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For the first time since Mark Tauscher came to the Green Bay Packers as a seventh-round draft pick in 2000, there's a question of whether the Wisconsin native is in his last season with the team.
The former Auburndale High School and University of Wisconsin standout has been the Packers' starting right tackle for nine seasons, and during that time, he's essentially had two contracts: his rookie deal and a six-year extension he signed in November 2002 after he'd undergone season-ending knee reconstruction surgery. The Packers sweetened his contract along the way and last year added roster bonuses worth up to an additional $1.3 million in both 2007 and '08, but they haven't added any years to the deal.
Tauscher is halfway through the final year of his contract, and the Packers have not approached him about an extension, though that remains a possibility. At age 31, Tauscher has put plenty of miles on his body, but after a slow start this season, he's picked up his play. Barring injury or a major drop-off in performance, he should be in line for one last long-term deal this offseason. The question is whether the Packers will be willing to pay, or if they project someone else, perhaps fifth-round draft pick Breno Giacomini, will be ready to start at right tackle next year.
"I have no idea," Tauscher said of whether he'll be back with the Packers in 2009. "I really don't know."
Though Tauscher was a better fit for former coach Mike Sherman's power run game than coach Mike McCarthy's zone-blocking scheme, he's been a consistent and proficient pass blocker. This season, he's allowed only one sack, according to Stats, an independent statistical firm, as opposed to his six sacks allowed last year.
The Packers also have defended Tauscher's run blocking in the zone scheme the past 2½ years — among other things, the zone scheme places a heavy emphasis on effective cut blocking on the back side of plays — and the coaching staff still appears to have great faith in him because of his reliable health and overall ability. In the last 5½ seasons, Tauscher has missed only five of 88 games.
"Last game he had 10 guys he knocked off their feet, he had four cuts on the back side," said James Campen, the Packers' offensive line coach. "Against that defense, Tennessee, the way they play, that's pretty good. He can do it."
Joe Philbin, the Packers' offensive coordinator, said: "(He's holding up) pretty well. He practices all the time. Very, very dependable."
The Packers might be waiting to monitor Tauscher's health and production the second half of the season before deciding whether to re-sign him, and if they feel good about that, could offer him an extension the last week or two of the regular season. But if they decide the risk of injury or risk in a drop in performance is high for the cost, they'll also have to feel good enough about either Giacomini or perhaps Tony Moll as a successor before replacing him.
Moll, a third-year pro, needed a strong rally during the second half of training camp to make the final roster, and his role in the NFL might be as a backup guard and right tackle rather than as a starter.
Giacomini probably is the better long-term prospect because of his tremendous size (6-foot-7, 311 pounds). He moved from tight end to right tackle for only his last 1½ seasons of college at Louisville and entered the NFL as a developmental prospect. The Packers say he's made huge strides.
For the first week or so of camp, the Packers' defensive ends ran over Giacomini on almost every snap of one-on-one pass blocking while he adjusted to the techniques the Packers teach, but he improved enough as camp went on to win a spot on the 53-man roster.
Though Giacomini has been active for only two regular-season games and has played in only one on special teams, he works in practice every day as the scout team right tackle against two-time Pro Bowl defensive end Aaron Kampman.
"He's gotten a real good education on the pace you need to play at and the speed you need to play at to be successful in the league," Philbin said. "He appears to be a good effort player. He's got some feet for a big man, we think he bends pretty well for a big guy, moves well, so we're kind of excited about him."
Still, it's a big question whether he'd be ready to play at a solid starter's level by next year. With Giacomini's height, he'll have to learn to play with low pads on every snap so that smaller but powerful defensive ends don't gain the leverage advantage on him when he's run blocking. If he can do that, he has the power to get good push in the run game, and he also has the kind of mean streak teams covet in offensive linemen.
"He displays that every day, a very tough, physical kid that has learned to play with a controlled-type rage," Campen said. "That's to his credit. You can be overaggressive and screw yourself up and start making mistakes. He's learned to control that and put it into his functions, his work, his footwork, techniques."
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