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06-21-2008, 10:47 PM
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080621/PKR01/80621052/1058&referrer=NEWSFRONTCAROUSEL
How Packers look as offseason ends
Defensive line's health is biggest concern
By Pete Dougherty • pdougher@greenbaypressgazette.com • June 21, 2008
Last year, the Green Bay Packers’ deepest position was defensive tackle, where they kept five players at the start of the regular season because the quality was so strong.
This season, there’s still potential for quality depth, but developments over the next six weeks will go a long way to determining whether they are strong again in that key area.
Third-year pro Johnny Jolly and second-year pro Justin Harrell will have to start training camp recovered from shoulder and back surgeries, respectively, which have laid them up all offseason.
If they’re going to field a good defense, the Packers need Jolly and Harrell to be two of their more productive players, especially after trading Corey Williams rather than paying him a big contract.
Jolly’s improving play before tearing his rotator cuff last season made Williams expendable. General Manager Ted Thompson selected Harrell in the first round of the 2007 draft to be a dominant run stopper early in his career.
But now the Packers’ predominant worry heading into training camp is the recovery of those two young players, especially Harrell, who missed all of the offseason workout program for a second straight year because of injury.
“I'd just like to see those guys get healthy,” coach Mike McCarthy said last week in his post-minicamp press conference. “You never want to see one particular (position) group kind of dominate the medical report. I think that will take care of itself here over the next month.”
Following is a position-by-position look at the Packers, who concluded their offseason work last week. Training camp practices begin July 28.
Defensive line
At 28, Ryan Pickett is an unsung hero at defensive tackle, where his run stopping the past two years has been a consistent plus.
But much will depend on how Jolly and Harrell come back from their injuries.
Jolly is a somewhat proven and looks like a player on the rise, but it’s impossible to have any feel for whether Harrell’s play will justify his lofty draft status.
Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila showed last season he’s much better suited for a role as pass-rush specialist, though he spent the offseason recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery.
Fourth-round draft pick Jeremy Thompson (6-foot-4, 265 pounds) looks like a good prospect as a pass rusher at defensive end, should be stout enough to play on early downs also and might be a surprise contributor as the year goes on.
Another key will be Cullen Jenkins’ play after a relatively unproductive season. He had only one sack last year while playing through knee and ankle injuries. Jenkins played defensive tackle almost exclusively in the offseason because Harrell, Jolly, Colin Cole (forearm) and Daniel Muir (pectoral) missed much or all of the workouts, but he still figures to get snaps at right defensive end on early downs.
Linebackers
It’s difficult to tell much about linebackers in non-padded practices, but free-agent signee Brandon Chillar clearly showed superior cover ability to incumbent strong-side linebacker Brady Poppinga, though Poppinga definitely has made strides in that area.
Chillar is a good bet to win that starting job because of his athletic ability, but Poppinga brings enough juice that he still should get on the field for his physical play against the run and energetic if not polished blitzing. Either way, the Packers should have a stronger third linebacker to go with every-down players Nick Barnett and A.J. Hawk.
Third-year pro Abdul Hodge is running much better than last year after undergoing surgery on both patellar tendons last year but still might be the underdog to beat out Desmond Bishop for the backup job at middle linebacker because of Bishop’s edges in pass and special-teams coverage.
Defensive backs
Second-year pro Tramon Williams had an impressive offseason for the second straight year and is the prohibitive favorite to be the Packers’ nickel back this season behind starters Charles Woodson and Al Harris. If Williams’ development continues, he could be a starter some day.
Second-round pick Pat Lee looked lost at times, but he generally showed the talent for man-to-man coverage that the Packers’ defense demands from its cornerbacks. He should be in the running for the No. 4 cornerback job along with Will Blackmon, who needs to stay healthy for the first time in his three years with the Packers, and Jarrett Bush, who like Blackmon held the nickel job for a time last season.
Second-year pro Aaron Rouse’s strong offseason suggests he’ll push both Nick Collins and Atari Bigby for a starting job at safety, though those incumbents will be tough to unseat. Collins remains one of the best pure talents on the defense though he had no takeaways last year. Bigby played his best football last season during the playoffs.
Quarterbacks
Aaron Rodgers has grown dramatically as a leader in his four years with the team and appeared comfortable in the locker room this offseason in his new role as the franchise quarterback. However, the job gets astronomically tougher in the regular season when he has to deal with interceptions, bad games and losses.
