Packers' Tucker Kraft puts DBs on notice with two touchdowns in win

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Tucker Kraft lives by a motto when it comes to what he does with the football in his hands.

“Don’t let a DB attack me in space,” the Green Bay Packers second-year tight end said.

That's exactly what he did on his 66-yard catch-and-run touchdown – the first of two touchdowns for Kraft in Sunday's 24-19 win over the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium.

Kraft caught the ball just past the midfield stripe and encountered two members of the Rams' secondary on the way to the end zone.

Cornerback Darious Williams meets Kraft's stiff arm.

Security Quentin Lake, you're about to be pushed aside.

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Tucker Kraft rumbles down the sideline and scores a 66-yard touchdown

Tucker Kraft flies down the sideline and tackles a defender en route to a Packers touchdown.

Defensive backs, you have been officially warned. If they didn't know the words by which strength lives before, they know it now.

“It still happens sometimes, but (I) always try to prevent the first hit,” Kraft said. “But keep your head down, bull in the Chinese shop. That’s exactly what I do.”

On a day that saw two of their starting receivers sidelined – Christian Watson due to a left ankle injury and Romeo Doubs due to a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team – the Packers may have simply let the rest of the NFL tell their little secret.

“You saw something last year, especially towards the end,” Packers cornerback Eric Stokes said of Kraft. “Now he’s just fully embraced the way Tucker plays, the way Tucker trains, it just shows. So some of the things he does, it’s no surprise.”

On Sunday, Kraft caught four passes for 88 yards and two touchdowns. His second score gave the Packers a 24-13 lead with 3:35 to play when Kraft rumbled seven yards on a screen. On the way to the end zone, he ran through linebacker Troy Reeder.

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Tucker Kraft finds the end zone again for a Packers touchdown

Tucker Kraft jumps over the goal line to extend the Packers' lead over the Rams.

“Every time he touches the ball, he has the mindset that he’s trying to score,” Packers quarterback Jordan Love said. “He will not go down lightly. He will overrun people and stay on top. He does really good things when he has the ball in his hands. I definitely continue to try to find ways to give him the ball. He's a mate.” He did a great job today.

Kraft entered the game with three career touchdowns and left it as the first Packers tight end with a multi-touchdown game since Robert Tonyan's three scores in Week 4 of 2020 against the Falcons.

Not bad for a guy who was listed as the TE2 behind Luke Musgrave on most preseason depth charts. Even before Musgrave's ankle injury made him available on an emergency basis against the Rams last week, Kraft had passed him by despite missing most of the offseason with a torn pectoral muscle.

And not bad for a third-round pick who was considered a developmental player who came out of South Dakota State and had played nine-man football in high school in rural Timber Lake, South Dakota. The development of strength apparently didn't take long.

“I mean, the guy loves the ball,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “He works. Continuously. He is relentless. And he has a great mindset. That's all he does. He shows up, he works, he gets better. It was really cool to see him blossom. I think the more confidence he's gained, the better he's done.

While Kraft's 16 catches don't break into the top 10 among tight ends this season, his 218 receiving yards rank fifth among all tight ends, and his yards-per-catch average of 13.6 is No. 1 , as most of the fifth week is in the books .

“I watch him every day and he continues to make plays — plays that I know he can make,” Packers receiver Jayden Reed said. “Everyone knows he’s capable of making these plays. Everyone knows Tuck.”

And they know what happens when he gets the ball in space.

“Most of the time I create my own situations in the open field,” Kraft said. “Just allow for the first failure.”