Let's see how Bakh handles this. Will he be on the sidelines tonight talking to OL guys that are playing and helping them out how he can? Or will he head out of town for a month on rehab?
Man, that's a gut punch. Seemed like he had turned the corner with a clean offseason but clearly there's an issue that isn't going away.
And this is why NFL front offices are so cutthroat about players and their contracts. Injuries suck and they paid Bak as if he was 27 and in his prime and return on investment is close to nothing.
At this point, there’s not much the team can do. He’s got his money, and he either can’t or won’t play. In the end we’ll never really know but if he can mentor the younger guys and not be a distraction that would be great. If he acts like a jack (and I hope he doesn’t) just pay him to stay away.
Get well david. Unfortunately in the nfl, many fans belong to the "what have you done for me lately" club while many of those same fans are part of a more exclusive club known as the "what can you do for me now" club. Tough crowd.
Wow. See you next year, if then…
@RapSheet: From @NFLGameDay Kickoff: #Packers All-Pro LT David Bakhtiari was officially placed on Injured Reserve today following arthroscopic knee surgery yesterday, sources say. Another surgery is planned in the coming weeks, one aimed at allowing him to play at full strength in 2024
@ilcuqui posted:Wow. See you next year, if then…
@RapSheet: From @NFLGameDay Kickoff: #Packers All-Pro LT David Bakhtiari was officially placed on Injured Reserve today following arthroscopic knee surgery yesterday, sources say. Another surgery is planned in the coming weeks, one aimed at allowing him to play at full strength in 2024
Packers cannot risk it. He will be a Jet and they can play this song and dance with Rodgers.
@packerboi posted:Packers cannot risk it. He will be a Jet and they can play this song and dance with Rodgers.
You may be right, but doesn’t Bakh still cost them like 20 million in cap room next year even if they part ways? If that’s the case, maybe they give him one more chance if these surgeries truly can fix him.
Sounds like he’ll be out for the season now. May need another lineman before trade deadline. Bak counts $20M next season no matter what I think.
@Tschmack posted:And this is why NFL front offices are so cutthroat about players and their contracts. Injuries suck and they paid Bak as if he was 27 and in his prime and return on investment is close to nothing.
He was 29 and in his prime when he got the extension.
@fightphoe93 posted:You may be right, but doesn’t Bakh still cost them like 20 million in cap room next year even if they part ways? If that’s the case, maybe they give him one more chance if these surgeries truly can fix him.
If he plays next year on his current contract he will count $40m against the cap. If we cut or trade him next year we save $21m in cap space.
He was never going to play for us next year with that cap hit. Even more so now with his ongoing knee issues.
Can't say this news was easy to hear. But with all the will he/won't he the past two years, it may be best at this point to know he's unavailable. I think there's been a ton of stuff going on inside this situation that we only get glimpses of from the outside. At least the staff can go on with whatever contingency they have in the works.
I hope Bahk the best. This was probably the best outcome. Shut him down to try to salvage his knee for his future and give Walker the reps he needs to become our LT.
@artis posted:I think there's been a ton of stuff going on inside this situation that we only get glimpses of from the outside.
Nothing confirmed, but on the ESPN Milwaukee Post Game Show Jason Wilde said he was pretty sure Bak used a different Dr. Then Dr.Mackenzie for his first surgery. Just an unfortunate spiral ever since.
Thought I heard that too somewhere. Bad decision.
LaFleur said that he would let LT David Bakhtiari speak to his future. He said Bakhtiari wanted to address the issue after being placed on injured reserve.
— Tom Silverstein (@TomSilverstein) October 2, 2023
@TomSilverstein: #Packers LT David Bakhtiari just addressed reporters on his medical condition. The takeaways: needs one more surgery and is out for season. Doctors are confident it's a cartilage issue that they suspected was there but couldn't prove it was the issue. Hopes to be ready by camp.
Don't read into why it took so long to settle on the current condition. It's complicated and doing the procedure he will have would not have been smart if they weren't sure it was the cause. Other factors were at play and there were times he was able to function.
Every time he thought he had it in a good place the fluid and pain would come back. He said he fully expects to play next year, but said he doesn't know what the #Packers plan to do. Said it would be addressed later. Surgery will be performed by Brian Cole in Chicago.
Bakhtiari said the ailment in his knee had nothing to do with the ACL he tore in December of 2020. Said it was an issue with his femoral condyles that provide cushion for the knee. Said they will be smoothed out and it's not an issue of him having no cartilage left in his knee.
It's not bone on bone with his knee, he said.
