Tag: Ben Sims

Packers rookie TE Ben Sims on his first NFL touchdown, Lambeau Leap

Packers TE Ben Sims reflects on his first NFL touchdown and first career Lambeau Leap.

Green Bay Packers rookie tight end Ben Sims couldn’t have dreamed of a better first-career NFL touchdown than the one he had in Sunday night’s 27-19 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.

The play occurred on the game’s first drive after the Packers’ offense moved the ball to the Chiefs’ 1-yard line. Rather than give the ball to AJ Dillon, Jordan Love faked the handoff and rolled to his right. While the play action was taking place, Sims acted like a blocker before releasing from the line and making his way into the flat. Love found the wide-open Sims, who then showed no hesitation sprinting towards the stands at Lambeau Field.

The undrafted rookie out of Baylor described the feeling of his first Lambeau Leap after the game.

“Growing up, you always wish to play in the NFL and you always wish to play in the mecca of pro football,” said Sims. “Today, I got to do that and I got to score my first touchdown and got to Lambeau Leap. So, my heart is full.”

Sims’ one-yard touchdown grab was not only his first but a first in the history of the NFL. According to Elias Sports Bureau, Green Bay is the first team in the Super Bowl era to have three rookie tight ends catch a touchdown pass in a season. The team’s second and third-round picks, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft, also have touchdown receptions this year.

Before arriving in Green Bay, Sims was signed by the Minnesota Vikings after not hearing his name the NFL Draft. He flashed his skillset throughout the preseason but was released during final cutdowns. The Packers signed him to their active roster on August 31.

In 12 games this season, Sims has primarily been used as a run blocker. He was known for this at Baylor, where his physicality was counted on in the Bears’ run-heavy offense. However, after his touchdown in primetime against the defending Super Bowl champs, he has now caught three out for four targets for 15 yards and a touchdown.

Sims has appeared in only 13 percent of the offensive snaps but played a career-high 20 snaps against the Chiefs. This was likely due to Josiah Deguara missing his second straight game with a hip injury, but Sims played well and made a great memory that will last a lifetime. He said he plans to put the ball used to catch his first career touchdown in a case and display it somewhere in his home.

Ben Sims’ first career TD catch gives Packers 7-0 lead over Chiefs

The first career touchdown for Packers rookie TE Ben Sims gave his team a 7-0 lead over the Chiefs on SNF.

The first career touchdown catch for Green Bay Packers tight end Ben Sims capped off an impressive opening drive and gave his team a 7-0 lead over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night at Lambeau Field.

Sims, an undrafted free agent out of Baylor, was wide open in the end zone off a play-action rollout to the offense’s right side. Jordan Love, who completed all six passes on the opening drive, found him for the short score.

The Packers drove 75 yards over 13 plays and took up almost eight minutes of the first quarter clock. Love hit five different receivers and the Packers converted both third down opportunities.

Sims’ touchdown was the third by a rookie tight end this season, joining Tucker Kraft and Luke Musgrave.

Here’s the touchdown:

Follow along with the Sunday night showdown here.

With TE Luke Musgrave out, larger role awaits Packers rookies Tucker Kraft and Ben Sims

Packers rookies Tucker Kraft and Ben Sims will be in the spotlight at tight end vs. the Lions with Luke Musgrave out.

The Green Bay Packers will be without Luke Musgrave against the Detroit Lions after he suffered a “significant” abdomen injury in Sunday’s win over Los Angeles. This means the Packers will be relying heavily on rookies Tucker Kraft and Ben Sims.

“Obviously, a significant blow for us offensively,” coach Matt LaFleur said Tuesday. “Like we always talk about, it’s going to be opportunities for these other guys, for Tucker, for Ben, to really show what they can do.”

Over the course of the season, Kraft has seen his role expand within the offense. In the last three games, he has played 28-plus snaps in each and averaged 24 snaps over the previous six games compared to just 9.5 in the first four games.

Kraft’s role has primarily come as a blocker up to this point where he has steadily improved throughout the year. Against the Chargers, we also saw Kraft’s explosiveness on display with his yards after the catch ability, something that was a staple of his game in college at South Dakota State.

