Packers 2025 Season Report Card: Grading Quay Walker, Linebackers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The final tally shows the Green Bay Packers totaled 1,075 tackles during the 2025 season. More than 30 percent were made by the linebacker trio of Quay Walker, Edgerrin Cooper and Isaiah McDuffie.

In Part 8 of our season-ending Packers report cards, we focus on the linebackers. Our grades are done on a salary-cap curve because of the importance of finances to building a successful roster.

Note: All salary-cap figures are from OverTheCap.com. Advanced stats are from Pro Football Focus and Sports Info Solutions.

Quay Walker

2025 cap charge of $4.40 million ranked 32nd at the position.

The 2022 first-round pick turned in four consecutive productive seasons. Even while sitting out three games in 2025, Walker set a career high with a team-high 128 tackles, had his second-best season with eight tackles for losses and five passes defensed, and produced his third consecutive season with 2.5 sacks.

Of 64 linebackers to play at least 500 snaps, Walker ranked 12th in missed-tackle percentage (nine misses; 7.1 percent), 42nd in completion percentage (82.2) and 56th in passer rating (120.8; five touchdowns). He tied for 21st with 9.1 yards allowed per catch.

The team captain did a good job running the defense for coordinator Jeff Hafley.

“It mean a whole lot,” he said after the playoff loss. “I’m an emotional guy, so I’m trying to hold it in. Everything right now, just kind of hitting me at once. It’s meant a lot. When you go to war with these group of guys, we’ve been together since April – OTAs all the way through now. So, I’ve been spending all my days, like every day with these guys, so it’s hard. It means a lot. I can’t really put it into words right now.”

Walker will head to free agency with four consecutive seasons of more than 100 tackles. Impressively, he is one of only six NFL defenders with four consecutive seasons of 100-plus tackles and five-plus tackles for losses.

However, the last three seasons, he had one interception, zero forced fumbles and zero fumble recoveries. He was incinerated in coverage in the playoff game; while he broke up two passes, PFF charged him with seven completions, 105 yards and one touchdown.

Grade: B-minus.

Isaiah McDuffie

2025 cap charge of $3.03 million ranked 45th at the position.

Back on a two-year contract, McDuffie played all 17 games for a second consecutive season. He started 12 games and logged 45.1 percent playing time. He just missed his career high with 92 tackles, with 80 coming on defense and a dozen on special teams. He had one sack, one interception (his only pass breakup) and three tackles for losses.

Of 64 linebackers to play at least 500 snaps, McDuffie ranked sixth in missed-tackle percentage (five misses; 5.4 percent), 30th in completion percentage (78.6) and 11th in passer rating (89.3; one touchdown). He allowed only 7.8 yards per catch, tied for sixth-best.

With Walker headed to free agency, there’s a good chance that McDuffie will be in a big role again.

Grade: C.

Edgerrin Cooper

2025 cap charge of $1.95 million ranked 63rd at the position.

Cooper had 117 tackles, a half-sack, four tackles for losses, four passes defensed and two forced fumbles in Year 2. They were the only forced fumbles by the linebackers. He played in all 17 games and finished second on the team in defensive snaps.

It was a solid season, to be sure, but it fell short of expectations following a blockbuster rookie season in which he led the Packers, led all rookies and led all off-the-ball linebackers with 13 tackles for losses while adding 3.5 sacks and one interception.

Green Bay Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (56) celebrates a tackle against Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Of 64 linebackers to play at least 500 snaps, Walker ranked 45th in missed-tackle percentage (19 misses; 13.7 percent), 45th in completion percentage (82.9) and 19th in passer rating (93.9; zero touchdowns). He had a shot at an interception in the playoff game.

While he gave up a lot of completions, he limited them to 7.9 yards per catch, which was eighth-best and just behind McDuffie. According to SIS, he ranked third among linebackers with just 3.3 yards allowed per target.

The new defensive coordinator will be tasked with maximizing Cooper’s prodigious skill-set. He’s also got to clean up the tackling; only eight linebackers missed more than Cooper.

“I think Coop’s a pretty special player,” coach Matt LaFleur said at the end of the season.

Grade: B.

Ty’Ron Hopper

2025 cap charge of $1.29 million ranked 86th at the position.

A third-round pick last year, Hopper played 18 snaps on defense as a rookie and 126 this year. That’s 144 – with close to half of those coming when he started against the Vikings in Week 18 and contributed five tackles. He intercepted Caleb Williams in the playoff game.

On special teams, he had 12 tackles and the team’s only forced fumble.

It was limited chances, obviously, but his missed-tackle rate of 15.4 percent was the worst among the team’s linebackers. Coaches love to talk about the Year 2 jump. With Walker headed to free agency, Hopper must take a Year 3 jump.

Grade: D.

Nick Niemann

2025 cap charge of $847,778 ranked 150th at the position.

The veteran special-teams ace was given a one-year contract after he was released by Houston at the end of training camp. In seven games, Niemann had 11 tackles on special teams. That put him on a rare pace. He returned from a torn pectoral in the playoff game and added two more tackles.

The grade is based solely on special teams, which is what he was signed to play. He didn’t play a single snap on defense until giving up a two-point pass in the playoff game.

Grade: B-plus.

Kristian Welch

2025 cap charge of $403,334 ranked 179th at the position.

The Wisconsin native had strong training camps in 2024 and 2025 but failed to make the roster both times. He wound up playing in eight consecutive games during the second half of the season, contributing three tackles on special teams before going on injured reserve.

Grade: C-minus.

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