Colts add solid defensive depth at a position they’ve struggled with for years by trading away Zaire Franklin
Colts trade Zaire Franklin to the Packers in exchange for Colby Wooden. Get to know the newest Colts player and what this trade means for Indy going forward.
The Indianapolis Colts made their first of multiple expected changes of the offseason by trading away linebacker Zaire Franklin.
It was reported this week that the Colts were talking to teams about potnetially trading away Frankin and they’ve moved quickly to do just that. They are trading Franklin to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for defensive tackle Colby Wooden.
Colts begin to build a younger and faster defense by trading away Zaire Franklin
Colts general manager has made it known the team’s plan on defense is to get younger and faster on the defensive side of the ball. This led them to move on from a player thats spent eight years with the team. The Colts selected Franklin in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft and he’s started 82 games for th team with 78 coming over the last five years.
He leaves the Colts with the fourth most tackles in the franchises’s history since moving to Indianapolis behind Antonie Bethea, Gary Brackett, and Kenny Moore II with 417 total tackles. He also has the single season franchise record for tackles with 179 in 2023.
This past year was his worst season as a full time starter with the Colts though, and the teams shift to Lou Anarumo’s scheme could have been a reason for that. A split seemed to be the best thing that could happen for both sides here and now he heads to Green Bay where he will try to rebound during the second-to-last year of his current contract, where he will turn 30 years old ahead of the season.
What are the Colts getting from the Packers in DT Colby Wooden?
“Colby Wooden is a solid rotational defensive lineman, and he was probably the Packers’ most complete interior player — because Devonte Wyatt and Karl Brooks are both interior rushers. Wooden had a bigger role in 2025 after the Packers lost TJ Slaton in free agency and involved Kenny Clark as part of the Micah Parsons trade. Last season, he ended up playing 52.41% of the Packers’ defensive snaps, second on the team behind Brooks — Wyatt played less because he got hurt.
Wooden is entering the final year of his rookie deal, making $1.145 million. Presuming the Packers didn’t plan to keep him beyond the rookie contract, general manager Brian Gutekunst felt compelled to move him away to solve another roster issue.” – Wendell Ferreira, A to Z Sports Green Bay
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