He has a big-league arm, and his mobility will add a dimension to the offense, though his relatively rough practice on Wednesday showed he’s still far from a finished product.
Anyone looking for second-round pick Brian Brohm to push Rodgers this summer will be disappointed. If Brohm has a decent first couple of weeks of training camp, the Packers appear ready to go with him as backup. He made plenty of bad decisions and took way too many sacks in offseason practices, but he showed enough ability and awareness to suggest he’s a prospect. But if Brohm has a rough time early in camp, the Packers probably will sign a veteran as a possible No. 2.
Seventh-round pick Matt Flynn was slower to pick up the offense and doesn’t have Brohm’s arm, so he had an even rougher time during the offseason. But he flashed scrambling talent and some ability to throw on the run. If the gamer qualities he showed at LSU translate to the NFL, it probably won’t be obvious until preseason games.
Running backs
Second-year pro Brandon Jackson received more raves for his offseason progress than any player on the roster. The coaching staff puts major stock in offseason work and is adamant that Jackson is a more confident, decisive runner after gaining strength and experience working in the weight room and on the field this spring and summer. He’s the likely backup for Ryan Grant, though it’s worth remembering that Jackson also looked more impressive last offseason than he did on game days.
Second-year pro DeShawn Wynn also won accolades for working out diligently and improving his body structure, though he still has a long training camp and then some to prove he’s learned what it means to be a dependable pro.
Undrafted rookie Kregg Lumpkin looks talented enough to make a strong run at one of the three or four roster spots for halfbacks. Fourth-year veteran Noah Herron remains a savvy and dependable fallback, though he lacks the running ability of Wynn and Lumpkin.
Converted linebacker Korey Hall and third-year pro John Kuhn return at fullback, but will be pressed by powerful Ryan Powdrell and versatile Corey White, who also can play halfback in a pinch.
Receivers
Second-round pick Jordy Nelson looks like a promising addition to a good receiving corps and might push James Jones for the No. 3 job.
That said, Jones has an invaluable year of NFL experience and showed linebacker-like strength in the weight room after his first full offseason in the team’s workout program.
At 6-3, Jordan is a big target with an ability to play the ball in the air and surprising long speed, so he should be an occasional contributor as a rookie.
Seventh-round pick Brett Swain had several bad drops in a forgettable final minicamp practice on Thursday, but the Packers insist he’s otherwise been outstanding at catching the ball. Swain and holdover Shaun Bodiford could be battling for the last receiver slot if the Packers keep six.
Tight ends
Tory Humphrey broke his lower leg on the first day of training camp last year and didn’t return to the field until about halfway through OTAs this year, but he appeared to be running as well as ever. At 6-2 and 250 pounds, he’s short for the position but has some bulk and offers a little more speed than starter Donald Lee. If Humphrey stays healthy, he should be the backup.
Third-round pick Jermichael Finley is a fine-looking athlete but is crude as a blocker. He probably will have to brought along slowly after staying at Texas for only three years.
Undrafted rookie Joey Haynos of Maryland has better hands and running ability than his 6-8, 264-pound frame might suggest. Another undrafted rookie, Stanford’s Evan Moore, looks like a natural receiver but is too light at 237 pounds.
Offensive line
Third-year pro Daryn Colledge will be in for the fight of his life to hold off second-year pro Allen Barbre for the starting job at left guard. Barbre is an excellent athlete with more of a guard’s down-and-dirty mentality. Their battle for the starting job will be one of the highlights of camp.
Both draft picks -- guard Josh Sitton and tackle Breno Giacomini -- look like good prospects because each has a mean streak that adds a little juice to the entire line. Giacomini, a fifth-round pick, is a converted tight end who’s more of a project than Sitton, a fourth-round pick who could get on the field after an injury or two if he does well in camp.
Specialists
Though Bay Port High School graduate Ken DeBauche, an undrafted rookie from Wisconsin, looks fundamentally sound as a punter and holds well on kicks, he doesn’t appear to present a serious challenge to incumbent Jon Ryan.
Mason Crosby’s leg looked strong on the field during minicamp. He appears to have a fine career ahead of him.
At long snapper, undrafted rookie J.J. Jansen of Notre Dame appeared to get more work with the No. 1 field-goal team than Thomas Gafford, but it still looks like a wide-open competition to replace the retired Rob Davis. Neither had any obvious bad snaps in live drills at last week’s minicamp.
