Green Bay Packers OL will be Loaded with Competition this Summer

As Brian Gutekunst said following the NFL Draft, the offensive line numbers for the Green Bay Packers were a bit low prior to the draft taking place–so for the third consecutive year, he drafted three offensive linemen.

With Elgton Jenkins sidelined, Yosh Nijman, David Bakhtiari, and perhaps Cole Van Lanen were the only healthy options at tackle heading into training camp. And along the interior wasn’t much better either. Outside of Royce Newman, Josh Myers, and Jon Runyan, backup options included Van Lanen and two centers, Jake Hanson and Michal Menet.

However, as we know, things can change quickly, and the outlook on this Green Bay Packers offensive line unit has done just that.

This group went from lacking depth and competition to now being one of the more fun and intense training camp competitions we will see over the coming months.

Green Bay’s third-round selection, Sean Rhyan, has 2,147 career snaps at left tackle from his time at UCLA. He was effective in both pass and run blocking, allowing only one sack and 13 pressures in 2021 while ranking 17th among offensive tackles in PFF’s run-blocking grade.

"“Very consistent, pass pro and run blocking,” Brian Gutekunst said following the draft. “(He’s) able to play with leverage.”"

Gutekunst would also add that he thinks that Rhyan can play offensive tackle, but the Packers also wouldn’t have any issues moving him inside either. Matt LaFleur would echo similar sentiments, saying that Rhyan will begin by taking reps at tackle.

In addition to Rhyan, the Green Bay Packers also selected the versatile Zach Tom and Rasheed Walker. Tom played both left tackle and center at Wake Forest, where he allowed only four sacks and 35 total pressures over his four seasons, according to PFF ($$), which included over 1,400 pass-blocking snaps. Many believe that Tom will be best along the interior in the NFL, but Gutey mentioned that he believes he can play tackle as well.

When it comes to Walker, he has the talent to become a starter, but that may take some time. In his pre-draft report, Dane Brugler of The Athletic wrote:

"“He (Walker) has starting talent, but he must become more detail-oriented to be a better-than-replaceable NFL starter.”"

Sure, some time may be required, but Gutekunst told reporters after the draft that he was pleasantly surprised to see Walker fall to the Packers at that point in the draft and was happy to select him given the need for competition along the offensive line.

Although Nijman held up relatively well last season, he oftentimes required help to do so. On top of that, he hasn’t played right tackle since he was at Virginia Tech, and he has only 605 career snaps in the NFL, so he is still relatively inexperienced as well. Nijman very well could be the Week 1 starter at right tackle, but providing competition and adding depth to one of the game’s most important positions was a must.

As we move inside, the competition along the interior will be kicked up a few notches as well. Tom will be able to compete at all three spots, while Rhyan can play either guard position if needed.

The center position is considered by many draft analysts to be Tom’s best position in the NFL, which means he could push Myers for those starting snaps. Myers’ 2021 season was cut short due to injury as he was on the field for only 349 snaps. Myers also has the ability to play guard, so if Green Bay does believe that Tom is the best option at center, perhaps Myers slides over.

At this point in time, I would feel comfortable at least penciling in Runyan at left guard given his performance last season — although nothing is set in stone — however, it is Newman who could be on the hot seat. Although Newman would improve as the season went on, he continued to have issues handling stunts and needs to become more consistent with his run-blocking responsibilities.

Considering all of the injuries that took place along the offensive line unit last season, this group held up relatively well. With that said, all of the movement and inexperience were a few of the many reasons why the offense was never firing on all cylinders. The big-play ability of the run game was greatly diminished while the passing game was altered as well, with the offensive line having to be accounted for in the game plan.

Once Jenkins is able to return, we will likely see another shake-up along the offensive line, with him likely going to right tackle. But before we get to that point, there is going to be a lot of competition through training camp and the preseason. Right now, the only player I would sharpie into a starting spot is Bakhtiari at left tackle.

How things will shake out over the summer remains unknown, and we won’t have much of an idea until the pads come on–I mean, I don’t think many of us expected Billy Turner to start in the playoff game at left tackle.

However, what we do know, is that Matt LaFleur is going to emphasize that the Green Bay Packers put the best five offensive linemen on the field–whoever and wherever that may end up being.