Last year, the Green Bay Packers won the NFL offseason by pulling off a blockbuster trade to acquire star pass rusher Micah Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys at the eleventh hour.
Unfortunately, their 2025 season was lost when Parsons tore his ACL on Dec. 14. After Parsons exited the field in Denver, Green Bay didn’t win another game. They finished 9-7-1 and suffered an improbable upset at the hands of the rival Chicago Bears in the NFC Wild Card round.
Parsons is progressing nicely in his recovery, but the Packers still have a lot of work to do to fortify a defense that showed flashes of dominance before Parsons’ injury. When Parsons returns at some point next season, the three-time All-Pro will be surrounded by new faces.
To start, Green Bay lost defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, who leftfor the Miami Dolphins’ head coach vacancy in January. Edge rusher Rashan Gary, drafted No. 12 overall in 2019, raised questions about his future with the Packers on Friday. Then, on Saturday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the Indianapolis Colts traded linebacker Zaire Franklin to the Packers.
Assuming that trade is finalized without hiccups when the new league year opens on March 11 at 4 p.m. EST, Franklin’s arrival is expected to impact 25-year-old Packers linebacker Quay Walker.
“The Packers wanted to keep LB Quay Walker and made several runs at re-signing him before the Zaire Franklin trade,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero posted on X (formerly Twitter). “But it now appears the former first-round pick will hit free agency Monday, and he is expected to have a strong market.”
In May 2025, the Packers declined the fifth-year option on Walker, whom they drafted in the first round (No. 22) out of Georgia in 2022. At the time, ESPN's Rob Demovsky reported that the Packers "would like to work out a contract extension before he would become a free agent next offseason."
Now, Walker will be an unrestricted free agent, which means teams can begin negotiating with him at noon EST on March 9.
On Saturday morning, ESPN’s Dan Graziano predicted that Walker will garner a three-year, $42 million contract with $20 million guaranteed in the open market. Graziano predicted Walker will land with the Las Vegas Raiders, who are now in even more dire need of a pass rush after trading Maxx Crosby to Baltimore on Friday.
Walker posted a career-high 128 total tackles (58 solo) in 14 games last season. He also had 2.5 sacks, eight tackles for loss, and seven quarterback hits. Walker has remained relatively healthy in his four seasons with the Packers. He appeared in all 17 regular-season games as a rookie, then was limited to 14 games in 2023, 13 in 2024, and 14 in 2025. At just 25 years old, his upside is still high.
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