Packers tight end Luke Musgrave to
have bigger role after Tucker Kraft's injury
[November 08, 2025]
By STEVE MEGARGEE
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — When the Green Bay Packers decided to take a
couple of tight ends in the first two days of the 2023 draft, they
selected Luke Musgrave a round before they struck gold with Tucker
Kraft.
Kraft’s rise to stardom resulted in a reduced role for Musgrave, a
second-round pick who had a promising start to his rookie season
before multiple injuries curtailed his production. Now a
season-ending injury to Kraft has given Musgrave another chance to
prove himself.
Musgrave, 25, would have preferred this opportunity come under
different circumstances.
“I’ve been through those two injuries in the NFL — luckily not as
serious as Tucker’s — it just sucks,” Musgrave said. “There’s really
no way around it. It’s a bummer deal. He’s been playing great.
Obviously he’s going to come back and be great again, but it’s tough
to see him out because of the type of player and guy he is. “
The Packers understand it will take a team effort to try replacing
the production of Kraft, who had a team-high 489 yards receiving and
six touchdown catches before tearing his anterior cruciate ligament
in a 16-13 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
Green Bay (5-2-1) hosts the defending Super Bowl champion
Philadelphia Eagles (6-2) on Monday night.
“Everybody has to pull a little bit more and do a little bit more,”
Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “I would say it’s just not going to
go on one position group. We need it from everybody, from the guys
up front to our runners, receivers and our quarterbacks. So it’ll
have to be a collective effort.”
But their new starting tight end figures to be Musgrave, who has
nine catches for 88 yards this season while playing about 32% of the
Packers’ offensive snaps.
Although Musgrave can’t come close to matching Kraft’s elite ability
to shed tackles and get yards after catch, the second-round pick
from Oregon State does have the speed to emerge as a vertical
threat.
“I think he’s a different kind of player than Tucker in the pass
game,” offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said. “He provides a
really good down-the-field threat. He’s got really good speed. He’s
long, good range when he catches the ball. I think that’ll just kind
of put him in the forefront of our offense as far as getting him
more targets and things like that, to take over that role.
Musgrave showcased his downfield ability Sunday by making a 21-yard
catch to start the Packers’ game-tying touchdown drive in the fourth
quarter, before Carolina’s Ryan Fitzgerald won the game with a field
goal as time expired. Musgrave caught three passes for 34 yards
during that series.
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Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave (88) runs a route against
the Dallas Cowboys during an NFL football game between the Dallas
Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025, in
Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
“His speed is something that, I feel not a lot of
tight ends have that,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “That’s
definitely a weapon. With Tuck being out, he’s going to obviously
see a lot more reps. It’s just maximizing all those reps and finding
ways to improve and just keep stacking it.”
Green Bay has a couple of other tight ends as well.
John FitzPatrick has five receptions for 24 yards this season while
playing about one-quarter of Green Bay’s offensive snaps. Josh Whyle,
who caught 28 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown with the
Tennessee Titans last season, was activated from Green Bay’s
practice squad this week.
“He’s played before in Tennessee, so it’s not like you’re getting a
guy who’s never played in an NFL game before,” Stenavich said. “He’s
done it. He’s a big guy, he’s got good range, he’s fast and I like
his mentality. He wants to be a physical player, and so yeah, that
will be good.”
Musgrave was a starter for much of 2023 and caught 34 passes that
season, matching Bubba Franks' 2000 total for the most by a Packers
rookie tight end. But he suffered a lacerated kidney that year and
missed six games.
He then played only seven games last season due to a torn ligament
in his ankle.
Musgrave has been healthy throughout this season, but his playing
time dipped as Kraft took his game to another level. Now he’s about
to get a bigger workload.
He plans to respond with the approach he takes every week,
regardless of his position on the depth chart.
“I always prepare like I’m going to play or play in the full
capacity, so my preparation is going to be the same,” Musgrave said.
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