Friday, April 23, 2010

2010 NFL Draft – Bryan Bulaga to the Packers

With the 23rd pick in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers select offensive tackle from Iowa University…Bryan Bulaga

Did anyone expect Ted Thompson to pick an NFL draft attendee? With four offensive tackles already taken before Bulaga in the first round, it appeared that Ted Thompson still believed he needed to upgrade an offensive line that allowed a league-worst 51 sacks last season.

Look no further than Bryan Bulaga, the Big Ten conference offensive lineman of the year in 2009. The only downside of Bulaga…"I'm an NFC North fan, growing up in Illinois. So I was ecstatic to get the call. I liked the Bears, yeah, but I think my allegiance has changed for sure now."

Ted Thompson announced Thursday night that he would like to see Bulaga enter OTA’s and training camp as the left tackle. With aging left tackle Chad Clifton (34) and right tackle Mark Tauscher (33), Bulaga will immediately step in and challenge the veterans for a starting role and at the same time, prepare to replace them in the near future. Bulaga has even played 5 games as guard on the O-Line in his senior season at Iowa, which shows his versatility.

Was Bryan Bulaga the best draft pick for the Green Bay Packers at 23 overall? Highly touted wide-receiver Dez Bryant, and outside linebackers Sergio Kindle and Jerry Hughes were all potential players still available. I think it was the right pick for Ted Thompson, who needed to address improving his offensive line in case of an injury to Clifton or Tauscher at some point throughout this year.

The thing that excites me the most about Bulaga is that he comes to the Packers healthy, is an excellent pass blocker, and his technique weaknesses will be easily correctable by the coaching staff. Overall, Bryan Bulaga is a great value pick for the Packers and let’s hope that he can be the kind of impact that last year’s 23rd overall pick in the draft was to his respective team…Michael Oher.

(Photo courtesy of JSOnline)