5 Packers who are playing their way out of the team’s 2024 plans
These Packers players could be gone after this season.
Packers fans are finally getting a bit of a glimpse at what ‘normal’ NFL fans have to endure, frankly more often than not. Breaking in a young quarterback is not always easy, and it doesn’t exactly keep your team in contention. But beyond the quarterback position, there are interesting factors at play with this Green Bay Packers roster as a whole.
Which players have perhaps played their way out of the team’s 2024 plans at this point in time? Let’s take a look at five names.
5 Packers who could be replaced in the offseason
AJ Dillon
One of the most obvious players who isn’t likely to be back with the Green Bay Packers beyond this season has got to be AJ Dillon.
The former second-round pick out of Boston College is having his worst year as a pro statistically, he’s slated for free agency in 2024, and he’s simply not been able to maximize his opportunities to prove he can be a true RB1 in this league.
Dillon was a pretty tremendous secondary running back in 2021 and 2022, with seven touchdowns in each of those years as well as over 1,000 yards from scrimmage back in 2021, but the productivity and efficiency on a per-touch basis have dwindled significantly.
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David Bakhtiari plans to play for the Packers in 2024
There are a lot of rumors about David Bakhtiari’s future in the NFL. First, he needs to come back from another big knee surgery. Second, he and the Green Bay Packers need to determine if they want to keep the partnership. There are financial and roster-construction layers to it.
And there’s also an always intriguing scenario of Bakhtiati’s reunion with Aaron Rodgers, which would demand another trade between the Packers and the New York Jets.
However, Bakhtiari wrote on X (the social media platform formerly known as Twitter) that he intends to play, and to play for the Packers next season.
David Bakhtiari hasn’t been able to be on the field consistently since he suffered a serious ACL injury in December, 2020. This year, he appeared in the week 1 game against the Chicago Bears, but the knee started to hinder him again. It demanded a new surgery, and he was ruled out for the rest of the season.
Bakhtiari is already under contract with the Packers for 2024, but that doesn’t mean the deal guarantees he will be back. The left tackle is slated to make $21.4 million in 2024, and his cap hit will be $40.465 million.
At this point of his career and of the Packers roster, it’s unlikely that general manager Brian Gutekunt would want Bakhtiari back for this price tag. The parties would probably need to sit down and find a contract middle ground.
Packers o-line situation
David Bakhtiari has been the Packers left tackle since his rookie year in 2013. Since he got injured in 2020, the team has rotated several players at the position — Elgton Jenkins, Billy Turner, Yosh Nijman, Zach Tom, and Rasheed Walker.
With Zach Tom established as a full-time starting right tackle now, former seventh-round pick Rasheed Walker has been the left tackle this year, but former starter Yosh Nijman has received snaps over the last month as well.
Without a clear answer at left tackle and with no guarantees that Bakhtiari will be back next season, the Packers might consider drafting a tackle in the first round in 2024. Moving Zach Tom to left tackle if Bakhtiari leaves could also be a consideration.
Tom and Walker are under contract through 2025, but Nijman is slated to be an unrestricted free agent.
Trade rumors
Because of the Packers roster situation, with so many young players, and considering Bakhtiari’s age and price tag, there were a lot of rumors that the Packers could trade the left tackle to the Jets before the season.
