![]() Rodgers efficiently extended plays better than he had all season and felt much more comfortable with his protection. We saw the benefits of the improved offensive line immediately. ![]() While the Packers hope Billy Turner can return, they can breathe easily with Kelly at RT for now. Most of the linemen are young, emerging players, making Kelly’s experience particularly valuable. Kelly has been an excellent addition in his short stint at RT in Green Bay. It’s surprising Kelly didn’t see the field until the last quarter of the season. A veteran starter who knows the offense on a cheap deal is a beautiful thing. Kelly started in all 16 games for the Tennessee Titans, a team whose offense was installed by Matt LaFleur when he was their offensive coordinator. Patrick is rewarded for his solid play with the right guard spot, where he started 11 games last season.ĭennis Kelly is one of those underrated veteran free-agent signings that Brian Gutekunst excels at. But the Packers want Myers at center, and Runyan has outplayed Newman. He’s a cerebral player who has good chemistry with Rodgers, and he’s played all over the interior line and could realistically start at any of the three interior spots. Patrick’s extension has ended up as one of Green Bay’s best investments, as the Packers have asked him to start for prolonged stints over the past two seasons. While Myers was injured, Lucas Patrick quietly played well at center. As long as Myers can stay healthy and play at a high level, center will always be his spot. Myers’ return is the beautiful marriage of upgrading a spot on the offensive line while allowing a rookie to develop. He looked solid in his return against the Lions. Myers is a high draft pick and played well enough to earn the starting job. Green Bay drafted Myers to be their Day 1 starter at center, and he manned the spot until his injury. Right now, Runyan has the edge over Newman. But the Packers have Super Bowl aspirations and need to play the best five linemen. Newman has quietly improved, especially in the past month, and he has the potential to be a reliable starter in the future. The interior line struggled in run blocking and still needs to improve, but the signs of growth are there.Īt this point, Runyan has shown more reliability than Royce Newman. Per PFF, he’s continually improved all season, only allowing two sacks on 1,053 snaps with zero penalties. It took injuries along the line to get there, but Runyan has developed into an excellent player over the course of the season. “I’m just so proud of him to get back out there,” Rodgers said.Įxpectations were for Runyan to earn a starting role this offseason. Bakhtiari initially wasn’t guaranteed to play, but Rodgers told the media in his postgame press conference that he suggested No. He had a respectable 75.2 PFF grade in his first outing back. His absence was apparent in last year’s NFC Championship game, and he’ll be a bulwark against the talented edge rushers Green Bay will face in the playoffs.īakhtiari wasn’t guaranteed to return, but the game against the Lions showed that he’s fully ready. 69 is one of the best left tackles in the league and a potential Hall of Famer. ![]() But there was no doubt the All-Pro Bakhtiari would regain his spot as soon as he was able. He probably performed better than the first-string options on some other teams. Yosh Nijiman played admirably as the third-string left tackle. So far, the line Green Bay assembled against Detroit seems like the best bet: Bakhtiari at LT, Jon Runyan at LG, Myers at C, Lucas Patrick at RG, and Dennis Kelly at RT. As the Packers take the bye week to prepare, they must decide what their best starting offensive line looks like. Yet the reserve players did well, and there are still the guard spots to consider. Rodgers discussed the importance of having both big men back to get into a rhythm before the playoffs.Īfter a season of shuffling the offensive linemen, Green Bay is getting (most of) the band back together. While they didn’t play the entire game, we saw much-improved play across the line. Bakhtiari and Myers both had an opportunity to gel with their O-line brethren and re-acclimate to protecting Aaron Rodgers. While the two certainly make the offensive line better, the chance to shake some rust off in a glorified exhibition game was a boon. It’s great to see Dbak back out there like all is right with the Packers universe again
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |