Sure looked more like football as the second week of training camp began for the Green Bay Packers. Players dropped shoulder pads for the first time and come Tuesday, they’ll be in full pads. Another one hour, forty minute practice inside the Don Hutson Center and then out on Ray Nitschke Field went through the familiar individual and group drills and finished with another set of competitive two minute drills.
Aaron Rodgers smartly moved the first team offense from his 25 to the red zone 10 yard line. He spread the ball around to Juwann Winfree, Dominic Dafney, Sammy Watkins (back in team periods), Allen Lazard and Josiah Deguara which led to a spike with :11 left. Two shots to the end zone were broken up, first by a diving Darnell Savage and then Adrian Amos probably should have had an athletic interception. The Rodgers-led drive settled for a Gabe Brkic field goal.
Jordan Love had a three and out possession on Saturday and this one didn’t finish well either. On third and long, it was a late, inaccurate pass over the middle, a recipe for trouble and back up safety Vernon Scott made the easy pick and he had room to run, probably to the house.
With only shoulder pads, the defensive front got lower and better pad level against the offensive line, really mucking up running plays in other team periods. In the first one of practice, the offense looked a bit out of sorts. Dean Lowry tipped one Rodgers pass, the quarterback threw an out and up when Lazard ran an out and Jon Runyan had a false start.
The passing game had some good moments and something Rodgers said last week was brought up to LaFleur pre-practice. Rodgers said Davante Adams accounted for about 80% of the passing game last season. Sounds awfully high, but was he accurate coach?
LaFleur said it’s up to the new corps of receivers to pick up that considerable slack:
LaFleur said the utilization of Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon in tandem is another game plan specific option to perhaps lesson the growing pains of the pass game. It’s all a part of the offensive system that LaFleur said has not seen that many changes to the playbook with Adams’ departure.
In Special Teams periods, Brkic, the rookie free agent from Oklahoma and the only leg going these days with Mason Crosby still on the PUP list, knocked through five six (outside of the 2 minute drill finisher). He hit three straight from 45 to 49 yards dealing with a decent side wind. Next set had him hit 2 of three, missing wide left but finishing good from 51.
The return of Watkins to team drills was the only real personnel difference from Saturday. The following players are still on the shelf, David Bakhtiari, Elgton Jenkins, Robert Tonyan, Christian Watson, Malik Taylor, Kylin Hill and Keisean Nixon.
Fewer players are wearing Guardian Caps. Only the offensive linemen, tight ends, defensive linemen and linebackers donned the protective gear over their helmets. The NFL doesn’t require them for quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, secondary players and specialists.
Teaching an old “Big Dog” new tricks. TE coach John Dunn chats up Marcedes Lewis.
The day actually began with LaFleur making a nice play. Entering the media auditorium for his pre-practice news conference, he went right to Wed Hodkiewicz and tossed him a 10 dollar bill. Paying up on last week’s doomed lottery parlay. “Keep the change” he deadpanned.
