Green Bay Packers: Is this Bulaga’s last year in Green Bay?

With this being the final year of Bryan Bulaga’s contract, could this be his last season with the Green Bay Packers?

Drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the 2010 draft, Bryan Bulaga had quickly shown that he could handle the responsibilities of being the starting right tackle for this team.

Now as we enter the 2019 season, Bulaga is finishing up a five-year, $33.75 million deal with the team.

Next offseason, Bulaga is going to be 31 and while he has been a very good player when on the field for almost a decade, the biggest knock on his career has been his injury history.

There have been only two seasons in which Bulaga has started all 16 games, but in his defense, he has been available for the most part of his career.

In recent years, if we take out 2017 where Bulaga would tear his ACL, from 2014 to 2016, while also including 2018, Bulaga would play in 57 games out of a possible 64. Yes, the injury bug has bitten him, but the amount of time that he has missed is a bit exaggerated by some.

Since being drafted, Bulaga has provided stability for the Green Bay Packers at a very difficult position to do so.

Tackles in the NFL have to be quick enough to fight off speedy edge rushers in open space, while also having to be strong enough to withstand bull rushes. It’s a premier position in this league and one where you will rarely find a good option on the open market. Teams just don’t let top tackles get that far.

After taking over in 2010, Bulaga has received consistently high grades from Pro Football Focus as a pass blocker, while also being a solid run blocker as well.

Over his career, Bulaga has taken over 4,400 pass blocking snaps and has allowed only 39 sacks in that span, which is less than one percent of those total snaps. Even with all the changes that have taken place in Green Bay over the last two offseasons, the name of the game is still keeping Aaron Rodgers upright. And Bulaga has done that year in and year out.

Prior to this offseason, Bulaga’s replacement wasn’t on this Green Bay Packers roster, but with the additions of Billy Turner and Elgton Jenkins, along with the return of Cole Madison, it would appear that they have the necessary players to move on if needed.

Turner who will play right guard in 2018 has a fair amount of experience at right tackle with 440 career snaps at the position, so he could take over in 2020. This would allow Jenkins to become the primary right guard if he hasn’t already taken Lane Taylor’s spot on the left side, and Madison will be available for depth.

This season will go a long way into determining Bulaga’s future in Green Bay. If he can stay relatively healthy, bringing someone back with his experience and level of play on a one or two-year deal should always be an option.

However, if the injury bug strikes again, and we see the play and development of Turner and Jenkins, this very well could be Bulaga’s last season with the Green Bay Packers.

My hope is that Bulaga is able to put together another solid year and the Packers do bring him back for at least the 2020 season. As I said above, finding good tackles is hard to do, and you can never have too many options.