Who starts at right tackle for the Packers against the Lions?

A big part of the Green Bay Packers’ turnaround on offense over the last seven games has been the relative health and play of the offensive line. However, as we look ahead to the season finale against Detroit, the Packers may find themselves with a decision to make at right tackle, deciding between Yosh Nijman and Zach Tom.

Nijman has been the Packers starting right tackle since Week 7 when they finally decided to move Elgton Jenkins back to left guard. For the most part, Nijman has held his own, allowing three sacks, along with 20 pressures. He also ranks 23rd out of 73 tackles in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency metric.

But on Sunday against Minnesota, Nijman had to exit the game with an injury for the second time in two weeks. He also left the Miami game with a stinger in his shoulder the week before. In his place against the Vikings was Zach Tom, who was back on the bench with David Bakhtiari at left tackle.

Nijman was still available during that game, even helping out on the field goal unit, but Matt LaFleur said afterward that they thought it was best to stick with Tom at that moment to prevent Nijman’s injury from getting any worse.

Tom’s ability to play multiple positions has been crucial to the Packers this season, as he has now played four of the five positions along the offensive line. During his most recent three-game stint at left tackle in place of Bakhtiari, Tom played well, allowing no sacks and just four pressures. At right tackle on Sunday, he again gave up only one pressure as the Packers’ offensive line dominated the Vikings’ defensive front. As LaFleur often says, it’s about putting the best five offensive linemen on the field, and it’s really hard to argue that Tom isn’t one of them.

If the Packers are actually mulling over this decision on who to start, it’s a good problem to have. In fact, it’s not really a problem at all, but rather a luxury that every other NFL team would love to have–Green Bay has two very capable starters at right tackle.

With Nijman having left the last two games with an injury, perhaps the Packers choose to start Tom to give him some additional time to recover. We will learn more about that as the week progresses and we see his status in practice.

On the other hand, as already mentioned, both Nijman and the offensive line as a whole have been very good since Week 10. So maybe the decision is as simple as don’t fix what isn’t really broken, which means sticking with Nijman.

I’m not sure what direction the Packers are going to go, but if I had to guess, I would say they start Nijman on Sunday, as long as he is healthy. Continuity along the offensive line is important, and this group has been quite effective as is. We’ve also seen in the past that LaFleur and the Packers coaching staff tends to lean towards experience over younger players in these big game situations. This also leaves Tom available to fill in pretty much wherever he would be needed. With that said, if they choose Tom, I won’t be surprised whatsoever.

As always, protecting Aaron Rodgers will be key against the Detroit Lions, along with getting the run game going, something the Packers were unable to do in Week 9. This is a Lions’ defense that ranks 11th this season in total pressures and does so by blitzing fairly often. Regardless of who is at right tackle, success for the Packers begins up front.