Good morning Gil,

After my wife finished plucking the feathers off the crow, I ate him for dinner with a cheap glass of wine.

I was among the many who were critical of the Packers immediately after the draft. Just another reason why I would make a terrible General Manager in the NFL.

Great article. Keep up the good work.

One game with limited reps is a nice start. Now, once the other team's best DL man is not hurt, let's see if this continues. Barnes definitely looked like he belonged, which could well mean that if this continues, Burks will be gone next year. Let's also not forget the apparent effect the (moving up to) draft a new QB has had on Rodgers. He was more very sharp, his deep balls were accurate, he threw a laser to Adams with beautiful placement, and he threw from a better base, rather than throwing off his back leg like recent years. Rodgers also seemed much more animated during the game, pumping up other guys on the sidelines and sitting with other players, rather than looking at his tablet while sitting alone. Whether this counts as a good draft move remains to be seen; but right now, a rejuvenated Rodgers is a welcome sight.

Yes, and three of the best Packer rooks were inactive....QB Love, ILB Kamal Martin and the injured G/C drafted in the 6th round.

This could yet go down as an all-time vintage draft. Give it 2-3 years.

Other than Special Teams, I was very surprised that anyone besides DeGuara and Dillon saw the field for regular snaps in their first game. Can't hurt that they trust these guys that much.

Overall I was pleasantly surprised with how much the rookies played an how well they played.

Dillon - He only had 2 rushes but he flashed on both the runs. The one he makes a tremendous cut especially for a RB his size. One thing I would like to see him brought in for is goal line situations. Bring him in on the 1-2 yard line and let him power his way in.

Deguara - He already made the block of the year. He added a nice reception and he showed he can play everywhere. He looks like he is going to be a tremendous fit for this offense.

Runyan - He played 15 snaps and looked really good (from what I saw). I do think he could be a great find. I'm not sure how much he will play moving forward, but perhaps he will become our next Mark Tauscher type of player. The starter in front of him gets hurt, he takes over and never looks back.

Barnes - I don't think any rookie had a bigger surprising start then Barnes. No one expected to see that. While he played 15 snaps, he made the most of them. 6 tackles 2 for loss. He really shined! I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do moving forward.

Overall our rookies performed well. Thus proving that you need to wait until they actually play before you can call players busts and teams draft picks were horrible.
I look forward to seeing how all of these guys plus others get move involved as the season goes on.

Never understood the angst that comes following the draft. Happens every year! I was excited following the draft!

Gutey is such an upgrade over TT, particularly those last 3 to 5 years every Packer fan should be eternally grateful. The success and upgrades happening to this team in such a short time is exciting. Yes, obtaining LeFleur is a significant upgrade IMO over McCarthy. The game passed MM by as he became focused on stats, probability, and conservatism on both O and D when they had a lead. Became very predictable and therefore beatable. He also lacked awareness of younger players talent and abilities and would consistently go to broken down veterans whose best days were behind them. I am loving the change and upgrades starting in the front office, to the sidelines, to the talent on the field.

Thanks Gil nice article,

I too was disappointed in the Packers 2020 draft I thought they took a big gamble taking Love And of course that pic remains to be seen how it works out. Then I thought they overdrafted Dillan and Deguara, but what the hell do I know? It was great to see the Packers dominate the Vikings and get all these young guys some actual game experience in the first game of the season.
Dillan - Came as advertised, a Big back with the speed and feet of a little back, he’s going to be a good one.
Deguara- also came as advertised, a very heady, no nonsense do it all player. He should be a fan favorite for years to come, blue-collar Green Bay loves this type of player.
Barnes- Judging from training camp I originally thought I would be plugging in Martin’s name here, but what a nice surprise Barnes has been at inside linebacker, I hope it continues.
Runyan- This is one pic that I was a fan of from the beginning, I believe Runyon will eventually be protecting Jordan Love someday, hopefully not too soon, I think Rogers has some good years ahead of him especially after they win the Super Bowl this year.
Scott, Galeai, Garvin- It was just nice to see these young guys get their feet wet in an actual NFL game good for them. Who knows they may be needed at critical times this season and it’s good to have a little experience.
Go Pack!

