GREEN BAY – Two days after trading for linebacker Zaire Franklin, the Green Bay Packers officially moved on without Quay Walker.
The Packers 2022 first-round draft pick is signing a three-year, $40.5 million contract with the Las Vegas Raiders, according to multiple reports. The deal includes $28 million guaranteed, and its $13.5 million average annual salary makes him the league’s seventh-highest-paid linebacker. Walker has been a stalwart in the Packers defense since being selected 22nd overall out of Georgia, starting at least 13 games each of his four seasons.
A rare blend of size and speed, Walker always had tantalizing potential. At 6-foot-3 3/4 and 241 pounds, he ran a 4.52-second 40-yard dash at the 2022 scouting combine. He grew as a leader in the locker room, selected a team captain in 2025, but was inconsistent on the field.
Walker improved over the years playing the run, his sideline-to-sideline speed masking deficiencies in the box early in his career. He played stronger between the tackles last season, finishing with a career-high 128 tackles. Also a quality pass rusher from the second level, Walker had nine sacks in four seasons, including 2.5 sacks each of the past three years.
It’s Walker’s pass coverage that too often made him a liability in the middle. Walker improved in coverage early last season, but ultimately his difficulty dropping back became problematic down the stretch. In the Packers playoff loss at Chicago, Bears coach/play caller Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams exploited Walker’s coverage relentlessly, targeting him for a handful of big plays in what became a second-half collapse.
This story will be updated.
This article originally appeared on Packers News: Packers will lose linebacker Quay Walker to Las Vegas Raiders
