Spending 18 years playing for and leading a team is no mean feat in the NFL. Yet, it is one that Aaron Rodgers has achieved with the Green Bay Packers. However, now that he is gone, the Packers have lost a vital part of their team and possibly have a void left which seems far too big to be refilled. However, the men in Green and Gold certainly have high hopes for the future. Just ask Packers’ offensive tackle David Bakhtiari.
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To predict Packers’ future, Bakhtiari is drawing inspiration from the Seattle Seahawks who allowed Russell Wilson to walk away last year and still ended up making the playoffs. There is hope in the Packers facility that the team will be able to rally around their new QB Jordan Love, who showed signs of great potential when he subbed in for Rodgers a few times last season.
David Bakhtiari hopes Green Bay can rebuild just like the Seahawks
Talking on the Rich Eisen Show, David Bakhtiari recently spoke at length about how he thinks the Packers are actually rebuilding. He went on to clarify what he meant by “rebuilding”, a term for which he has been receiving a lot of backlashes. However, it seems he does have some valid points, especially when it comes to talking about the massive change that could alter the story of his team.
“Well, I think, take the word rebuild, and break it down and see what you’re doing, you’re redoing a build. OK? For the longest time, I mean, ever since I’ve been here, there has been one pinnacle person at the quarterback position, and then now there’s been a bunch of change… Not all rebuilds are bad… Like I’m not going to ignore the past, but I’m also not going to discredit the future,” he said on the show.
Bakhtiari doubled down on the Seattle Seahawks story as an example of his idea of a rebuild. He explained that the Seahawks underwent a rebuild when they traded Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos. This turned out to be a win-win situation, since Wilson had a horrid year in Denver, and Seattle made the playoffs. Bakhtiari is hoping the Packers’ rebuild will give them a similar story of success this coming season.
Aaron Rodgers needs to go big to avoid living the ‘Russell Wilson’ storyline
In all fairness, Bakhtiari’s example does work well for what he is preaching. The Seahawks, who gave away a potential superstar QB for a bunch of picks, had to start from scratch with Geno Smith as their QB. However, their efforts yielded astounding results, as they ended up making the playoffs. While their former star Wilson struggled near the bottom of the conference table.
Wilson’s departure brought the Seahawks some valuable cap space, which they effectively used to build their team around Smith. Bakhtiari’s analogy also highlights that aspect. With Rodgers gone, the Packers have a lot more money to try and build a good team around Love. Especially now that most of the team is on the younger side, the Packers may be looking to build a team for the future.
While he would not want his friend Rodgers to suffer Wilson’s fate, Bakhtiari will be hoping this season goes well for him and the Packers. If the Seahawks’ story is anything to go by, the Packers should be comfortably challenging for a playoff position this year. Will the Packers make up for last season’s mistakes and give their fans something to cheer about? Will Aaron Rodgers do the same for his new team in New York? Only time will tell.
