The Green Bay Packers are extending the contract of head coach Matt LaFleur, with general manager Brian Gutekunst and executive vice president Russ Ball both expected to receive extensions. President Ed Policy will maintain leadership of the Packers starting in 2026. With these major decisions largely completed, the team’s attention can immediately turn to building the coaching staff around LaFleur, but important personnel decisions are coming.
The Packers still have salary cap work to do before the new league year in March, and how the team handles some of its big-name players will determine how Gutekunst and Ball get from point A to point B. This isn’t even talking about free agency, as the team has plenty of free agents. The Packers have until March to decide the fate of several veterans under contract through 2026.
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The Packers have five decisions to make as the offseason begins:
Stay or go: Rashan Gary
Gary had 7.5 sacks in his first seven games and finished the season with 60 total pressures, but he didn’t have a single sack or tackle for a loss over the final 10 games, and his disruptive impact waned down the stretch. Gary’s salary cap hit is $28 million in 2026, and he faces significant danger of being traded (assuming a team is willing to take over the remainder of his contract) or outright released. Moving on would provide nearly $11 million in much-needed salary cap savings in 2026 and wipe $31 million in salary cap numbers off the books in 2027. Something has to be done here, as Gary simply isn’t good enough in 2025 to warrant an $18 million base salary and $28 million salary cap number in 2026.
Stay or go: Elgton Jenkins
In what was essentially a pseudo-contract year, Jenkins struggled after transitioning to center and then suffered a season-ending injury in Week 10. He turns 30 in December, so Jenkins is now a bad trio of old, expensive, and injured. His cap hit will skyrocket to $24.3 million in 2026, and the Packers can save $19.5 million by walking away, so either side can tear up the remainder of his deal and significantly reduce his cap hit, or the Packers can move on by releasing him. The writing is on the wall here.
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Stay or go: Trayvon Diggs
The decision here hinges on whether the Packers and Diggs can come up with a restructured deal that works for both parties. Diggs is a hired gun for the Packers, who need veteran depth at corner to end the season, but it’s possible he could fill the position in the team’s plans going forward. He has a salary cap hit of $15 million in 2026, and his contract has no more guaranteed money, so the Packers could save a full $15 million by releasing or trading him. The 27-year-old played a complete game in Chicago’s playoff loss. His close friendship with Micah Parsons could impact the possibility of a restructured deal in 2026 with a significantly lower cap hit.
Stay or go: Aaron Banks
A prized free agent signing for the Packers in the 2025 offseason, Banks has battled injuries for the better part of two months and has been in and out of shape even when healthy. The signing is a big first-year miss, and the Packers will receive a $9.5 million roster bonus in March, so will need to decide whether there will be a second year. Moving on would only save the Packers $4 million in 2026 and create another hole in an already questionable offensive line that could lose Rasheed Walker, Sean Ryan and Elgton Jenkins this offseason. The Packers may need to survive another year. But roster bonuses in March will be difficult to pay.
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Contract extension: Devonte Wyatt
The Packers picked up Wyatt’s fifth-year option, so his contract is worth $12.9 million through 2026. The team has said multiple times that they believe Wyatt is a core player, so an extension is possible this offseason — even as Wyatt returns from a season-ending ankle injury. A multi-year extension could significantly lower his 2026 cap number. That’s still a risk given his injury history and lack of consistent dominance over his first three seasons.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: 5 salary cap decisions the Packers must make before the 2026 offseason begins