Press & Luuuuu! I can dig it.

The Lukas Van Ness pick at #13 during April’s draft cannot be understated.

The Packers ranked #2 in pass rush snaps resulting in a pressure before Gary went down. After? #28…

Taking nothing away from Gary, as the man needs a prudent timetable to return from his ACL suffered in Week 9 of 2022, having a motivated Preston Smith calling for the entire defense to step up is HUGE. I like seeing Preston cementing a leadership role in setting team goals on D.

Preston & Lukas working the edges will go a long way towards making that a reality. Both players bring quality pass rush & run stop. The impact of Preston, a team leader and LVN opposite helps all 3 levels of this Packers D.

LVN allows the Packer to be conservative with Gary’s return, which could pay dividends late in the season when both players can be paired.

The ballhawks benefiing big time will be fun to see, giving the ball back to Love to pile in points.

You all know who else benefits… interior DL. Top run stop OLBs funneling runs inside should help Clark, Slayton & Wyatt clean up. Anybody else stoked to see Quay Walker & Devonte Wyatt working off each other?

Looking forward to more defensive scores as well, which I think we’ll see.

Bakhtiari returning to minicamps healthy is indeed big. Sounds from everything I’ve heard that he & Elgton are motivated to own that left side of our OL again. Good.

Speaking of… Goodson could be a nice change of pace added to Jones & Dillon. I think Goodson makes this 53, and that all 3 RBs get put to better use with Love under Center.

Also looking forward to Dusty Evely having a ton of great film on Love & all of our Packers to review..!!! Dusty ROCKS!

Can’t wait to see all of it. Great stuff, Al!

Preston Smith is spot on.
Sad to see Bakh’s Packer career coming to a close.
LVN has great versatility but I’m not confident Barry won’t squander it.
Run blocking has been atrocious in the deep red zone.

Smith... I like hearing Smith talk and he SHOULD. He's one of three Packers to actually be at least 30 years old on the current 90 man roster, AND he's been doing this at a high level for years. IMO Preston Smith needs to STAY vocal in his support of his teammates and being a leader.

Lukas Van Ness... The chant would be cool...Winning DROY would be even better. That's my "Bold Prediction" and I'm sticking to it...Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!!

Goodson... I was excited when I heard Goodson looked good this year. Hanging out with Aaron Jones is a pretty damn smart move too. I hope I continue to read and hear many more positives about Goodson all year long.

Hyped Up...I KNEW IT!!! I just knew it. Bears and Vikings fans ranked 29th and 31st...Isn't that a little high for Bears fans though?

Viking fans scored so low because their response to every question was, "Super Bowl, Baby!"

Bears fans fared poorly because they responded, "1985!", to 9 of 10 questions.

Wouldn’t it have been nice if Smith said
the same thing when Rodgers was here.
Bahk wants another contract.
Encouragement is a good thing.
Luuuuu is better than baby Louie.
Dillions a Bust - Compare data to Jamal Williams"
Goodson would have beat out Taylor
if the OL did their job. We still need a Kuhn.
Hyped up- Lack of Intelligence.
Or insulting someones intelligence?

"Bears fans were ranked 29th and Vikings fans were 31st."

Detroit didn't qualify for the list. They couldn't find any fans

AL, have a nice vacation. Please have someone sub for you. I look forward to your weekly pollution.

“ So evidently, there is a social media analysis tool called "hypeauditor," which was used to measure the education and intelligence level of NFL fans. Packers fans were found to be the fifth smartest, with Bills fans taking the top spot (surprising). Not surprisingly, Bears fans were ranked 29th and Vikings fans were 31st. I think those results legitimize the tool, dontcha think?‘

NY Jets fans were 30th and NY Giants fans 32nd. Hypeauditor may be a perfect tool.

Players come and players go, but the one constant is my love for the Green Bay Packers. Former Packers are irrelevant, especially when the Packers don’t even play their teams. The only thing that is relevant is that Rodgers plays in >65% of the Jets snaps because even the 32nd pick is better than a 2nd round pick.

At the beginning of "pickle season", Al, you still find something to talk about. Nice and thank you. I'm sorry to hear that we will be without your "column" for whole 2 weeks through July, but when man has to rest, he has to. I wish you very pleasent and very restful vacation.

"unless some player gets arrested or says something benign on Twitter that gets blown up into an international incident (see Love, Jordan)." I saw his congrats to Bears fans about fathers' day. It looks like, at least to me that he was mocking them through that statement - those are opportunity for bears fans to have at least something to celebrate...

Well, I hope Preston need to insist on that through TC and through the games, leading by example, not leaving said words empty.

If people from that reasearch really believe that Packers fans are top 5 smartest, were it put those bears and vikings expectation for the season?

