Geez, 2020 just couldn’t go away quietly.

On Thursday afternoon, the entire fanbase of the Green Bay Packers were given one last kick in the nuts before the year ended. December 31st was supposed to be a day to celebrate this disaster of a calendar coming to an end. Instead, we were treated to a cherry on top. The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that left tackle David Bakhtiari may be out for the rest of the season, suffering some sort of knee injury in practice – believed to be a torn ACL.

Outside of losing inevitable 2020-2021 NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, this is doomsday for the green and gold. Talk about a worst case scenario. By now, we all know about the stats. We know about the Pro Bowl. We know he has allowed just one sack in over 400 snaps. We know about his recently signed four year, $100 million deal. Just last month! We know all about what he brings to the table. Here is why this is very worrisome:

This is crunch time for teams in the NFL. Make no mistake, it is not how you start, it is how you finish. The cliche is said every single season, but it’s true. You want to get hot at the end of December and carry that momentum into the January post-season. Who cares what happened in September or October? It doesn’t matter anymore. What matters is the here and now. The Pack have been BACK! They have been absolutely rolling, and most of that is thanks to Aaron Rodgers having protection in the pocket and being able to throw to his favorite targets. Without Bakhtiari, look out!

Compounding that issue is who will step up. I won’t even begin to pretend to Billy Turner, Elgton Jenkins, or Rick Wagner. That is how we have to work with right now. It reminds me of 2013 when Aaron Rodgers went down, and suddenly we had Seneca Wallace out there running in circles. Or Scott Tolzein pretending to know what he’s doing. Or even fan favorite Matt Flynn, who only seems to play well in a Packers uniform. Long story short, going from the top of the top to the unknown can be scary and very, very costly. In a year where Titletown is primed for another Lomboardi trophy, you can’t risk anything right now.

Ultimately, that is what matters here. If somebody can step up and replace a Pro Bowler worth $100 million, Rodgers will continue his winning ways, and the Packers will have a successful playoff push. If this causes issues, like say Week 17 against the hungry Chicago Bears, it may be a BADDDDDDD omen for any Super Bowl chances in January heading into February. Only time will tell. Until then, this is NOT how Wisconsinites wanted to end the sports year…

By Justin Watry (Twitter: @JustinWatry)  

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