The Green Bay Packers are working on contract extensions for offensive lineman Zach Tom and linebacker Quay Walker ahead of the 2025 season.

General manager Brian Gutekunst told Aaron Nagler and Corey Behnke of CheesheadTV that negotiations on extensions for both Tom and Walker are ongoing.

Advertisement

Tom, who received All-Pro votes after emerging as one of the NFL’s top right tackles in 2024, is entering the final year of his rookie deal in 2025 and is an obvious candidate for a lucrative extension.

“We’ve had really healthy conversations with Zach about locking him up and certainly that’s something we’d like to do,” Gutekunst said. “These things take time and they never happen very quickly. He’s been a really good player for us since the time he got here, done everything right by us, so hopefully we’ll get there soon.”

Tom participated in the entire offseason workout program despite the lack of a long-term deal. It’s possible there is motivation for both sides to get a new deal done before or very early into training camp later this summer.

The same goes for Walker, a 2022 first-round pick who didn’t have his fifth-year option exercised and is entering a contract year in 2025.

Advertisement

Gutekunst said the option didn’t make sense for Walker because of how the NFL lumps all linebackers — both off-ball linebackers and 3-4 outside linebackers — together in one pile, inflating the option cost for off-ball linebackers. But the Packers still want to do a contract extension for Walker, who is going into his fourth year as a starter in Green Bay.

“My expectations (for Walker) are really, really high,” Gutekunst said. “The only reason we didn’t do the fifth-year option is a lot of the outside linebackers are calculated into that number, so it didn’t make a lot of sense. We’re going down that (extension) road with him as well to see if we can make that happen as well.”

Gutekunst and the Packers see Walker as a core player who brings several key traits to the middle of Jeff Hafley’s defense.

“We’ve been bullish on Quay since he got here,” Gutekunst said. “He’s played a lot of really, really good football for us and we think his best football is still in front of him. Just a consummate pro, does everything the right way. Has a level of toughness and focus that our defense needs.”

Advertisement

The Packers are also excited about the opportunity to get Walker and Edgerrin Cooper — an All-Rookie pick in 2024 — on the field together in full-time roles in 2025.

“Really having those two guys on the field at the same time, the athleticism and size that brings, the ability to rush the passer, the ability to cover. I think those two guys are going to work well off each other as we move forward,” Gutekunst said.

Hear the entire interview with Gutekunst on CheeseheadTV below:

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers working on contract extensions for OL Zach Tom, LB Quay Walker