GREEN BAY – The Packers have acquired veteran linebacker Zaire Franklin in a trade with the Colts, sending defensive lineman Colby Wooden to Indianapolis in exchange.
Here are five things to know about Green Bay's new linebacker:
- He was named All-Pro just two seasons ago.
Franklin (6-0, 235) received second-team All-Pro recognition from the Associated Press in 2024, along with a Pro Bowl selection, in his seventh season with the Colts.
That year, he started every game in the middle of Indianapolis' defense and compiled 173 total tackles, including 11 for loss. He also set career highs with 3½ sacks, two interceptions and five forced fumbles.
- He worked his way into a prominent role over time.
The Colts originally drafted Franklin in the seventh round in 2018, at No. 235 overall, out of Syracuse. In his first three pro seasons, he was a reserve linebacker and regular on special teams, playing just 462 snaps on defense compared to 1,280 snaps on special teams. He didn't miss a game but started only four.
In his fourth season (2021), he started 11 games but still played only 200 snaps on defense compared to 350 on special teams. Then in 2022, he became a full-time defensive player and has started all but one game over the last four years, playing at least 1,000 defensive snaps each season (compared to an average of 115 snaps per year on special teams).
Over those four seasons (2022-25), he has averaged 161 total tackles per season, topping 100 solo tackles twice. He set a career high with 12 tackles for loss in 2022 and ranked second in the league with a career-best 179 tackles in 2023, earning a spot in the NFL Network's Top 100 players at No. 100. He compiled a total of 10 sacks and 19 QB hits over the last four years, and has been credited with at least five pass breakups each year.
- He's been uncommonly durable and made school history at Syracuse.
Franklin, who will turn 30 this summer, has missed just one game in his eight-year pro career, playing in 132 of a possible 133 games, with 82 starts.
His one missed game came at midseason in 2023 due to a knee injury. He did have an offseason surgery on his ankle in early 2025 but did not miss any playing time.
He's also played in three career playoff games but just one since his rookie year, as the Colts have not qualified for the postseason since 2020.
He didn't miss any games in college either, playing in all 48 over four years, including 39 starts. He received third-team All-ACC recognition in 2016 and then honorable mention in 2017.
Franklin was a three-time captain for the Orange, just the second player at Syracuse and first since 1896 to serve as captain for three years.
- He's no stranger to new Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon.
During Franklin's first three NFL seasons (2018-20), Gannon was the Colts' defensive backs coach under head coach Frank Reich.
In 2021, Gannon landed his first defensive coordinator position with Philadelphia before becoming Arizona's head coach in 2023 and now Green Bay's defensive coordinator in 2026. The two have been reunited, once again on the same team, after five seasons apart.
- He was raised by his mother and grandmother and launched a foundation in their memory.
Franklin was raised in Philadelphia by his mother, Shelice Highsmith, and his grandmother, Juanita Highsmith-Bailey. The pair died two months apart in 2013 when Franklin was a young teen, his mother after battling a brain tumor that brought on heart trouble, and his grandmother from kidney failure. An aunt then became Franklin's guardian.
His caregivers inspired his non-profit foundation, Shelice's Angels, which "strives to open doors and provide resources that help build self-esteem" to empower young women toward academic and career achievement, according to the foundation's website.
Franklin was the Colts' 2023 nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award for his charitable efforts.
