Starting Tackles in 2014 ?

I see no reason to move Bahktiari at this point. I think TT struck gold when he made that pick. Put Bulaga back at RT and keep fingers crossed that he can stay healthy for an entire season.

Who knows about Sherrod, they were sticking Newhouse out there instead of him in backup scenarios, he may never be totally healthy again. Gotta get Bulaga back on the field. Barclay is a serviceable player, but he's not in BB's league. Just imagine how good the OL can potentially be next year. They already managed to cut the sacks down (in spite of blocking for backup QBs who had a limited number of quality receivers for half the season) and they put up a lot of yards on the ground.

The only scenario that doesn't make me ill is the first one.

Cheezehead TV has a story about Peter King the Packers will draft a tackle with their first pick.

My theory is he remembers the Detroit and SF games, and does not remember that Bulaga is on the team.  Heck if Bahktiari is a flash in the pan or Bulaga is finished sure then the Packers with take a tackle in the first.

Newhouse and Sherrod, everyone else will be on IR after OTAs.

Two black tackles?

 

What, they (those people) want to start kicking next?

 

That damn Coke ad was our Rubicon.

 

Can a honky get a break?

On paper, it looks like the O-line should be the deepest position with the most talent. In reality, there are as many questions there as there are any other position.

The single biggest factor, IMO, is Sherrod. It's time to chit or get off the pot with him. If he can't start, we can't pay his salary to be a backup. And if he can't backup, he really doesn't have any value to the team. He's as healed as he's going to get.

I'd suppose Daktari and Bulaga would have the inside track for both positions, but is Daktari the man at LT? And, if Bulaga goes back to LT, he will have to 'learn' a new position at RT, and battle it out with Barclay.

Whatever the case, I pray TT does NOT draft an OL in round 1. I'm tired of our first-round picks sitting on the bench every year. And the entire line needs to play MUCH better than they have the last 2-3 years. The only reason sack numbers were down is because of the escapability of Rodgers and Flynn, and Lacy should get 90% of the credit for his rushing yards because he is that much more responsible for them as opposed to the line opening up holes for him and the other backs.

Timmy I think you mean Barclay not Daktari.

Only two of those players have demonstrated the ability to play at the NFL level, and Sherrod isn't one of them. He's got a long ways to go before he even approaches a starting job.

If Sherrod were healthy and able, I'd like to see Bahk stay where he is and put Bulaga at RG with Sherrod at RT.  but that sure seems like a dream at this point...

Sherrod is such an unknown.  I am hoping last year was his year to transition from major injury to acclimation in the NFL and it was a success.  Of course, it may have been a time the team found out he'll never be the player he was hoped to be.

 

Who knows?

I think you roll with Bak at LT from here on out... A healthy Bulaga locks down RT over anybody else on the roster.

Pre-draft, Bakhtiari and Bulaga. Sherrod's an unknown and a likely never will be now and can Bulaga even stay healthy. I wouldn't mind seeing an OT brought in. The tackle position has a lot of guys, but none are sure-fire starters at this point.

Packers will always aim to have competition decide it...

 

best guess is that Bak & Sherrod battle at LT and Bulaga/Barclay/draft pick battle at RT. Loser of the Bak/Sherrod battle is the swing tackle.

 

When is the last time GB finished a season with the same starting OTs as they had in September ?

 

 

Sherrod had a horrific injury, and I applaud him for his efforts to rehab his leg.  That said, he was showing very little prior to getting hurt.  At this point, I would be pleased if he is able to be even as good as Don Barclay is.  One thing Sherrod has going for him is prototypical size for left tackle.

 

ACLs are still very significant injuries, but they are no longer the career-ender they used to be.  Bulaga got hurt fairly early in training camp, so come regular season it will be more than one year since his injury which bodes well for his recovery.

 

Bakhtiari played much better than expected, but he appeared to wear down near the end of the year.  Lots of pundits say he just needs to add some strength and size and he will be all right.  If he could play as well as he did while being undersized, that bodes well for his future.

 

Barclay has proven to be good enough to start, although he was the weak link of the OL.  I am not sure if he has reached his full potential or not, but it is good to know he is on the team should Bulaga and Sherrod still struggle from injury recoveries.

 

Newhouse went from shaky to being a liability.  Perhaps he was put into a no-win situation, but he struggled regardless.  As a free agent, I would be surprised if Green Bay extended him an offer.

 

I think the best case scenario would be to keep a bigger Bakhtiari at LT, return a healthy Bulaga to RT, have a healthy Sherrod as backup LT, and an improved Barclay as backup RT.

Where is Joe Thomas going to play?  

Safety.

 

How about Bakhtiari at RT & Bulaga at LT?

Baktiari and Barclay have shown they can play.  Sitton and Lang are both signed through 2016 with salaries that are going to total over 12 million combined a year for the next 3 years.  Bulaga is signed for 1 more year (2014).  They've shown they can win without him and have capable players to fill his spot.  Just coming at it from another angle, would Bulaga be someone you look to use as trade bait?

 

 

Yes, Let's trade Bulaga for Dez Bryant

 

 

Lol.  No thank You!!!!  Would much rather keep Jordy and Randall over that head case.  And with their contracts coming up next year along with Bulaga and Barclay.... we're probably going to lose Bulaga anyhow.  Would be nice if they could get something better than a comp pick.

Trade him for Iupati.

Your theory would be correct, then. It's stunning how little these guys know about a damn game they cover for a living.

One positive thing we know for sure is that Newhouse won't be on the roster next year. That's something we can all be happy about.

