Green Bay Packers left tackle David Bakhtiari confirmed he needs another surgery on his knee and will miss the rest of the 2023 season. The five-time All-Pro addressed his never-ending injury issues and the path ahead during a conversation with reporters at his locker on Friday.
“No, it’s done,” Bakhtiari said when asked if he’ll play again this season.
Buy Packers TicketsBakhtiari, who was placed on injured reserve last week, already had arthroscopic surgery on his knee recently but now needs a more significant operation, which will mark the fifth surgery on his knee since suffering the original injury on Dec. 31, 2020.
Bakhtiari isn’t planning on retirement and said his goal is to be available by training camp next year. He just turned 32 years old in September and will be 33 early next season, and the Packers have him under contract — on the four-year, $92 million deal since in 2020 — through the 2024 season.
“My goal is to be ready by training camp,” Bakhtiari said. “I’m going to do what I can to be in that place but there’s a lot of variables that can come into play between now and then.”
Bakhtiari said he wants to return to the Packers in 2024 but realizes the decision is out of his hands.
The big hurdle: Bakhtiari’s cap number balloons to over $40 million next season. Even if the Packers release him and clear his $20 million base salary, Bakhtiari would leave behind over $19 million in dead money on the salary cap due to past restructures. Releasing Bakhtiari isn’t necessarily a straight-forward path because he will be in the middle of rehab and unable to pass a physical when the decision likely needs to be made.
Bakhtiari finally returned from the injury last year and did start for the Packers in Week 1 of this year, but he’s played in just 13 total games since suffering the injury.
Here is video of Bakhtiari’s appearance in the locker room on Friday:
Quotes received from Packers Wire contributor Paul Bretl were used in this story.
