When the Green Bay Packers drafted Bryan Bulaga out of the University of Iowa he was a blue chip prospect. Bulaga is the starting Left Tackle today, and as such as the extremely important job of protecting Aaron Rodgers blind side. Now he’s out for the year with an ACL tear. What to do in place of Bulaga? Reshuffle that offensive line again?
Just three months ago, Packers head coach Mike McCarthy moved Bulaga from right tackle to left tackle, Pro Bowl guard Josh Sitton from right guard to left guard, T.J. Lang from left guard to right guard and Marshall Newhouse, who started 28 games the past two seasons at left tackle, to right tackle.
The plan was to have the team’s two best offensive linemen together on the blind side. Sitton and Bulaga also have continuity from playing together for three seasons. The injury is certainly the biggest one of the NFL preseason thus far. Probably more significant injury than Dennis Pitta, and definitely the biggest and most important casualty from the Packers and the entire NFC North thus far.
The Packers canceled practice Monday so no one from the team commented publicly on Bulaga.
It’s still murky about when Bulaga was injured. It may or may not have occurred at Family Night on Saturday night.
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, a Fox Sports affiliate. He is also an analyst for 95.7 The Fan, and writes on Chicago sports media for Chicago Now. President Obama follows his Twitter account (@PaulMBanks)