RaiderPride
14 years ago
From ESPN




Green Bay Packers
Training camp site: Team facility in Green Bay, Wis.


Campfires
At least two and possibly three positions on the offensive line are up for grabs as the Packers transition to a younger -- and, they hope, bigger -- offensive line. Jason Spitz seems primed to overtake veteran Scott Wells at center, while Allen Barbre is hoping to hold off rookie T.J. Lang for the right to replace Mark Tauscher at right tackle. And if Wells wins the center job, Spitz could move to right guard and compete with Josh Sitton.

Got all that? Because there's plenty of competition elsewhere on this team. The Packers moved back into the first round of the April draft to grab outside linebacker Clay Matthews, but a spring hamstring injury allowed second-year player Jeremy Thompson to grab hold of the job seemingly designated for Matthews. Thompson will spend training camp trying to hold off Matthews.

Elsewhere, the Packers will have an intriguing (if somewhat inside baseball) competition for their No. 3 receiver position behind Greg Jennings and Donald Driver. James Jones' playmaking skills would seem to give him the edge over 2008 top pick Jordy Nelson, but Jones' injury troubles last season make him an unknown quantity this summer.

Camp will be a downer if ...
... one of the Packers' two backup quarterbacks doesn't demonstrate substantial improvement. Matt Flynn and Brian Brohm got rookie exceptions last year, but neither ran the offense smoothly during minicamp last month.

Brohm's case is especially interesting. He flopped last summer after the Packers made him a second-round pick, by default leaving the No. 2 job to Flynn. If Brohm wants to restore his track as the Packers' top backup and a future starter (for another team), he'll have to get it turned around in camp this summer. Otherwise, he'll be buried on the depth chart for another year.

Camp will be a success if ...
...the Packers can demonstrate mental proficiency with the 3-4 defense. There is little doubt that retrofitting the personnel base will take some time. But if the Packers can master the different alignments and strategies typically employed by coordinator Dom Capers, they'll almost certainly improve their defensive proficiency from a year ago.

Capers and his staff are good teachers, and it's reasonable to expect Packers players to have absorbed the mental part of this new scheme.

A true one-two punch?
Training camp would be a nice time for someone to step in as a legitimate second option behind tailback Ryan Grant. One question the Packers would like to solve: Do they have someone on the roster who provides a stylistic complement to Grant?

Is Brandon Jackson the best answer? You could make an argument that his style isn't different enough from Grant to make him a viable option. Could that person be DeShawn Wynn? Or possibly Kregg Lumpkin? The Packers would like to leave camp with a firm idea on whether they have someone they can consistently rotate into the lineup for strategic purposes.
""People Will Probably Never Remember What You Said, And May Never Remember What You Did. However, People Will Always Remember How You Made Them Feel."
Dulak
14 years ago
Interesting article ...

my comments -

- I like the offensive line competition. Ie we need a goodline this year. No more 34 sacks allowed.

- Whats up with collins? He still holding out for more $?

- I'm a bit interested in the ROLB position - thompson or matthews

- IMO it will be a no brainer that jones takes over the 3 spot. He seemed to indicate he no longer sufferes from his injuries as he did last season. He was a nice go to guy in 07; would expect him to do just as well this coming year.

- as far as the RB issues ... to be honest I'd rather they bench grant and use jackson and wynn of lumpkin or the new guy they are working.
but whatever - grant got his money so I assume they will make him work for it.

I cant wait for some nice preseason games where we can actually talk about something other then theory
shield4life
14 years ago
- Jones could take over the 3rd spot but depending on how much Nelson has developed since last year. Great potential in Jordy for this year and the future.

- I love Grant, I just hope he pans out to be like 2 years ago.
Glad To Be A Packers Fan.
14 years ago
Poppinga is the starter. This out of touch ESPN crap is never correct.
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Rockmolder
14 years ago

Poppinga is the starter. This out of touch ESPN crap is never correct.

"CaliforniaCheez" wrote:



I doubt it. I'd like someone who can at least rush the QB a little opposite of Kampman. So far, Poppinga hasn't gotten us any pressure on the QB at all. The rest of his numbers have been average at best as well. If Thompson can even resemble a Lamar Lathon (LB who played opposite of Greene under Dom Capers) or a player like Shaun Phillips, I think he'll get the nod. Mainly because he has tons of potential and can still grow a lot. Poppinga, on the other hand, has been on his current level for about 3 years. Of course, he could excel in this scheme but I doubt it.

