Luke Musgrave is a freak of nature. Seriously. The guy is 6-foot-6, runs like a gazelle, and has the kind of catch radius that makes NFL scouts drool. But for the Green Bay Packers, he’s been a bit of a mystery box. Just when you think he’s about to blow the roof off the league, something goes sideways.
The luke musgrave ankle injury wasn't just a minor tweak or a "day-to-day" situation that the team's PR department loves to talk about. It was a saga. It was the kind of injury that reveals exactly how tough—and maybe how stubborn—an NFL player can be.
The Moment It All Went Wrong
It happened early. Week 4 of the 2024 season against the Minnesota Vikings. Usually, when a guy's ankle turns inward and a 300-pound lineman lands on it, he's done. Most humans would be calling for the cart.
Musgrave? He stayed in.
He played 25 more snaps. Honestly, it's kind of insane when you think about it. He told reporters later that "pain's never really been a huge limiting factor." That sounds cool in a post-game interview, but it probably didn't help his recovery. He spatted it up (that’s basically just heavy-duty taping for the non-athletes) and finished the game.
But you can't outrun anatomy.
The next week against the Rams, he was active. He suited up. He stood on the sideline like he was ready to go, but Matt LaFleur never sent him in. The Packers realized something was fundamentally broken. Literally.
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Surgery and the Charlotte Trip
By the time they flew to North Carolina to see Dr. Robert Anderson—the "godfather" of NFL foot and ankle surgeries—the verdict was grim. It wasn't just a sprain. Musgrave had a torn ligament in his left ankle.
The joint was "loose," as he put it. Surgery was the only way to tighten things back up.
That sent him to Injured Reserve (IR) on October 11, 2024. For a rookie who had already survived a Grade 4 lacerated kidney the year before, this was a massive blow. He missed a huge chunk of the season, only getting designated to return in mid-December.
Why This Injury Derailed the Tight End Room
While Musgrave was learning how to walk again, Tucker Kraft happened.
In the NFL, the "next man up" mantra is a cliché, but Kraft took it to heart. He didn't just fill in; he dominated. By the time Musgrave was healthy enough to sniff the field again, the hierarchy had shifted.
- Kraft became the "Y" tight end—the reliable guy.
- Musgrave became the "F"—the vertical threat who was suddenly playing second fiddle.
- The chemistry with Jordan Love, which looked so promising in 2023, hit a wall.
It’s a bummer. You see a guy with 90th-percentile speed and you want him on the field. But the luke musgrave ankle injury forced the Packers to change their entire offensive identity for a while.
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The 2025 Rollercoaster
Fast forward to 2025. You’d think a full offseason would fix everything, right? Not exactly. Musgrave started the 2025 season healthy but buried. He was playing maybe 30% of the snaps.
Then, the script flipped again.
Tucker Kraft tore his ACL in Week 9 against the Carolina Panthers. Suddenly, Musgrave was the guy again. But the transition hasn't been smooth. He hasn't looked quite as explosive as that rookie version of himself who was chasing Bubba Franks' records.
Stats Don’t Lie (and They Aren’t Great)
If you look at his 2025 numbers, they’re underwhelming. He finished the regular season with just 24 catches for 252 yards. Zero touchdowns.
Zero.
For a guy who is 6'6", that's almost impossible. But it shows the lingering effects of missing that developmental time. When you spend months in a walking boot instead of in the film room with Jordan Love, your timing gets wrecked.
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He did have a mini-breakout late in the year. He caught four passes for 52 yards against the Broncos in mid-December. He looked "fast again," according to some of the beat writers. But then the quarterback situation got messy with Love and Malik Willis both dealing with injuries, and Musgrave faded back into the background.
What to Watch Moving Forward
If you're a Packers fan or a fantasy manager, here is the deal.
The ankle is fine now. The surgery worked. But the mental hurdle of being the "backup" and the physical toll of back-to-back major injuries (kidney then ankle) is real.
Musgrave is still only 25. He’s still long. He still stretches the field. But he's entering a 2026 season where he's effectively playing for his career in Green Bay. With Kraft rehabbing a torn ACL, Musgrave has a window—perhaps his last one—to prove he isn't just a "what if" story.
Actionable Takeaways for the Offseason
- Monitor the 2-TE Sets: Watch training camp reports. If Matt LaFleur is running heavy 12-personnel, Musgrave's value skyrockets. If they stay in 11-personnel, he's a decoy.
- Speed Tracking: Keep an eye on the GPS data. Musgrave needs to be hitting that 20-mph mark consistently to be the player the Packers drafted.
- Target Share: He needs to prove he can win in the red zone. 250 yards is fine for a backup, but he needs to find the end zone to justify his second-round pedigree.
The luke musgrave ankle injury is technically in the rearview mirror, but its impact on the Green Bay depth chart is still very much alive. Whether he can reclaim his spot as the TE1 or remains a specialist depends entirely on how that left ankle holds up under another full season of NFL contact.
Stay tuned to the Wednesday injury reports throughout the 2026 preseason. That’s where you’ll see if the "toughness" Musgrave prides himself on is actually back to 100 percent.