After moving on from Aaron Rodgers, many anticipated the Green Bay Packers would take a step back while Jordan Love experienced typical growing pains expected of a first-year starter. While Love did have his typical bumps and bruises, he showed why the Packers were so eager to move on from their four-time NFL MVP.
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Yet, while Love outperformed expectations, he also had some help, courtesy of an improving receiving corps and an offensive line that held their own too. But now, a key part of the trenches could be getting gutted from the roster.
David Bakhtiari’s 11-year reign with Green Bay Packers may be coming to an end
Despite becoming a two-time All-Pro left tackle in his 11 seasons playing for the Green Bay Packers, David Bakhtiari has also battled injuries. While he’s played at an elite level when healthy, the 32-year-old has started 13 games since 2021.
He’s also set to have a $39.9 million cap hit in 2024, the final year of Bakhtiari’s contract. As Matt Schneidman of The Athletic notes, the Packers can’t afford to bank on Bakhtiari at his current price, and cutting or releasing the longtime left tackle would offer roughly $21 million in cap savings.
“Bakhtiari hopes whatever surgery he had after playing only the season opener in 2023 will finally put him in the clear, but the Packers are getting younger and can’t reasonably afford banking on Bakhtiari’s knee at his current price. The Packers will assuredly trade or release Bakhtiari — maybe the New York Jets fork over a late-round pick to reunite Bakhtiari with his old golf cart buddy Aaron Rodgers, and that’s not a joke — despite the possibility that he’s still elite when healthy, as he showed for a brief Sunday against the Chicago Bears in September.”
The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman on Green Bay Packers/David Bakhtiari
As mentioned, there’s always the possibility that Bakhtiari would welcome a chance to reunite with Aaron Rodgers and help solve one of the New York Jets’ biggest weaknesses in the Big Apple.
Between Rasheed Walker and Yosh Nijman, the Packers have shown they can be just fine without Bakhtiari in the lineup. Spending his cap savings elsewhere may give the Packers a better shot at building a better overall roster, even if it means moving on from a fan favorite.