Zero2Cool
15 years ago
Web Page Name 

[img_r]http://wauk-am.tritondigitalmedia.com/includes/news_items/40/3402/quinnporterlocker.jpg[/img_r]GREEN BAY Act like youve been there before, Quinn Porter kept telling himself. Act like youve been there before.

He couldnt, of course. He hadnt been there before. This was his first time in an NFL locker room -- the Green Bay Packers locker room, for this weekends rookie orientation camp and it was all just so overwhelming.

Id like to sit here and tell you a fairy tale and say that it wasnt overwhelming, but Id be lying, the rookie running back said, smiling from ear to ear as he sat in his locker in the auxiliary area of the locker room. Ive been holding back tears since I got off the plane on Thursday. Seeing that G, it represents something. Theres a lot of history here. Ive been laughing, but I want to cry. Its very emotional for me. Its my dream.

To document that dream come true, Porter used the video camera on his BlackBerry to film a panorama of the locker room, his name plate above his locker, the Packers three Lombardi Trophies and whatever other memorable sights he could fit into its memory card.

Im taking everything in, and its a lot all at once, Porter said. When I get home, Ill show my pops. My pops is real excited that Im here. Ive been working hard since I was 8 years old for this.

Im so happy. I heard if you fall asleep in a meeting, you get fined. That wont be a problem with me. Im too excited. Im here for a reason. Its going to be fun.

Porter is the Packers 11 undrafted free agents participating in the camp, along with Miami cornerback/returner Sam Shields, South Dakota quarterback Noah Shepard, Fresno State wide receiver Chastin West, Central Michigan linebacker Frank Zombo, Temple linebacker Alex Joseph, Stephen F. Austin linebacker Tim Knicky, Wake Forest linebacker John Russell, Grand Valley State guard Nick McDonald, Eastern Illinois tackle Chris Campbell, and Texas-El Paso wide receiver Jeff Moturi.

Hes also one of the longer long-shots among them.

Starting at the bottom

At little Stillman College (enrollment: 915), a Division II school in Tuscaloosa, Ala., that competes in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, he led the SIAC with 1,247 yards last season and scored 11 touchdowns but went undrafted. Now, hes here, where hes at the bottom of the running back depth chart behind Ryan Grant, Brandon Jackson, Kregg Lumpkin and rookie sixth-round pick James Starks.

I dont look at the depth chart. Just seeing my name on my locker, it feels good, Porter said, still grinning. I was pretty optimistic going into the draft. Im a very optimistic person. So I thought I was going to get picked up in the fifth, sixth, seventh round. That didnt happen. Got called by the Colts, they were looking at me; got called by the Jaguars, they were looking at me. So every time they were on the clock, Id be in front of the TV going, Cmon, call me! Call me! Im worth it! Im worth it!

And then Green Bay, out of the blue They called me two weeks before the draft, one time. And I didnt know if I was still on their radar or not. And here I am.

Hes not the only one whos amazed.

Its surreal. Ive actually taken pictures on my cell phone and sent them to my parents and my girlfriend a picture from the top of Lambeau at night (from Thursday nights dinner), my name on the locker, my jersey with Zombo on the back. Its like Halloween when you dress up. Only now, its real, said Zombo, whos not only transitioning from college to pro football but also moving from defensive end in a 4-3 defense to outside linebacker in a 3-4.

Now, I want to stay here. (To do that), obviously you have to keep working. You cant let it overwhelm you. In the end, its football.

More than just happy to be here

But therein lies the challenge facing Zombo, Porter and the rest of the Packers undrafted free agents (not to mention the 28 players participating only on a tryout basis): Just happy to be here doesnt cut it.

I think its perfectly normal for guys to feel like that, said Packers general manager Ted Thompson, who made the Houston Oilers roster in 1975 as an undrafted free agent back when the draft was 17 rounds long. But theyll put those feelings away after a day or so and theyll know theyre here for business, to make the team and help this team win. Thats their sole purpose for being here, and its a challenge.

Back when Thompson, who addressed the players Friday morning, was a rookie linebacker coming out of Southern Methodist, there were no such things as rookie orientation camps, organized team activity practices or mandatory minicamps. Back then, training camp started before the Fourth of July for rookies, with the veterans reporting roughly three weeks later, after the rookie herd was thinned.

I was there with about 130 rookies, and they cut 30 that first afternoon because they didnt have enough beds, Thompson recalled.

The numbers arent quite as long for the Packers group, although of the 28 tryout players, only two or three of them if that will be kept past the weekend. Then, theyll join the 11 undrafted signees in what might be a fight for only one roster spot.

