After dealing with multiple injuries on the offensive line to begin the season, the Green Bay Packers finally have a reason to celebrate.
Their offensive tackle David Bakhtiari is back, albeit partially.
Bakhtiari made his first appearance this Sunday after his torn ACL in the left knee in 2020, three surgeries, and a grueling rehabilitation process.
Although he played in 2021 against the Detroit Lions, his performance made it evident that he was still in the process of recovery.
Week 3’s win included the return of @DavidBakhtiari & a Special Teams Player of the Week award for @PatODonnell_16!#GoPackGo | #LunchtimeHalftime pic.twitter.com/XbePE89Gw6
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 28, 2022
2022 Season Debut for David Bakhtiari
The Packers kickstarted their NFL 2022 season with jog-through practice – and while Bakhtiari did not join the session, he made strides to get back early this season.
For Sunday’s Week 3 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Packers Coaches decided to platoon Bakhtiari with Yosh Nijman, rotating plays after the first offensive series.
The decision to rotate snaps was taken to ensure that he could play without stressing his knees too much.
By the end of the game, he had taken 34 snaps.
All in all, he did a great job shoring up the already beaten-up offensive line.
Bakhtiari’s pass-blocking was stellar and included a noticeable push against Joe Tryon-Shoyinka off the edge.
While his pass-blocking was noteworthy, his run-blocking needs improvement – especially compared to the standard he set as a 5-time All-Pro.
Overall, Bakhtiari held it together, and it was a delight to see him back.
He closed things out, earning 78.7 pass-blocking grade points but lost some points for allowing the defense to pressure Rodgers, forcing him to escape the pocket. He ended the night with an overall grade of 64.0 from the PFF.
Bakhtiari Returns To Practice
Although assigned to “low-impact,” “jogging only” practice, Bakhtiari made a promising return to Clarke Hinkle Field today.
When asked about Bakhtiari’s return to the practice field, Head Coach Matt LaFleur stated, “That was the plan, regardless of whether we were going to have a real practice or not.”
Even though it was a light practice and they had planned to keep Bakhtiari’s workout “low-impact,” the Packers are taking strides to shore up their offensive line.
#Packers HC Matt LaFleur said the plan all along was to give #DavidBakhtiari the day off in a planned Wednesday “walk-thru” practice
#69 was out there for stretching & hit the field (closed to media) pic.twitter.com/4JYyar2KwM
— Cody Krupp (@CodyWKrupp) September 28, 2022