Aaron Rodgers‘ longtime blindside protector, David Bakhtiari, is entering the final year of the four-year extension he signed with the Packers just before the 2016 campaign. He has more than lived up to that contract, earning two Pro Bowl nods and one First Team All-Pro bid over the past four seasons.
He is unquestionably one of the best left tackles in the league, and as Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network observes, Green Bay would love to get an extension finalized before Week 1 (Twitter link). After all, the LT market is rapidly heating up, and Bakhtiari’s deal now places him outside of the top-10 in terms of average annual value.
When asked back in June if there were any ongoing negotiations with the Packers, the soon-to-be 29-year-old was tight-lipped. Though he did commit 12 penalties in 2019, including a career-high five false starts, he chalked that up to learning a new offensive system. Indeed, he did not commit any penalties in the final four games of the campaign, and if he turns in a typical performance in 2020, he will have every right to demand a contract similar to the monstrous three-year, $66MM pact ($50MM guaranteed) that Laremy Tunsil recently signed with the Texans.
The Packers certainly would like to get Bakhtiari tethered to something a little more team-friendly, so it stands to reason that they would try to lock him up sooner rather than later. That is especially true in light of the expected salary cap decrease in 2021.
In other OL news for Green Bay, offseason acquisition Ricky Wagner left practice with a left arm injury yesterday, as Tom Silverstein and Jim Owczarski of PackersNews.com write. If Wagner misses an extended period of time, look for the club to line up 2019 right guard Billy Turner at right tackle and Lane Taylor at right guard.
4 years 68 mil
More Like 4/75
There’s no way the annual value of his contract would fall five million below the top of his class. Even if he gives Green Bay a “hometown discount,” he’ll still expect to receive north of $20 million/season. He’s a top-five tackle at a premium position still in his prime and both more consistent and talented than Tunsil. Negotiations will begin at 4 years/$88 million
I would argue that Bakhtiari is unquestionably the league’s best tackle at the moment, especially in pass protection. He’s never been one for headlines, so he may not sign a record shattering deal, but there’s no chance he falls out of the top three. It’s also a new regime in Green Bay, so his trust or distrust of their abilities will likely affect his contract demands.
Seriously they just gave Kenny Clark a nice new deal Now looking at Bakhtiari new contract how can they seriously get under the cap tho.. They still need tk ink Aaron Jones up most likely they Tag him tho at this point.. But they may get Aaron Jones for under 13mil/yr easily Id say Bakhtiari is looking anything north of 16mil/yr under 20mil/yr
Based on the way they have treated him and their draft, Aaron Jones probably won’t be a Packer next year.
You do realize most teams do a RB bu commitee..?? Also, He led the league in TDs for RBs last yr for the most part. Also, few mo ago they were working on a new contract for him but top priority is the OL and DL right now… Without Jones GB will have heavy issues and weakness.. Dillion the RB they drafted is a power back yes he can catch the ball but no where near as athletic as Jones.. They can run a 2RB formation with both guys Move Jones to the Slot have Dillion in the backfield and i believe thats what they are looking at.. Honestly i think they can get Jones on a new contract at a cheaper rate than the tag is.. But he might be wise to wait it out till next offseason bc he only had 1 good year and GB wants too see how he does this yr.. Than again with his past GB could get him cheaper iff they extend him now.. I also believe the signing bonus dont count against the cap soo they can give these guys a bonus than give him a smaller deal like what some teams doo…