Packers, Taylor Strike Renegotiated Deal

It's a win-win contract with the versatile veteran, who could earn a shot to start at right guard.

Bill Huber | May 30, 2020

Packers, Taylor Strike Renegotiated Deal /

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers and veteran guard Lane Taylor have reached agreement on a renegotiated one-year deal. It was first reported by NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and confirmed to Packer Central.

Taylor will earn a base salary of $1.5 million with a chance to earn up to $3 million. Taylor started 45 of a possible 48 games from 2016 through 2018, with most of those starts coming at left guard, but suffered a torn biceps before the third game of last season. That injury cleared the way for second-round rookie Elgton Jenkins to move into the starting lineup.

Taylor was due a $3.8 million base salary for 2020, the final year of a three-year, $16.5 million extension agreed to just before the start of the 2017 season.

It’s a win-win move. For the Packers, it’s not just about the money or the salary-cap savings of almost $3 million. They have – at worst – a high-level backup, though it’s quite possible he will challenge Billy Turner for the starting job at right guard. For Taylor, it prevents him being a free agent during the most uncertain offseason in NFL history.

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After signing a four-year, $28 million contract in free agency, Turner ranked only 58th out of 63 guards who played 50 percent of the snaps in ProFootballFocus.com’s pass-protection metric, which measures sacks (six), hits (six) and hurries (33) allowed per pass-blocking snap. Taylor ranked 43rd in 2018, 35th in 2017 and 22nd in 2016, when he replaced Josh Sitton. His three-year averages, according to PFF, were four sacks, three hits and 30.7 hurries.

Taylor, who started twice at left tackle in victories over Chicago and Dallas in 2017, allowed 11.5 sacks and was guilty of four holds in 47 starts from 2016 through 2019, according to STATS.

He’ll stay part of a crowded offensive line room. Late last season, the Packers extended guard/center Lucas Patrick through 2021. In the draft, they used sixth-round picks on Michigan guard/tackle Jon Runyan Jr., Indiana guard Simon Stepaniak and Oregon center Jake Hanson.

Published May 30, 2020

BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.