Somehow, I'm certain that Luke Van Ness will play on high note, but I'm more interested in Brendon Cox - will he and what bring to the table. If both of them will be successful, opponents, look out. Rashan, Preston, Luke, Brendon will give Packers opportunity to be constantly fresh at rushing the passer and stoping the run. It will also help those 2 to 3 men at DL.

Regarding AJD. You are right, by my opinion. He scored most of his rushing TD at short distances from the end zone.

Goodson already showed to Packers his elusiness, speed and quick burst, similar to Aaron Jones. He should be 3rd RB this season w/o any doubts.

Once again, good vacation Al.

I'm for trading David Bakhtiari to another team for a second round draft pick. I like Bakhtiari, but not for the money he's being paid. Granted, Bakhtiari could do well for another two or three years, but not for the salary he's getting for the next couple of years. And there's the very real possible chance that Bakhtiari will not recover his older physical health. His injured knee could easily break down during the coming season. It's a gamble that Bakhtiari's injury holds up at his age. Trade him while he still seems somewhat healthy enough to other teams who believe he might be immediately serviceable.

"I will likely take a week or two off from this column in July"
I don't approve of this. Sorry Al.

Preston Smith -
There is a lot of talent on the field. My greatest concern with the talent we have on the defense is if we have the right guy putting them in the right spots. Last year I don't believe that was the case. Hopefully that will be the case this year.

Bakhtiari Back -
Having our LT back at full strength for the first time in what feels like a decade, is a huge thing for our offense. Not only the LT spot is locked down but our LG is also locked down. We have the best left side of the OL in football. That will help Love a ton.

Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu -
I can hear it now - every time Lukas Val Ness gets a sack. I am totally hyped up on this guy and I am not alone:
With a lot of the hype of this draft being on the offensive playmakers they drafted (Musgrave, Reed, Kraft, Wicks, DuBose), some how not a lot of hype has been surrounding Van Ness. I have a feeling that will change once pads come on and the preseason hits.

Need More data! -
I know we haven't done it but I really want to see what Dillon and the offense could do in the Pistol. Dillon running towards the OL getting the ball with momentum seems like a good idea to me. Putting your players in the best position to succeed to me is a great thing.

Goodson -
I wanted Goodson to be on the 53 last year. I felt he could have given them the Tyler Ervin type of player in the offense. I shouldn't read to much into it, but from how I interpreted things, it sounded like Goodson needed to do some maturing? If that was the case, a year on the PS could do him wonders. Learning how to be a pro and what it takes to succeed at this level. But spending time with Jones this offseason will only make him better.
Goodson I believe could be a very good weapon in our offense this year. He provides the ability to run or catch. He has speed and shiftiness that can be a major weapon for us. I'm looking forward to seeing Goodson this camp!

Hyped Up -
Seems pretty accurate.

--Van Ness has that Nick Bosa look. Come on, a guy can dream.
-- Love Prestons attitude especially since he might be a cap casualty next season.
-- RB another interesting position to watch in preseason. Nichols has college #'s that are hard to ignore at 220 lbs.
--- A 70% Bak is still very good, and gives us more time to find a future LT. I don't envision him being here next season, even with a 19 mill dead cap hit, but 21 mill savings.

Quiet time, where there's so little NFL content to chat about, and I focus on... Why do soccer fans seem to have a monopoly on clever chants and cheers? Luuuuuuuu? Isn't his nickname Hercules? There's something better there. I think the more clever among the CHTV commenters could have a good one. That's not me, but I'll give it a shot. Tell me hearing Packer fans at Soldier Field chanting, "Hercules! Hercules! Hercules!" ala Nutty Professor after Van Ness sacks Fields wouldn't make you smile?

Seriously, I'm pumped for camp. I can't wait to see Hercules and Bahk in one-on-ones, the right side of the OL getting situated, Love and the young skill players developing chemistry, the DL rotation, who's starting beside Savage, Carlson booting long ones. This is an under-the-radar squad, and I've got a feeling they're going to surprise many.

Interesting facts from Dusty Everly, Al.

Also from Dusty:

Of the 67 QBs since 2019 who attempted at least 100 (non RPO) passes past the line of scrimmage to the MIDDLE OF THE FIELD, Rodgers ranked 65th.

Think of the production the Offense could have this year using ALL the football real estate. BTW, the QB who ranked #1 above was Brock Purdy, who ran the SB offense the Packers HC finally wants to emulate this year.

This "between the numbers" refocus for the Offense is going to be fun to watch!

Also, regarding trading Bak this season...no. No. Let me be clear...no. Even with David on the team with his cap hit AND the Rodgers $40 Mil dead cap, the Packers are spending the 2nd FEWEST cap dollars on Offense this season. He is a leader and an elite LT to protect Jordan's blind side. I think Bak is going to Love this season.

