Over the course of the offseason, the Green Bay Packers have seemingly set themselves up for a key decision involving offensive lineman Zach Tom.
Tuesday morning, the Packers saw their division rival make a move with one of their top linemen, as the Chicago Bears extended All Pro guard Joe Thuney.
Just as fans knew would happen months ago after the Josh Myers decision, the Packers should now be faced with even more pressure to get a deal done with Tom.
Brian Gutekunst needs to get the Zach Tom extension done before it's too late
We have seen some major drama around the league when it comes to teams waiting too long to finalize a contract extension with top players, but the Packers cannot afford to be one of those teams.
The fact that it appears as though Green Bay has a franchise cornerstone in Tom should be more than enough reason to extend him now.
Tom is entering the final year of his rookie contract and after his 2024 campaign, there should be no question that he needs to be in Green Bay for the long haul. Tom was the third-best run-blocking tackle out of 140 players who qualified at the position, per Pro Football Focus.
The fact that he was also very strong in pass protection led him to earn the fourth-highest grade out of all tackles in the NFL for 2024.
With Jordan Love having been locked down for the foreseeable future and Green Bay knowing what they have in Tom, Gutekunst cannot afford to wait on an extension here. Besides, why let the Bears steal all of the attention?
The most Packers thing ever would be for the team to now get an extension done with Tom and steal the attention away from just another Bears offseason where they're crowned before ever playing a regular season snap.
The 26-year-old has earned the right to be one of the league's highest-paid tackles, and the Packers will more than likely get his extension done before the summer is over.