The Green Bay Packers offensive line has been going through a lot of shuffling in recent weeks. With starting left guard Aaron Banks and starting right guard Jacob Monk out of the lineup, there is a serious debate over who will start at both spots when the Packers head to Tampa Bay for their Week 4 clash with the Buccaneers.
Right now, the expectation is for the Packers to start Laken Tomlinson at left guard, and then have a platoon at right guard. Both Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated and Matt Schneidman agree that rotating Zeitler at right guard with Donovan Jennings, Travis Glover, or Mekhi Becton is the Packers’ most likely choice for Week 4.
“So I think Zeitler starts,” said Schneidman on the Green Bay Beat Podcast. “Does he play the full game, though? Or is it what we saw at practice this week with Donovan Jennings or Travis Glover at right guard.”
Schneidman noted that most of what they saw from practice was Jennings working with the starters and Zeitler watching from the side. Still, Zeitler is a 14-year veteran, so the question with him is more about conditioning than picking up the playbook without practice.
Green Bay Packers Could Rotate Right Guard in Week 4
Huber agreed that Jennings is likely to get some work rotating in with Zeitler. He noted that Becton could have a chance to mix in. However, he was most skeptical that Zeitler would get through a full game in the heat of Tampa Bay with his current at-home conditioning.
“That one is the one where I think they are almost going to have to rotate,” admitted Huber.
Huber noted that while Tomlinson will play in his first game with the team this week, he had been at the Dallas Cowboys facility all season on their practice squad. He is much closer to being in game shape.
“At least Tomlinson had three weeks with the Cowboys,” said Huber. “Zeitler has been working out at home. “If I had to bet a dollar, I assume it would be a timeshare between him and Donovan Jennings.”
Jennings has just seven career snaps at right guard.
Packers Might Start Kevin Zeitler
Zeitler has 14,000 career snaps. He told reporters after practice that by playing for six different teams over 14 seasons, he is good at picking up playbooks and schemes quickly. So, he can get on the field, and his experience would be more valuable than Jennings.
However, the heat, his age, and the lack of conditioning are all fair. Jennings has played in every game this year and has 89 snaps this season.
Becton has not played this year, but has NFL experience at right guard going back to last year. The Packers would not be asking him to take a full snap share. However, they could lean on his size to take a series or two and eat into the work that Zeitler has to play.
How many guards play and how many snaps each guard plays will be worth watching.
Packers Could Use Timeshare at Right Guard