Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
Wagner is part of options on offensive line
Green Bay — Rick Wagner couldn’t remember the Green Bay Packers of the past who signed his green-and-gold memorabilia. He knows who they weren’t. No, Brett Favre never came over to his spot along the fence outside Ray Nitschke Field, holding out his hand for a pen.
“Just a couple linemen,” Wagner said, “like me.”
That was enough for a kid who grew up in West Allis and later joined the larger class of NFL-caliber offensive linemen at Wisconsin. This state, and the football played within it, left an indelible mark on Wagner.
So the chance to return home — to be one of those linemen signing autographs alongside Ray Nitschke Field — only made sense. In the NFL, Wagner said, you don’t get to choose which city you play for. You’re just happy to have a job.
But who doesn’t like a good homecoming?
“It’s definitely cool,” the understated Wagner said. “… At this point in my career, I’m really happy to be here, and it’s definitely a special place.”
Signing with the Packers wasn’t merely a personal preference. It was also a business decision. With longtime starter Bryan Bulaga departing in free agency, a big hole opened at right tackle. Wagner would be the natural, if premature, candidate to fill it. He is the lone veteran offensive lineman the Packers signed this offseason. He has started 85 of his past 86 games, when healthy, at right tackle over the past six seasons.
The pieces seem to fit.
If the chance to start was a meaningful factor in Wagner’s decision to sign his two-year, $11 million contract with the Packers, the eighth-year veteran is taking nothing for granted.
“Every year it’s a competition at every position,” Wagner said. “There’s no guarantees that you’re gong to start anywhere. So just got to go out there and prove that I can win that starting job, and I’m happy for that opportunity.”
Coach Matt LaFleur has been careful not to hand out any starting jobs this offseason. The best combination of five linemen will start, LaFleur has said, regardless of individual position.
When the Packers finally begin practicing Aug. 15, perhaps no part of the roster will be more intriguing than offensive line. There is a Rubik’s Cube of possibilities, and though Wagner is likely to get first crack at earning the starting right tackle job, there’s no guarantee he’ll be the last one standing.
On paper, right tackle is the position most open to competition. David Bakhtiari is an All-Pro at left tackle. Corey Linsley is the picture of stability at center. Elgton Jenkins, who had a strong rookie season, and Billy Turner return as starting guards.
But it’s true that the Packers are deeper along the interior of their offensive line, where they have Lane Taylor, Lucas Patrick and a trio of drafted rookies, than tackle. Alex Light struggled mightily when given snaps last season, so much that the Packers signed Jared Veldheer out of retirement after Light played 70 snaps at San Francisco. Light’s chances at making the roster can’t be discounted, but he’ll need to show improvement when the Packers strap on their pads this month.
The other four tackles listed on the Packers’ roster consist of a rookie and three first-year players, with zero NFL snaps. LaFleur said he’s intrigued with what second-year tackle Yosh Nijman can show in camp, though Nijman is on the physically unable to perform list.
Taylor’s return from missing 14 games last season because of a torn biceps muscle could be especially valuable.
“Lane has played a lot of ball here,” said Linsley, who lined up next to Taylor as a pair of starters for three full seasons. “Lane’s at a high level, and Lane knows the offense. He knows what to do.”
The lack of tackle depth might be why LaFleur is keeping an open mind entering the season. The Packers not only have more experience on their interior, but also more versatility. Turner, specifically, could be a candidate to line up at tackle, where he played in the past.
LaFleur said determining which position Turner plays is “a work in progress” early in camp, leaving open the option he could get snaps at tackle. Turner played both tackle spots in the past, though the Packers signed him to be a guard.
“We’re going to try to find the best combination of the five,” LaFleur said. “And we feel pretty good about Billy’s ability to play anywhere on the line. He’s played tackle before, so that definitely is a great safety valve.”
If the Packers indeed consider their offensive line as a collective of five, instead of slotting each individual into a specific position, they have several options. They could determine Turner and Taylor are a better combination on the right side than Turner and Wagner, even if they signed Turner to play guard, not tackle. If they needed a spot start one week, Taylor has filled in at tackle in emergency situations, and could perhaps do so again to keep Turner at guard.
With so many moving parts, the virtual offseason and truncated training camp were less than ideal. For one, offensive line play is hard to replicate virtually.
The chemistry needed to mirror foot patterns and combination blocking techniques is best done without social distancing.
But while the Packers have several options for the right side of their offensive line, they also have questions that need answers. Taylor is returning from injury. Patrick, who signed a two-year extension in December, could be a starting guard candidate if Turner moves to tackle, but he has started only six games in three seasons. And while Turner has started at tackle, he has played better at guard.
Then there’s the uncertainty with Wagner. A downgrade from Bulaga, one of the NFL’s top right tackles, Wagner turns 31 in October. Injuries have kept him from playing a full, 16-game season since 2015. A knee injury forced Wagner to miss the final three games of last season.
Now Wagner must learn a new playbook with the restraints of the virtual offseason. Not ideal for a veteran who struggled at times over the past few seasons in Detroit, enough that Wagner acknowledged he has room to improve this fall.
It’s early, but his teammates have been impressed so far with how quickly Wagner has acclimated.
“He seems to have picked up on the offense pretty well,” Linsley said. “Very in tune with what’s going on already. (Offensive line coach Adam Stenavich) said he’s a lot less — I’m trying to think of a PC way to put it — but he’s taken a lot better and a lot calmer to the playbook adjustment than some of us did last year. That speaks to probably his intelligence, and his discipline that he had over the offseason to get the playbook and study it.”