“I was extremely happy,” said LaFleur of Kraft’s performance on Sunday. “I think Tucker you can see the growth in him. Making a huge play on a simple flat route. Just showing his athleticism. His speed. But I think a lot of things you guys don’t always see, just how much growth he’s had in the run game as well as a blocker has been evident. Certainly going to be more on his plate in this game.”

Like Musgrave, Kraft brings good size and athleticism to the position. From a passing game standpoint, where these two players excel is different, however. Musgrave is a field-stretcher and can bring a vertical presence to the offense, while Kraft’s bread-and-butter has been more short-area throws with YAC potential.

But just because a player hasn’t been asked to do something doesn’t mean they can’t either. With Kraft sliding into that TE1 role and going to be needed to impact the passing game much more on intermediate routes and from the boundary, Sims will likely fill in as more of the blocker, similar to what Kraft has been asked to do up to this point in the season.

While the gameplan and what’s asked of the tight ends with and without Musgrave won’t be identical, for the most part, Green Bay’s overall plan of attack is going to be relatively the same this Thursday in Detroit.

“A little bit,” said Adam Stenavich when asked if changes to the game plan needed to be made. “Luke definitely adds a piece, but Tucker is very capable. Ben is coming along. There’s somethings you probably won’t do, but for the most part, we can keep rolling with what we are doing.”

This is a ferocious Lions defense, specifically the front seven, that the Green Bay tight ends and the offense as a whole is going to have to contend with. They’ve been one of the best against the run, have been excellent at generating pressure, and do a great job of disguising looks with different personnel and blitz packages to cause confusion for the offense.

Kraft and Sims are going to have to play key roles as blockers, and I would imagine they’ll also be options in the quick passing game – especially with the injuries at receiver the Packers are dealing with – to get the ball out of Jordan Love’s hands, as well as the check down option when Love’s initial reads aren’t available.

Along with Musgrave, the Packers could also be without Josiah Deguara, who is dealing with a hip injury he suffered on Sunday. Deguara did not practice on Monday or Tuesday, making his status for Thursday’s game very much up in the air.

Green Bay can’t go into Thursday’s game with only two tight ends, and it is too late to bring in an outside addition. It’s not as if there is a Patrick Taylor-like player out there on another practice squad. My guess is that fullback Henry Pearson is either a practice squad elevation or signed to the 53-man roster if Musgrave goes to IR. He can fill a role similar to what Deguara does.

NFL teams never want to be short-handed, but for this Packers team that was bullied in Week 4 by Detroit, that feels especially true with this opponent on the schedule. However, with every challenge comes an opportunity, and as LaFleur mentioned on Tuesday, Kraft now has the opportunity to show what he can really do.

“I think every week he’s been getting better and better and better,” added Stenavich. “He’s gotten more playing time and more opportunities. It’s going to be really cool seeing him take the reins and be the guy.”

Packers’ Rasul Douglas, Ben Sims fined for Week 3 actions

The NFL fined Packers CB Rasul Douglas and TE Ben Sims for actions during Week 3 vs. the Saints.

The NFL fined Green Bay Packers cornerback Rasul Douglas and tight end Ben Sims for penalties or actions in Week 3 that fall under the league’s “gameday accountability” umbrella.

Douglas was fined $11,473 for unnecessary roughness in the second quarter of the Packers’ 18-17 win over the New Orleans Saints. Sims was fined $4,167 for unnecessary roughness, also in the second quarter. Neither player was penalized on the field but the NFL reviews every play for safety-related actions.

A review of the time stamps: Douglas went low and hit a blocker below the knees while outside the tackle box on a play that should have been penalized. Sims lowered his helmet and struck a Saints player during a run block, another penalty-worthy play.

The league did not fine Kenny Clark for an unnecessary roughness penalty in the first quarter.

In Week 3, the NFL fined players for actions or penalties on 34 plays.

This is the second time in three weeks that Douglas has been fined. Overall, the Packers have had players fined for actions four times entering Week 4.

The league is posting all fined penalties and actions from the previous week on Saturdays this season.

From the NFL: “Players subject to accountability measures receive a letter informing them of what they did, a video of the play in question, why they are being fined and how much it will cost them. They also receive information on how to appeal the fine. If they choose not to appeal, the fine is withheld from their next game check.”

