While he didn’t implicitly say it, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst kept open the door to using the fifth-year option on 2022 first-round picks Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt this offseason.
The Packers believe Walker, the 22nd overall pick in 2022, and Wyatt, the 28th overall pick, are coming off their best seasons in 2024. Gutekunst must now decide whether or not to use the fifth-year option by May 1 of this year. If used, the Packers would be committing millions in guaranteed money into 2026. If not used, Walker and Wyatt would both enter contract years in 2025.
“Super fired up about both those guys’ seasons this year,” Gutekunst said at his season-ending press conference on Thursday.
Walker played 13 games and finished first on the team in tackles with 102, his third straight season with 100 or more. He also set a career-high with nine tackles for loss while adding 2.5 sacks. Wyatt played in 14 games and produced 32 pressures, third-most on the Packers defense despite playing only 247 pass-rushing snaps.
“I think Quay continued to make a leap and (he’s) another guy who had struggled through injuries at the end of the year, but he was really impactful for us this year. Continues to be a great leader for us,” Gutekunst said. “Certainly think, we would love to have him around here for longer than just a couple more years. He’s that kind of guy. And D-Wy was probably our most consistent pass rusher from the inside this year.”
Gutekunst said he was “really proud” of how both Walker and Wyatt battled through various injuries and remained disruptive.
“I think both those guys had their best years as pros so far,” Gutekunst said.
However, nowhere in Gutekunst’s answer did he reference actually using the fifth-year option. And the price tags on both decisions will be big.
For Walker, the fifth-year option in 2026 would cost $16,060,00. For Wyatt, the fifth-year option in 2026 would cost $13,098,000. That’s almost $30 million in fully guaranteed salary for two players with legitimate question marks.
There is risk financially on both sides of the decision.
The Packers wouldn’t want Walker or Wyatt to emerge as a top player at their position in 2025 and not have them under contract and cost controlled through 2026. But the Packers also don’t want Walker or Wyatt to be guaranteed millions in 2026 if they aren’t sure about them as long-term franchise cornerstones.
Walker has been an inconsistent linebacker through three seasons. Wyatt has been a part-time pass-rusher. Neither looks like a legitimate top player at their respective positions through three seasons.
Recent history shows examples of it going wrong and right.
Two years ago, the Packers used the fifth-year option on safety Darnell Savage, who then had a disappointing final season in Green Bay before exiting in free agency. Last year, the Packers declined the fifth-year option on cornerback Eric Stokes, and that looks like a wise decision considering Stokes was a part-time player in 2024 and likely headed for an exit this offseason.
The Packers could go a different route and decline the fifth-year option for one or both players while figuring out a short-term extension that works for both sides. The team accomplished this strategy with quarterback Jordan Love, a first-round pick in the 2020 draft.