How Packers look as offseason ends
Defensive line's health is biggest concern
By Pete Dougherty • pdougher@greenbaypressgazette.com • June 21, 2008
Last year, the Green Bay Packers’ deepest position was defensive tackle, where they kept five players at the start of the regular season because the quality was so strong.
This season, there’s still potential for quality depth, but developments over the next six weeks will go a long way to determining whether they are strong again in that key area.
Third-year pro Johnny Jolly and second-year pro Justin Harrell will have to start training camp recovered from shoulder and back surgeries, respectively, which have laid them up all offseason.
If they’re going to field a good defense, the Packers need Jolly and Harrell to be two of their more productive players, especially after trading Corey Williams rather than paying him a big contract.
Jolly’s improving play before tearing his rotator cuff last season made Williams expendable. General Manager Ted Thompson selected Harrell in the first round of the 2007 draft to be a dominant run stopper early in his career.
But now the Packers’ predominant worry heading into training camp is the recovery of those two young players, especially Harrell, who missed all of the offseason workout program for a second straight year because of injury.
“I'd just like to see those guys get healthy,” coach Mike McCarthy said last week in his post-minicamp press conference. “You never want to see one particular (position) group kind of dominate the medical report. I think that will take care of itself here over the next month.”
Following is a position-by-position look at the Packers, who concluded their offseason work last week. Training camp practices begin July 28.
Defensive line
At 28, Ryan Pickett is an unsung hero at defensive tackle, where his run stopping the past two years has been a consistent plus.
But much will depend on how Jolly and Harrell come back from their injuries.
Jolly is a somewhat proven and looks like a player on the rise, but it’s impossible to have any feel for whether Harrell’s play will justify his lofty draft status.
Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila showed last season he’s much better suited for a role as pass-rush specialist, though he spent the offseason recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery.
Fourth-round draft pick Jeremy Thompson (6-foot-4, 265 pounds) looks like a good prospect as a pass rusher at defensive end, should be stout enough to play on early downs also and might be a surprise contributor as the year goes on.
Another key will be Cullen Jenkins’ play after a relatively unproductive season. He had only one sack last year while playing through knee and ankle injuries. Jenkins played defensive tackle almost exclusively in the offseason because Harrell, Jolly, Colin Cole (forearm) and Daniel Muir (pectoral) missed much or all of the workouts, but he still figures to get snaps at right defensive end on early downs.
Linebackers
It’s difficult to tell much about linebackers in non-padded practices, but free-agent signee Brandon Chillar clearly showed superior cover ability to incumbent strong-side linebacker Brady Poppinga, though Poppinga definitely has made strides in that area.
Chillar is a good bet to win that starting job because of his athletic ability, but Poppinga brings enough juice that he still should get on the field for his physical play against the run and energetic if not polished blitzing. Either way, the Packers should have a stronger third linebacker to go with every-down players Nick Barnett and A.J. Hawk.
Third-year pro Abdul Hodge is running much better than last year after undergoing surgery on both patellar tendons last year but still might be the underdog to beat out Desmond Bishop for the backup job at middle linebacker because of Bishop’s edges in pass and special-teams coverage.
Defensive backs
Second-year pro Tramon Williams had an impressive offseason for the second straight year and is the prohibitive favorite to be the Packers’ nickel back this season behind starters Charles Woodson and Al Harris. If Williams’ development continues, he could be a starter some day.
Second-round pick Pat Lee looked lost at times, but he generally showed the talent for man-to-man coverage that the Packers’ defense demands from its cornerbacks. He should be in the running for the No. 4 cornerback job along with Will Blackmon, who needs to stay healthy for the first time in his three years with the Packers, and Jarrett Bush, who like Blackmon held the nickel job for a time last season.
Second-year pro Aaron Rouse’s strong offseason suggests he’ll push both Nick Collins and Atari Bigby for a starting job at safety, though those incumbents will be tough to unseat. Collins remains one of the best pure talents on the defense though he had no takeaways last year. Bigby played his best football last season during the playoffs.
Quarterbacks
Aaron Rodgers has grown dramatically as a leader in his four years with the team and appeared comfortable in the locker room this offseason in his new role as the franchise quarterback. However, the job gets astronomically tougher in the regular season when he has to deal with interceptions, bad games and losses.
