Moving Packers Yosh Nijman to Right Tackle is a Not so Simple Decision

David Bakhtiari is back at left tackle for the Green Bay Packers, and when it comes to his knee, so far, so good. Bakhtiari rotated series with Yosh Nijman a week ago in Tampa Bay. Then this past Sunday against New England, he played 70 of the 73 offensive snaps.

With it looking like Bakhtiari is back where he belongs at left tackle, the big question now becomes, what do the Packers do with Nijman?

As Matt LaFleur often talks about when discussing the offensive line, it’s all about putting the best five on the field, and it’s hard to argue that Nijman isn’t one of them.

Over 95 pass-blocking snaps this season, Nijman has allowed five pressures and no sacks per PFF ($$).  Nijman recently talked about how his confidence and technique in 2022 have elevated his play, which has also resulted in fewer tight-end chips needed to provide Nijman with some help.

However, moving Nijman to right tackle at the drop of a hat isn’t as simple of a move as it sounds. For starters, Elgton Jenkins is currently there. Jenkins has taken some lumps in pass protection in recent weeks and has had the most pressures allowed on the team the last two weeks.

On the flip side, Green Bay has been very adamant about running to the right side of the offensive line since Jenkins returned, with 66% of their carries going to the right side, and we saw Aaron Jones average 10.0 yards per rush on four attempts running behind Jenkins against New England.

Perhaps Jenkins’ struggles in pass protection are due to rust. This was only his third game back from an ACL injury after a pretty quick return. Or maybe the transition from the left side of the offensive line to the right side hasn’t been as smooth as was assumed–which could be an issue that Nijman runs into as well.

Nijman did play right tackle during his final season at Virginia Tech all the way back in 2018, but with the Packers, he has been solely a left tackle. When asked by reporters if Nijman had been getting reps at right tackle this season, LaFleur replied, “we’ve repped him (there).” I’m not sure how many reps that means, but I’m going to guess it’s not a lot.

LaFleur would add, however, that this is a move that the coaching staff has discussed.

"“I think potentially, that is something we’ve definitely talked about,” said LaFleur on Monday. “We will continue to do the best job we can in terms of repping these guys throughout the course of the week and practice. But that is definitely something we’ve talked about and haven’t made a decision on it yet.”"

Former Packers offensive lineman Josh Sitton would once compare switching sides on the offensive line to using the restroom with your opposite hand, which should help illustrate that this isn’t a simple move to make.

If the Packers intention is to move Nijman to right tackle and Jenkins back to left guard where he looked like an All-Pro caliber player during the start of his career, Jon Runyan will also be displaced as well, likely moving to right guard.

Like Nijman, he would be tasked with playing a side of the line that he is unfamiliar with. Even going back to Runyan’s days at Michigan, less than 150 of his career snaps came on the right side of the line.

Another alternative — and one that would create less movement — would be keeping Runyan at left guard and moving Jenkins from right tackle to right guard, where he has one career snap from the 2019 season.

As you can see, there are quite a few moving parts to this decision, and at a position, nonetheless, where continuity is key. If the Packers move Nijman to right tackle, I won’t be the least bit surprised, he’s earned a starting job with his play.

But with that said, if that does happen, I don’t expect it to be this week. I do believe that the Packers want to get Jenkins more time at tackle before ultimately making that decision, and Nijman could also benefit from some additional reps at right tackle in practice before taking live snaps.