Thanks for the article Gil. Agree, it's a good sign that the draft class are not only getting reps but by-and-large getting those reps in the thick of action.

Personally, I'm really looking forward to the week 3 Saints game as a real litmus test of where the Packers are at.

Re Jon Runyan: His draft perplexed me a bit. He was a consensus pick (with few red flags) to become a solid-to-good professional player..... so why didn't he go earlier than the 6th round? That always puzzled me. I guess we'll get to see how oppositions work on his weaknesses, and how he responds, and we'll find out.

Re Krys Barnes. I did see one play (the goal line stuffing of Dalvin Cook) where he was a full yard+1/2 into the end zone a couple of seconds after the snap. If Preston Smith wasn't left relatively unblocked - allowing him to pinball Irv SmithJr (I think!) back into Cook to stuff him - then the outcome would have been different (as Cook breaks the plane in the hole Barnes should have been covering). Sure, this a nit-picky thing that I'm sure the coaches will tidy up with him....... it perplexed me with Blake Martinez too on goal line stands, no point in laying the wood after they've broken the plane!

A little early in the season Gil for this analysis, what’s more concerning is the poor play of the packers defense especially late in the game and what’s the plan with no Kenny Clark ? thanks

You must have been reading my mind Gil. I was so hoping that somebody would write an article on the Rookies after the first game. It is one game, but to not be happy with the performance of many of the Rookies with a reduced training camp and no preseason games you must still be upset that Gute didn't pick the guys in your mock. My only disappointment was that Lafleur didn't run Dillon when we were on the 1 yard line.

We can see how Lafleur's vision is taking shape. Many were upset with a lack of a WR, but we are bringing back power football. The best part about power football is the ability to win the time of possession and wear down the opposing D. We saw that in spades last Sunday. This should help keep our D off the field and well rested. But let's all agree to do away with our pathetic attempt at prevent D. The Vikes had no business lingering in that game.

Gil "I'm a big Fan" - Great insight.

One game so opinions should be tempered, the take away being ...they can do it, now can they repeat it, then can it be repeated consistently, lastly can it be repeated in the big games. Time will tell but there's reason to be optimistic.

The big angst in the draft is drafting a wr as a weapon for AROD that will make an impact in order to put the team over the hump. That's the national and often local narrative. Very easy for all of us to understand, makes sense.

The impact Degura makes goes beyond yards and blocks. It's the way he fits the offensive scheme being implemented and all the advantages it brings. The Illusion article spoke to this. The issue being most of us have a harder time grasping it and all that it brings. We like to hear about the Big name WR who is being talked about on TV and has these big time numbers. The assumption being that he will bring those #'s to the team.

Very seldom does that ever happen. PFF has run very informative studies on the odds being against draft picks making much impact early on and the odds that many will never pan out. We like to think every pick will work out and if the pick is made in the 1st few rounds it should for sure. In the end that's not the way it works. The #s prove it. Heck just look at all the high draft picks that are finding new teams when they didn't pan out. We have our misses, doesn't mean the GM is terrible. The bad ones never hit on the gems and can't find anything of value past the first few rounds.

I looked forward to your writing. This article is a concise objective review of the rookies and their contributions. the packers made a good move in hiring MLF and Guteys draft picks are proving to all of us lazy boy recliner QB's we are in for an innovative coach (in his 2nd year) who keeps Improvingregardless of the score or quarter in the game.
Gutey and his staff appeared to have picked the right pieces (regardless of main media and fans opinions) to fit MLF's football puzzle.
Look forwRd to more reporting . Thanks

The rookies are contributing and this is without any playing time for Love, Stepaniak or Martin. I believe most of the experts thought Stepaniak was the best of the three OL the Packers drafted, so he may be in line for playing time when he gets healthy. Martin looked like the starter at ILB until he was injured, so another possible plus from this draft.

Unfairly, I also think the perceived success or failure of this draft is going to hang on our first round draft choice - QBs tend to have that effect.