The Green Bay Packers opened training camp Wednesday with Tucker Kraft still working back from a torn ACL.
His long-term future, however, appears to be moving toward a resolution.
General manager Brian Gutekunst said he expects and hopes the Packers will complete an extension with Kraft before the regular season, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reported Wednesday on X.
The update came before Green Bay’s first practice of camp and moved a contract that had been discussed for months onto a clearer timeline.
Kraft is entering the final year of his rookie deal after emerging as one of the Packers’ most important offensive players, as Pro Football Focus ranks him No. 7 among NFL tight ends entering the 2026 season.
Green Bay began talks with his representatives earlier this offseason, with Packers.com reporting in February that the two sides had already been in contact.
Gutekunst’s latest comments suggest the organization wants to finish the deal before Kraft begins another season with the chance to drive his price even higher.
Packers Make Kraft Their Next Extension Priority
GettyGLENDALE, ARIZONA – OCTOBER 19: Tucker Kraft #85 of the Green Bay Packers makes a reception against Akeem Davis-Gaither #27 of the Arizona Cardinals during the NFL game at State Farm Stadium on October 19, 2025 in Glendale, Arizona. The Packers defeated the Cardinals 27-23. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Green Bay has spent much of the offseason securing pieces of its young up-and-comers.
The Packers extended Jayden Reed in April, Christian Watson in June and Devonte Wyatt earlier this week.
Kraft now stands as the next obvious candidate, and Gutekunst has made it clear the ACL injury hasn’t changed how the organization views him.
Kraft is scheduled to earn a $3.624 million base salary in 2026 and carries a cap hit of roughly $3.93 million, according to Spotrac. His four-year rookie contract was worth about $5.54 million in total.
A second contract would move him into an elevated financial tier.
The top of the tight end market reached $19.1 million per year in 2025, with the second-highest deal at $19 million annually, per NFL.com.
Kraft doesn’t have the full-season production of the position’s highest-paid veterans, but his 2025 breakout provided a strong argument that he belongs near the upper end of the market.
Before suffering the season-ending knee injury on Nov. 2, Kraft caught 32 passes for 489 yards and six touchdowns in eight games. He was Green Bay’s leading receiver when he went down.
Packers.com noted after the season that simply doubling those eight-game totals would have given Kraft 64 catches for 978 yards and 12 touchdowns. Each figure would have broken the franchise’s single-season record for a tight end.
That body of work explains why Green Bay appears comfortable discussing a major commitment before seeing him play another regular-season snap.
ACL Recovery Adds Final Layer to Contract Talks
GettyGREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – NOVEMBER 02: Tucker Kraft #85 of the Green Bay Packers is helped off the field with an injury in the third quarter against the Carolina Panthers in the game at Lambeau Field on November 02, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)
Kraft’s health is the one variable hanging over the negotiations.
The Packers placed him on the active/physically unable to perform list before camp, an expected step in his recovery.
Kraft said during minicamp in June that he anticipated opening camp on PUP, but his goal remained to enter Week 1 without a snap restriction.
“With how I feel, I would say I’m going to get all the conditioning I need in camp to start Week 1 on no pitch count,” Kraft told reporters, via Packers.com.
That timeline would put him roughly 10 months removed from surgery when Green Bay opens the season Sept. 13.
The injury creates some leverage for the Packers in negotiations, while Kraft’s performance before it creates leverage of his own.
If he returns at full strength and resumes the pace he established last fall, waiting could make the next contract more expensive.
Green Bay has already shown this offseason that it will pay early to keep players it views as part of the team’s nucleus.
Gutekunst’s latest comments put Kraft squarely in that group.
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