Packers Predicted to Put $13.8 Million Starter on NFL Trade Block

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Packers head coach Matt LaFleur.

The Green Bay Packers are not quite ready to start thinking about how they’ll navigate the 2025 offseason, but there is a chance they will consider putting one of their former first-round picks on the NFL trade block when they do.

Pro Football Focus’ Bradley Locker recently predicted the Packers could look to trade starting linebacker Quay Walker — a 2022 first-round pick — during the 2025 offseason with second-round rookie Edgerrin Cooper looking like a future star and a decision due in the spring about whether the team will pick up Walker’s fifth-year option for 2026.

“After being a touted linebacker intended to shore up the middle of Green Bay’s defense, Walker has underperformed in his three seasons as a Packer,” Locker wrote on January 6. “He hasn’t exceeded a 58.5 PFF overall grade in any of his three pro seasons. Even though he’s improved as a tackler, he remains a liability in coverage, allowing catches on 78.8% of targets this season to go along with 9.1 yards per reception.”

Walker has recorded at least 100 total tackles in each of his first three NFL seasons and has shown flashes of his greater potential as a defensive playmaker along the way, but his inconsistencies and occasional discipline issues have prevented him from taking the next step. He has also missed seven games with injuries over the past two seasons.

“Green Bay could elect to keep Walker on a prove-it final season,” Locker added. “It also wouldn’t be surprising to see general manager Brian Gutekunst cut his losses and trade Walker.”

Does Edgerrin Cooper Make Quay Walker Trade Feasible?

Trade candidates — or discussions about them, anyway — tend to arise from upcoming contract decisions. The Packers will need to make one about Walker when they choose whether to pick up his fifth-year option in the spring, and if they don’t, it will signal to teams seeking linebacker help that Green Bay could be open to the possibility of a trade in the final year of his four-year, $13.8 million rookie contract.

Fortunately for the Packers, they should have the confidence to navigate any potential trade conversations about Walker after seeing how Cooper’s rookie season played out.

Cooper has essentially given the Packers the play-making linebacker they thought they were getting when they drafted Walker in 2022. While injuries cost him three games in his rookie campaign, he made the most of his time on the field and recorded 87 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, one interception, four pass breakups, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries in his 14 games of action, starting in just four games for them.

Cooper has also graded out extraordinarily with Pro Football Focus, earning the 10th-best overall grade (84.0) and second-best pass-rushing grade (90.1) among 189 total linebackers during the 2024 season. He holds the 18th-best coverage grade (73.5), too.

Now, Cooper’s success might not push the Packers into exploring Walker’s trade value, but it certainly gives them options as they begin to map his future with the team.

Quay Walker Expected to Return for Wild-Card Game

Walker is starting to run out of time to prove he belongs in Green Bay for the long-term future, but he could potentially boost his case with the Packers in the NFL postseason.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said Monday that he is “optimistic” about Walker’s chances of returning to the lineup for their wild-card game against the Philadelphia Eagles on January 12. He has not played or practiced since injuring his ankle in Week 15’s win over Seattle on December 15, missing the final three games of the season.

Walker must first prove he can make it through the full week of practice without issue, but he will attempt to take his first step on Wednesday during the team’s first session. The Packers will update Walker’s practice participation each day on the injury report before rendering a final status determination on Friday heading into the weekend.

If Walker receives the green light, he could get himself back on track.

Jordan J. Wilson is a sports reporter who covers the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers. He has previously covered all levels of sports — high school, college and pro — for a variety of publications including The Indianapolis Star, The News-Gazette, Springfield State-Journal Register and Peoria Journal Star. More about Jordan J. Wilson