He has a big-league arm, and his mobility will add a dimension to the offense, though his relatively rough practice on Wednesday showed he’s still far from a finished product.
Anyone looking for second-round pick Brian Brohm to push Rodgers this summer will be disappointed. If Brohm has a decent first couple of weeks of training camp, the Packers appear ready to go with him as backup. He made plenty of bad decisions and took way too many sacks in offseason practices, but he showed enough ability and awareness to suggest he’s a prospect. But if Brohm has a rough time early in camp, the Packers probably will sign a veteran as a possible No. 2.
Seventh-round pick Matt Flynn was slower to pick up the offense and doesn’t have Brohm’s arm, so he had an even rougher time during the offseason. But he flashed scrambling talent and some ability to throw on the run. If the gamer qualities he showed at LSU translate to the NFL, it probably won’t be obvious until preseason games.
Running backs
Second-year pro Brandon Jackson received more raves for his offseason progress than any player on the roster. The coaching staff puts major stock in offseason work and is adamant that Jackson is a more confident, decisive runner after gaining strength and experience working in the weight room and on the field this spring and summer. He’s the likely backup for Ryan Grant, though it’s worth remembering that Jackson also looked more impressive last offseason than he did on game days.
Second-year pro DeShawn Wynn also won accolades for working out diligently and improving his body structure, though he still has a long training camp and then some to prove he’s learned what it means to be a dependable pro.
Undrafted rookie Kregg Lumpkin looks talented enough to make a strong run at one of the three or four roster spots for halfbacks. Fourth-year veteran Noah Herron remains a savvy and dependable fallback, though he lacks the running ability of Wynn and Lumpkin.
Converted linebacker Korey Hall and third-year pro John Kuhn return at fullback, but will be pressed by powerful Ryan Powdrell and versatile Corey White, who also can play halfback in a pinch.
Receivers
Second-round pick Jordy Nelson looks like a promising addition to a good receiving corps and might push James Jones for the No. 3 job.
That said, Jones has an invaluable year of NFL experience and showed linebacker-like strength in the weight room after his first full offseason in the team’s workout program.
At 6-3, Jordan is a big target with an ability to play the ball in the air and surprising long speed, so he should be an occasional contributor as a rookie.
Seventh-round pick Brett Swain had several bad drops in a forgettable final minicamp practice on Thursday, but the Packers insist he’s otherwise been outstanding at catching the ball. Swain and holdover Shaun Bodiford could be battling for the last receiver slot if the Packers keep six.
Tight ends
Tory Humphrey broke his lower leg on the first day of training camp last year and didn’t return to the field until about halfway through OTAs this year, but he appeared to be running as well as ever. At 6-2 and 250 pounds, he’s short for the position but has some bulk and offers a little more speed than starter Donald Lee. If Humphrey stays healthy, he should be the backup.
Third-round pick Jermichael Finley is a fine-looking athlete but is crude as a blocker. He probably will have to brought along slowly after staying at Texas for only three years.
Undrafted rookie Joey Haynos of Maryland has better hands and running ability than his 6-8, 264-pound frame might suggest. Another undrafted rookie, Stanford’s Evan Moore, looks like a natural receiver but is too light at 237 pounds.
Offensive line
Third-year pro Daryn Colledge will be in for the fight of his life to hold off second-year pro Allen Barbre for the starting job at left guard. Barbre is an excellent athlete with more of a guard’s down-and-dirty mentality. Their battle for the starting job will be one of the highlights of camp.
Both draft picks -- guard Josh Sitton and tackle Breno Giacomini -- look like good prospects because each has a mean streak that adds a little juice to the entire line. Giacomini, a fifth-round pick, is a converted tight end who’s more of a project than Sitton, a fourth-round pick who could get on the field after an injury or two if he does well in camp.
Specialists
Though Bay Port High School graduate Ken DeBauche, an undrafted rookie from Wisconsin, looks fundamentally sound as a punter and holds well on kicks, he doesn’t appear to present a serious challenge to incumbent Jon Ryan.
Mason Crosby’s leg looked strong on the field during minicamp. He appears to have a fine career ahead of him.
At long snapper, undrafted rookie J.J. Jansen of Notre Dame appeared to get more work with the No. 1 field-goal team than Thomas Gafford, but it still looks like a wide-open competition to replace the retired Rob Davis. Neither had any obvious bad snaps in live drills at last week’s minicamp.