Tucker Kraft (born November 3, 2000) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

South Dakota State Jackrabbits The South Dakota State Jackrabbits are the 19 intercollegiate teams representing South Dakota State University that compete in the U.S. National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I (for football: Football Championship Subdivision). Sout ...

and was selected by the Packers in the third round of the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL draft was the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. The NFL draft, draft was held outside of Kansas City Union Station, Union Station i ...

Early life

Kraft was born on November 3, 2000, in

Timber Lake, South Dakota Timber Lake (Lakota: ''Blečháŋ''; "Tree Lake") is a city in and the county seat of Dewey County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 509 at the 2020 census. History Timber Lake was founded in 1910 with the arrival of the Chicag ...

. His father, Doug Kraft, passed away in 2013. He has two brothers named Cody and Tanner Kraft. Kraft grew up along the northern border of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Reservation and in April 2024, he was named an honorary tribal member for his acts of service to the community. Kraft wears a Cheyenne River Sioux tribal flag on his football helmet alongside the American flag. He later attended Timber Lake High School, where he played running back, middle linebacker, and punter on the football team. As a senior, Kraft rushed for 1,405 yards and 24 touchdowns and was named first team All-State. He committed to play college football at South Dakota State over a late offer from

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

College career

Kraft

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

his true freshman season. He caught seven passes for 90 yards during the spring 2021 season, which was delayed from the fall due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. As a redshirt sophomore, Kraft started all 15 of South Dakota State's games and had 65 receptions for 780 yards and six touchdowns. He was named consensus FCS

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

and All-

Missouri Valley Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the National Collegiate A ...

(MVFC).

Professional career

Kraft was selected in the third round, 78th overall, by the

in the

. He signed his rookie contract on May 17. In Week 11, against the Lions, he scored his first NFL touchdown. In Week 14 against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

, Kraft had a career-high game in yardage with 64 yards in four receptions. As a rookie, he appeared in all 17 games and made eight starts. He finished with 31 receptions for 355 yards and two touchdowns. In the Divisional Round loss to the 49ers, Kraft scored his first playoff touchdown. In May 2024, Kraft suffered a torn pectoral muscle, causing him to miss part of Green Bay's offseason training program.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Postseason

Personal life

Kraft is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. He married Baylee Jandahl, a graphic designer, on May 18, 2024.

References

External links

Green Bay Packers bioSouth Dakota State Jackrabbits bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kraft, Tucker 2000 births Living people People from Dewey County, South Dakota American football tight ends South Dakota State Jackrabbits football players Players of American football from South Dakota Green Bay Packers players American people of German descent