cannondale Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 As we quickly approach the draft I think the offensive line has been disregarded as an area of need. It's not sexy so we as fans might tend to sweep any possible depth problems under the rug, but Gute can't afford to do that. There are people here smarter than me when it comes to this, but I'm gonna give it a shot. For sake of argument, I think it's safe to say Bulaga will spend the first six weeks on the PUP list. I think it's safe to assume Spriggs will recover from his dislocated kneecap in time for the season per reports. So if we concentrate on an opening day depth chart, it may look something like this: LT: Bakhtiari Spriggs Pankey LG: Taylor Patrick C: Linsley Day RG: McCray Amichia RT: Spriggs Murphy In a perfect world, Spriggs takes the next step (and some will say that needs to be a huge step) and can solidify the RT spot. However, if Bakhtiari goes down, I assume Spriggs would have to move to LT (yikes) and Murphy would take RT. As we all know, it's not a perfect world and with Rodgers coming off another injury, we simply can't afford to come up short along the OL. We can't be loaded at every position, but it wouldn't take much to have huge problems up front. Bulaga should be back by week 7 and is under contract thru 2019 but the injuries are starting to pile up. Jahari Evans is still a possibility I would be fine with at G, but I would guess he would be a late sign depending on how things shake out. A small side note. We currently don't have a blocking TE. I don't know exactly how this will translate to our selections this upcoming draft, but I don't think it should be an afterthought. While we have had success after success drafting OL in the middle rounds, I wonder how Gute feels about our situation ? Can we or should we just weather the storm and take our chances to week 7 ? Could Gute pull the trigger on an OT or immediate starter at G as high as the second round ? I'm not saying that I am in favor of it, just covering all the bases. How do you guys see it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vegas492 Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 I think that Murphy was ahead of Spriggs last year...at LT. I'd probably move him to first up if Bakh goes down... I'm a Spriggs fan, but even I did not see much improvement in his play last year. Hoping he takes the next couple of steps this off-season is not good thinking. I'm a McCray fan at RG...I'm good with him there. But, yes, GB needs a tackle for depth, and I'd argue they need an interior 0-linemen for depth. Second round too high? Depends on who is there. If I were to predict it, though, yah, I'd say it is too high. Earliest I'd go offensive line is probably round 4. And I'd be working the free agent list for an older established vet that could be a swing tackle in a pinch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HighCalebR Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 I'd say there's a chance any time if they think the values right but that's every year. I don't think the river will meet the road until day 3 for this team though. When Bulaga comes back that's 10 OL without Pankey or Day, we won't keep that many, Amichia/Patrick are candidates for relegation. I think they bring in some late round competition for the interior and see if any of those guys happen to be able to hang at T. I really don't think Mac has an issue with playing Murphy or Spriggs until Bulaga comes back. Our OL is in pretty good shape especially if we get Jahri back or someone takes another step. TBH I think this pre-draft process has been way too long if we're overthinking our OL right now. Especially advocating for a day 1-2 IOL/ pinch T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
66fan Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 I am satisfied with our current depth at the O-Line barring injury (which I know is probably impossible.) The players that I like the best in this years draft (for the Packers) are: Isaiah Wynn and Austin Corbett because of their versatility in that they played tackle through college but translate as Center or Guard prospects in the NFL. They would be able to be solid swing players to start and then develop into starters down the road. Wynn will probably be drafted by the early 2nd round, so he is out of play for the Packers in my opinion. I like Corbett in the 3rd round or the first pick of round 4. My opinion is that the only time you draft an offensive lineman in the first round is for a stud Left Tackle, the rest of the O-Line can be built with developmental type players taken in the 2nd through 5th round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gopher Trace Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 McCray is very much just-a-guy to me. I'm happy with him as a backup, but I want better from someone starting at the spot, so I hope to get a guy who will keep him on the bench. Bulaga should start the season on PUP. I don't care if he's healthy enough to start the season; I'm convinced he can no longer withstand the rigors of a full NFL year and that we should just rest him for the first half of '18-'19. I feel confident in the abilities of Murphy and Spriggs to fill those spots in the meantime. Even McCray can hack it out there. Our scheme makes IOL easy to plug 'n play with mid-rounders, so I'd mostly just target someone I like in the mids, take 'em and be done with it. Versatility to play C would be very welcome given that I don't really see anyone else on our roster who can do it other than our starter. With that being said, in the unlikely events that Nelson falls to my 1st, Hernandez or Wynn to my 2nd, and they are head-and-shoulders above guys remaining at positions of greater need, I take them there and adjust my strategy accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilprin Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 I think rounds 4-6 should include at least 2 OL prospects...With multiple picks there, an OT and OG prospect is needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneTwoSixFive Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 Worth pointing out that the O linemen in for visits are late round types wih some athleticism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TransientTexan Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 I’m not worried about it. Murphy & McCray proved adequate as at least a stopgap solution, and Spriggs was a high investment that could take a step to being at least a stopgap also. We could play the “if [X] gets hurt” game with just about any position and be looking at a subpar depth chart. And even if we did spend a high pick in the draft, I don’t think it’d be reasonable to expect the pick to be more than stopgap-level (at best) in his first 6-7 games in the nfl. Even if teams draft with need in mind, I think they take a longer-term view of need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemike778 Posted April 17, 2018 Share Posted April 17, 2018 2 hours ago, Pilprin said: I think rounds 4-6 should include at least 2 OL prospects...With multiple picks there, an OT and OG prospect is needed. Agreed we get our best OL in the 4th and 5th. In an ideal world if someone suitable was there, I'd like our first three picks to be some combination of WR, CB, OLB and then to take OL in the 4th and another in the 5th Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg C. Posted April 18, 2018 Share Posted April 18, 2018 I thought Spriggs had one or two decent games toward the end of the season, in which his name was not even mentioned. So I have a little bit of hope for him, for the first time in awhile. I think McCray has potential to be a pretty good guard. He wasn't even able to play that position last year due to all of the injuries that forced him to play tackle. I'm not worried about the OL, and I would guess they will either draft one in the middle rounds or two in the later rounds--or maybe one middle and one late. It would be good to have a legitimate backup center, which they didn't really have last year. They were lucky Linsley stayed healthy, which is not the norm for him. I agree that a blocking TE should be considered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadmus Posted April 18, 2018 Share Posted April 18, 2018 NONE of the players on the OL are UFAs after this season (and the only DL that's a UFA after the season is Wilkerson). I truly don't think we're going to use more than 2 DPs on lineman (OL & DL combined). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatJerkDave Posted April 18, 2018 Share Posted April 18, 2018 Does anyone know anything about Day, or any potential second string centers? IIRC, Amichia was tried there, but I could be making that up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadmus Posted April 18, 2018 Share Posted April 18, 2018 1 minute ago, DavidatMIZZOU said: Does anyone know anything about Day, or any potential second string centers? IIRC, Amichia was tried there, but I could be making that up. Patrick, McCray and Amichia all got reps at Center in TC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shanedorf Posted April 18, 2018 Share Posted April 18, 2018 33 minutes ago, Cadmus said: I truly don't think we're going to use more than 2 DPs on lineman (OL & DL combined). As far as the OL pick - Wondering if you've got any OL candidates that caught your eye for 2018 ? Maybe a mid- round OT who can compete at RG ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squire12 Posted April 18, 2018 Share Posted April 18, 2018 4 minutes ago, Shanedorf said: As far as the OL pick - Wondering if you've got any OL candidates that caught your eye for 2018 ? Maybe a mid- round OT who can compete at RG ? Check out latest MOCK!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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