Green Bay Packers

Should the Packers Pick Up Devonte Wyatt’s Option?

Photo Credit: Mark Hoffman/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin via Imagn Images

As I highlighted a few days ago, general manager Brian Gutekunst has an interesting decision coming up. In May, he must decide whether or not to pick up linebacker Quay Walker’s fifth-year option.

However, that’s not the only fifth-year option decision he must make by Thursday, May 2. The Green Bay Packers selected two players in the first round of the 2022 draft who warrant a fifth-year option decision. Gutekunst also took defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt out of the University of Georgia with the 28th-overall pick in that draft.

Like his Georgia counterpart, Wyatt is coming off perhaps his best professional season in 2024. He struggled to stay healthy and only appeared in 14 games. Still, he had 23 tackles, five sacks, and two fumble recoveries.

Wyatt’s five sacks led Green Bay’s defensive tackle group. Wyatt was often the only Packers defensive tackle to consistently generate pressure from the interior. Despite playing in only 14 games, he produced 32 pressures. That was good for third most on the team, and he only played 247 pass-rushing snaps.

Walker’s fifth-year option is slated for a little over $16 million based on the playing-time level of the four levels of the fifth-year option scale. Meanwhile, Wyatt comes in at the first, or “basic,” level.

The basic level includes players who don’t meet the requirements below. Those players will be eligible for a fifth-year base salary calculated from the average of the third- to 25th-highest salaries at their position over the past five seasons. If the Packers choose Wyatt’s option, his salary would be $13.1 million for the 2026 season.

That would put him in the top five of the highest-paid linebackers in the NFL, should Green Bay pick up his option. Many fans and pundits don’t think Walker is worth that kind of coin based on his current level of play. In Wyatt’s case, his options salary would not even put him in the top 25 at his position.

Rather than being in the same salary bracket as Pro Bowlers like Fred Warner and Roquan Smith like Walker would be, Wyatt would be in the same conversation as average to slightly above-average players Grover Stewart and Dalvin Tomlinson. Stewart and Tomlinson combined for 6.5 sacks on the season, whereas Wyatt had five by himself. Certainly, it doesn’t seem like Green Bay would consider picking up his option as an overpay.

While Wyatt has shown flashes of being an outstanding and impactful player for this Packers defense, look no further than his fumble recovery of Trevor Lawrence in the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. There was nobody on that field besides Wyatt, who was fighting hard for that football. Those are the types of impactful plays the Packers had in mind when they drafted him 28th overall.

Like his comments on Walker, Gutekunst spoke highly of Wyatt at his season-ending press conference, even saying Wyatt had his best season as a pro.

“D-Wy was probably our most consistent pass rusher from the inside this year,” Gutekunst said. “I think both of those guys had their best years as pros so far.”

Creating pressure from the interior is crucial for any team’s overall pass-rush attack. The Packers must focus on creating more pressure with four down linemen. Therefore, investing in Wyatt seems wise.

As we sit here today, I would guess that Gutekunst picks up the soon-to-be 27-year-old’s option. Pro Football Focus gave him a 66.5-overall grade and their 33rd-ranked pressure grade, meaning he’s in the top 50 at his position in the league, with room to improve at only 27 years old.

With Kenny Clark, 29, closing in on 30 and Karl Brooks and Colby Wooden not taking a huge second-year leap as was probably expected, Wyatt could be Green Bay’s anchor in the middle for the next few seasons. Picking up his option and having him under team control for an additional season could go a long way in helping make that determination.

Gutekunst’s recent history of fifth-year options doesn’t necessarily give us much insight into his future plans. Two years ago, he made a mistake when he picked up safety Darnell Savage’s option. Savage was disappointing in his final Green Bay season before signing with Jacksonville last offseason.

Last year, Gutekunst quickly declined the fifth-year option on cornerback and fellow Georgia Bulldog Eric Stokes, which was the correct decision. Stokes failed to beat out former seventh-round pick Carrington Valentine and became a rotational option for much of the 2024 season.

However, Gutekunst’s most interesting decision was to decline Jordan Love’s fifth-year option and instead sign him to a one-year prove-it contract as the starter. Once Love proved that he was indeed the future at quarterback, they were able to work out a long-term deal.

Gutekunst could go that same route with Wyatt. However, a defensive tackle usually has fewer opportunities for a large contract than a quarterback. Therefore, Wyatt and his representatives likely would rather hit the market than settle for a team-friendly deal. Picking up the option would also give Green Bay more time to negotiate a longer-term deal with Wyatt.

Based on Gutekunst’s end-of-season comments and Wyatt’s improved play during 2024, I would be hard-pressed to think he doesn’t exercise his option. Big men who are as athletic as Wyatt and have played as much high-level football as him are hard to find. Therefore, investing in one is wise when you land one in the draft.

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