Glad to see the big boys getting a little love.

To their credit, if they produce 100+ yard running backs and keep their QB on his feet, that's all they want.

Usually, you only hear their names on penalties or if they get beat.

Beat the 9ers! GPG!

It's baffling to me how the offensive line coaches made this work. Everybody knew that the answer was to put Tom at Center, Nijman at LT, and Caleb Jones at RT. (yeah, I'm being semi-facetious).

The offensive line improves if they get to practice and play together. They have to play as a unit, and that's why it isn't as much about the pieces or where you put them as it is about just having them together. Other than subbing Walker for Bakhtiari, this was our preferred starting line when training camp opened.

Matt LaFleur's handling of the O-line has been puzzling at times during his tenure with the Packers, especially the Jake Hanson experiment and moving Billy Turner to LT in a couple of playoff games. But this year he seems to have gotten it right, even when some of his decisions have been unconventional, such as having rotations at the RG and LT positions. That's an uncommon thing to do, and I would not have expected it to work out so well. Standing pat with Zach Tom at RT has paid off as well, and it will continue to pay dividends in the future. We've got an anchor on one side of the line now.

As long as we can keep Newman off the field, we look pretty solid. I was very skeptical of Walker for most of the year, but he's turned it around in the second half and now in the post

I would like to see some news on HOW the line play has improved, not just acknowledgements that they have.

Is the technique of individuals getting better? If so, what were the influences to push those improvements? Is it simply motivation? What event(s) inspired the increased motivation?

Butkas took some harsh treatment early on this year, has his in-season coaching been a difference maker? Has Steno stepped in and righted the ship? Has MLF worked more with the linemen? Have the linemen circled the wagons and helped each other improve? Did Jordan Love plead with them to give him some time? Have the trainers implemented some new training techniques that have turned some guys around?

I guess I want the story behind the story.

What's been lost in the shiffle is how the creativity and variety of the scheme has helped slow down pass rushers. All the playaction, split-flow, presnap motions, etc. make defenders hesitate off the snap. Add in the effective run game and the pass rushers have really been up against it.

Like anything else experiment and work with it until right recipe is found and go with it. If as said it ain't broke why try to fix it some other way!?

Watched one replay on ESPN the other day. Boys stunted and got 4 guys going up the middle so the interior of the line did all the blocking and Walker and Tom were looking around for how they could help, which was barely necessary.

With the above scenario and the fact that we probably wont be losing many - Bak and maybe Newman as cuts - Dont know why these draft "gurus" have us selecting Oline with our first pick. Seems to me ( and not arguing about building up depth but in the later rounds . Seems to me that the O is pretty well set for next year and unless we lose Jones - our focus needs to be on the D especially ILB's with speed and Dbacks. Also believe that the best player available is not just looking at Mel Kiper or Dane Brugeler's list - but relying on our scouts and factoring in our depth - then pick the best player available. How many first rounders do not succeed - and teams had scrambled for them. Rely on the success of the organization and dont get into a bidding war.

Good article. The one thing that I noticed is on MLF's quote is that he started each statement with I think. This is something that I do not like. People are overusing "I think". Which one of these sounds better.

"I think they’ve done a great job,” Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said. “I think we’ve seen growth from them every week. Certainly, they’ve gone against some pretty formidable fronts throughout the course of the season, and we’ve got another one right in front of us. So, we’re going to have to continue to show that growth and improvement."

Or

"They’ve done a great job,” Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said. “We’ve seen growth from them every week. Certainly, they’ve gone against some pretty formidable fronts throughout the course of the season, and we’ve got another one right in front of us. So, we’re going to have to continue to show that growth and improvement.”

If they are doing better or if they are doing a good job say they are.

Yes—the oline can handle the 9’rs. I view the 9’rs D as more celebrity than substance. I’ve seen many of their games via the Redzone channel and they look like a “play with the lead” group. I think AJones will give them all they can handle, and our receivers are better than their DBacks.
If Purdy(boy) has to play from behind, they are going to be a nervous group on the 9’r sidelines.
Go Packers!!!

An offense and in effect an entire team will go as far as their OL takes them. When the OL plays well the Packers offense stays on the field and keeps the opponent's offense off the field. That in and of itself helps the defense to play more effectively. As long as the Packers minimize turnovers and penalties and play solid on STs the Packers will go as far as the their OL takes them.

As I have posted here many times over the years, just go back and watch Lombardi's OL and you will see the finest OL play ever. They very rarely missed their assignments. The result was 5 NFL championships in 7 seven seasons. The OL plus excellent defense made those Lombardi teams the best ever.

The 2023 Packers have been improving as the OL has improved. The Packers are playing with leads and that enables the defense to play aggressively and force turnovers like the two picks they had against Dallas Sunday evening. Both sides of the ball are peaking at the right time. Here's to keeping it going against the 49ers. Go Pack Go! Thanks, Since '61

Offensively, Meyers play will be a key factor for this Saturday's game, Good snaps and not get steamrolled. He has been playing better.
Defensively, Gary needs to step up his game with support from LVN. Gary has to improve his run defense, particularly setting the edge and forcing the 49er RBs inside. His pass rush needs to stay under control and contain Purdy from getting outside the pocket.

Does anyone see a scenario where Bahk is still on the team next year? And could we get anything for him in a trade? I saw on Spotrac he is scheduled to receive almost $40 million if still on the team in 2024. Since he is never available anymore, I can't see how that is possible or viable. He was a great one before the knees wore out.

Also does Caleb Jones have a realistic chance to develop into a useable OT? He is a monster size wise.

Odd how this OL has evolved over this year. Preseason they were expected to be Top 5. Then Bakh went down and Jenkins got nicked. That put Newman on the field (enough said). Plus Myers was sub-par & Runyan regressed. And neither Yosh or Rashid seemed to gel at LT.
In short, a cluster up front. And the results showed. 2-5, then 3-6.
But then came the turnaround, led by same OL. How did this come about? I think Johnblood's & Since '61's posts above nail it: the guys circled the wagons and learned to play together as a team, creating a line with potential, perhaps as much as the great Lombardi OLs of the 60s. Perhaps.
Now we'll see if these guys can keep momentum going into San Fran.
GPG!
The Szotman