Packers O-line getting healthy means everything for fantasy numbers this week

The return of David Bakhtiari carries effects that will reverberate through the Green Bay Packers offense and make them a prime source of fantasy output this coming week. Adding the best left tackle back to an offensive line that has been elite all season is obviously a good thing, but the matchup on the week is even more juicy as the Packers take on the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Jaguars have had a rough go of it this season and their efficiency numbers really reflect that through 10 weeks. They rank last in overall team defense DVOA, last in Pass Defense DVOA, and 21^st in Run Defense DVOA. Overall, the Jags are allowing the second most yards per game in the league, fifth most passing yards, and sixth most rushing yards.

If you think the Packers have been hit with the injury bug, the Jaguars haven’t been skating by easy in that department either. They’ll be out a starting defensive tackle, Doug Costin, on Sunday, while their depth is really hurting. They have six defensive backups on IR and another four listed as Out for this week. If the Packers decide to grind the Jaguars into the turf on Sunday, they can easily wear this team out as Jacksonville rotates career backups onto the field.

As stated before, the Packers have already had stellar line play this season, but Bakhtiari puts it back at a peak form. Aaron Jones just came back from injury last week after missing a couple games himself. He saw 20 total touches during that game, but a healthy Jones could see more like 22-24 touches as he did earlier in the season. Currently, Jacksonville is allowing the sixth most fantasy points to opposing running backs.

The Packers should add a good amount of passing to stay balanced and, to be fair, on any given Sunday any team can win. The Packers have kept Aaron Rodgers clean all season. They have an NFL best 76 percent Pass Block Win Rate (and NFL best 74 percent Run Block Win Rate, by the way), per ESPN. Further, the Packers have elite players winning their matchups all over the line. Per ESPN, Billy Turner and Bakhtiari are in the top five in OT Pass Block Win Rate (second and fifth, respectively). Lucas Patrick and Elgton Jenkins are eighth and ninth in OG Pass Block Win Rate, respectively. And Corey Linsley is ranked third for centers in Pass Block Win Rate.

If you’re of the mindset that winning starts in the trenches, fire up all your Packers players for fantasy this week. As far as offensive lines go, theirs is at the top of the class.