Zaire Franklin is arriving in Green Bay with a job that goes beyond making tackles.
The Packers are counting on the veteran linebacker to stabilize a room that leaned too heavily on youth last season, and that alone makes him a different kind of addition than Quay Walker ever was. Walker, a 2022 first-round pick, never grew into the kind of steady voice Green Bay needed. Franklin, by contrast, brings eight years of experience and the kind of presence that can shape a linebacker group from the inside out.
That matters for a unit that now includes Edgerrin Cooper, Ty’Ron Hopper, and Isaiah McDuffie. Cooper has two years of experience.
Hopper is entering his third season. McDuffie has been around for five years, but only three as a key contributor.
For all of them, Franklin gives the Packers something they were missing: a veteran who can teach as well as play.
Green Bay has already seen what that kind of influence can look like. Eric Wilson wasn’t a weekly starter, but in 2024 he brought veteran knowledge and professionalism to the off-ball linebacker group before the Packers let him leave in free agency.
Before that, De’Vondre Campbell provided a more established anchor from 2021 to 2023, including a 2021 First Team All-Pro season. Walker, even as he matured a bit and handled his emotions more consistently, never became that sort of mentor.
That’s part of why Franklin feels like such a deliberate move. The front office is acknowledging that youth alone didn’t get the job done.
Franklin’s own path makes him a natural fit for the role. In Indianapolis, he rose from special teams scrub to All-Pro and team captain from 2020 to 2025, and that climb gives him a way to connect with younger players like Hopper who are still trying to make their mark. Even with his play declining last season, he still established himself as a leader on and off the field.
The Packers are hoping he can still deliver as a starter. But even if Franklin is simply solid on Sundays, his value in that linebacker room could be even greater.
Green Bay needed more experience and maturity. Franklin brings both.
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