Wednesday’s first training camp practice for the Green Bay Packers well encapsulated what we may see from rookie tight end Luke Musgrave this season.
On one play, we saw that elite speed he possesses. Lined up on the boundary, Musgrave had Corey Ballentine across from him. Between his size and speed, Musgrave was able to run past Ballentine down the right sideline and had a few steps on him. On a ball from Jordan Love that got held up in the wind, Ballantine would catch up and force a pass breakup. But nonetheless, what Musgrave can add to this offense was on full display.
Having this element will not only create big play potential for Musgrave, both downfield and over the middle, but with the attention he draws and spacing he forces defenses to create, it will also open up opportunities for others in the Green Bay passing game.
”It’s going to be huge for us,” said Love after Wednesday’s practice on the addition of Musgrave and his speed. “We’ve been building that in, wanting to take a shot to Luke so he can run to the races. I think it’s going to add more capabilities for the tight ends, more versatility for them to run different routes, different concepts, and make it harder for defenses to cover everybody.”
However, another important part of playing tight end, especially in Matt LaFleur’s offense, is the ability to block, both in the running and passing games. Musgrave comes to the NFL with over 500 career run-blocking snaps during his time at Oregon State. After being selected, Brian Gutekunst would call Musgrave an “all-around” tight end. But the learning curve to become a proficient blocker is a steep one, and we saw that on Wednesday as well.
Lined up in-line to Love’s right, Musgrave was matched up with Preston Smith. At the snap, it looked like Musgrave might have been anticipating a power rush from Smith, who instead ran around him and had what would have been a sack.
“We’ve never seen these guys with pads on,” said LaFleur on Tuesday, “and that’s going to be the ultimate test, to see how they come off the ball, specifically in the run game. I feel like that’s a lost art these days for that position group.”
With a tight end who can impact both the running and passing games, it keeps the defense guessing because with a tight end who can fill a number of roles, it’s a lot more difficult to determine pre-snap what is going to take place. This allows the offense to run a variety of plays from just a few personnel groupings, helping to create mismatches.
Due to the inevitable ups and downs that Musgrave (as well as Tucker Kraft) will experience as blockers, and the importance of that role in this offense, especially with a first year starting quarterback, the idea of re-signing Marcedes Lewis, who is like a sixth offensive lineman on the field, makes sense. However, that doesn’t appear to be in the cards, at least not as of now.
“We never shut the door on these things,” said Brian Gutekunst on Tuesday, “but at the same time, for us we drafted two guys fairly high that we really want to see get reps and get out there. Along with Tyler Davis and Josiah Deguara, we are really excited about those guys and what they can do for us.”
The need for tight ends to impact the passing game like receivers while also being able to block like offensive tackles is why LaFleur has called the jump from college to the NFL at this position the second-most difficult on offense behind only the quarterback. This transition is also why most rookie tight ends are unable to make a significant impact right away.
But Musgrave will have the opportunity to buck that trend, simply because with such a young tight end room, he is going to be a big part of the offense. Musgrave continues to be a regular member of the Packers’ starting unit in practice. At the end of the day, it was one practice and two reps in the grand scheme of it all, but it also goes to show the potential and the challenges he may face as a rookie.
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