Tucker Kraft Injury: Targeting Week 1 return

Kraft (ACL) said Monday that he is ahead of schedule in his recovery and hopes to be "bulletproof" by Week 1 of the 2026 campaign, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reports.

Kraft noted that Green Bay generally requires a nine-month recovery timeframe to rehab from ACL tears, and that by Week 1 he will be 10 months post-surgery. The athletic tight end emerged as a leader in the receiving game to kick off the 2025 campaign, recording an impressive 32-489-6 receiving line across his eight regular-season appearances, though the Packers were without wideouts Jayden Reed and Christian Watson for the majority of that span. If Kraft is indeed able to begin next season at full health, he'll project to immediately reprise a key role in what may be an improved aerial attack for the Packers, if all the team's top pass catchers are available and 2025 first-rounder Matthew Golden is able to take a step forward in his development.