Packers' Tucker Kraft believes he could have made history if not for torn ACL

Star pass-rusher Micah Parsons isn't the only noteworthy member of the Green Bay Packers who will spend the offseason recovering from a season-ending torn ACL.

Packers tight end Tucker Kraft largely performed like a future star across his first seven games of the 2025 season before he went down with a torn ACL in Week 9. On Monday, he made it known he feels he could have made some franchise history had he stayed healthy through the club's wild-card playoff loss to the Chicago Bears. 

Tucker Kraft wanted to have a "legacy" season with Packers

"I was on the cusp of putting together one of the greatest seasons by a Packer tight end," Kraft confidently said, per Mike Spofford of the Packers' website. "That was something I was looking forward to, just leaving my legacy on this game and playing as hard as I could every snap for this team, because the end of the day, the guys in this room, they mean so much to me."

Kraft was well on his way to recording new career bests for receptions (50), receiving yards (707) and receiving touchdowns (seven) when he suffered his injury. In total, he tallied 32 catches for 489 yards and six scores over eight games. 

As The Athletic's Matt Schneidman noted, Kraft is on track to be in a contract year when the 2026 season gets underway. On Monday, Kraft shared that he wants to play in Week 1 this coming September. 

"Hopefully bulletproof by then," Kraft said about his mindset, according to Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. "So I already feel pretty good. My progress so far has been great. Some would say even ahead of schedule. So, not trying to blow anything out of proportion. I’m only not even 10 weeks in yet, but it’s feeling good so far." 

Tucker Kraft feels he could have made a difference for Packers in the playoffs

The Packers theoretically could save some money by extending Kraft's deal sooner rather than later. Then again, the 25-year-old may want to bet on himself and play out his contract year. 

On Monday, he indicated he hadn't yet gotten over the fact that he could have possibly helped Green Bay against Chicago on the second Saturday of January. 

"When I wasn't able to be out there for the last month and a half, two months this season, it was really hard on me … just knowing that, if I would have been out there and contributing, maybe things would have gone different," Kraft added during his comments. "But the end of the day, my injury is my reality, and all I can do is work and come back to be a better Packer than I was before. This is something I could have gone without, but it will make me a better person, a better athlete, a better teammate. It just has to."