@WesHod: David Bakhtiari said he's had as much as 160 CCs of fluid drained from his knee after games: "I’ve broken records of guys who were here before me and then I’ve broke my own record from even last year."
Simply put, season-ending surgery will repair a cartilage issue in his knee.
@RobDemovsky: David Bakhtiari spoke for nearly 40 minutes and went through his entire knee saga beginning with the ACL injury on 12/31/20.
The gist is that all along he had a femoral Condyle cartilage issue that they hoped wouldn’t become a problem. It did and now that, too, must be fixed.
Bakhtiari said the hope is that he can be back by the start of training camp next year. He’s fully aware of the business side of this and that the Packers could move on, but he said he’s had open and honest talks with GM Brian Gutekunst.
The easy question is why didn’t he do this from the beginning?
The answer is that there was a good chance this issue was never going to be a problem so doing another major surgery wasn’t the smartest bet.
@BillHuberSI: David Bakhtiari on his future:
"I have a really good relationship with Brian. He’s been awesome with me. I pick up all his FaceTimes."
Seriously, he wants to play, he wants to play for the Packers. He doesn't know if that will happen.
"I have a really good relationship with Brian. He’s been awesome with me. I pick up all his FaceTimes."
If it's a cartilage issue, it's not good. Look up what Lonzo Ball and Gabriel Landeskog are dealing with. Lonzo hasn't played since January 2022 and Landeskog hasn't played since the Stanley Cup finals in June 2022. Neither are expected to play in the 23-24 season.
He's got a good relationship picking up a fat paycheck for not playing. He hopes to keep that up next year.
Appreciate his transparency, hoping for the best but I think he's played his last game as a Packer. Hope I'm rong.
So they have to fix the solution of the original problem?
@Chongo posted:I'm rong.
Could have saved a lot of keystrokes
@Iowacheese posted:Could have saved a lot of keystrokes
Could have saved 13 seconds.
It’s over.
Next!
So popular opinion is that I should feel sorry for a guy who has collected tens of millions of dollars for doing nothing the last 3 years. I don't buy he was underpaid when he started, that was the going rate for him at that time.
You don't need to feel bad for the guy. You don't need to feel anything at all. But there's no reason to pile on a guy when injured.
Maybe he should have chugged a few more beers to make his knee better
As stated often by others, nobody turns on (former) Packer players quicker than TimesFour peeps.
I love physical ailments that don't go away for 3 years. 🤦♂️
Damn.....I was really looking forward to him having a great season too.
When the first doc goes in there....it's kinda important he doesn't miss anything. Might find something you didn't expect. FFS Fix the damn thing.
First surgery? What about the 2 after that? This will be his 4th surgery and I’m skeptical that it will resolve his issues.
Packers should and will cut him next year and eat the cap. That, or restructure, has always been the plan. Unless he wants to restructure for damn near league minimum, that option is gone.
Tom Silverstein
@TomSilverstein
Bakhtiari said the ailment in his knee had nothing to do with the ACL he tore in December of 2020. Said it was an issue with his femoral condyles that provide cushion for the knee. Said they will be smoothed out and it's not an issue of him having no cartilage left in his knee.
Quote
Tom Silverstein
@TomSilverstein
·
Replying to @TomSilverstein
Every time he thought he had it in a good place the fluid and pain would come back. He said he fully expects to play next year, but said he doesn't know what the #Packers plan to do. Said it would be addressed later. Surgery will be performed by Brian Cole in Chicago.
There's just no way the Packers can bring him back. His cap hit is $40m and he can't restructure. It's the last year of his deal so there is no ability to push the cap hit out any further. For the "the cap isn't real" crowd, this is when it gets real - the last year of a deal when all that cap hit that was pushed out becomes due. Only two options are extend Bakh to push the cap hit out, or to release him. He can't be traded b/c he's injured now and will be a free agent in March.
As for extending him......that'd be crazy. Since 2020, he's played in 25 games and collected $86m. It's just time to move on. Prioritize OL in the draft next year and hope for the best.
If he agrees to restructure the deal (aka Hometown discount) i don't see why that isn't allowed. Question is...would he do it? I'm guessing no.
I'm sure it'll be great for him to pair up with 'Ol #8 on the Jets in 2024
I think it's pretty simple. If Bakhtiari wants to be a Packer he'll restructure because nobody is going to pay him much more than the Packers will.
@PackerRick posted:I think it's pretty simple. If Bakhtiari wants to be a Packer he'll restructure because nobody is going to pay him much more than the Packers will.
Never underestimate what other GMs will do