Sources: Packers, Tucker Kraft agree to 4-year extension - ESPN

The Green Bay Packers and star tight end Tucker Kraft have agreed to four-year contract extension with a base value of $75 million one day before the season opener, sources told ESPN.

The deal could be worth up to $92 million and includes a $26.5 million signing bonus, sources said. Kraft's deal carries an average annual salary of $18.75 million, making him the third-highest paid tight end.

Kraft will receive $31.5 million in Year 1, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapport.

Kraft is coming off a torn ACL in his right knee that cut short what had the potential to be a record-breaking season for a Packers tight end. Through the first nine weeks, he caught 32 passes for 489 yards and six touchdowns. Only one tight end had more touchdowns at the time, and only two had more receiving yards.

Kraft's return from surgery went smoothly. He underwent surgery in mid-November and remained in Green Bay for most of the offseason to rehab. At his nine-month, post-surgical checkup, Kraft said his doctors told him the tests on his knee showed that he looked like someone who has had more than a year of post-surgical healing.

Although he started training camp on the physically unable to perform list, by Day 3 of practice he was back on the field doing individual drills. By Aug. 16, he was back in 11-on-11 periods during practice. By Aug. 26, he was taking hits in a joint practice with the Arizona Cardinals.

Still, it was a risk for Kraft to return to full-contact without a contract extension, but he said the thought of not practicing until he got a new deal never entered his mind.

«He doesn't shy away from the work,» Packers coach Matt LaFleur said at the time.

Kraft said earlier this month that he would not hold out or miss any regular