2026 Offseason Preview: Green Bay
The Green Bay Packers look to regroup following a Wild Card exit
statbutler.com will be compiling offseason previews for all 32 teams in the lead up to free agency. Feel free to share any of the text/visuals below with attribution. All underlying contract data was collected by overthecap.com.
Recent Team History
For the sixth time in seven seasons under Matt LaFleur, Green Bay earned a spot in the playoffs. It was also the sixth time in seven seasons that Green Bay has fielded an offense in the 75th percentile or better. Still, the result was not a satisfying one.
2025 Season
Expectations for Green Bay were sky high after shoring up the defense by trading for Micah Parsons before the start of the season. Through Week 14, the defense was right around the league average despite Parsons best efforts, but the offense had carried the load enough to get to 9-3-1. Unfortunately, that would be the peak of the season. Parsons was lost for the season in Week 15 and the Packers wouldn’t win another game. When Jeff Hafley was hired by Miami at the end of the season, Green Bay would eventually hire former Arizona head coach Jonathan Gannon to fill his defensive coordinator role.
Returning Players
Note that all restructures below are assumed to be max restructures. This means that the team will use void years to prorate cash across up to five seasons, minimizing amount that will hit the current year’s salary cap.
For players who are not vested veterans, I’ve replaced information about the player’s active contract with a description of the team control remaining until the player can become an unrestricted free agent.
Green Bay’s hope of supplementing a plus group of skill players on offense with a strong offensive line in 2025 never really panned out. Aaron Banks inked a $27m signing bonus in the first week of unrestricted free agency and may now be one-and-done. 2024 first round pick Jordan Morgan turned in some underwhelming starts at guard, but did have a few promising showings at tackle to close the year. Elgton Jenkins held out for more guaranteed money last offseason to no avail. Really, freshly extended Zach Tom was the only Packer lineman to feel good about in 2025.
Micah Parsons proved to be a huge addition to Green Bay’s pass rush. The secondary as a whole exceeded my expectations. The bigger problem in my view was the defensive front surrounding Parsons not carrying enough of the load.
Expiring Contracts
The Green Bay free agent class might pack more punch than any in the league. At the same time, you can make a good argument that the Packers can live without all of their key free agents. I would say all four of the major pieces (Malik Willis, Romeo Doubs, Rasheed Walker, and Quay Walker) all have a good chance of slotting in as 4th round compensatory picks, maybe even 3rd round if any of their markets really heat up. With the depth this team has at WR, OL, LB, and QB, it might just make more sense to see what is available in the trade market to fill other needs (like G/C, CB, or IDL). Personally, I’m eager to see where Doubs lands. I would put him against any other free agent WR for what his market appears to be.
Projected Tags & Cuts
I’m not including ERFA eligible players here (expiring contracts with less than 3 accrued seasons), as they can either sign a league minimum contract or the team can allow them to leave.
Even if Darian Kinnard isn’t profiling as a starter in 2026, he’s had enough solid outings that Green Bay should keep under team control as a swing tackle at a minimum. His original round tender ($3.7m) is fine for a backup. I think Green Bay might use another tender, this time the $3.5m right of first refusal, on RB Emanuel Wilson.
As far as cuts, there are more than might be expected from a team that had a mostly successful season. Elgton Jenkins and Aaron Banks are due to earn $20m & $18m respectfully, which is just too much for the level they played at in 2025. Green Bay should have enough depth to find suitable fill-ins already on the roster. On defense, Rashan Gary had maybe his worst season so far. Even with Parsons expected to be on the mend early in the season, Gary’s $19.5m might be a little rich. In the secondary, I’m thinking Nate Hobbs will join Aaron Banks as a cut, putting both of the Packers big 2025 free agent acquisitions back on the market.
This offseason, Green Bay can exercise Lucas Van Ness’s $14m fully guaranteed option year in 2027. It’s right on the line, but if they’re going to release Gary I think they’ll take it.
The Salary Cap
In the image below, each blue bordered rectangle is equivalent to the cap hit of a single player. Within that rectangle, there are more rectangles that break down the player’s cap hit. Areas colored green can be pushed entirely into a future cap years via max restructure. Areas with vertical bars are “locked in” and the team cannot open them up by releasing the player. They represent either fully guaranteed cash that hasn’t been earned yet or remaining proration from cash earned in previous league years.
Green Bay is right on the cap as it is. They have less restructures remaining than a lot of teams, so the fact that they can afford to let some high priced players either leave in free agency or be released is going to give them the flexibility to bring in new talent.
Green Bay’s $47.4m in “Excess Cap Space” is the 6th smallest amount in the league. That sounds like a lack of flexibility, but the reality is that it can stretch quite a bit. I only have the Packers on the hook for $230m in cash commitments right now (23rd). With a franchise QB on the books already, they really do have more room to operate than meets the eye. If I were to bet, I’d say Green Bay will make a trade or two on the veteran trade market.
Draft Capital
The Packers used a pair of first round picks to spring their big Parsons trade with Dallas. Outside of that, they’ve still got all of their original picks plus potentially a pair of 7th round compensatory picks. With their first pick not coming until 52, Green Bay has the least draft capital in the league.