JS-----JANIS deserves the chance to win the #3

More Janis: This time from those who hope he will succeed.

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“I need to see it in practice. I’ve said it for a long time. I need to see those type of plays in practice. Had I seen that play in practice last year, I wouldn’t have been so apprehensive about the Hail Mary at the end of the season when the ball was in the air,” Rodgers said with a smile. “Those are important plays for those guys to get and make and feel better about.”

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He closed an OTA session with a spectacular grab over and through Shields, with the ball bouncing off Shields first and then the People's Champion hauling it in for a TD.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcnorth/pos...r-on-potential

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Originally Posted by Striker

I think its the shock from not having to compensate for Richard Rodgers/James Jones/Eddie Lacy speeds.

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That's a Triple Crown post right there. Its true, its funny and I wish I had thought of it.

+1

More from Wilde at that ESPN link

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“It’s about route-running and taking that jump in a comfort level out there,” Rodgers said. “When he can stop thinking so much and react more, you see the athletic ability. He’s obviously gifted very well with his athleticism, his jumping ability and his speed. He just needs to get to a level where he’s not thinking as much and his instincts take over.”

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Originally Posted by pbmax

More Janis: This time from those who hope he will succeed.



He closed an OTA session with a spectacular grab over and through Shields, with the ball bouncing off Shields first and then the People's Champion hauling it in for a TD.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcnorth/pos...r-on-potential

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Shields saw the grab by Janis a bit differently:

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Midway through practice in the Don Hutson Center on Monday, quarterback Aaron Rodgers aired out a nice deep ball that receiver Jeff Janis plucked from the air over Shields. But had this been a real game, the speedy, nimble Shields would have played the defense much differently.

"I would have had that," Shields said. He was not joking. "I would have had it. Trust me."

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I think Rodgers overplays his role as gatekeeper. I am tired of hearing him talk about how his teammates must achieve his blessing before they can expect to be incorporated into the offense. I'm tired of MM apparently granting this power to Rodgers, just as I tired of Sherman deferring to Favre. One of the things I liked about MM when he came was that he reduced the kid-glove treatment Favre had been receiving. Now, I see him falling into the same trap with Rodgers.

Do you think he is becoming Favre like? He speaks of getting on the same page with guys but didn't he do that a couple of years back with Finley and those 2 were making noise in games before JM got hurt? I doubt MM will give Rodgers his own office and shower.

Billy Schroeder and Favre had a very difficult relationship, but Favre had to make it work with Schroeder at the time because the depth at receiver was limited. Janis is very comparable to Schroeder. Both had/has athleticism, small school white kids, both played well on special teams, and both struggled to adapt to an NFL offense. I think Schroeder had an attitude though, for some reason that guy that he deserved more of everything. From what I remember he was quite high on himself.

Janis will get what he deserves. If he is doing everything he is supposed to, he will get playing time. The issue right now is that the Packers don't have a clear cut #3 receiver to compliment Nelson and Cobb. Adams has to prove it, Janis has to prove it, Montgomery is still injured and is more of a slot guy anyways. Abbey runs great routes but his injury history and his small frame make it seem really hard to commit a roster spot to this guy when it will be difficult for him to make it through a season. The guy has like 3-4 concussions in college and the NFL. All you here about is the depth at wide receiver but when you don't have a clear cut #3 because guys under performed last year doesn't scream depth to me. Last year with Nelson being out was an opportunity for guys to step up and the opposite happened.

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Originally Posted by Deputy Nutz

.... Janis is very comparable to Schroeder. ....

... All you here about is the depth at wide receiver but when you don't have a clear cut #3 because guys under performed last year doesn't scream depth to me. Last year with Nelson being out was an opportunity for guys to step up and the opposite happened.

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There are similarities between Schroeder and Janis, but Janis is already showing a knack for success in the dramatic. I don't recall Schroeder doing that much. For that reason I have more hope for Janis.

I agree about the #3 spot, but you have to consider how much injuries to others impacted their abilities to step up in Nelson's absence. That's why I have said over and over, the situation screamed for giving a few more game opportunities to Abbrederis and Janis, to see if they could make a difference. To the extent that AR influenced that because either hadn't proved it in practice, I think it is a shame. There are always a few athletes who are "gamers", who play markedly better in games than in practice. If you don't give them opportunities, you will never identify who they are. So far, Janis has made things happen whenever given actual opportunities, whether that has been as a return man, coverage guy or WR. He has made a lot of dramatic, positive plays in all three areas.

Janis is explosive, I prefaced the Favre and Schroeder relationship to counter the Rodgers and Janis relationship. Favre tried to bond with Schroeder off the field who was a talented athlete but struggled adapting to the NFL. Rodgers is holding Janis accountable in the media which is a no no.

The Packers need to utilize Janis's abilities and either as a #3 or specific opportunities in games that they can get the ball in his hands. Abbrederis had to stay healthy last year and he would have received the opportunities.

In that article, Van Pelt talked about taking a different approach to the young WRs this year from the QB room. I think he is trying to talk Rodgers out of the floor manager role.

You have 3 different coaches talking about Janis making steady but not spectacular strides in carrying out his responsibilities in practice. I think its more likely the Rodgers is reflecting his coaches than the other way around. Nelson also seems to confirm this indirectly.

I do think M3 has ceded too much responsibility to Rodgers on play calling and audibles in the no huddle. But that is more a matter of game management (and play clock management) than roster management.

