Apparently there’s some debate about this. Where and why, we couldn’t tell you. Our guess is the local hacks need something to write about so they pretend like maybe the Green Bay Packers might put Bryan Bulaga back at left tackle this season. Anyone sane — or who isn’t trying to create controversy out of dirt — would tell you the Packers’ left tackle is David Bakhtiari.
Among those, David Bakhtiari.
“The only thing I know is I played the last game at left tackle and I haven’t had anybody tell me anything otherwise,” Bakhtiari said this week. “I’m going to come in like I’m the left tackle. I’m going to take it on like I did last year and just try to keep whoever they want to throw at Aaron, keep them off his backside.”
So if you want to reach for some sort of controversy in this instance, here you go. Bulaga was the left tackle before suffering a torn ACL in the preseason. He’s also a former first-round pick. Bakhtiari is just entering his second season after being a fourth-round pick. So, clearly Bulaga should get his job back!
Poppycock! And we don’t know why the hell anyone even bothers making this suggestion. Bakhtiari played well at left tackle while starting all 16 games in 2013. Did he play at an All-Pro level? No, but he was decent and he’s only going to get better.
Bulaga, meanwhile, is what he is. Serviceable and injury-prone. We’ve seen enough of him to know he’s not going to be an All Pro-caliber guy. He’s also not going to be a sieve like Marshall Newhouse was. So, good enough!
Mark Tauscher made a career out of being good enough. And like Bulaga is going to have to do, he made it at right tackle.
There’s no reason short of injury Bakhtiari shouldn’t be the Packers starting left tackle on opening day. We’re glad he’s aware of it. It would be nice if everyone else got with the program.