The Jacksonville Jaguars have lost their first starter of the 2022 season.
After escaping the first month of the season with limited injury issues, the Jaguars placed starting left guard Ben Bartch on injured reserve on Tuesday after he sustained a knee injury in Week 5. On Wednesday, head coach Doug Pederson confirmed that Bartch's injury would place him on the sidelines for the rest of 2022.
With Bartch now on the shelf and the Jaguars having to move around their offensive line, what does his injury mean for Jacksonville moving forward? We break it down below.
Bartch's injury means the Jaguars won't have much clarity on left guard entering 2023
No team is able to fill all of its holes in one offseason, so it always made sense for the Jaguars to attempt to kick the can down the road at left guard. They signed Brandon Scherff and drafted Luke Fortner to fix right guard and center, but 2022 was going to serve as an audition for Bartch to prove he can be the left guard of the future. Now, his audition has been reduced to 4.5 games, leaving a question mark along the line when looking ahead to next year's draft and free agency.
Doug Pederson said on Wednesday that Bartch was in a good spot in his development before his injury, showing just how critical of a loss Bartch is considering he is a young player who needed the reps. The Jaguars would have found out over the next 12 weeks if Bartch should be their left guard moving forward or if they needed to make an upgrade a priority. Now, it is hard to know an answer.
Other than Bartch, the only other position along the offensive line with question marks entering 2023 is right tackle. And the question there is more so whether the Jaguars will extend Jawaan Taylor or turn to Walker Little. As a result, left guard was always going to be the only offensive line position that offered little clarity. With Bartch sidelined, the clarity has evaporated from little to nonexistent.
Tyler Shatley is the next man up, but the Jaguars have options
It isn't a surprise Pederson announced on Wednesday that veteran guard/center Tyler Shatley would take over for Bartch at left guard against the Colts in Week 3. Shatley opened the offseason as the starting left guard and even started the first preseason game there before the Jaguars replaced him with Bartch. It makes sense to give Shatley the first crack at guard to replace Bartch, but it is worth noting they have options.
The vast majority of Shatley's career snaps have come at center, but left guard is his second-most played position. His versatility has served as a key piece of the offensive line depth for years and will continue this year, but the Jaguars don't have to solely rely on him over the next 12 weeks. They have also Cole Van Lanen, who they traded a Day 3 pick for before Week 1, and 2021 second-round pick Walker Little. Little has only played left and right tackle in his college and NFL careers, but he was mentioned by Pederson as a potential replacement for Bartch, too.
"Yeah, any time you have veteran backups, swing guys that go in multiple spots is beneficial," Pederson said. "Shatley is one of those guys, whether it’s guard or center. It’s just valuable to have. You have him, you have Walker sitting there, Cole Van Lanen used to play guard and tackle, so we got options.”
Why the Bartch injury could negatively impact the running game
It is no secret that Bartch has been a better run-blocker than pass-blocker in his NFL career. According to Pro Football Focus, Bartch is third among Jaguars linemen in pressures allowed this season and third in pass blocking efficiency. But while he has had lapses in pass protection over the first five games, the data shows the Jaguars have had a lot of success running behind him.
According to PFF, four of the Jaguars' 12 10-yard runs in 2022 have come behind Bartch, with the Jaguars picking up four first downs, a touchdown and 6.3 yards per carry when running through the B-gap. The Jaguars' rushing success has been less significant when running behind Luke Fortner and even Brandon Scherff, showing the loss of Bartch might be more significant than people think.
More must-reads: