![]() ![]() Gutekunst didn’t mind doubling down on another draft pick to fix the problem he had at punter. We kind of had our minds set on that from Day 1.” Fixing the punting problem ![]() “I think from our standpoint as coaches,” LaFleur said, “we’ve kind of been preparing that way forever, since it happens. It will be the same offense, with the same left tackle, the Packers have spent their offseason preparing to play with in the early regular season. LaFleur said he expects a “learning curve” for Jenkins as he acclimates to left tackle, but it won’t force him to change his scheme. MORE: Packers choose to be prudent with David Bakhtiari He has been the team’s starter on the blindside for months, and though the Packers won’t really know what they have in Bakhtiari’s replacement until he plays in games, Jenkins should inspire more confidence in the plan for the next several weeks. The Packers moved Jenkins to left tackle early this offseason, and they left him there all throughout camp. “If we didn’t have Elgton for some reason, I don’t think it would have changed the decision any.” “I think this is more about David’s health and where he’s at,” Gutekunst said. Gutekunst said Bakhtiari would have remained on PUP even if Jenkins wasn’t available as an adequate replacement. He will be Bakhtiari’s replacement until the season’s midway point, at the earliest. It helps that the Packers have one of the NFL’s most talented and versatile offensive linemen in Elgton Jenkins. Gutekunst knows his team needs its franchise left tackle to have its best chance at making a deep postseason run. His absence was a major reason they lost last season’s NFC championship game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers inside Lambeau Field. The Packers, a team confident it can win a Super Bowl this season, are essentially playing the long game with Bakhtiari. The All-Pro left tackle is only now approaching the eight-month mark after his knee surgery. Gutekunst said his medical staff advised him Bakhtiari would need between nine and 11 months to return from his injury. “What he brings to our football team, rushing him out there was not something I was going to be comfortable doing.” ![]() I just think where he’s at and where we thought he could be in the first six weeks, this was the best thing for the team and for David. “I think from the history and the timelines of the injury that he suffered and where he’s at,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said Wednesday, “he’s such a cornerstone piece to this organization, and he’s such an important part of what we’re doing. It never happened though, and as Tuesday’s deadline for submitting the roster approached, it was clear Bakhtiari would not be activated from the physically unable to perform list. There was a time midway through training camp, coach Matt LaFleur said, when the Packers hoped Bakhtiari might make a run at returning from the torn ACL in his left knee in time to be included on the team’s initial 53-man roster. Per Matt LaFleur, Packers offensive lineman David Bakhtiari is in “really good shape.” He did note that there are some differences to movement when it comes to a controlled environment vs a game environment, though he finished up by saying that Green Bay will see where he's at.GREEN BAY – Even if David Bakhtiari’s absence from the field to start this season didn’t become official until Tuesday afternoon, it’s an inevitability the Green Bay Packers have prepared to encounter for months. I definitely think there is a difference to it in terms of some of the movements you make as a player as opposed to in a controlled environment, but he's working his tail off and we'll see where he's at.” “You don't have to be necessarily in great shape by going play after play out there on the field. Obviously, he puts a lot of time in,” Head Coach Matt LaFleur said. The Packers have officially listed him as questionable for the contest against the 49ers, though head coach Matt LaFleur provided a critical injury update on Bakhtiari, via the team's website.įor insight on the Packers' Divisional playoff matchup against the 49ers, listen below: The veteran offensive lineman practiced Wednesday before taking a “load management” day Thursday. Bakhtiari missed much of the season on his quest back from an ACL tear but was able to start in Week 18 against the Detroit Lions. The status of Green Bay Packers offensive lineman David Bakhtiari for the Divisional Round clash with the San Francisco 49ers is one of the most important matters in Green Bay these days. ![]()
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