Former Iowa Hawkeyes tight end Luke Lachey’s promising opportunity with the Green Bay Packers has taken an unexpected turn. Just weeks after joining the Packers and preparing for his chance to compete for an NFL roster spot, Lachey has been waived/injured by Green Bay as the team’s tight end room continues to be hit by a brutal string of injuries.
The Packers made the move Tuesday while adding tight ends McCallan Castles and Drew Biber to address their growing shortage at the position. Lachey wasn’t the only tight end affected, as Green Bay also waived/injured rookie R.J. Maryland, who is dealing with a hamstring injury.
For Lachey, the timing is particularly frustrating. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound former Hawkeye had only signed with Green Bay on June 15 after spending his rookie season on the Houston Texans’ practice squad. He had been given another opportunity to prove himself in an NFL training camp, but an apparent leg injury has now interrupted that chance.
The situation became more concerning when Lachey was seen at Packers practice using a scooter and wearing a boot. That visual quickly raised questions about the severity of his injury, and Green Bay’s subsequent roster move provided the clearest indication yet that the injury had become significant enough to affect his roster status.
A Rough Stretch for Green Bay’s Tight Ends
Lachey’s departure is just one piece of a much bigger problem for the Packers. Green Bay has been forced to reshuffle its tight end group after several injuries, including Tucker Kraft’s season-ending ACL injury from 2025 and a neck issue keeping Luke Musgrave on the physically unable to perform list.
Now Lachey and Maryland have joined that injury list, leaving the Packers scrambling for healthy bodies before the season even begins. The club responded by bringing back Castles and signing Biber, moves that show just how quickly the depth chart has been turned upside down.
And that makes Lachey’s situation even more unfortunate. He wasn’t entering Green Bay with the security of a high draft pick or an established NFL veteran’s contract. He was fighting for every opportunity, trying to turn a training-camp invitation into a legitimate chance to make an NFL roster.
Lachey’s NFL Journey Has Been Anything But Straightforward
Lachey entered the NFL as the final selection of the 2025 NFL Draft, when the Texans selected him No. 255 overall in the seventh round. He spent his entire rookie season on Houston’s practice squad and never appeared in a regular-season game before the Texans released him in May.
Green Bay then gave him another opening. The Packers signed Lachey on June 15, officially adding the former Iowa captain to their roster and giving him a fresh opportunity to compete in an organization with a desperate need for tight-end depth.
For Iowa fans, Lachey’s journey has been especially easy to follow. He played 42 games for the Hawkeyes, starting 31, and finished his college career as a permanent team captain. Iowa also recognized him as one of its Comeback Players of the Year during his senior season.
His college production showed why NFL teams continued to give him opportunities. As a sophomore in 2022, Lachey caught 28 passes for 398 yards and four touchdowns, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten recognition. An ankle injury disrupted his 2023 season, while he finished 2024 with 28 receptions for 231 yards.
This Isn’t Necessarily the End of Lachey’s Packers Story
The word “released” may sound final, but there’s an important distinction here: Green Bay waived Lachey with an injury designation. That means his current situation is tied directly to his health rather than simply being a case of the Packers deciding he wasn’t good enough to compete.
That’s an important difference for the former Hawkeye.
Lachey now faces another frustrating setback at a time when he desperately needed healthy practice reps. Still, his size, college experience and blocking ability give him qualities that can continue to attract opportunities once he’s healthy.
For now, though, Green Bay has moved quickly to protect a position group that has been decimated by injuries. The Packers have already added Castles and Biber, while the tight end depth chart looks dramatically different from what the team expected when training camp opened.
And for Hawkeye fans watching Lachey’s NFL journey, the hope will be that this is simply another detour rather than the end of the road.
The former Iowa captain has already had to fight through injuries, a seventh-round draft selection, a year on a practice squad and multiple changes of scenery. Now he’ll have to overcome another setback.
But if there’s one thing Lachey’s Iowa career demonstrated, it’s that he’s familiar with fighting his way back.
