Green Bay Packers: 3 Matchups to Watch in Week Ten
By Kenny Jilek
David Bakhtiari vs. Josh Allen
David Bakhtiari returns from injury after being out for three games and will continue this season in his pursuit of a big payday next offseason, and he could be a little rusty after that time off the field. (I will now make a legally required joke about the fact that there is another NFL player named Josh Allen that is a quarterback, sorry I don’t make the rules) Good thing he’ll have an easy matchup this week with a QB coming at him every play. I apologize again.
In all seriousness, though, Allen is an extremely talented young pass rusher with all the physical tools to succeed, just like Henderson. He was taken with the 7th overall pick in 2019 because of those tools, including his 6’5″ 262-pound frame. In his rookie season, he had 10.5 sacks along with 2 forced fumbles. This season, while he’s had a quarterback hit in every game, he’s only made 2.5 sacks.
Luckily for Bak, he has seen plenty of guys with physical gifts like Allen and has the technical skills to shut them all down. Being 6’4″ 310 pounds doesn’t hurt either. This will probably be the most pivotal matchup in the game and the most fun to watch. Seeing two extremely talented and athletic guys go at each other and try to outdo the other play after play. Allen can be a game-wrecker and is very capable of having multiple sacks that could set the Green Bay Packers’ offense back.
With Bakhtiari coming off an injury, Allen could very well get to Rodgers early, but there is no question that Bak will settle in and make Allen less, and less of a factor as the game goes on. My prediction is that Allen gets a sack or at least QB hit in the first quarter, but you will barely hear his name in the second half.