Acquired in a high-stakes trade to anchor the Green Bay Packers' defense, Zaire Franklin brings veteran leadership and elite tackling production to Green Bay’s revamped front seven.
We're officially 18 days from the start of the 2026 NFL season for the Green Bay Packers. Whether you're ready or not, football season is here.
The Packers kick off their 2026 season against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Sept. 13, from U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Talk about pressure. The Vikings are certainly in a transitional place as a franchise, but getting going against an NFC North foe ratchets up the intensity of this season from the get-go.
It's a big season for the Packers. There's a belief that they're in a Super Bowl window right now, which means every single game is important. That means the intensity will be there in Week 2 at MetLife Stadium against the New York Jets and it will certainly be there in Week 3 against the Atlanta Falcons, when the Packers will play at Lambeau Field for the first time in 2026.
There's going to be a lot of proverbial ink spilled on this 2026 season and we here at PackersRoundtable hope that you spend as much time as possible with us talking about the ins and outs and ups and downs of the Packers.
As we prepare for the 2026 season, though, we're going to kick things off with a rankings series looking at the Top 50 Packers heading into the 2025 season.
At No. 18, we have linebacker Zaire Franklin
Ranking the Top 50 Packers Heading Into 2026: No. 18, Zaire Franklin
Green Bay Packers linebacker Zaire Franklin (44) runs through a drill during practice on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, at Ray Nitschke Field in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin. Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin.The Packers let linebacker Quay Walker walk in free agency despite the fact that he was the team's leading tackler and arguably an ascending defensive player in the league. The Pack had selected Walker with the 22nd pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, so they'd also put a lot into him.
General manager Brian Gutekunst needed to find a solid linebacker to play next to Edgerrin Cooper, so he traded away third-year defensive tackle Colby Wooden to the Indianapolis Colts and in return got veteran linebacker Zaire Franklin.
Franklin is a cool NFL story. The Colts drafted him in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Syracuse and he slowly but surely worked his way up from being a special teams contributor to a starting linebacker for the organziation.
He was even a Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro in 2024.
In eight NFL seasons, Franklin has played in 132 games with 82 starts. He's notched 738 total tackles (417 solo), 34 tackles for loss, 19 quarterback hits, 10 sacks, 10 forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
2025 Synopsis:
Franklin started all 17 games for the Colts in 2025, accumulating 125 tackles (62 solo), seven tackles for loss, six quarterback hits, two sacks and one forced fumble.
Notable Quotables:
"I just feel like every moment that I've had in my career has prepared me for this moment. I truly feel like God placed me here. I feel like this is just a divine timing. I'm just blessed to be on a team and organization that's ready, that's got everything we need. The building's got everything we need. The organization's got everything we need. I'm just trying to come here and do my part." - Zaire Franklin
Projected Role in 2026:
Franklin is going to be the starting linebacker next to Edgerrin Cooper and the hope is that he'll be able to maintain the production he's had throughout his career and be a veteran leader for the Pack.
Previous Rankings:
