The Green Bay Packers are 6-3-1 following their 27-20 victory over the New York Giants on Sunday afternoon. While a win is a win, there were many things that Green Bay did not do well against the lowly Giants. On offense, these things included the tendency of the team’s pass catchers to drop passes that they should have caught. In total, Green Bay’s wide receivers, tight ends, and running backs dropped no less than six passes.
Wide receiver Romeo Doubs, who is in the final year of his rookie contract with the Packers, dropped two key passes on third downs that would have allowed Green Bay to continue drives that ended up stalled. Tight end Luke Musgrave, too, dropped a couple passes and fumbled a ball out of bounds.
In the second half of the game, backup tight ends John Fitzpatrick and Josh Whyle played more snaps than Musgrave, but it sounds like that was not intentional and something head coach Matt LaFleur wants to change.
Green Bay Packers head coach wants Luke Musgrave to play more
Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave (88) stiff-arms Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zack Baun (53) on Monday, November 10, 2025, at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis.
Musgrave played 19 snaps on Sunday against the Giants, most of them coming in the first half of the game. He recorded one catch for -1 yards.
Fitzpatrick played 34 offensive snaps and Whyle played 20. They recorded one catch a piece for five and two yards respectively. However, both showed better production as blockers than Musgrave.
That being said, LaFleur told the media today that he was, overall, pleased with how Musgrave played and has told his staff that he wants to get him more snaps on offense going forward:
Matt LaFleur calls Luke Musgrave “a guy we have to get on the field,” and that he wasn’t benched in the second half on Sunday.
“I think it was kind of how the game played out and I already kind of addressed it,” LaFleur said. “He absolutely needs to play more than whatever snaps…
— zach jacobson (@zacobson) November 17, 2025
Musgrave, who was drafted in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, was originally thought to be the Packers’ tight end of the future. Despite missing time as a rookie due to a lacerated kidney, he still set the franchise record for receptions by a rookie tight end (34).
Over the past couple of seasons, however, it is Tucker Kraft who has emerged as Green Bay’s premier tight end, and was on a Pro Bowl trajectory before tearing his ACL in Week Nine.
If the Packers are going to have Musgrave on the field more, they have to allow him to play to his strengths instead of forcing him to be the kind of tight end Kraft is. Very few players are.
In other words, Musgrave would be better used stretching the field from the slot and being a big target downfield instead of on short passes that require him to attempt gaining yards after the catch.
He has 13 receptions for 110 yards so far this season.
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