Mike McCarthy talked more about who isn’t going to play right guard for the Green Bay Packers this season than who will line up at T.J. Lang's old spot on the offensive line.

It won’t be Jason Spriggs.

Jason Spriggs filled in at guard last season, but the Packers believe he has a future at left tackle and don't want to move him inside. Rick Wood/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via USA TODAY Network

And it doesn’t sound like it will be Bryan Bulaga.

Both will remain as tackles along with David Bakhtiari, who is entrenched at left tackle after he signed a four-year, $48 million contract extension last September.

"I really don’t want to get into that, but I will say this: Bryan Bulaga, I thought had his best year at right tackle last year," McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday in Phoenix during a break at the NFL annual meetings. "And I’m not really looking to move him because I think -- I don’t think, I know -- that Bryan and David gave us an outstanding combination of right and left tackle play."

Spriggs started two games at right guard last season as a rookie while Lang was sidelined because of a broken foot, but McCarthy and offensive line coach James Campen believe Spriggs is a future starting tackle, so they don’t want to inhibit his work at that spot by playing out of position.

"He’s a tackle, and the first thing you have to say about Jason is he can play left tackle in this league, and that’s huge," McCarthy said. "That’s a priority position in my view. That tells you the importance that he has to our offensive line. I think we’re very fortunate we have David, Bryan Bulaga and Jason, so we have three high-quality tackles."

So where does that leave McCarthy and Campen after Lang signed a three-year, $28.5 million contract with the Detroit Lions this month?

"It’s about opportunities," McCarthy said. "That spot is obviously open, and how those players will be challenged and the opportunities in front of them, that’s really what the spring is for."

The Packers have some other internal options if they don’t sign someone in free agency or draft a possible immediate starter. Among them is last year’s sixth-round pick Kyle Murphy, who played tackle in college but might be better suited as a guard in the NFL. The Packers also are high on another second-year player, Lucas Patrick, who spent all of his rookie year last season on the practice squad. Patrick, an undrafted free agent, is a natural guard. Veteran Don Barclay also is a fallback option.

"We have very good numbers on our offensive line," McCarthy said. "I really like the offensive line group and I look for that offensive group to grow both in on-the-field production with their opportunities for a number of different players that are already here, and I look for that group to really step up in the area of leadership."

Lang was one of seven veterans the Packers lost since the start of free agency, but it might have been the toughest for McCarthy to see walk out the door. The Packers made a latch-ditch effort to keep Lang, but general manager Ted Thompson’s offer didn’t come close enough to the money the Lions gave him.

"T.J. has a tremendous financial opportunity in front of him, and that’s a very positive thing for him and his family," McCarthy said. "So, there’s more to this than the game of football. It is about maximizing opportunity. You do want all your guys back. That’s really a constant conversation between Ted and I. We focus on our own players. The result of who gets signed and why they didn’t get signed, that’s really irrelevant in my view. Negotiations are tough on both sides, don’t get it wrong. But everybody has to make a business decision that’s best for them and their family. I respect that. But our focus is clearly on trying to sign our own players back.”

ESPN's Kevin Seifert contributed to this report.