GREEN BAY, Wis. – Maybe it was that the annual shareholders meeting was also scheduled for Monday. Maybe it was the belief that the Pack Is Back after a short hiatus. Whatever the reason, Day 1 of Green Bay Packers training camp had a different feel. The bleachers were filled and several rows of fans watched on the ends along the adjacent streets during Day 1 of camp.
Here are the highlights from the practice, which was conducted in shorts and helmets.
Jordan Love’s Day
Other than increase his intake of Vitamin D, quarterback Jordan Love didn’t do anything on Monday as he waits for the Packers and his agents to hammer out a contract extension. At least Love was there – and has been there. For most of practice, he stood behind the offense watching Sean Clifford run the show.
“I think the one thing I would say about Jordan is he’s not in California,” Clifford said. “He’s here, he’s at every single meeting, he’s been through all of OTAs and now he’s got to handle what he’s got to handle. But he’s in the meetings, he’s going to be at all the walkthroughs, he’s not missing a beat. He’s talking to me, he’s out there at practice, so it speaks volumes of who he is and his character.”
Player of the Day
There’s a lot of hype surrounding receiver Dontayvion Wicks, and for good reason.
A fifth-round pick last year, he was an impact player for most of his rookie season. The 19th receiver selected was fourth in explosive receptions (a catch of 16-plus yards) and fifth in yards per route, and he torched Stephon Gilmore for a touchdown in the playoff win at Dallas.
He made a couple of big-time catches on Monday. First, he made a diving catch at the pylon despite strong coverage by rookie safety Javon Bullard. Later, he made another tumbling catch at the 1 against cornerback Gemon Green.
Play of the Day
Take what happens in the trenches during these noncontact practices with a grain of salt. With that said, these plays are emblematic of what the Packers are hoping to get from their front in the new defense.
During the second play of a red-zone period, defensive end Rashan Gary stormed around the corner for a “sack” of Sean Clifford. On the next play, defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt had an excellent bull rush and Gary again got around right tackle Andre Dillard. One play later, second-year defensive tackles Karl Brooks and Colby Wooden sent Clifford scurrying out of the pocket.
Packers Injury Report
Did not practice: RB MarShawn Lloyd (hip).
PUP and NFI: WR Jayden Reed (toe), CB Corey Ballentine (hamstring), G Donovan Jennings (knee), TE Tucker Kraft (pectoral), OT Caleb Jones (hamstring).
Activated from PUP: RT Zach Tom (pectoral).
Tom missed OTAs and minicamp after suffering a torn pectoral while bench pressing during the offseason workouts. He’ll probably be limited to individual drills for at least the first week.
“It was great,” he said. “Obviously, first day of camp is always a big day in the year. It was good. Obviously, going through OTAs, just watching from the sideline, that’s tough, so it was good to be back out there going through drills again and just being out there with the guys and not just having to watch from the side.”
Lloyd said he was injured during the team’s rookie practices a few days ago. He’ll be back “sooner rather than later,” he said.
Practice Highlights
It was a short practice. And it wasn’t live. So, it’s a relatively short list of highlights compared to what’s to come when camp really gets rolling.
- The first play of camp? A handoff to AJ Dillon for a nice gain.
- The second play of camp? A screen to Dillon that was shut down by linebacker Eric Wilson.
- Speaking of running backs, Emanuel Wilson had a big run around left end – Lukas Van Ness was the defender to that side – and then had a nice cutback on a run to the right.
- The rookie defenders followed up with a couple nice plays. First, fourth-round safety Evan Williams immediately “tackled” tight end Ben Sims on a bootleg. Next, third-round linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper jetted into the backfield to stop running back Ellis Merriweather.
- The team moved into the red zone for the final 11-on-11 periods. The first play was the aforementioned 10-yard touchdown catch by Dontayvion Wicks against Javon Bullard.
- The defense won four of the next six plays with the Rashan Gary sack, the Devonte Wyatt-Gary pressure, the Karl Brooks-Colby Wooden pressure and Kingsley Enagbare getting around Andre Dillard to force a throwaway.
- In between, Romeo Doubs shook Keisean Nixon for a 4-yard touchdown in the flat against Keisean Nixon.
- After a field-goal period, it was back to the red zone. First, Doubs ran away from Bullard on a crossing route for a 14-yard touchdown. Clifford, who was mostly sharp after a tough minicamp, had three consecutive incompletions. First, he threw a bad ball that hit Tyler Davis in the ankle. Next, he couldn’t quite connect with Samori Toure while on the move. Finally, he had to throw an attempted screen to Josh Jacobs into the dirt.
- The final play of red zone resulted in a Clifford-to-Malik Heath touchdown against Bullard.
- The Packers have three kickers. Only one of them kicked. Rookie James Turner, who was signed a month ago to challenge Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph, went 4-of-6. He had a pair of three-kick sequences, and he missed the last kick in each. His makes were from 33, 38, 41 and 44 yards. His misses were from 43 and 46. On the final kick, the 46-yarder, rookie Peter Bowden’s snap was a bit high, though it might not have factored in the result.
Lineup Notes
- When the defense was at full strength through the offseason practices, it was always Xavier McKinney and Anthony Johnson getting the first snaps at safety. Not anymore. Rookie Javon Bullard officially is No. 1 on the depth chart. He took the No. 1 reps with McKinney throughout practice.
“It’s definitely important to me,” Bullard said. “I want to play. Wherever the coaches see that be, that’s on them.”
- The first snap on offense: Rasheed Walker at left tackle, Elgton Jenkins at left guard, Josh Myers at center, Sean Rhyan at right guard and Andre Dillard at right tackle, Luke Musgrave at tight end, Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson and Dontayvion Wicks as the receivers, Josh Jacobs at running back and Sean Clifford at quarterback.
- The first snap on defense: Rashan Gary, Kenny Clark, TJ Slaton and Preston Smith on the defensive line, Quay Walker and Isaiah McDuffie as the linebackers, Jaire Alexander and Eric Stokes at cornerback, McKinney and Bullard at safety and Keisean Nixon in the slot. In the base defense, Eric Wilson and Edgerrin Cooper had their reps alongside Walker and McDuffie.
- First-round pick Jordan Morgan, who got the crowd fired up at the start of individual drills, played a lot of right guard and right tackle.
“I think obviously you’d like a home for him, but I do think that we’ve seen the value in cross-training these guys,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “It happens every year where you’ve got to move guys in order to get the top five out there, and he’s certainly capable of doing whatever we ask him to do.”
- Alexander dropped out late in practice. With Corey Ballentine out, Stokes and Carrington Valentine were the No. 1 corners, though Gemon Green got a couple first-team reps.
Packers Training Camp Schedule
The Packers will practice again at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday before a mandatory off-day on Thursday. Then, it’s more 10:30 a.m. practices on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Quote of the Day
Defensive tackle Kenny Clark, on what it means to get a third contract from the Packers:
“It was huge for me because I truly wanted to be one of those guys. I look up to guys who have been here – A-Rod (Aaron Rodgers), Clay (Matthews), D-Bak (David Bakhtiari) and all those guys who played and played at a high level, got third contracts here and are really legends here. For an organization like this, it was huge for me to stay here and get this contract – be well-compensated but still be here and be a part of this.”
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— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) July 22, 2024Everyone, it seems, has Jordan Love's back as he waits for a contract extension from the #Packers.
"We’re going to support him 100 percent, just like he does for us. He deserves every penny that he’s going to get – and more." ⬇️https://t.co/K2Gr7UmeLF
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