His memory is hazy. Derek Sherrod can't exactly remember the last time he lined up at offensive guard. Throughout college at Mississippi State he was a tackle. Every game, no questions asked.
So for a few moments, he was stumped.
"Maybe I played (guard) back in high school a little bit," Sherrod said.
Two practices in, he's brushing away the cobwebs. With Daryn Colledge gone to the Arizona Cardinals, left guard is one of the few starting positions up for grabs. Sherrod was drafted in the first round as a potential heir to Chad Clifton. But Saturday and Sunday he has worked with the first team at guard.
Sherrod has a left tackle's physique. Known as a nimble pass blocker in college, he's 6-foot-5, 320 pounds. In any pickup basketball game, he's the first overall pick. Though the tackle-to-guard shift is certainly nothing new in Green Bay, it could be quite an adjustment. Sherrod played 49 games (47 starts) on the outside with Mississippi State. With a shrug, Sherrod says it's no big deal.
"It's not too much of a difference going from tackle," said Sherrod, who trained with the Mississippi State football team all off-season. "You have to know all the positions anyways. It's just a little bit different with technique."
Here in Green Bay, coach Mike McCarthy said it's easier to play on the outside than the inside. The closer linemen are to the football, the more duties they have. Different players - notably T.J. Lang and Nick McDonald - will be rotated into the left guard spot through camp. Whoever excels will see more reps at practice. For now, Sherrod has the hot hand.
"I thought (Sherrod) did OK with this being his first time out there playing guard," McCarthy said. "There's a lot of information and a lot of communication going on. It's going to take some time and it's going to take some reps."
When the Packers drafted him, Sherrod had no clue the team would move him to guard. He was able to talk to coaches briefly after the draft when the lockout was lifted but not about the game plan. Saturday's audition - albeit in helmets - was a total surprise. For now, he has no preference. The biggest difference is working in tandem with the center each play.
Sherrod doesn't feel too uncomfortable yet.
"It shouldn't be too much of a transition, maybe alternating your stance a little bit," Sherrod said. "In tackle, you're in a two-point and a three-point stance. At guard, you're always in a three-point."
Lang, the de facto veteran in this left-guard derby, was not surprised that coaches gave Sherrod the nod first. Rookies need reps, he says. No need to read too much into anything.
A utility player at both guard and tackle the last two seasons, Lang has been inconsistent. This could be a make-or-break camp for him. With McDonald sitting in the next locker, his nose buried in a playbook, Lang promised the battle will be a long one.
"The depth chart is something we can't control," he said. "We'll just go where they want us to go and try to do our best when we get the opportunity. It's a competition. Nobody will win in the first day or two."