Apart from that, we still have a 1st round LB waiting. I have a feeling that if he might become the starter, he could put up numbers comparable to Poppinga's, but get some more QB pressures.
earthquake
14 years ago
I dont think its really that big of a deal which one is the #3 or #4 WR, they will both see heavy playing time, nelson will probably see a lot of time in run formations, considering his size and blocking ability.
blank
Dulak
14 years ago
Was going to point out - that chillar should be a sure thing as a ILB on passing downs (IMO he's our best coverage guy).
Fan Shout
dfosterf (20h) : The only problem with that is he isn't a guard either.
dfosterf (21h) : Put him at right guard. That is where he will be coached. That is where he will compete. He is not even allowed to look at the LT playbook.
dfosterf (18-Apr) : Kidding aside, I hope the best for him.
dfosterf (18-Apr) : Went to a Titans board. One comment there. Not very long. I quote: "LOL" They don't sound overly upset about our aquisition.
beast (18-Apr) : OT Dillard has been absolutely horrible... like OG Newman levels
dfosterf (18-Apr) : Suit him up and have him stand in front of the big board as a draft day cautionary tale.
Zero2Cool (18-Apr) : Packers sign T Andre Dillard.
Mucky Tundra (18-Apr) : Adds most of the information this time of year comes from agents.
Mucky Tundra (18-Apr) : @RealAlexBarth Bill Belichick says accurate draft information doesn't leak from teams until about 12 hours before the draft. Adds most of th
Mucky Tundra (18-Apr) : I am very happy that for moment, Jordan Love seems like a normal human being
Zero2Cool (17-Apr) : Belichick * whatever
Zero2Cool (17-Apr) : "There's a lot of depth at Offensive Tackle and Wide Receiver." Bill Bellichick
Zero2Cool (17-Apr) : Thanks! I can't believe it's over haha
Martha Careful (16-Apr) : Congratulations
Zero2Cool (16-Apr) : Boom. Student Loan. $0.00. Only took about 20 years.
Zero2Cool (14-Apr) : Packers DT Kenny Clark: New defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley will 'allow us to be way more disruptive'
Zero2Cool (12-Apr) : Saints have agreed to terms on a contract with former Packers wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown.
beast (12-Apr) : No, but of it's for legislation, then half of the country will find it evil, not good, whatever it says....
Mucky Tundra (12-Apr) : Draft is still 2 weeks away. UGH
dhazer (11-Apr) : Does anyone know of a good AI generator to create letters of Support for legislation?
Zero2Cool (11-Apr) : Gordon "Red" Batty retires as equipment manager
Zero2Cool (10-Apr) : Sounds like that's pretty certain now.
Zero2Cool (10-Apr) : Packers "at" Eagles in Brazil. Week One
dfosterf (10-Apr) : Va' Fazer As Malas Va' !
Zero2Cool (9-Apr) : Mark Murphy tipping us off?
Zero2Cool (9-Apr) : “We’re either the first- or second-most popular team in Brazil.”
Zero2Cool (9-Apr) : Christian Watson got married. Wife better be careful with those hamstrings!! 😂😂
dfosterf (9-Apr) : Those poor bastards
Zero2Cool (8-Apr) : Falcons have signed former Packers CB Kevin King, who has been out of football since 2021.
dfosterf (8-Apr) : Collectively, we need to spend more time in what we have, when analyzing ostendible needs and historical proclivities
dfosterf (8-Apr) : I say he is better than so many of these draft picks
dfosterf (8-Apr) : Question of the week for me: Has anyone besides me done any deep dive into the potential of Alex McGough, our 3rd string qb?
Zero2Cool (8-Apr) : Or in Tunsil's case, something gets released day of draft or day before lol
Zero2Cool (8-Apr) : Seems every year someone does something pre-draft.
dfosterf (8-Apr) : Falling down drunk. The draft board
dfosterf (8-Apr) : Allright! Potential character guy/f#×k up pickup in D'Vondre Sweat!
Zero2Cool (7-Apr) : Go Badgers!!!
Martha Careful (6-Apr) : Go Boilermakers!!!
Martha Careful (5-Apr) : Diggs has not stepped up in the playoffs and has a high cost
beast (5-Apr) : Probably not going to let Diggs walk away unless he's horrible... but according to reports he also might not be as good as he used to be.
beast (5-Apr) : The 25th pick in the draft has been an offensive player since 2017, 2 TE, 2 WR, 1 RB, 1 OC
Mucky Tundra (5-Apr) : Odd, why give up a 2025 2nd Rounder for him if you're just gonna let him walk?
Zero2Cool (4-Apr) : Texans to let Diggs be free agent in '25
buckeyepackfan (4-Apr) : 49r's aign RB Patrick Taylor.
Martha Careful (4-Apr) : Reversion to the mean would indicate we will keep it
Zero2Cool (4-Apr) : It's also been utilized in a trade in 14 of the past 20 years
Zero2Cool (4-Apr) : The 25th pick in the draft hasn't been made by it's original holder since 2016.
Mucky Tundra (4-Apr) : Gotta imagine that Green Bay vs Houston will be a primetime game this upcoming season
Zero2Cool (3-Apr) : No. Kill QB. No worries. 😁
Mucky Tundra (3-Apr) : Diggs, Collins, Dell and Schultz is gonna be tough to cover
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