You just have to be confident, said Shepard, a four-year starter at South Dakota. As time goes on and you get more comfortable with the playbook and things like that, things will start to slow down. Dont get me wrong. The biggest thing for me is the playbook. Weve already installed about the size of my college playbook in two days.

It can be done

Despite those challenges, in four of the five years since Thompson took over as GM in 2005, at least one undrafted free agent the team had signed immediately following the draft wound up making the 53-man roster coming out of training camp: Offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith of Idaho State last year; Lumpkin, from Georgia, in 2008; defensive tackle Daniel Muir from Kent State in 2007; and linebacker Roy Manning of Michigan and offensive lineman Chris White of Southern Mississippi in 2005.

They are proof that the odds can be overcome.

I know exactly what these guys are feeling, because I felt the same way when I was in here last year, said Dietrich-Smith, who was working out and happened to be in the locker room Friday while Porter was filming his video. Youre excited to be there, but now you have to realize that you really have to focus this is your job.

You just have to go fast and act like you know what youre doing. They throw a whole lot at you real fast, they give you your playbook and theyre like, Hey, be there tomorrow, know it, execute it. It was definitely overwhelming at first, but by the last day, youre running the same plays, you kind of start to get what you need to do. By the third day, if you show a lot of improvement, thats going to open some eyes.

Thats exactly what Porter plans on doing but not just during the rookie camp, which ends on Sunday, but throughout OTAs, minicamp and training camp, too.

Im going to bring a lot to this team. Green Bays going to benefit from bringing me in, Porter said, the smile still as wide as ever. Its going to be a ride. I cant wait. Im going to show yall a lot. You (reporters) are going to be in my face a lot the next couple weeks. Because Im about to shine a light big time.


UserPostedImage
15 years ago

Porter is the Packers 11 undrafted free agents participating in the camp

"Zero2Cool" wrote:



I am LEGION, for we are many!!

"Quinn Porter" wrote:


I agree with Twinkiegorilla.

bozz_2006 wrote:


British
15 years ago
Porter has at least a shot looking at the current roster.

If we only take 2 FBs this year then that has the potential to open up a roster spot for a 4th RB. Most likely he'll have to show some skills on special teams, ideally as a returner, for that to happen.

