The first week of NFL free agency is always wild. You have shocking contracts being handed out, such as the Colts giving Alex Pierce $116 million dollars. You have general managers being able to get valuable assets for players they were ready to cut, like we saw the wizard Brian Gutekunst do with Rashan Gary and the Dallas Cowboys (thanks again Jerry)! This time of year there is never a shortage of headlines and topics from every team across the league. But perhaps the most shocking development thus far is the Green Bay Packers prioritizing their special teams!

Yes, you did read that sentence correctly. Based on several of their moves so far in free agency it appears the Packers are trying to address perhaps their biggest weakness, their special teams unit. Cornerback Benjamin St. Juste, linebackers Nick Niemann, Zaire Franklin and Kristian Welch, running back Chris Brooks and wide receiver Skyy Moore were all signed (or traded for in Franklin’s case) to help contribute on the Packers third unit. All come to Green Bay with significant special teams backgrounds and should help new coordinator Cam Achord get a solid footing during his first season at the helm.

It’s long been known that the Green Bay Packers organization hasn’t really cared much about their special teams units. Through years of Hall of Fame quarterback play, trading for or signing future Hall of Fame defensive players such as Charles Woodson or Micah Parsons, it was always the special teams units that were backfilled with undrafted free agents or back-of-the-roster players that weren’t quite good enough to see the field at their respective positions. If the proof on the field isn’t enough, perhaps the fact that the Packers are now on their fourth special teams coordinator in the Matt LaFleur era — two fired and one “resigned” — shows just how downtrodden this unit has been. If there was ever a season to start prioritizing teams, it’s now.

While Franklin is coming to town as the likely starting linebacker opposite Edgerrin Cooper as the replacement for Quay Walker, he also possesses significant experience playing special teams. Early in his career as a seventh-round pick trying to make an impact with the Indianapolis Colts, he cut his teeth on the third unit. Even when he started to move into a bigger role on defense, he still logged significant snaps on special teams. In his first three professional seasons, he played over 1,200 special teams snaps. While his snaps on teams have decreased over time and he is averaging just 115 over the last few seasons, he has the ability to be plugged in when needed. The Packers have spoken about playing more starters on their third unit and started to do so toward the end of the year with players such as Xavier McKinney and Evan’s Williams seeing more time there, and if they are going to get the most out of Franklin, I would expect to see him with a regular role there.

The St. Juste signing is just as much about what he can bring to special teams as what he can do as a corner. While he graded out extremely well last year playing corner for the Chargers, he played just 34% of the defensive snaps for Los Angeles while playing 72% of the special teams snaps (296 total). He was a core player on all of the Chargers coverage units, serving as both gunner and jammer on punt returns. His 2025 special team snap counts would have been second for the Packers, just behind Isaiah McDuffie. While fellow corners such as Keisean Nixon shy away from playing teams and defense, St. Juste embraces it. Among all cornerbacks in the NFL last season, St. Juste logged the seventh-most snaps as a special teamer. Even if he is able to carve out a role as the team’s third corner, he will be counted on significantly to help stabilize the special teams unit.

The Skyy Moore signing is the most obvious in how it’s going to help Green Bay’s ever-struggling return units. After enjoying back-to-back seasons of All-Pro returning from the aforementioned Keisean Nixon, the Packers punt and kick return units have been brutally bad. From Savion Williams to Matthew Golden to Jayden Reed to Bo Melton and Romeo Doubs, they were good for 23rd and 32nd in kickoff and punt return average collectively. Over the last two seasons, the Packers had a combined 2,377 kickoff and punt return yards, which is 150 yards less than the next team. They have struggled to find anyone capable of owning the returner position, and the coaching staff never really seemed interested in finding anyone. They just kind of rotated players in and out if someone didn’t show signs of improvement. In 2025 Moore averaged 27.5 yards per kick return and 11.6 yards per punt return. While the 25-year-old doesn’t have a return for a touchdown yet in his professional career, he is an elite return specialist who can swing field position with a single return. It might be unfair to say that Moore is going to single-handedly rescue the Packers special teams, but he will definitely go a long way in bringing them back to respectability. We saw what that can do for a team — just ask the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks and their returner Rashid Shaheed.

Niemann, Welch and Brooks were all re-signed already this offseason and will come back as core special teamers again in 2026. Niemann was signed last offseason to be one of the anchors of the special teams and was on his way to leading the team in snaps for the third unit before a pectoral injury landed him on injured reserve not even halfway into the season. Welch is coming back to Green Bay for his third stint as a Packer and has logged over 1,400 snaps on special teams compared to just 99 on defense. He was a core teamer at Iowa and has been throughout his six-year NFL career. Brooks was third on the team in special teams snaps played behind McDuffie and Ty’Ron Hopper. He was the first signing of the offseason, not a surprise given how much the Packers value him as a blocker on their return units.

By all accounts the Packers seem dedicated to finally improving their special teams units with this signings and its possible there are more to come.  Maybe Rich Bisaccia’s decision to walk away was the wake-up call they needed, maybe they are just tired of seeing special teams cost them games. Whatever the root cause, it’s a welcome sight to see them not only spend the money needed but to make it a point to target quality players for what has been a problem for far too long.