It’s hard to tell if he was completely serious, but Green Bay Packers left tackle David Bakhtiari sounded sure when asked if Matt LaFleur’s new offense will allow for passes to offensive linemen.
“It will,” Bakhtiari said on ESPN Milwaukee’s “Wilde and Tausch” show Wednesday.
The All-Pro offensive tackle and world-renowned beer chugger wants a chance for either him or Bryan Bulaga to catch a touchdown pass.
“I’d be so pumped for any of my fellow linemen to catch a touchdown,” Bakhtiari said. “Especially for Bryan. I’d almost be a little more ecstatic for Bryan than I would be myself, but I’d love to catch a pass and score a touchdown. As you know, being a lineman, that’s like the one thing (we don’t do).”
Bakhtiari has played 90 regular season games in six seasons in the NFL and has never touched the football. Almost always, when an offensive lineman gets his hands on the ball, a terrible sequence of events made it happen.
“I don’t even touch the ball,” Bakhtiari said. “If I touch a football in a game, something terrible has happened. I play a game called football and it’s all about the ball and I don’t work with the ball at all.”
Bakhtiari’s job is protecting those that do touch the ball. It can be a thankless job, and it’s probably not going to change.
Last season, LaFleur’s Tennessee Titans offense did not attempt a pass to an offensive lineman.
Bakhtiari may have to settle for what he does best.
“I’m like a glorified sumo wrestler, like a professional speed bump, just out there annoying people,” Bakhtiari said, jokingly.
That quote almost rivals Bakhtiari’s best quote of the offseason. Almost.