Good story from Ted about his rookie year.
UserPostedImage
Cheesey
15 years ago
I can only imagine what it would be like to see your name in the locker room.
That would be a dream come true.
I wish the kid well.
UserPostedImage
Fan Shout
wpr (30-May) : It's all good.
beast (30-May) : Yeah, and I enjoyed your comments and just attempted to add to it. Sorry if I did it incorrectly.
wpr (30-May) : Beast I never said Henderson was the salt of the earth. Nor even that he was correct. Just quoting the guy.
Zero2Cool (29-May) : What did you do??
Zero2Cool (29-May) : Whoa
beast (29-May) : OMG the website is now all white, even some white on white text
beast (29-May) : Henderson, who admits to taking cocaine during the Super Bowl against the Steelers, might dislike Bradshaw as he lost two Superbowls to him
wpr (28-May) : Hollywood Henderson said Bradshaw “is so dumb, he couldn't spell 'cat' if you spotted him the C and an A.”
Mucky Tundra (28-May) : Cooper stock=BUY BUY BUY
Mucky Tundra (28-May) : Also notes he’s playing with more confidence.
Mucky Tundra (28-May) : @AndyHermanNFL MLF says there was a time last year where Cooper was at 220 pounds. Now he’s at 240 and still flying around.
Mucky Tundra (28-May) : And don't even get me started on Frank Caliendos "impersonations"
Mucky Tundra (28-May) : I got tired of them being circle jerks with them overlaughing at each others jokes.
Zero2Cool (28-May) : It used to be must watch TV for me. now it's "meh" maybe to hear injury update
Mucky Tundra (28-May) : I haven't watched the pregame shows in years and I don't feel like I've missed a thing
Zero2Cool (28-May) : Love says knee affected him all season, groin injury didn't help matters.
Zero2Cool (28-May) : I used to enjoy him on FOX Pregame. Now it's like a frat party of former Patriots.
Zero2Cool (28-May) : LaFleur on Watson: “Christian is doing outstanding. I would say he’s ahead of schedule.”
Martha Careful (28-May) : Bradshaw is a dumb ass cracker. I am so tired of his "aw shucks" diatribe. He should shrivel up and go away.
buckeyepackfan (28-May) : He wad all butt hurt because Aaron duped the media saying he was immunized.
buckeyepackfan (28-May) : Bradshaw needs to retire. He's been ripping on Rodgers ever since the covid crap. He was all hury
Zero2Cool (28-May) : Terry Bradshaw doesn't want Rodgers in Pittsburgh lol wow
Zero2Cool (27-May) : one day contract, which he also feels is pointless, but if Packers came to him, he would
packerfanoutwest (27-May) : Aaron Rodgers talks possibility of retiring with Packers, just another rumor
dfosterf (27-May) : Go watch 2001
Zero2Cool (26-May) : 1984
dfosterf (26-May) : That movie sent a chill through many. 1968.
dfosterf (26-May) : "Open the pod bay doors, HAL"
buckeyepackfan (25-May) : Haven't we all seen thus movie? It doesn't end well!! Lol
Zero2Cool (25-May) : lol Anthropic’s new AI model turns to blackmail when engineers try to take it offline
dfosterf (25-May) : Claude Opus 4
dfosterf (25-May) : AI system resorts to blackmail when its developers threaten to take it offline
beast (22-May) : Colts Owner Jim Irsay has passed away
Zero2Cool (21-May) : Well, emailing should work now. After not working for almost a year. Oops.
Zero2Cool (21-May) : Brotherly Shove did not get enough votes.
Zero2Cool (20-May) : lol our email hasn't worked in months. 7 pages of unverified users
Zero2Cool (20-May) : MySpace Screaming Lord Byron ... Brett Favre.
Zero2Cool (19-May) : Packers have signed first-round pick Matthew Golden, leaving second-round tackle Anthony Belton as their only unsigned draft pick
beast (19-May) : Supposedly he has to take his image, and name off of it... but otherwise could keep selling wine if he wanted to.
Zero2Cool (19-May) : he giving up his win business?
beast (19-May) : Speaking of Woodson, sounds like he'll be a minority owner (0.1%) of the Browns
Mucky Tundra (15-May) : Zero, regarding Woodson, that'd why I find the timing with Williams peculiar
dfosterf (15-May) : Ryan Hall y'all does a great job of tracking thesr
Zero2Cool (15-May) : Fear not!! I planned to do 33mi bike ride tomorrow morning, so ... yeah
Zero2Cool (15-May) : We got some dark clouds and nasty winds right bout now.
Zero2Cool (15-May) : Madison they had hail 4pm.
dfosterf (15-May) : Sure looks like these tornadoes are headed towards Green Bay
Zero2Cool (15-May) : Woodson of Charles fame was reluctant and then loved it. that didn't really come out until post career
Mucky Tundra (15-May) : IE "We bought into the Bears and they let us down, we have no choice to seek alternatives"
Mucky Tundra (15-May) : Or that Williams and his family are preparing an exit ramp if they don't like how things are going in a few years
Please sign in to use Fan Shout
2025 Packers Schedule
Sunday, Sep 7 @ 3:25 PM
LIONS
Thursday, Sep 11 @ 7:15 PM
COMMANDERS
Sunday, Sep 21 @ 12:00 PM
Browns
Sunday, Sep 28 @ 7:20 PM
Cowboys
Sunday, Oct 12 @ 3:25 PM
BENGALS
Sunday, Oct 19 @ 3:25 PM
Cardinals
Sunday, Oct 26 @ 7:20 PM
Steelers
Sunday, Nov 2 @ 12:00 PM
PANTHERS
Monday, Nov 10 @ 7:15 PM
EAGLES
Sunday, Nov 16 @ 12:00 PM
Giants
Sunday, Nov 23 @ 12:00 PM
VIKINGS
Thursday, Nov 27 @ 12:00 PM
Lions
Sunday, Dec 7 @ 12:00 PM
BEARS
Sunday, Dec 14 @ 3:25 PM
Broncos
Friday, Dec 19 @ 11:00 PM
Bears
Friday, Dec 26 @ 11:00 PM
RAVENS
Saturday, Jan 3 @ 11:00 PM
Vikings
Recent Topics
1h / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

29-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / Martha Careful

27-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / Zero2Cool

27-May / Random Babble / Martha Careful

24-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

24-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

23-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / greengold

23-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / earthquake

22-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

22-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / bboystyle

21-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / greengold

21-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / earthquake

20-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

19-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

19-May / Green Bay Packers Talk / Zero2Cool

Headlines
Copyright © 2006 - 2025 PackersHome.com™. All Rights Reserved.