All appeals are handled appeals officers James Thrash and Derrick Brooks, two former players appointed by the NFL and NFLPA. Fines are donated to the Professional Athletes Foundation.

Packers Wire will track the on-field penalties and resulting fines in recurring posts each week.

Week 1: LB De’Vondre Campbell ($10,927), CB Rasul Douglas ($13,659)
Week 3: CB Rasul Douglas ($11,473), TE Ben Sims ($4,167)

Packers film room: A closer look at new TE Ben Sims’ preseason with Vikings

Breaking down some plays featuring new Packers TE Ben Sims, who spent the preseason with the Vikings.

The Green Bay Packers claimed two players off of waivers on Wednesday, just one day after submitting their initial 53-man roster. The two players were safety Zayne Anderson from the Buffalo Bills and tight end Ben Sims from the Minnesota Vikings. To make room for Anderson and Sims, the Packers parted ways with linebacker Tariq Carpenter and defensive lineman Jonathan Ford.

Anderson may not play a ton of snaps on defense, but he could contribute on special teams after making three special teams tackles for Buffalo during the preseason. Today, however, we are focusing on Sims and what he could bring to this Green Bay team. The Packers had previous interest in Sims, who they hosted on an official top-30 visit ahead of the 2023 NFL draft. In college, he caught 78 passes for 785 yards and 12 touchdowns over 43 games and 30 starts at Baylor.

But back in April, Sims was not among the 259 draft picks and ended up signing with Minnesota as an undrafted free agent. And despite having a solid training camp and preseason, he was unable to secure a spot within the Vikings’ deep tight end room. Now, he finds himself in Green Bay, where there should be plenty of opportunity to earn snaps on a far less crowded depth chart.

Between Luke Musgrave and Tyler Kraft, Sims is the third rookie tight end on the roster. The Packers are hoping they can count on Musgrave as a receiving tight end, but no one has stepped up as a blocker. That could be where Sims enters the equation after what he put on tape for Minnesota during the preseason.

If you couldn’t already tell, we are looking at Sims’ skillset for this week’s film room.

Let’s get started.

At Baylor, Sims was counted on as a run blocker. In fact, he logged nearly 1,000 run-blocking snaps in college. Sims (#81) is too slow off the ball in our first play, however, he does his job by maintaining solid leverage to prevent the defender from scraping down the line of scrimmage. Also, it does look like the defender trips rather than Sims forcing him to the ground. Honestly, I don’t think it’s the cleanest rep regarding hand placement, but he is clearly a willing blocker who finishes plays and is unafraid to get his hands dirty.

The Packers already have an H-back in Josiah Deguara, but I do like this rep from Sims. Here, he is tasked with a split flow block and does a good job attacking the defender’s inside shoulder, opening up a nice hole for the running back for a decent gain.

Sims caught only three passes in the preseason. And while he isn’t known for his receiving ability, this was a solid route and a good catch to pick up 33 yards. Sims uses his size (6-5, 250 lbs) to high point this ball and then shows toughness to finish the play through contact. He may not catch a ton of passes during his NFL career, but he is capable.

In this play, Sims showcases his play strength as a run blocker. He uses good leg drive to wash the defender down the line of scrimmage and open a hole for the running back to get into the end zone. This is a good example of Sims proving he can generate movement in the run game.

Sims’ technique as a blocker needs some fine tuning but there is something to work with. He has a tendency to bring his helmet first, which prevents him shooting his hands and gaining initial control. However, even though the edge rusher gets his hands into Sims and extends his arms, Sims recovers and rotates his hips to wall off the defender to create a rushing lane. Solid rep overall.

Let’s finish off with another catch, shall we? It is obvious that Sim can run and has surprisingly decent wiggle after the catch. He tested well, as evidenced by his RAS score, and that athleticism translates to the field. Sims could use his deceptive speed to his advantage, and I must say I wasn’t expecting this juke move to make a guy miss. It’s a really nice play by Green Bay’s new tight end.

Conclusion

Sims is a tough-minded player and a good athlete. For those reasons, I think he could have a role on special teams, filling in for injured Tyler Davis. From an offensive perspective, I’m not confident the Packers will play him over their other options. He would primarily be utilized as an in-line blocker, but he is raw and needs to continue working on his technique. You could probably make the same argument for Kraft, but he is also a third-round pick who needs to develop. Unless someone gets injured, I’m not sure Sims will see a ton of snaps on offense, but he has a chance to be a core special teamer.

