David Bakhtiari still strives to prevent attackers from sacking Aaron Rodgers.
Bakhtiari, who protected Rodgers’ blindside at left tackle in Green Bay from 2013-22, fought back against the idea that the quarterback is causing severe harm to the Jets by missing mandatory minicamp for an unspecified “important event.”
“Friendly reminder that teams don’t win games in June. Teams can only lose games (injuries) during this time,” Bakhtiari wrote on X on Wednesday.
A user in the replies pushed back on that sentiment, saying: “That’s when you build a locker room though, and if you can’t put your ego aside in June you won’t in September/October when it matters.”
Bakhtiari was unswayed.
“Because you know first hand??!?” he asked the respondent. “Please go sit back down and drink your juice.”
When healthy, Bakhtiari has been one of the best offensive linemen in the NFL over the past decade.
He was a two-time All-Pro and made second-team All-Pro three other times.
However, in two of the last three seasons, he played just one game before suffering season-ending injuries, and he missed six regular season games in 2022.
He is currently a free agent after he was released by the Packers earlier this offseason.
Dr. David Cole, an orthopedist, told NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport last month that Bakhtiari is “on schedule” for a 2024 return.
Jets head coach Robert Saleh made waves Tuesday when he said that Rodgers’ absence from camp was “unexcused” and that the quarterback was susceptible to fines under the NFL collective bargaining agreement.
Wednesday, Saleh denied that there was any friction between the two.
“Aaron and I are on the exact same page,” he said. “There’s no issue between Aaron [and I] or his teammates for that matter. We addressed it [Tuesday]. It’s more of an issue for everyone outside the building than it is inside. That’s about it.”