The Green Bay Packers and their fanbase have more to get excited about than just Week 1 of the NFL season, during which the team will play the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Sunday, September 13.
Three Packers insiders — Matt Schneidman of The Athletic, Paul Bretl of the Wisconsin State Journal and Bill Huber of ON SI — all predicted on Tuesday, September 8 that the Packers ink a longterm extension with star tight end Tucker Kraft before the team plays its first official down of 2026.
“Final predictions guys, does a Tucker Kraft extension get done before kickoff on Sunday?” Schneidman asked. “I say yes.”
“I’ll say yes,” Bretl responded.
“A hundred percent,” Huber added.
General manager Brian Gutekunst spoke to that exact topic during a media session last week, and while he wasn’t as definitive on the timing, it certainly sounds as though Green Bay intends to get something done with Kraft sooner than later as he enters a contract year.
“We would love to have that done. These things are complicated at times,” Gutekunst explained, per Ryan Wood of USA Today. “Whether we accomplish that before the beginning of the season, we’ll see. We’re excited for what he’s going to do for us both this year and in the future.”
Packers Have Not Inked Tucker Kraft to Contract Extension Yet, Despite Social Media Rumors
In a separate post to X, Huber debunked rumors floating around social media late Tuesday morning that the Packers had already inked Kraft to a monster extension.
However, Huber added that it is going to happen and that it will be a historic deal at the time both parties sign on the dotted line.
“No, the Packers have not agreed to a contract extension with Tucker Kraft,” Huber wrote. “They will. It will be market-setting. But it has not happened.”
Packers Shoring Up Pass Attack for Years to Come With Tucker Kraft Extension
Kraft was on pace for the first Pro Bowl campaign of his career in 2025 before an ACL injury ripped the second half of the year away from him. He finished with 32 receptions for 489 yards and six TDs in less than eight full games played.
“There wasn’t another guy in the league that was doing it as well as I was,” Kraft contended in June. “Outside zone, inside zone, screen game, down the field — as far as putting it all together, I felt like I was at a great spot.”
Kraft could again prove the focal point of a pared down Packers pass game in 2026 that now features a clear hierarchy in the wide receiver room with a top three of Christian Watson, Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed.
Once the Packers ink Kraft to a new deal, all four of the team’s top pass-catchers will be under multiyear contracts in Green Bay, as is star quarterback Jordan Love.
Packers Predicted to Make ‘Market-Setting’ Move Ahead of Vikings Opener