What's left on the Green Bay Packers checklist as they head into the 2026 offseason?
The new league year doesn't start for another month, but the Packers have plenty to do between now and then. What are the priorities?
Happy Super Bowl week! That means one more game before all 32 teams are in offseason mode, and with 10 teams changing head coaches, there promises to be plenty more churn around the league.
What’s left on the docket for the Packers to get ready for another Super Bowl push? In today’s newsletter, we take a look at what comes next.
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1. Finalize a coaching staff
Peter Bukowski: Jonathan Gannon has put together a hell of a staff in Green Bay to replace the outgoing Jeff Hafley. Though Gannon was not the preferred pick among fans, he was a highly sought-after candidate who the Philadelphia Eagles reportedly had interest in bringing back while Vic Fangio ponders his future.
Bobby Babich had a good shot to get the Packers defensive coordinator job back in 2024 before the Buffalo Bills promoted him to defensive coordinator. He replaces Derek Ansley as the passing game coordinator, while Ansley joins former Packers QC Christian Parker in Dallas after Green Bay eschewed the chance to hire Parker for their top defensive job.
Coincidentally, the Bills tabbed Jim Leonhard, the aforementioned fan favorite, to replace Babich in Orchard Park.
New linebackers coach Sam Siefkes also brings defensive coordinator experience, having held that title at Virginia Tech.
Sean Mannion will call plays in Philadelphia as the Eagles’ new offensive coordinator, and another Arizona Cardinals coach could replace him; Matt LaFleur will reportedly interview Wisconsin native Corey Senger, who was Gannon’s passing game coordinator last season. Beyond that, there appear to be no planned staff changes on offense.
Adam Stenavich interviewed for the Seattle Seahawks OC job last year, which ultimately went to Klint Kubiak, who is reportedly headed to take over the Las Vegas Raiders. He could once again be a candidate for a team getting ready to play in the Super Bowl. Green Bay has Luke Getsy in-house, who could step into that role, though Green Bay would benefit from an infusion of some new ideas.
Last week, on Locked on Packers, I floated the idea of Tanner Engstrand replacing Stenavich to bring ideas from a different coaching tree, particularly from a coach familiar with the NFC North, as Ben Johnson’s former protege. If Stenavich doesn’t get the Seahawks job, though, there’s nothing for Green Bay to offer, and there’s currently no indication they’d fire Steno outright.
Speaking of firing, while teams around the league are making changes with underwhelming special teams, the Packers appear resolute in the Rich Bisaccia experience for reasons known only to God and LaFleur.
2. Decide if any expensive veterans are expendable
PB: This is not actually that long of a list now that Kenny Clark is playing in Dallas. The Packers project to be less than $5 million over the cap as of this writing, and could easily take care of that with a restructuring of Jordan Love’s contract to prorate the converted bonus across the remaining years. Aaron Banks and Xavier McKinney also each have large roster bonuses that could be turned into signing bonuses and spread out, though McKinney could simply be extended as well.
There’s two names flashing in neon lights here: Rashan Gary and Elgton Jenkins, the latter of whom knew the writing was likely on the wall when they moved him to center before last season. That was the whole reason he wanted a reworked deal: he was taking a risk changing positions and knew the sword of Damocles Russ Ball, hung over his head heading into the spring.
Cutting Jenkins would save the Packers $19.5 million, leaving less than $5 million in dead cap for the 2026 season. Not only would that one move get them cap compliant, but give the Packers more than enough to sign their draft class, and still have some rainy day money for the regular season.
Gary would be a different story. He’s set to count over $28 million on the cap this season, but cutting him before June 1st would only save a shade under $11 million per Over The Cap, while $17 million would sit dead. Green Bay doesn’t like post-June 1 designations, but cutting Gary would save them $19.5 million with $8.5 million in dead cap. Neither is that great of an option for the Packers.
Unless the team believes the poor effort and conditioning from Gary were a harbinger of things to come (and Micah Parsons called both out without naming Gary specifically), Gary would more likely have his deal restructured to save some money this year, before moving on in 2027.
3. Price out their current crop of free agents
Without going through each player individually here (though we’ll likely do that at some point on The Leap), the Packers will likely lose Romeo Doubs and Rasheed Walker from the starting lineup to free agency. Malik Willis, one of the best backup quarterbacks in the NFL, is expected to get an opportunity somewhere to start. And key role player Kingsley Enagbare could get paid like a starter in free agency, pricing himself out of a Packers uniform.
Sean Rhyan and Quay Walker could each be back at the right price, but given the injuries and inconsistent play from that duo next season, the price would likely have to be below starter level.
There are some interesting restricted free agents like Emanuel Wilson, Chris Brooks, and Brenton Cox. It would be surprising to see the Packers pay both Wilson and Brooks, but low tenders are unlikely to be matched, and Green Bay could retain them at reasonable prices.
The bigger question with contracts comes from extension candidates. Tucker Kraft will be getting one, likely in late summer or early fall, when it’s clear where he is with his recovery from a torn ACL. But what happens with Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks? Given the heavy investment in the 2025 draft at receiver, Green Bay did not act like a team believing it had a slew of long-term answers at that position.
Reed projects as the more likely candidate, but he’s had his own battles with the injury bug, and he’s had more than his fair share of crucial drops and missed opportunities. It also may depend on how many more gadget calls Savion Williams can handle and/or if the Packers see Matthew Golden’s best position as in the slot.