The Green Bay Packers have a couple of high-profile players eligible to sign contract extensions this summer, but the team took care of a different piece of business late last week.
Green Bay on July 9 inked starting linebacker Isaiah McDuffie to a one-year extension worth just shy of $5 million, which keeps him under contract through the 2027 campaign. A former sixth-round pick of the Packers in the 2021 NFL draft, McDuffie has spent his entire five-year career with the franchise.
He will play next season at 27 years old and has been a reliable resource for the team since arriving in Green Bay. McDuffie has played in 80 of a possible 85 regular-season games since joining the league. He started eight of 16 contests in 2023, all 17 games in 2024, and 12 of 17 outings last season.
All told, McDuffie has recorded 38 starts — with 37 of them coming in his last 50 appearances across the past three campaigns. The former Boston College linebacker has tallied 320 total tackles, including 11 tackles for loss, nine QB hits, five pass breakups, two sacks, one interception and one forced fumble.
Pro Football Focus rated McDuffie the 30th-best LB out of 88 players who saw enough snaps to qualify for a positional ranking in 2025. His categorical grades slotted in at either above-average or well above-average in run defense, pass rush and coverage last year.
Isaiah McDuffie Likely to Function as Reserve Linebacker in Packers Defense Next Season
GettyGreen Bay Packers linebacker Isaiah McDuffie (left) talks with linebackers coach Anthony Campanile (right) on the sideline during an NFL game against the Tennessee Titans.
Interestingly, McDuffie is more likely to assume a reserve role in 2026 under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, according to Bill Huber of ON SI.
“Gannon’s 3-4 scheme includes two off-the-ball linebackers, with McDuffie the odd man out behind Edgerrin Cooper and Zaire Franklin,” Huber wrote on July 12. “Still, McDuffie will provide valuable depth.”
The Packers will likely rely heavily on a talented linebacking corps given question marks both off the edge of the defense, where superstar pass-rusher Micah Parsons could miss several games to start the season as he continues to rehabilitate from a torn ACL he suffered in mid-December 2025, and across the interior of the defensive line.
Packers Looking at Contract Extensions for DT Devonte Wyatt, TE Tucker Kraft Ahead of Regular Season
GettyGreen Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft is eligible for a contract extension this summer.
Speaking of the defensive front, tackle Devonte Wyatt is one of two other players on the Packers’ roster potentially in line to ink an extension before the regular season begins two months from now.
The other is tight end Tucker Kraft who, like Parsons, tore his ACL last season. The difference is that Kraft’s injury came mid-season and he has a good chance to hit 100 percent ahead of Week 1.
“The Packers are currently working on extensions for TE Tucker Kraft and DT Devonte Wyatt,” Easton Butler reported via X on June 4. “The current goal is for Kraft’s extension to be done before camp, and Wyatt’s before Week 1.”
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