The Green Bay Packers didn't wait until free agency to steal the spotlight, making a rare player-for-player trade with the Indianapolis Colts to land linebacker Zaire Franklin, with defensive tackle Colby Wooden going in the other direction.
Acquiring Franklin all but seals Quay Walker's fate in Green Bay. He will almost certainly sign elsewhere when free agency opens this week. But what can the Packers expect from Franklin?
Unfortunately, the verdict from Indianapolis isn't all that encouraging. Lee Vowell of Horseshoe Heroes broke down why the Colts were willing to part ways with their former Pro Bowler.
"Indianapolis has good reasons for wanting to move on from the linebacker," Vowell writes. "He might accumulate a lot of tackles, but he does hardly anything else well. He is atrocious in pass coverage and doesn't offer much in terms of pass rush, though defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo's system doesn't require him to do so very often."
Zaire Franklin may not provide the linebacker upgrade the Packers were hoping for
While the Packers didn't give up any draft capital in the trade, they have taken on the remainder of Franklin's contract, which includes a $7 million cap hit in 2026. In other words, they're paying him to start alongside Edgerrin Cooper.
Vowell isn't wrong, though. Franklin led the NFL in tackles two seasons ago, which helped him earn Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro honors. He is strong against the run, which is undoubtedly an area the Packers must improve. That's where he can give the defense an upgrade on Walker.
Beyond that, it gets concerning. Walker struggled to hold up in coverage throughout his Packers tenure, and the team should, unfortunately, expect more of the same from Franklin.
Pro Football Focus handed the veteran a 29.9 coverage grade this past season, which ranked third-worst among 88 linebackers in the NFL. Per PFF, he allowed 610 yards and two touchdowns in his coverage, with quarterbacks completing 77.3 percent of their passes while earning a 109.3 rating. Walker wasn't much better, ranking 75th at the position.
And while Franklin makes a lot of tackles, he also misses far too many. Only five linebackers had more missed tackles than his 21 last season. Walker only missed nine.
Franklin adds leadership and experience to the Packers' defense and can undoubtedly help against the run. But as Vowell notes, it's in the other crucial roles, particularly covering pass-catchers, where there are real concerns.
It's over to new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon to put Franklin in positions to succeed and to play to his strengths.