the second interior defensive linemen selected, behind another former Bulldog, Jordan Davis (taken 13th by the Eagles).
The six-foot-three, 315 pounder was a mainstay of Georgia’s defensive front, and played a key role in the team’s national championship. The 2021 campaign was his most productive, as he totalled 39 tackles (including seven for a loss) and 2.5 sacks. Seen as the more trusted prospect in terms of pass rushing compared to Davis (albeit the one with less overall upside), Wyatt was projected by many to be taken in the latter stages of the first round.
As Rapoport notes, the deal is for four years (with a fifth-year team option) carrying a fully guaranteed value of $12.86MM. The contract also includes a $6.533MM signing bonus. In Green Bay, Wyatt will join a defensive line led by Kenny Clark, but which faces uncertainty beyond the 2022 season. Both Dean Lowry and free agent signee Jarran Reed have only void years left on their respective contracts after the coming season, so Wyatt will provide a long-term answer on the defensive front as the Packers try to keep their Super Bowl window open as long as possible.