2011 was the last time. Both Clifton and Bulaga were injured for significant parts of the season, though. Nevertheless, they were the guys who started in week 1 and week 19 that year. The last time the team went wire to wire with two starting tackles was 2007. This injury BS can't keep going on forever, they're bound to catch a break eventually.

The theory I am using is bounded rationalism. Basically a person has finite time and ability to learn and understand something. People then fill in the blanks of what they do not know with what they think they know.  So maybe King got something wrong, no big deal .

I would think so, but we have seen the Packers stick with a player before. Sometime they were right Crosby, sometimes they were wrong Harrell.

1. Just not very well, if you go by PFF rankings where they were in the 60s and there are ostensibly 64 starting OTs in the league.

 

2. Bulaga is in the final year of his contract and hasn't been healthy for two. Does a team want to count on him?

 

3. As for trade bait, see #2.

I stood on the chair for my hero Breno Giacomini and took a fair amount of crap for it

( and deservedly so  ).

But today Breno has a Ring on his finger as the starting RT in Seattle...you just never know what's going to happen in developing players

 

Here's an article from our good friend McGinn from last season and there are some interesting quotes from his coaches and team mates in there. Derek is just so physically imposing, it would be a real gift if he can play LT for the Packers

 

And for those who say he didn't do squat, you're entitled to your opinion, but his coaches and fellow players painted a much different picture.

Physically, he's got the wingspan and feet to be better than Bak or Bulaga on the blind side

 

http://www.jsonline.com/sports...548z1-233112521.html

 

Sherrod, 6 feet 5½ inches and 318 pounds, said Friday that his body was in far better condition than it was upon arrival as a first-round draft choice in 2011. There are no physical limitations, he said.

Sherrod, who bench-pressed just 23 times at the combine, has improved his strength precipitously, according to Campen.

 

Defensive end Mike Daniels had never seen Sherrod in pads before ...

"Put it like this: I have to be at the top of my game whenever I'm lined up across from him," said Daniels. "I already knew he was going to be strong because he's a big guy, but he's a lot faster than I thought.

"I'm talking about getting off the ball. He'll cut you off and reach you in the run game.

 

 

Added nose tackle Ryan Pickett: "He's starting to get his confidence back. I don't know what their plan is, but he's constantly getting better."

 

Sitton says he needs experience; let's hope he hits the ground running in OTAs and TC because that would be a huge boost to the GB OL whether he starts or backs up

 

 

Going from Newhouse to having 3 solid tackles (Bak, Bul, Sher) would be a welcomed change at 1265

 

GB  simply has to have better tackle play in 2014

 

Here are the two year-end report cards for Bak & Barc from McGinn at JSO

If anybody has access to the PFF grades, post 'em in here please

 

 

David Bakhtiari: The Packers' first full-season rookie starter at LT since Mark Koncar in 1976. Both were Colorado Buffaloes. Bryan Bulaga's blown knee Aug. 3 opened the door for Bakhtiari and he never looked back. Playing virtually every snap, he maintained his poise, played hard and wouldn't back down against a who's who list of elite pass rushers. Only Ziggy Ansah of Detroit and Aldon Smith of San Francisco knocked Bakhtiari around and made him look bad. Finished 2nd in pressures allowed (37, including 6½ sacks) and 2nd in bad runs (15 &1/2) , and had far too many penalties (10). Bulaga also had 10 penalties as the rookie RT in 2010. Bright, willing and doesn't make excuses. Needs to get bigger and stronger.

Grade: C-plus.

 

Don Barclay: Played 86.7% of the snaps, missing two games with what a source said was a torn medial collateral knee ligament. Beat out Marshall Newhouse for RT job. Not particularly big, strong or light on his feet. Has enormous hands (107/8) and a get-it-done, tenacious approach. Misses inside too much against run and pass. Otherwise, a hard man to beat in the run game, allowing 11½ bad runs. Led the team in pressures with 39. Might be ticketed as a four-position swing man but won't submit to backup status without a fight. Grade: C.

 

 

From what I've read, I don't think Barclay is well suited to OT, that's why I didn't include him in the poll

 

Things look favorable for improvement at both LT and RT for next season; GB simply can't finish the year with (2)  "C" graded tackles again.

 

 

 

Shouldn't that be 4? This has to be the year that the Joe Thomas trade comes to fruition, it just has to be.

Barclay is the new Tauscher. 

 

I'd like to see the PFF grades for the whole team.  I'm still pretty certain EDS graded out better for the year than AJ

Of course it's excusable if it were just an isolated incident, but the guy is one of the most clueless writers out there. I don't think he studies anything at all, he just sits at his desk buying Tom Brady and Bill Belichick memorabilia on eBay.

1.  Not going to look, but willing to bet they were one of the top three if not the most least experienced starting tackles in the NFL,  They will improve.

 

2.  Exactly my point.  He is in the final year of his contract and hasn't been healthy for two.  Do WE want to count on him?

 

3.  What would you take for him, a player a few posts above, you were projecting as the starting right tackle?  Sitton and Lang are paid well.  Jordy and Cobb are coming up next year.  What's Bulaga going to be asking for and can we even afford, or risk, to pay him.  Could he fetch a fourth?  Would you take a fourth for him?  I'd rather have a fourth I could work with than hoping for a best case scenario third compensatory.  Don't like the idea, but a fourth might be enough to get me to cut bait with him.

are you sure they are the most least experienced

Proofreading is your friend.  I should try it once.  My daughter had acl surgery friday and was experiencing muscle spasms and cramps in her knee, i was up most of the night icing and pushing pin pills.  Can I beg fatigue?  

Is "icing p[a]in pills" anything like icing cookies?