New Packers TE Ben Sims brings added speed and blocking experience to position

Surprised to be a Packer, rookie tight Ben Sims is ready to bring more speed and some much-needed experience as a run blocker to the tight end room.

New Green Bay Packers tight end Ben Sims brings blocking experience from his time at Baylor and more athleticism to Green Bay’s already young position group.

At roughly 11:00 AM on Wednesday, Sims was sitting in the Minnesota Vikings facility, about to enter a team meeting with the expectation that he was going to be on the practice squad after being released the day before. However, by 4:00 PM that same day, Sims was instead arriving in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

“A little surprising to be honest,” said Sims on Thursday about being a Packer. “I was in a practice squad meeting with Minnesota yesterday (Wednesday) at like 11:00 AM and I get pulled out of it because we are about to go through the process of that, and I get a text, and one of our player personnel people were like you just got claimed off waivers, you got to go. And I was like, where am I going? They said I was coming to Green Bay. So I grabbed my truck, packed my bags and drove here yesterday.”

GM Brian Gutekunst told the media two weeks ago that the team would keep their eyes on the waiver wire at the tight end position following roster cuts. With Tyler Davis suffering a season-ending ACL injury, the Packers were not only thin from a numbers standpoint at tight end , but also lost their best blocker at the position as well.

The 6-5, 250-pound Sims went undrafted out of Baylor this past spring. He comes to the NFL with ample blocking experience and recorded one of the faster 40 yard dash times at the tight end position during the pre-draft process as well, running a 4.58 at his Pro-Day—which is actually faster than what Luke Musgrave posted at the NFL Combine, running a 4.61.

“Ben’s a guy we brought in here for a (top) 30 visit,” said Gutekunst. “Another big guy, an athlete who can run very fast. What he was able to do in the last three weeks up in Minnesota, he really improved his game in some areas that gave us a lot of confidence to put that claim in.”

Sims had nearly 1,000 snaps as a run-blocker at Baylor, and in his final two seasons, played in a pro-style offense that uses the wide-zone running scheme, similarly to Green Bay. As a pass-catcher, he hauled in 74 of his 105 career attempts with 11 touchdowns. About one-third of his career snaps came lined up in the slot, along with another 366 on special teams.

“My last two years, was fortunately a pro-style guy, Jeff Grimes came in from BYU,” added Sims. “Really introduced the pro-style with the wide zone, the mid-zone, tight zone, and everything that comes with it, allowing to play fast. My transition has been smooth for the most part, a lot of familiar things that I’ve seen so far, which is comforting because if you understand concepts you can apply them in different situations. So I’m really pleased with my prior knowledge of this offense.”

With Minnesota this preseason, 80 percent of Sims’ snaps came in-line, although, along with playing from the slot, he saw a few snaps out wide as well. He caught three passes and flashed some big play potential with his speed, averaging 17.7 yards per catch. He also steadily improved as a blocker, which may have been what Gutekunst was referencing to, and ranked sixth out of 28 eligible tight ends in PFF’s run-blocking grade during that final game.

“That’s a good learning experience,” said Sims, “my first couple NFL games. I had some good moments and had some moments of improvement. But I was pleased with the way I was coached. I was pleased with the guys, the older (tight end) group in Minnesota, they let me lean on them a lot. So I was really fortunate to have a group of vets that really helped me and go out of there way to be there for me”

Sims will have his hands full right away as he tries to learn a new playbook on the fly, although he did mention that there was some overlap with Minnesota’s. Right away, Sims can take some snaps as the more traditional in-line blocking tight end, but with his athleticism, he certainly has the upside and the ability to make plays in the passing game.

Along with Tucker Kraft and Luke Musgrave, Sims could provide an all-around skill set at the tight end position for the Packers, able to impact both the running and passing games. This was an element that was missing in previous years and adds some unpredictability to the Green Bay offense with it being difficult for defenses to decipher what it taking place pre-snap and it will also help create mismatches, and not only at the tight end position, with Matt LaFleur able to call a variety of plays from just a few personnel packages.

