Following preseason finale, Packers' attention shifts to week one

-- Alas, the Green Bay Packers can turn the entirety of their focus towards the September 9 season opener against the Chicago Bears.

After roster cut-downs, at least.

Thursday night presented any bubble players with one last opportunity to leave a lasting impression on coaches and the personnel department before teams must reduce their rosters to 53 players by Saturday at 4 p.m. EST.

There are position battles across the board for the Packers, and entering Kansas City for a preseason finale showdown against the Chiefs -- a 33-21 defeat -- didn't settle many of them. But it did offer a little more clarity on who the Packers' backup quarterback will be.

After dishing Brett Hundley to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a 2019 sixth-round selection, the competition behind newly-extended starter Aaron Rodgers was inevitably between DeShone Kizer -- who the team also acquired via a trade proceeding back in March -- and Tim Boyle, an undrafted free agent with a cannon for an arm.

Kizer's second throw of the night -- intended for tight end Lance Kendricks -- sailed over his target and into the waiting, diving arms of Chiefs safety Armani Watts.

It was ultimately Kizer's only mistake of the night. The interception was one of his two incompletions, finishing 5-for-7 for 57 yards, a touchdown and the aforementioned interception. His 95.5 passer rating was the second-highest of either team.

Boyle, however, gradually sailed off into irrelevancy as the night wore on.

He started hot after taking over under center early in the second quarter, leading the Packers on drives of 78 yards in 13 plays and 65 yards in five plays, helping them leap ahead with a 21-10 lead.

Since engineering that last touchdown drive in the second quarter, Boyle's cannon disintegrated, going 2-for-10 for 14 yards and two interceptions -- one of them returned for a touchdown by former Packers cornerback Makinton Dorleant.

If there were any positives to take away from the Packers' offense in Kansas City, it was the play of Jason Spriggs at left tackle and Aaron Jones at running back.

Spriggs, like last week against the Oakland Raiders, wasn't beat handily by his assignment and held up in formidable fashion in pass protection consistently.

Jones, meanwhile, looked like he hadn't missed a beat while recovering from a hamstring injury that sidelined him for the first two weeks of the preseason. He carried the ball six times for 30 yards and a touchdown with his father, Alvin Jones Sr., in attendance.

While sticking to their "vanilla" approach and not unveiling too much of their plans, the Packers and new defensive coordinator Mike Pettine did what they could against a Chiefs offense that continued to churn yardage for most of the contest. 

All three Chiefs quarterbacks -- whether it was Chad Henne, Matt McGloin or Chase Litton -- had their way with the Packers' backup defense. As a team, they threw for over 300 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 7.4 yards per completion compared to 4.8 on the Packers' end.

After a sub-par first half, Packers second-year edge rusher Vince Biegel tied for the team-lead in tackles with undrafted safety Raven Greene, both finishing with seven apiece.

The Packers have difficult decisions to make as the deadline for cut-downs loom, and there's no telling which way coach Mike McCarthy and the team brass will lean.

Following the loss Thursday night, McCarthy said he "isn't making any evaluations tonight" before abruptly ending his press conference.

__________________________

Zachary Jacobson is a staff writer/reporter for Cheesehead TV. He's the voice of The Leap on iTunes and can be heard on The Scoop KLGR 1490 AM every Saturday morning. He's also a contributor on the Pack-A-Day Podcast. He can be found on Twitter via @ZachAJacobson or contacted through email at [email protected].

NFL Categories: 
0 points
 

Comments (75)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
stockholder's picture

August 30, 2018 at 11:52 pm

Boyle should of had 3 INTs. PS? MM can't be happy.

0 points
0
0
Oppy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:10 am

I think MM knows what he's working with, and that's two young QB's who need a lot of work before they're viable NFL back up QB's.

There's no way both of these guys should be taking up roster spots at this point.

0 points
0
0
jeremyjjbrown's picture

August 31, 2018 at 03:03 am

It's time for the Packers QB school to end because it's a waste of effort. BG needs to sign Doug Peterson 2.0 ASAP as soon as he can find him and the Packers coaching staff can put the effort into winning a SB with Rodgers. They honestly suck at developing QBs (other than Rodgers) anyways.

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:12 am

Disagree on Kizer. Boyle is a work in progress but one that I still believe has significant upside despite being raw as heck.

Kizer looked pretty good to me other than one throw. I’d back him over Deadly Doug in his Packers pomp.

Other than that, Spriggs May have turned the corner, which would be a huge plus.

Also, I think Raven Greene should be part of the safety rotation and that Tonyan is too good to leave off the roster.

