Packers: Five players key to victory in Week 1 vs. Vikings
By Jesse Fry
Right tackle
Coach Matt LaFleur has yet to announce who the starting right tackle for the game will be. Whoever it is, is more than likely to be the target of the Minnesota Vikings.
Billy Turner did not practice on Wednesday and the Packers’ offseason acquisition Rick Wagner, though not officially listed on the injury report, is practicing with a bad elbow.
It’s hard to say who was even the starting tackle going into this game. Most reports have Turner with the first-string offense but those reports were few and far between thanks to the Packers’ new rules on what the media can see and/or report.
The team did catch a bit of a break with Danielle Hunter going on injured reserve Wednesday. But the Vikings did trade for Yannick Ngakoue so there is still a threat lurking off the edge. How much he can contribute is not known as the trade did not take place until August 30, well after the start of training camps.
Although even in a limited role, Ngakoue can still be valuable. His speciality is pass rushing and my guess would be he won’t be lining up over David Bakhtiari.
Whether it’s Turner, Wagner, Lane Taylor or someone we do not know, that player will have to help keep Aaron Rodgers clean in order for the Vikings’ pass rush to not wreck the team’s game plan.