LaFleur Expects Lucas Patrick to be Starter in Playoffs for Packers

For much of the season, the Green Bay Packers have been playing musical chairs along the offensive line as they’ve had to deal with a number of injuries. However, with Josh Myers and David Bakhtiari back in the mix, the offensive line unit is getting healthier, and with that, there are going to be some “tough decisions,” as Matt LaFleur put it.

We, of course, know that Bakhtiari will be the left tackle, Jon Runyan the left guard, and either Billy Turner or Dennis Kelly the right tackle, dependent upon Turner’s health. But the center and right guard positions are up for grabs.

Against Detroit, the Packers starting offensive line configuration would consist of Myers at center, Lucas Patrick at right guard, and Royce Newman on the bench–although Newman did see 36 total snaps that game.

This is where the “tough decisions” that LaFleur was referring to are going to lie–three players for two spots. Well, more like two players for one spot because as LaFleur told reporters on Monday, he would “certainly expect” Patrick to be “one of the five” starting offensive linemen.

Now, whether that is at center or right guard is still to be determined — or at least that’s what LaFleur told everyone — but you can make the argument for either position.

While Myers has impressed at center and has a much higher ceiling, it’s important to keep in mind that he has only about 4.5 games of NFL experience. After all, he is a rookie who has missed most of the season.

Meanwhile, Patrick has 2,641 career snaps, and although he has his limitations, he was playing some of his best football during the Packers’ final month of the season. In fact, as a pass-blocker, Patrick ranks 12th among all guards by PFF’s grading system ($$)and fifth by ESPN’s run-block win rate metric this season.

Over at right guard, Newman has continued to improve over the course of the season, and it’s not a coincidence that as his play — specifically as a pass-blocker — improved over the final month, so did the offense as a whole. With that said, there still seems to be a play or two a game, particularly a stunt or a blitz by the defense, that Newman whiffs on and causes a breakdown in protection–that simply just cannot happen in the playoffs.

While Patrick has been the primary center this season, he was Green Bay’s right guard in 2020, ranking 12th among all guards in pressures allowed and 31st out of 86 guards in PFF’s run-blocking grade.

As LaFleur often mentions when discussing the offensive line, it’s all about putting the best five players on the field, and right now that includes Patrick.

My guess is that the starting five that we saw in Detroit will be who the Packers go with in the playoffs, but we will wait and see. As we’ve seen before, LaFleur isn’t afraid to switch things up and move players around, but regardless of what he and Adam Stenavich decide to do, you can expect to see Patrick out there.