With that said, Sims is still a rookie just like Musgrave and Kraft, and an undrafted one at that. As LaFleur has shared often this offseason, the transition from college to the NFL at tight end is one of the more difficult jumps there is, given all the responsibilities that come with this role. However, Sims previous experience as a blocker in college will give him a way to make an immediate impact, along with bringing some more athleticism and upside to the passing game.

“Obviously there’s going to be ups, there’s going to be downs,” said Sims. “But just going back everyday and don’t be corrected twice on the same mistake and I kind of take that personally, because if I don’t, it shows that I’m not listening or shows I don’t care, and obviously I want to do both. Going one day at a time, learning, growing and eventually I’ll be to where I want to be.”

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Packers claim TE Ben Sims, S Zayne Anderson off waivers following final cuts

The Packers claimed rookie TE Ben Sims from the Vikings and S Zayne Anderson from the Bills on Wednesday.

There’s a reason why the first 53-man roster is called the “initial” 53-man roster. One day after submitting an initial roster, the Green Bay Packers claimed two players off of waivers: tight end Ben Sims from the Minnesota Vikings and safety Zayne Anderson from the Buffalo Bills.

Claiming Sims and Anderson will require the Packers to make two roster moves to fit them on the 53-man roster.

The Packers must already create a roster spot for re-signing long snapper Matt Orzech. The assumed roster move is placing offensive tackle Luke Tenuta (ankle) on injured reserve. It’s possible another player or two will join Tenuta on injured reserve this week. If not, the Packers will have to release a player who made the 53-man roster on Tuesday.

Sims, who visited Green Bay before the draft, went undrafted out of Baylor in 2023. He played 86 snaps on offense for the Vikings this preseason, including 37 as a run blocker. Sims caught three passes on five targets for 53 yards on 43 routes run. Of his 86 snaps, 70 came as an inline tight end, a position where the Packers need help after losing Tyler Davis to a season-ending knee injury. Sims would be only the third traditional tight end on the rsoter, joining Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft, with Josiah Deguara labeled as a fullback.

Anderson went undrafted out of BYU in 2021. He spent two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, playing 110 special teams snaps over seven games. The Bills signed Anderson in February. He made three special teams tackles for the Bills over three preseason games but was cut on Tuesday. The Packers kept five safeties on the 53-man roster but may want more depth considering Dallin Leavitt is a special teams only player and Anthony Johnson Jr. is a rookie.

Sims and Anderson will need to come to Green Bay and pass physicals before they officially join the 53-man roster.

TE Ben Sims claimed by the Green Bay Packers

The Vikings lost a practice squad candidate to their biggest rival

When the Minnesota Vikings waived tight end Ben Sims, they had hoped to sneak him onto the practice squad. Unfortunately, that won’t happen, as the Green Bay Packers were awarded him on waivers Wednesday afternoon.

Sims had a really solid training camp and preseason for the Vikings. He caught one of the nicest catches of the preseason for the Vikings.

His blocking was also impressive. Sims graded out with a Pro Football Focus pass-blocking grade of 74.1 and run blocking grade of 63.8.

The Packers claiming Sims is interesting, as they just drafted two tight ends on day two in 2023 and Josiah DeGuara was a day two pick in 2020.

The Vikings will have to look elsewhere if they want a tight end for the practice squad.

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Vikings 90-man roster player profile: TE Ben Sims

An undrafted free agent known for his blocking, Ben Sims will look to make the 53-man roster as a depth tight end.

Welcome to the beginning of our 2023 season preview content!

Over the next few weeks, we will be looking at each player on the roster in-depth with backgrounds and how they currently project forward on the Minnesota Vikings roster.

What is the best-case scenario? What is the worst-case scenario? What should we expect from them during the preseason and beyond? We will break all of that down here.

As a staff, all of us at Vikings Wire ranked the entire 90-man roster 1-90 and will be releasing player profiles in reverse order.

Madden ratings for every Vikings tight end

T.J. Hockenson received a high amount of respoect with his ranking. How did the rest of the Minnesota Viking tight end room fare?

On Monday, the first batch of Madden 24 rankings and the first 99 overall in this year’s game were released.

They are currently releasing two position groups per day and started with wide receivers and safeties. On Tuesday, they released edge rushers and defensive tackles. On Wednesday, they ranked the offensive lineman and the running backs. Here are the tight end rankings