This is the fifth installment of a nine-part series that looks at the advantages, disadvantages, and offseason strategy of the Green Bay Packers at each position. We examine the offensive line today.
Below is a list of the other positional overviews.
Glancing Back
After Week 1, David Bakhtiari, Green Bay’s preferred starting left tackle, suffered a knee injury. For the most of the season, the Packers alternated between players at left tackle and right guard.
Still, Pro Football Network ranked No. 8 Green Bay’s offensive line as one of the best in football at the end of the season.
“We seem to have grown up a lot,” center Josh Myers remarked. “Dude, as we played, I felt like we were playing really well.”
With good reason, right tackle Zach Tom became a star; left guard Elgton Jenkins, who suffered a torn ACL in 2021, was nearly back to his Pro Bowl form; and the rest of the group held their own as quarterback Jordan Love was only sacked 30 times in 19 games, and the Packers’ running game ranked ninth in the league with 4.3 yards per attempt. When discussing Green Bay’s offensive line development, offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said late in the season, “It’s been fun to watch.”
While there have been a few injuries and guys that have stepped in, overall we’ve been in better health than in previous years. Thus, it’s been beneficial to simply bring all these individuals in for a lot of exercises together, as that boosts confidence.
The standout performance for this group was Tom, a 2022 fourth-round draft selection.
In training camp, Tom defeated seasoned right tackle Yosh Nijman to take the starting position, and he went on to have an outstanding season.
Tom completed 1,068 snaps with only two sacks, three penalties, and an 18th-place ranking in Pro Football Focus’ pass-blocking efficiency statistic out of 89 qualified offensive tackles.
Against top pass rushers like Aidan Hutchinson (twice) of Detroit, Nick Bosa of San Francisco, Maxx Crosby of Oakland, T.J. Watt of Pittsburgh, Khalil Mack of the Chargers, and Danielle Hunter of Minnesota, Tom more than held his own.
Tom has the potential to be a Pro Bowl right tackle, but depending on how the rest of the line plays out in the end, his versatility will give Green Bay choices.
This year, he performed admirably at right tackle. hence I believe it will be difficult to move him around on the coaching staff,” stated Brian Gutekunst, general manager of the Packers. However, he’s also a guy who can likely play all five positions, and I believe he has the potential to excel in each of them. Thus, it will only depend on our resources and our needs at the time.
Having switched positions early in his career, Jenkins spent the entire season at left guard and performed admirably. Jenkins did not allow a sack in 1,019 snaps (including playoffs). Despite giving up seven quarterback hits and twelve pressures, he rose to the position of leader of this inexperienced team.
Following Bakhtiari’s injury following Week 1, Nijman and seventh-round pick Rasheed Walker split duty at left tackle. Walker beat Nijman to the position by the conclusion of the year.
It’s unclear if Walker will continue to be the solution in the long run.
In 851 snaps, Walker had nine penalties and gave up six sacks. However, he also developed into the role and avoided giving up a sack in either of Green Bay’s playoff contests.
