Surprise! Packers Will Keep Bryan Bulaga

I wasn't too thrilled with the prospect of watching either JC Tretter (he struggled in spot duty at RT) or Don Barclay (coming off a lost 2014 season due to a knee injury) but I thought RT Bryan Bulaga would cost too much for the Green Bay Packers. Instead, it looks like the Packers were willing to meet his demands.

Wouldn't consider $7M initially. RT @RapSheet: #Packers pushing hard to keep OT Bryan Bulaga, going beyond their comfort zone for it.
— Tom Silverstein (@TomSilverstein) March 10, 2015

Now it's being reported that he'll receive a five-year, $35 million deal from the Packers. That's good for the 2015 team but a bit of a premium for a right tackle (the Cowboys just re-signed Doug Free for $5 million per season). If Bulaga had been viewed as a left tackle by other teams, his price tag might have been as high as $9 million per season.

The Packers can afford him in 2015 but his re-signing is probably going to force them to let T.J. Lang or Josh Sitton (or both) leave in a couple years. Several recent contracts are going to have big cap charges in a couple years (Rodgers, Matthews, Nelson, Shields, Cobb) and keeping Lang, Sitton, and Bulaga at a combined $20 million isn't going to be easy.

The Packers are built to win now so keeping the offensive line intact for a 2015 title run makes sense. But there is a slight premium being paid, so the Packers might not have as much salary flexibility in a couple years.