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Originally Posted by Deputy Nutz

Janis is explosive, I prefaced the Favre and Schroeder relationship to counter the Rodgers and Janis relationship. Favre tried to bond with Schroeder off the field who was a talented athlete but struggled adapting to the NFL. Rodgers is holding Janis accountable in the media which is a no no.

The Packers need to utilize Janis's abilities and either as a #3 or specific opportunities in games that they can get the ball in his hands. Abbrederis had to stay healthy last year and he would have received the opportunities.

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I thought they were looking more at Abbrederis. He had opportunities, then had a bad drop and you didn't see him again for a couple games. It just seemed like mistakes from them weren't tolerated, while Adams was given 2nd chances time and time again.

After Montgomery was out, and Jones dinged up, with Adams hurt and/or failing to come through, they should have designed a few opportunities in each game for Abbrederis/Janis. The few times Janis did play, he ended up staying in as a blocker most of the time.

Maybe this is another example of MM playing not to lose, rather than playing to win. Just as we complain about him of playing too conservatively at the ends of games, he didn't seem to be willing to take any type of chance with Janis as a receiver. The potential for Janis to use his size and speed to make a big play seemed to be outweighed by MM's fear that he could make a mistake.

"Schroeder says he posted a 44-inch vertical leap and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.26 seconds at the combine." Wow, Billy was white lightening.

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Originally Posted by call_me_ishmael

"Schroeder says he posted a 44-inch vertical leap and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.26 seconds at the combine." Wow, Billy was white lightening.

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Funny that his name never comes up in discussions of all-time tryout bests in either category.
Perhaps he is "misremembering" just a little from a time when data is not readily available?

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Originally Posted by Patler

I thought they were looking more at Abbrederis. He had opportunities, then had a bad drop and you didn't see him again for a couple games. It just seemed like mistakes from them weren't tolerated, while Adams was given 2nd chances time and time again.

After Montgomery was out, and Jones dinged up, with Adams hurt and/or failing to come through, they should have designed a few opportunities in each game for Abbrederis/Janis. The few times Janis did play, he ended up staying in as a blocker most of the time.

Maybe this is another example of MM playing not to lose, rather than playing to win. Just as we complain about him of playing too conservatively at the ends of games, he didn't seem to be willing to take any type of chance with Janis as a receiver. The potential for Janis to use his size and speed to make a big play seemed to be outweighed by MM's fear that he could make a mistake.

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When Monty went down I thought that Abbdrederis came off the practice squad. He had a drop verse SD and then get bruised ribs towards the end of the game. I don't remember the exact drop other than it was pretty crucial and on third down.

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Originally Posted by Deputy Nutz

Janis is explosive, I prefaced the Favre and Schroeder relationship to counter the Rodgers and Janis relationship. Favre tried to bond with Schroeder off the field who was a talented athlete but struggled adapting to the NFL. Rodgers is holding Janis accountable in the media which is a no no.

The Packers need to utilize Janis's abilities and either as a #3 or specific opportunities in games that they can get the ball in his hands. Abbrederis had to stay healthy last year and he would have received the opportunities.

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I think the bolded is a pretty close call. Nothing Rodgers (or Nelson or the coaches) have said has moved beyond boilerplate. They have said similar things about Adams, Monty, Abby and Rodgers. We have no specifics about what aspect of practice or classroom Janis is inconsistent with. Janis is a public issue because he does something remarkable once per month. Once per week in the preseason. So its an obvious line of questioning for the media and the public.

Favre gave Ferguson and Schroeder a lot of room, though he finally went public with Ferguson during one off-season, pointing out that he had to get his assignments straight at practice. Might happen with Janis, but even last year, the details of not connecting with Rodgers was all by inference.

I took Van Pelt's comments in the ESPN article to be about meeting room questions and private conversations. But that is just a guess.

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Originally Posted by Deputy Nutz

When Monty went down I thought that Abbdrederis came off the practice squad. He had a drop verse SD and then get bruised ribs towards the end of the game. I don't remember the exact drop other than it was pretty crucial and on third down.

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I think Abbrederis came off PS when Adams was injured. Montgomery went down a few weeks later.

I was thinking af a drop he had later in the season, early in a game in which he had a fair number of targets. After the drop, he didn't play. After the game, MM mentioned the drop and said substitution patterns during a game are determined by early in the game performance. Of course, this doesn't explain why Adams didn't see playing time reductions in several games.

I think Abby had a concussion at the end of camp, missed the first four games. Came back to play (Week 5,6,7,9). Got hurt at Detroit, came back for Weeks 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16.

EDIT: concussion was earlier, he was waived and then signed to PS at start of season.

I follow

Abbrederis' first objective has to be to stay healthy during training camp. He didn't have a training camp at all during his first year, and had a very abbreviated one last year. He continued with injuries throughout the season. With his physical build, college injury history and continued injuries his first two NFL seasons, I don't expect the Packers to have a lot of patience with him. Too many others to waste too much on him.

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Originally Posted by Patler

I think Rodgers overplays his role as gatekeeper. I am tired of hearing him talk about how his teammates must achieve his blessing before they can expect to be incorporated into the offense. I'm tired of MM apparently granting this power to Rodgers, just as I tired of Sherman deferring to Favre. One of the things I liked about MM when he came was that he reduced the kid-glove treatment Favre had been receiving. Now, I see him falling into the same trap with Rodgers.

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I think Mad would do well to emulate Rodgers. Make us all run our practice posts by him before we're allowed to post anything in the real thread.