Paul Bretl | 12/12/2024
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Tight end Luke Musgrave returned to the practice on Wednesday and has been desiganted to return from injured reserve, potentially providing the Packers’ offense with a boost during this stretch run of the season.
With this being Musgrave’s first practice back in a few months, he was listed as limited–going through warmups with the team but then working off to the side on individual drills for the remainder of practice.
“Really good,” said Musgrave about being back at practice. “Been watching practice and that’s always the hardest part, so it’s good just to put the pads back on and a helmet and get back out there and join the guys again.”
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Once a player is designated to return from IR, a 21-day window opens for that player to be activated back to the 53-man roster. After being activated, that player is then available on Sundays to play. The activation can take place at any time, whether it be Day 1 or Day 21; it’s all dependent upon the player’s health.
“Feeling good,” Musgrave said. “Still getting back into it, still working into the ankle, but body feels good. Been in the weight room a lot, so it’s been really good.”
Musgrave hasn’t played since the Packers’ Week 4 matchup against Minnesota. Musgrave would say that on one of the first plays of that game, his left ankle would get twisted up and then fallen on. However, despite the injury, Musgrave would go on to play 25 snaps in that game and catching three passes for 13 yards.
Musgrave would be on the injury report the following week but was active for the Packers’ Week 5 matchup with the Los Angeles Rams, something that Matt LaFleur did not expect, given the injury. Musgrave would be in a reserve role that game and didn’t play any snaps. He was then placed on IR a few days later.
“I mean, pain’s never really been a huge limiting factor for me,” said Musgrave about playing through the Vikings’ game. “We spatted it and it was all right, so I just kinda kept on going. It felt odd, but I thought I was going to be fine.”
Musgrave would go on to say that he suffered a torn ligament and that his ankle was “really loose. Surgery was required and was completed by Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Throughout this time on injured reserve, Musgrave remained involved by going to meetings, watching film, and just being around the building, as he put it, not to mention the heavy-dose of rehab he’s been doing to get back to this point. However, while all of that was helpful and necessary, not being able to be on the practice field or on the field on Sundays wasn’t easy.
“I think the tough moment is always going back to practice,” Musgrave said. “Those first few weeks after surgery you’re just in the rehab room but once you go back out to practice and watch practice, that’s always tough because you really see what you’re missing out on.”
So how did Musgrave overcome those difficult times when all he could do was rehab and watch practice? Find little goals and focus on accomplishing them as quickly as possible.
“I think the best moments are when your body’s able to do what you know it can do. So I think like hitting a top speed, you’ve got to find little goals, so for me it was like hitting 20 miles an hour, that was a big goal for me. So just kinda those little goals, getting back and getting your body back.”
Musgrave’s return to the practice field on Wednesday was the “target date,” said LaFleur, adding that Musgrave has done a nice job with the rehab process. After missing so much time, Musgrave will be integrated back into practice and the team will see how quickly he can get back up to speed.
Without Musgrave, we’ve seen the continued emergence of Tucker Kraft, who along with his contributions in the passing game and as a blocker, has helped foster a more physical mindset and approach within the Packers’ offense. Ben Sims and John FitzPatrick have then primarily helped handle some of the blocking responsibilities that come at the tight end position.
“Been awesome, fun to watch this team,” said Musgrave of the tight end room. “Obviously you guys know, really powerful team, so excited to see what we’re gonna do and be a part of it.”
Prior to the injury, it was a slow start to the season for Musgrave. Through four games, he caught 5-of-7 passes for only 22 yards. But at 6-6, 253 pounds and with 4.6 speed, he brings a different element to the Packers’ offense. While Kraft offers big-play potential at the tight end position through his yards after the catch ability, Musgrave can stretch the field vertically and be a difficult matchup with his combination of size and speed.
The attention that Musgrave draws and the gravity he has can also help create opportunities for others within the offense through the spacing and matchups he orchestrates.
“It’s been awesome to see Luke,” said Jordan Love. “He was out there in pads and what not doing some individual stuff today. It was great to see him back here. Obviously, had a tough injury, didn’t know when he was going to be back, if it would be this week or not. It’s definitely nice to see him back out there.
“Hopefully we can get him back for the end of the season and for playoffs and what not, so it’s awesome to have a guy like that back out there.”
While individually, Musgrave and Kraft can offer a lot to this Packers’ offense, being on the field together is what could open up additional opportunities for this unit. Unfortunately, through nearly two NFL seasons together, that’s not something we’ve seen a lot of up to this point, particularly when both are at the height of their powers.
Early in 2023, when both Musgrave and Kraft were healthy, Kraft’s role on offense was fairly small. A kidney injury in Week 11 of that season to Musgrave would sideline him until Week 18, and it was during that span of games where we saw the emergence of Kraft. Then this season, the duo has only been on the field together for four games.
The Packers, under LaFleur, utilize 12 personnel–or two tight end sets–at a relatively high rate. In terms of their skill-sets, Kraft and Musgrave each bring a different element to the Packers’ offense. Musgrave with his elite speed at the position, can stretch the field as we saw last season, with 16 percent of his targets coming 20-plus yards downfield–the fifth-highest rate of any tight end. Kraft, meanwhile, is excellent after the catch with the ball in his hands, currently ranking fourth among all tight ends in total YAC this season.
However, while both can impact the passing game in different ways, the Packers believe that both are also more than capable blockers, and it’s those two elements when coupled together that can help unlock an offense’s full potential.
For LaFleur as the play-caller, having two tight ends who can impact both the running and passing games helps open up the playbook for him, allowing the Packers to get much more creative, particularly from 12 personnel, when both tight ends are on field.
“The more we have, the more options, the better we’re going to be,” Christian Watson said of Musgrave’s return. “So, excited for him to get back out there, whenever he does.”
Having one tight end, but especially two, who can make plays in the passing game and be a capable as a blocker further adds the unpredictability element to the offense. Pre-snap, defenses can’t decipher as easily whether a run or pass is coming simply based on where the tight ends are lined up. There are also the mismatches Kraft and Musgrave can create with their abilities to line up across the formation.
This then forces defenses to respect both the run and the pass on any given play, thus having to defend the entire field, which creates better spacing and more room for the offense to operate in.
When LaFleur took over as the head coach we often heard him use the phrase the ‘illusion of complexity,’ which versatile tight ends help enhance. The combination of Kraft and Musgrave allows the Packers to run a number of plays from just a few personnel packages and like-plays–or plays that begin similarly but end up being different–that build off each other throughout the game.
All of this creates mismatches for not only Kraft and Musgrave to exploit, but helps open up opportunities for others within the offense, and generally speaking, is an added stressor for opponents, keeping the defense guessing and off-balanced.
“It would be big time,” said Love of having both Kraft and Musgrave together. “I think the last time we had it was really during training camp, having both those guys out there. And it definitely changes the plays we call and some of the formations we have and personnel groupings. But to have both those guys out on the field, those are two really good tight ends.
“So I think it definitely changes the way we can call some plays and things like that. It’s been tough not having Luke out there so to get him back healthy and back out on the field would be big-time.”
With Musgrave back at practice and the 21-day window to be activated open, the presumption is that he will make his return in the next few weeks. But as far as a specific timeline for that, it’s just as soon as possible. At which point, Musgrave will be ready for whatever role the team needs him to fill.
“Whatever they want me to,” said Musgrave on what he can contribute. “Whatever they see fit. That’s the coaches’ job, so whatever they see me doing, I’m willing to do.”