No Contact with Packers, Bulaga Says in Interview
GREEN BAY, Wis. – In a dozen days, the NFL’s free-agent negotiating period will begin. Until March 16, only the Green Bay Packers can legally talk dollars and cents to right tackle Bryan Bulaga.
That has not happened.
“There’s been nothing. There’s been no talk,” Bulaga said, via the Athletic, during a recent interview on “Wilde & Tausch” on ESPN Wisconsin. “It could be as it gets closer to free agency maybe those talks begin and things maybe start to get worked out. We’ll see. I was hoping that I could end my career in Green Bay. Hopefully, talks between the Packers and my representatives go really well. At least, that’s what I’m hoping for.”
Bulaga is coming off arguably his best season in the NFL. For the second time in his 10-year career, Bulaga started all 16 regular-season games. According to STATS, he allowed 3.5 sacks. In the eight seasons in which he started at least nine games, he allowed fewer sacks only once. While he missed some time with injuries, his 893 snaps during the regular season ranked 16th among all right tackles, so he was reliable compared to his peers.
In today’s NFL, a right tackle is just as important as a left tackle. Bulaga’s season started with Chicago’s Khalil Mack, Minnesota’s Danielle Hunter and Denver’s Von Miller and never got much easier. Facing a strong gauntlet of rushers, Bulaga was up to the task most weeks. This season, 57 offensive tackles played at least half of the snaps. Of that group, Bulaga ranked 17th in ProFootballFocus.com’s pass-blocking efficiency, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap.
“I thought I did my job to the best of my ability and helped the team win ballgames,” Bulaga said the day after the loss to San Francisco in the NFC Championship Game. “I’ll reflect on the season a little more as the weeks go on but, yeah, I feel good about the body of work that I put together this year and what I was able to do against some really good competition. We played some really good pass rushers and good ball players this year and felt good about what I put on tape.”
Letting Bulaga go would create a massive hole in the lineup. Perhaps the best bet to fill the void would be Billy Turner, a pricey free-agent addition last offseason who turned in a mediocre season at right guard. He’s got the athleticism to play outside and started four games at right tackle for Denver in 2018. Jared Veldheer, who replaced Bulaga vs. Detroit (concussion) and Seattle (illness), will be a free agent.
The draft class features a strong group of offensive tackles, though a premium pick used on an offensive lineman means one fewer pick used to bolster holes at linebacker, receiver and elsewhere.
“Bryan is a really good player,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said at the end of last season. “He obviously had a really good year. He was able to be out there pretty much the entire season, which was important. Of course we’d love to have a guy like Bryan Bulaga back, but we’re still getting through all that and seeing how these things are going to work.”
Bulaga has started 12-plus games seven times in his career. In 2010, the Packers won the Super Bowl; in 2011, they went 15-1; in 2014, 2016 and 2019, they reached NFC Championship Games.
“It’s tough to think about,” he said on his “Wilde and Tausch” appearance. “But, obviously, I think anyone that knows me and knows my mind-set about this, everyone knows that I would love to be back with the Green Bay Packers. I don’t think anyone questions that.”