Not a big surprise to me that Pack fans rate high in knowledge of the game.

Now we need those who are fortunate enough to attend the games to get their shit together. Time to take the responsibility as "12th man" seriously. No more "wave" in critical situations, no more "GO PACK GO" when we are under center...

'I will likely take a week or two off from this column in July'

You deserve it Al. However, you are about the best thing for me on Wednesday mornings, although this time of year I tee off with my buddies at 11:30 so you may be a close second in the summer.

Preston Smith-'"With so much talent on our defense"'

I have always liked Preston Smith. Speaking of talent. I remember a few years back we were very limited once we got by the Smith boys, other than Gary maturing into the great player that he is now. But look at the possibilities we have for this coming year. Preston Smith, LVN, Gary at some point, Enagbare, Hollins, and quite possibly Brendan Cox. This does not even consider the others that are trying to make the team in the Edge Rusher department.

Bahktiari back-I can see it both ways if we should keep him or trade him because of his age and CAP charge. Originally, I thought we should trade him and get what we want but I have changed my mind to that thought. If we are going to truly evaluate how Love does this year, we need to have that left side protection. We need to know if Love is for us in the future or if we need to draft a QB in next year's draft. Having this protection helps us with that decision, or at least it appears to me that it does.

LVN-as my name suggests, I am an Iowa Hawkeye fan as well as a packer fan (down votes here?) With the packers selecting LVN, of course I am excited to a certain degree. As a fan of both, I hope he works out as well as many think. However, if I look at the Iowa defensive line last year, there were a lot of good players and I wonder how much that helped LVN look as good as he does. Also, he should look good early in the year but he will need to learn more moves such as the swim move rather than just the bull rush move. The offense lines of most teams in the NFL will be able to handle him if he only has the bull rush move. I believe he will learn more rush moves and he should thrive in the GB defense.

Goodson 'Training camp reports have mentioned Goodson as having stepped up his game'

As previously mentioned, I am a hawkeye fan have liked Goodson when he was at Iowa. However, the one gripe that I have/had is that in his final year at Iowa, I don't think he looked as good as previous years. The thing that I remember about him running the ball is that he did not like to get hit. Sure he is a smaller type running back with speed but you are going to get hit. I would see him running through the line and if a LB was coming on to hit him, rather than trying to get a yard or two after contact, he would actually back up to not take a hit. Disappointing and that is why I am not as big of fan of his as a lot of posters are here. Not sure what he does for us on ST and as far as using him like Tyler Ervin, I believe we have a couple of wide outs that we can use that are very fast. Also, Nichols sounds pretty impressive. We shall see how things shake out.

My polluted thoughts.

Yes the defense has to step up to help Love. But will Joe Barry do it? Not sure at this point. No more playing off on third and short. And use Alexander to his all pro abilities.

The Packers need three good RB'S. Because they will lean on the RB'S more this season. Goodson is needed to keep Jones and Dillon fresh. And play when injuries occur, which they will. The Pack need 3000 plus total yards from the RB'S and at least 100 receptions.

And Bahktiari is very needed. Another site had film clips showing just how well his technique and awareness is still excellent. Expecting another good year.

"Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu - I can hear it now - every time Lukas Val Ness gets a sack. I am totally hyped up on this guy and I am not alone:"

Sorry but that sounds really lame (and not that imaginative). However, just imagine if, after a play half the Packers crowd shout "Loch Ness" followed by the other half shouting "Mmmonster !". It's better than Luuuu - and for that matter better than "Go Pack Go" (though I doubt that one will ever die).

Absolutely agree that this time period is one where you don't want to hear news about players because it is typically bad news.

Packers fans being 5th most intelligent football fans is kinda nice. Bears and Vikes scores did make me smile. It would be nice if there was a metric that measured the overall intelligence of posters on various football fan sites. CHTV should get a high score for its content (though the fan comments to its articles is pretty varied).

Al, I'd fill in for you in your absence, but you'd have to rename the column to "Confessions of a Toxic Mindset" and there'd be too much damage control to do when you get back. Just sayin!

Given that its quiet time for us fans, I'd like to throw the following trade idea out there - "trade Bakh while his value is high for a #2 QB?" Now, or very soon into training camp, or even the beginning of season play might be the time...

I just don't want to see us getting nothing for him next year when the cap will make it nearly impossible? He also deserves to be a team that has a better chance of going deeper into the playoffs than we do at this point in time.

I know to many GB purists this trade idea probably sounds like Packer heresy, but it might be the right move at the right time. GB has never had such good prospects on the OLine as they do today. Yes, we would lose a past Pro Bowler but we could sure use an experienced back up QB.

We held onto you-know-who for too long. Lets not make the same mistake again?

Does everyone think that the Packers defense needs to put Jordan Love in "Great Situations"?