Grading the Packers on Salary-Cap Curve: Offensive Line

Two All-Pros, two surprising performers and an up-and-coming second-year standout anchored Green Bay's fine line.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Player grades are a staple series of stories at the end of every season. Ours are different, as we grade based on their impact compared to the salary cap. That’s because the cap is such a big part of building a roster. Not only must a team’s high-priced players deliver but it must have some of its less-expensive players outperform their contracts. Generally, the Green Bay Packers got those contributions on the way to a second consecutive NFC Championship Game.

Part 5 of this series focuses on the offensive line. All salary data is from OverTheCap.com.

LT David Bakhtiari

$16,252,942 cap charge (No. 4 among offensive tackles)

It was interesting to see Bakhtiari win All-Pro honors again considering he played less than three-fourths of the offensive snaps due to broken ribs at midseason and a season-ending torn ACL. When Bakhtiari played, he was typically excellent. There might be better pass-protecting left tackles. There might be better run-blocking left tackles. But nobody is as good in both phases as Bakhtiari.

Pro Football Focus charged him with one sack and nine total pressures compared to two sacks and 37 total pressures in 2019. For more of an apples-to-apples comparison, Bakhtiari allowed a pressure on 2.02 percent of passing plays this season compared to 4.86 percent last year. Among offensive tackles, he ranked second in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-protecting snap. Sports Info Solutions charged him with zero stuffs (a tackle at or behind the line) on running plays. SIS defines a “blown block” as “any time a blocker does not successfully block the defender they attempted to engage with and, as a result, gives the defender an opportunity to negatively affect the play.” Bakhtiari’s blown-block rate of 0.6 percent was the best among offensive tackles.

In mid-November, the Packers signed Bakhtiari to a massive contract extension that made him the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history. His absence in the NFC Championship Game showed Bakhtiari’s value to the team. With right tackle Billy Turner moved to left tackle and Rick Wagner inserted at right tackle, the Packers were overwhelmed by the Buccaneers’ front. We’ll never know, but the guess is the Packers would have played in the Super Bowl with a healthy Bakhtiari.

Grade: B-plus.

LG Elgton Jenkins

$1,541,504 cap charge (No. 50 among guards)

After earning all-rookie honors last year, Jenkins took the next step with a sensational second season. Pro Football Focus charged him with one sack – the only one in his career. Among all guards who played 50 percent of the passing-game snaps, he ranked second in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency. SIS charged with two stuffs allowed on running plays for the second consecutive season. He cut his penalty count from 10 to six, so there’s some room for improvement.

What sets Jenkins apart is his versatility. A quality center at Mississippi State, he dominated at guard and played well at right tackle and left tackle, as well. Given the Packers’ problems in the NFC Championship Game, perhaps Jenkins should have been moved to right tackle to provide more than a speed bump to Shaq Barrett.

Grade: A.

C Corey Linsley

$10.4 million cap charge (fourth among centers)

Linsley played in only 70.6 percent of the offensive snaps due to knee and back injuries but still was named the first-team All-Pro center. Take PFF’s grades for what they’re worth but he was by far the highest-rated center in the league in 2020. He is the perfect example of what happens when talent meets experience. An understated leader, Linsley simply went about his business.

PFF charged him with one sack. Among centers, he ranked second in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency. Showing his two-way dominance, SIS charged him with no sacks or stuffs. Among centers with 500-plus snaps, he had the third-lowest blown-block rate at 0.6 percent, according to SIS. He wasn’t penalized, either. Linsley is headed to free agency. He’ll turn 30 just before the start of training camp and was banged up. The Packers probably can’t afford him, and that will create a big hole on the line.

Grade: B.

RG Lucas Patrick

$1,276,042 cap charge (No. 26 among guards)

When Lane Taylor went down in the opener, the door was open for Patrick to become a full-time starter for the first time. He was generally up to the task.

Of the 57 guards to play at least 50 percent of the passing-game snaps, Patrick ranked third in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency. He allowed three sacks, by PFF’s judgment. Where Patrick made his mark was as a run blocker. A no-nonsense tough guy who relished every opportunity to finish a block, Patrick allowed one stuff and had the third-lowest stuff rate among guards, according to SIS. He was flagged twice for holding in his 16 games. Patrick played both guard spots but looked much more comfortable at right guard.

