Stacy Revere/Getty Images
Green Bay Packers offensive tackle
David Bakhtiari reportedly has undergone arthroscopic surgery on his left
knee, a cleanup procedure following surgery for a torn ACL in
January.
Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported the news Tuesday and noted it’s possible
Bakhtiari returns in December following the team’s Week 13 bye:
Mike Garafolo @MikeGarafolo
David Bakhtiari is feeling much better after the procedure. Hope on the <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Packers?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Packers</a>’ end is he continues to improve through the bye and is back and ready to roll in December, which fits <a href=”https://twitter.com/RapSheet?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@RapSheet</a>’s recent timeline. <a href=”https://t.co/2nGOfPUYG9″>https://t.co/2nGOfPUYG9</a>
The three-time Pro Bowler hasn’t played yet in 2021 after suffering the ACL injury during a practice last December.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur
confirmed Monday that Bakhtiari wouldn’t play in Week 12 against the Los Angeles Rams.
“He won’t be out there this week.
We’ll see where he’s at after the bye,” LeFleur told reporters. “We’re hopeful that he will be able to come back this year at some
point.”
Bakhtiari emerged as a stalwart
at left tackle for the Packers immediately after the franchise
selected him in the fourth round of the 2013 draft. He started all 16
games as a rookie and played 118 of a possible 128 contests across
his first eight seasons.
The 30-year-old University of Colorado
product drew praise from quarterback Aaron Rodgers when he returned to practice in mid-October.
“It’s good having him back. He’s a
stud. He’s a future Hall of Famer,” Rodgers said.
Elgton Jenkins had shifted from guard
to left tackle to fill the void and played well,
earning a strong 82.3 overall grade from Pro Football Focus before
suffering his own torn ACL in Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Yosh Nijman and Dennis Kelly are Green
Bay’s reserve tackles. It’s unclear whether one of them will protect
Rodgers’ blind side against the Rams or if right tackle Billy Turner
will shift to the left side while Nijman or Kelly takes his place on
the right side.
The Packers will hope it’s a one-week
solution before Bakhtiari can reclaim his longtime role coming out of
the bye when they face the Chicago Bears on Dec. 12.
That said, Green Bay (8-3) has some margin for error thanks to its 2.5-game lead over the Vikings (5-5) in the NFC North, so it doesn’t have to rush
the two-time first-team All-Pro selection back into action.
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