A few roster moves Tuesday seemed to confirm the Green Bay Packers were preparing to play Week 13 without their most veteran offensive lineman, but head coach Matt LaFleur isn’t making any determinations just yet.
LaFleur told reporters Wednesday he isn’t ruling out Packers starting right tackle Bryan Bulaga after he reportedly suffered an MCL sprain during the first quarter of Sunday’s 37-8 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Bulaga has been expected to miss at least one game but dodged a season-ending injury in the same knee he had repaired after tearing his ACL in 2017.
“We’re going to go through the week of practice and see what combination works the best,” LaFleur said. “I also wouldn’t rule Bryan out at this point.”
Backup Alex Light took a season-high 71 snaps in relief of Bulaga for the Packers offensive line, which took a beating against the Niners’ formidable defensive front Sunday night. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers was regularly under pass-rush pressure and was pulled to the turf five times in one of the worst passing performances of his long career.
On Tuesday, the Packers elevated Yosh Nijman from the practice squad and added another offensive lineman to take his place with the reserves, but LaFleur said they are looking at other options beyond simply plugging in Light with the rest of the offensive line starters. He was also asked Wednesday whether sliding over right guard Billy Turner was an option being considered for Sunday’s road game at the New York Giants.
“We’ll look at everything,” LaFleur said. “Our goal is just to put our best five out there and go from there and take the week to figure that out.”
The final picture might also include recently retired veteran Jared Veldheer, who the Packers claimed Wednesday afternoon after the Patriots released him off the reserve-retired list.
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Turner Gives Packers Some Versatility
Bulaga’s injury comes at a fortunate point in the season for the Packers with their next two games against a pair of two-win football teams — including Week 14’s home game against the Washington Redskins (2-9). While LaFleur may not be ready to rule out the veteran lineman just yet, his history with knee injuries and the Packers’ postseason ambitions will likely compel them to err on the side of caution.
Either way, the option of moving around Turner is an appealing one to explore. The former Denver Broncos lineman signed a four-year, $28 million deal with the Packers in the offseason and arrived at Green Bay with a diverse set of 25 NFL starts — 12 at right guard, eight at left guard, four at right tackle and one at left tackle.
The Packers toyed around with Turner at right guard during training camp after making all four of his starts at the position during the 2018 season for the Broncos. Turner has also been one of the Packers’ linemen with the cleanest play with just two penalties against him all season.
“We’ve got to make sure everybody is on the same page,” LaFleur said in summation of Sunday’s loss. “We had too many mental mistakes and too many lapses in communication, really in all three phases. And that’s the stuff that really gets you beat.”
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Matt LaFleur Suggests Packers Starter Could Play Against Giants