Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave will need to pick up the slack after Tucker Kraft suffered a knee injury Sunday.
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In Week 5, 2010, Green Bay Packers star tight end Jermichael Finley suffered a season-ending knee injury that included a displaced hamstring ligament.
Rookie Andrew Quarless filled in admirably, the Packers got hot late in the season and won Super Bowl XLV.
Might history repeat itself?
Green Bay tight end Tucker Kraft suffered a right knee injury Sunday that the Packers fear could be a torn ACL.
“It doesn’t look good,” Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur said.
If the Packers are forced to play without Kraft, disappointing third-year man Luke Musgrave figures to become the No. 1 tight end. Whether or not Musgrave can save his career — and the tight end position in Green Bay — remains to be seen.
“I’m just gonna focus on doing my job,” Musgrave said. “I’m just gonna do my job.”
Aside form quarterback Jordan Love, Kraft is the most irreplaceable player on Green Bay’s offense.
Kraft is in the middle of an All-Pro season, and entered the day with 30 catches for 469 yards and six touchdowns. He’s a battering ram in the open field, is a terrific blocker and has developed into one of Green Bay’s top leaders.
Wideout Romeo Doubs struggled to finish an answer while talking about Kraft, saying: “Next question, please. Sorry.”
Others were just as distraught.
“Tuck means a lot,” Love said. “I think his leadership role and then obviously his play on the field. He’s been playing at a high level.
“We’ll see what the injury is, but not having him out there for the rest of the game was huge. So, yeah, it’s one of those situations, though. It’s the next man up. We’ve got to find ways to keep playing at a high level without him out there.”
That means Musgrave — a second round draft pick in 2023 — will have to begin living up to his lofty draft status.
Musgrave had a solid rookie season, despite missing six games with a lacerated kidney.
Musgrave’s 34 receptions that year tied the franchise record for most catches by a rookie tight end set by Bubba Franks in 2000. Musgrave’s 352 receiving yards were also the third-most by a rookie tight end in team history, behind only Franks (363) and Kraft (355).
Musgrave finished fourth on the Packers in receptions in 2023, and appeared to have a bright future.
Musgrave missed 10 games in 2024, though, with an ankle injury and finished with just seven receptions for 45 yards (6.4). Meantime, Kraft was emerging as a star and Musgrave found it harder and harder to get on the field.
This season wasn’t much better, as Musgrave had just six receptions through seven games and played 29.9% of the snaps before Sunday.
Still, the Packers insist they have confidence in Musgrave.
“I’m very comfortable with Luke,” Love said. “I think Luke’s had his fair share of opportunities, for sure. He’s played a lot of ball and he made some big-time plays today, had a big-time catch.
“I think it’s keep building on that. I think obviously we’ll see what the injury is (with Kraft), but he’ll get more opportunities. He’s just got to keep maximizing those opportunities. Luke’s played a lot of ball. Got a lot of confidence in him.”
When the Packers lost Finley 15 years ago, their offense wasn’t as dynamic. But Quarless was a serviceable player and Green Bay found a way to win a championship.
If Kraft’s year is indeed done, the Packers will need Musgrave to perform the way they envisioned he would after the 2023 draft.
“You never want to see injuries,” Musgrave said. “Injuries are the worst part of football. So yeah, it sucks. It really sucks. Again, I’m just gonna focus on doing what’s asked of me.”