Packers' David Bakhtiari out for Season, Needs Surgery to Repair Knee Injury

Green Bay Packers star offensive lineman David Bakhtiari will miss the remainder of the season as he has to undergo surgery to repair a knee injury that he suffered earlier in the campaign, the five-time All-Pro announced Friday.

Bakhtiari, 32, was placed on injured reserve by the organization on Sept. 28 as he is dealing with what doctors believe is a cartilage issue that they should be able to clean up.

He has undergone multiple procedures since tearing his ACL in 2020 and believes this may be the last one of the bunch. He hopes to be back by the beginning of training camp next year.

Bakhtiari was able to play in the Packers' season opener against the Chicago Bears but started experiencing swelling in his knee following the game and hasn't been able to get back on the field since, missing games against the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints, respectively.

Arguably the best left tackle in all of football when healthy, the three-time Pro Bowler has one season left on his massive contract extension he signed in 2020 which made him the highest paid offensive lineman in the league at the time.

However, being healthy has been his biggest problem since then due to recurring knee injuries. Bakhtiari has undergone three knee surgeries in the year and a half after tearing his ACL.

He has played in a total of 13 games over the past three seasons. First-year starter Jordan Love will miss having his blind side protected by one of the league's best.

The Packers may be able to save $21.5 million against the cap by cutting Bakhtiari after this season

The injury to Bakhtiari will continue to give 2022 seventh-round pick Rasheed Walker an opportunity to shine at left tackle. Coaches have been pleasantly surprised at his work thus far.

"He's been good," Packers' offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said. "There's some bad in there, too. Some things we've gotta correct. I think with him, just focus on being fundamentally sound is his biggest issue. But I love how he competes. I love how he comes off the ball. There's a lot of good in what he's doing, so we just have to keep working with him and hone up those details." — Matt Schneidman, staff writer covering the Packers