The Green Bay Packers were back on the practice field on Thursday for another full-speed practice session on a very hot day. Friday’s practice, which is closed to the public, will be more of jog through, said head coach Matt LaFleur.
As always, here are my observations and takeaways from what I saw take place on the practice field:
— Tarvarius Moore, Caleb Jones, and Tariq Carpenter, who were all on the non-football injury list with illnesses, were all back at practice. Dontayvion Wicks was out today with a concussion.
— Towards the end of practice, Jaire Alexander appeared to cramp up after a tackle he made on Luke Musgrave, according to Rob Demovsky. He was able to walk off on his own.
— Of note from a position standpoint, during individual drills, Innis Gaines, who is listed as a safety, was working with the cornerbacks. The bulk of his defensive snaps in 2022 came from the slot and he has routinely been working with the second team defense there this offseason. The safety room is crowded, but don’t forget about him, as I mentioned yesterday. He also brings special teams experience.
— The starting lineups were similar today as yesterday. Zach Tom was still at right tackle, which is of note considering him and Yosh Nijman often alternated days as starters during offseason programs. Nijman, instead, was at left tackle, with David Bakhtiari having a light day, something LaFleur that told us would happen Wednesday. Other changes included JJ Enagbare working with the starters instead of Justin Hollins, and at safety, Rudy Ford was still next to Darnell Savage. He seems to be the clear front-runner for the starting spot come Week 1.
— Danny Etling was again the second quarterback. As we see more practices, I tend to think the Packers rostering three quarterbacks this year is very much in play. The second-team safeties against included Jonathan Owens and Dallin Leavitt. Those two plus Savage and Ford seem locked in as the top four, but who between Anthony Johnson, Gaines, and Moore will push for that potential fifth spot?
— The second team offensive line was made up of Rasheed Walker at left tackle, followed by Royce Newman, Jake Hanson, Sean Rhyan, and Caleb Jones. In a crowded offensive line room, Hanson can be forgotten about, but he appears to be the second option at center right now.
— Rookie receiver Jayden Reed had an excellent day. We saw him used on an end-round that he broke for a big gain. Then during a red zone drill, from the slot, he ran an in-breaking route and found a soft spot in the defense. De’Vondre Campbell was the nearest defender. His speed and ability to find openings in the defense is evident.
— Tyler Goodson was being used heavily as a motion man in a gadget-like role. I wrote earlier this offseason how we could see this role being used a lot more this season with Jordan Love at quarterback.
— Yesterday’s emphasis was on third downs situations. Today, the focus was on the red zone. Overall, there were no egregious mistakes from Love. He made a few really nice passes and there were some drops from his pass catchers. Here is how each drive for Jordan Love ended:
First possession: Love resulted in the aforementioned touchdown pass to Reed on the opening play.
Second possession: Love through an interception off a deflected pass on the second play while under pressure.
Third possession: The offense didn’t turn the ball over, but failed to score, with three incompletions.
Fourth possession: On the second play, Christian Watson worked his way across the field from right to left and Love connected with him for a touchdown in open space that Watson found.
Fifth possession: On third down, Love throws a beautifully timed pass to the left sideline of the end and again connects with Watson. Rasul Douglas was a split second away from breaking it up, but the ball arrived beforehand.
Sixth possession: After two dropped passes, one by Tyler Goodson and another by Luke Musgrave, Love scrambled on third down. This set up fourth down where he found Musgrave on a stick-route at the goal line, but Jaire Alexander was able to keep him from crossing.
— The second team offense with Etling at quarterback went three-and out during the red zone drill. While the third team, led by Alex McGough, scored on third down. McGough was able to find Melton on a quick slant.
— Tyler Davis had a rough preseason in 2022 on offense, but based on what we’ve seen so far, he is going to see playing time on offense. He saw his share of snaps today with the starters. He is perhaps the best blocking tight end that the Packers have.
— Working with the first team offense during the red zone drills were Malik Heath and Lew Nichols. Without Wicks or DuBose practicing, the Packers needed added wide receiver depth with the starters. Nichols and Goodson have both taken some starting snaps when Aaron Jones or AJ Dillon aren’t on the field.
— Iron sharpens iron, as they say. During special teams drills, Watson and Romeo Doubs were off working to the side with Jaire Alexander.
During special teams drills, Watson and Doubs off to the side working with Jaire Alexander. pic.twitter.com/0HA01wGiLe
— Paul Bretl (@Paul_Bretl) July 27, 2023
— I mentioned this yesterday but want to reiterate it — again, there was a heavy usage of two tight end sets as well as some more two running back sets today as well. The versatility that this offense has will allow the Packers to run a variety of plays from just a few personnel packages, thus creating mismatches and keeping defenses guessing.
— There weren’t designed runs, but when the pocket began to collapse, Love wasn’t afraid to tuck the ball and pick up yards. We are likely going to see a lot more of that element in the offense this season.
— Not that this should come as a surprise, but Jaire Alexander has put together two fantastic days. The ball either isn’t coming his direction, or he’s all over it if it does.
— The added speed along the interior defensive line is evident. Devonte Wyatt, Colby Wooden, Karl Brooks, and of course, Kenny Clark, can really move sideline to sideline. With Brian Gutekunst’s recent additions along the defensive line, there has been an added emphasis on finding these gap penetrating players, which as I wrote about here, is a key element of the Joe Barry defense.
— For the second day in a row, the defense won the day. The pass rush, in particular, is what really stood out. The pocket around the quarterback was collapsing at a decent rate today. As Brian Gutekunst said on Tuesday, this defensive front has a lot of pass rush options.