One of the more interesting questions regarding the future of the Green Bay Packers roster is who will man the right tackle position after 2014. ESPN Wisconsin's Jason Wilde has one idea, and it doesn't involve either of the lineman who've played there either of the last two years.
With both Bryan Bulaga and Don Barclay, the current starting right tackle and the injured backup respectively, in the last year of their current deals, there's a chance that neither returns next year. If that were to happen, the Packers would have plenty of options. They could sign a replacement in free agency, though that hasn't been the modus operandi of Ted Thompson and the front office. The team could also draft a replacement, something they probably will do but may not yield a viable solution in 2015.
There's a third possibility, which Wilde discussed on ESPN's Homer & Game on Tuesday:
Now my question is can JC Tretter play right tackle. Because I think the possibility would be, because he's really smart and I think he's a really good athlete if he's not too fragile playing which I'm a little worried about with him, that you gotta let Bulaga walk if he stays healthy all year and plays ok. I just think that he's a young man whose body is old now because of the injuries he's had. I think you let Derek Sherrod walk if you can't get him back on a low money deal for very little because he hasn't played. Is it possible that someone would see a former first-round pick who's had injury problems, and most likely if everyone stays healthy will sit on the bench this year, and pay him a little more based on potential? Maybe, but I would like to see JC Tretter in the right tackle conversation next year. And if Corey Linsley stays healthy I think he should stay as the center, and they should develop him and have him continue in that role.
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I think that given where they are at right tackle I'd expect JC Tretter to be in that conversation.
JC Tretter, listed at 6'4" and 307 pounds, has played exclusively at center since Green Bay selected him in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He does have experience at tackle, having lined up on the blindside during his college career at Cornell. He would likely need to add weight to make a transition to the outside. Even after he did, the Packers would have one of the league's smallest tackle tandems with him and David Bakhtiari (6'4", 310 pounds).
Still, Tretter represents an in-house solution should the team lose both Bulaga and Barclay. Moreover, anytime a beat writer like Wilde says something like he expects Tretter to be in the right tackle discussion, it's worth taking notice.