Grade: B.

RT Billy Turner

$8.1 million cap charge (No. 22 among offensive tackles)

Here’s what we wrote last year about Turner, who we gave a “D” for his performance at right guard:

Turner, a part-time starter for Miami and Denver, inked an eye-popping four-year, $28 million contract. He’s intelligent and athletic but got beat far too often in the passing game and was overpowered at times in the running game. Of 62 guards to play at least 50 percent of the snaps, he finished 57th in PFF’s pass-protection metric with six sacks, six hits and 45 total pressures. That pressure count was the worst in the league among guards. Sports Info Solutions charged him with 12 blown blocks in the run game, second-most among all guards, and four stuffs. On the bright side, he was flagged only once (zero holding). After a low cap hit in 2019, he’ll count a bit more than $8 million the next three years. Maybe he’d be better at tackle.

Turner, as it turns out, was much better at tackle. Of the 55 offensive tackles to play at least 50 percent of the passing-game snaps, Turner ranked 25th in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency. He allowed two sacks and 25 total pressures, sharp reductions over last year. And he was much better as a run blocker, too, with seven blown blocks and one stuff. Is he as good as a healthy Bulaga? Probably not but the Packers will go into the draft with no pressure to draft a tackle, either.

Grade: B-minus.

T Rick Wagner

$5.0 million cap charge (No. 38 among offensive tackles)

After letting Bryan Bulaga sign with the Chargers in free agency, the Packers grabbed Wagner off the scrap heap from Detroit. The former University of Wisconsin standout signed a two-year, $11 million contract. While he didn’t win a starting job, he wound up starting nine games and playing more than 58 percent of the snaps.

Wagner dealt with a knee injury throughout the season and was being held together with duct tape by the end of the year. The Buccaneers, sensing blood in the water, attacked him relentlessly in the NFC Championship Game. He gave up three sacks and could have been flagged for holding on several other occasions had the officials not mostly let the players go at it. It was an unfortunate ending to the season for Wagner, who allowed only one sack and one stuff (tackle at or behind the line on a running play) during the regular season. Quality backup tackles don’t grow on trees. Neither does salary-cap space. Releasing Wagner would save $6 million.

Grade: C.

G Lane Taylor

$2.4 million cap charge (No. 38 among guards)

For the second consecutive year, Taylor suffered a major injury early in the season. In 2019, he suffered a torn biceps tendon before the Week 3 game. In 2020, he sustained a torn ACL in the opener. So, after starting all but three games from 2016 through 2018, he’s started only three games the past two seasons. When healthy, he’s an above-average starter and locker room leader. At age 31 and with availability being the greatest ability, the Packers will have to decide whether he’s worth re-signing in free agency.

Grade: F.

G Jon Runyan

$653,670 cap charge (No. 93 among guards)

The Packers used three sixth-round picks on offensive linemen. Center Jake Hanson didn’t make the team and finished the season in injured reserve. Guard Simon Stepaniak, coming off a torn ACL, was the equivalent of an injury stash. Runyan, a two-time all-Big Ten left tackle, looks like a keeper. He saw significant action in four games – including a combined 131 snaps in Game 8 at San Francisco, Game 10 at Indianapolis and Game 11 vs. Chicago – and flashed enough quality play in those games to perhaps challenge for a starting job in 2021. SIS charged him with zero sacks or stuffs.

Grade: C.

T Yosh Nijman

$675,000 cap charge (No. 118 among offensive tackles)

Physically, Nijman was one of the best offensive tackle prospects in the 2019 draft. Fundamentally, he was one of the worst. He’s had two years of grooming to put him in position to compete for playing time next summer. That’s nice, but the Packers needed an offensive tackle to replace Rick Wagner in the NFC Championship Game but had no options. For the season, Nijman played 14 run-out-the-clock snaps from scrimmage and 81 more on special teams.

Grade: F.

G Simon Stepaniak

$487,454 (No. 100 among guards)

A sixth-round pick out of Indiana, Stepaniak suffered a torn ACL in the leadup to Indiana’s bowl game. He wasn’t not expected to play this season and did not, though at least he got some practice time to knock off some of the rust.

Grade: Incomplete.