Scott is exciting. Rare potential for a punter.

Davis was his usual self, moderately impressive, but hardly lethal on returns coupled with a field turning cock up. This time a fumble. This is not a player who I believe is worth a spot. Multiple Chiefs returners looked better.

OLB was awful. Beigel is Fackrell light. At best PS material and that only because maybe he is not fully back to strength. Frankly I would not be upset if he were cut. Only Donnerson flashed anything.

Goodson seemed like the best of the rest at CB and showed up on special teams.

Hoping we sign a returner and bolster our OLB corps during cut down. I hate the idea of using a spot on a returner, but if we do, better be more consistent than Davis. OLB behind the top 3 is just not good enough.

0 points
0
0
Bearmeat's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:16 am

agreed on all points. especially about Davis

0 points
0
0
Oppy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:27 am

Beigel actually had a productive night for a change... and I'm not a beigel fan.

As to Davis- it was his first action of training camp coming off injury. I am certainly not happy with the fumble on his only punt return (Chiefs only punted 3 times- one was a fair catch, one punt went out of bounds, and then the other was fumbled by Davis). But I can't take seriously any claims that he's usually only "moderately impressive". Only two other full time return men last year bested his punt return average. only six others were better on kick returns. That's factual. He's a very good punt return man, and the staff believes him to be the best gunner. Davis should be on the roster. The Davis detractors seem to ignore data- like 2017 never happened. I don't get it.

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:12 am

Stats can be misleading. How often does he change the field for good and bad? That is the true measure. As to explosiveness, the Chiefs had multiple returners who looked more so last night. That’s not a ringing endorsement.

0 points
0
0
HarlanHuckleby's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:03 am

The only good things about Pedersen as a backup were his ability to give insight and his apparent magic ability to keep the guy in front of him healthy in GB. When he was pressed into service elsewhere things didn’t go so hot.

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:11 am

He wasn’t bad at holding the clipboard and did as good a job chaperoning the maestro outside of team activity as anyone could realistically have done. He earned his money.

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:36 pm

Davis muffed some punts in practice last year, Oppy. But he is undeniably a good punt returner, and he seems to have fixed that problem. Best gunner. Last night was a fumble, not a muff. I'd say Davis deserves a roster spot. The only hesitation I have is when I wonder how much better is Davis than Cobb/Jaire/Jackson? Also when I put names to his rivals for that spot: Davis or Kumerow/Tonyan/ESB/Ahmad Thomas/Donnerson. Makes him a close call.

Makes me glad I like math - the equations can be solved, usually anyway.

0 points
0
0
Green Bay Shareholder's picture

September 04, 2018 at 12:35 pm

Right on, been saying that for what 10 years it seems. Arod or bust, see that every time The Man goes down. No development and no plan year after year, not sure who evaluates management but Arod is underpaid. These guys are in cruise control as long as he is under center. Unfortunately after years of a ridiculously weak division, things will be getting tougher for the Packers to make the Playoffs with a Superstar QB and the Barnum and Bailey Rookie, UFA and Senior Center Mash Squad Injury Circus that gets assembled every year. Hoping for the best from Gute but has a lot to prove this year. Just frustrating to see so many inferior QB's have as many if not more rings than a guy that bleeds Green and Gold for this organization.

0 points
0
0
holmesmd's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:03 am

What was up with MM’s surly attitude at the end of his post game presser? He makes millions of dollars. Man up and answer the question...or decline. Having a tantrum at the mere audacity of Spofford’s question was a bit bush league if you ask me. Spoff asks if “anyone stood out on the defense”, and MM flees?! WTH?! SMH. Come on MM, more yoga and centeredness exercises. Your the captain of the ship. COME ON MAN!!!!LOL;)

0 points
0
0
Oppy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:16 am

Very odd that it was one of the Packers' own asking the question and MM reacted that way... Packers employees are homers that serve up slow pitch softballs for the coaching staff and players in interviews typically- company men, so to speak. I'm going to have to watch the presser now.

0 points
0
0
Oppy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:25 am

Okay, just watched it.. I wonder if it's specifically because Spoff asked if anyone stood out to make "final roster decisions."

Just guessing, but I wonder if MM pre-empted the presser by saying "I will not answer questions about roster cuts, so don't ask them or I'll shut it down."

Also, the way MM points at Spoff and says, "I'll see you back home" was... suspicious.

High drama!!

0 points
0
0
johngalt's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:29 am

I really didn't think any part of that presser was "surly". MM was respectful I thought. It's football

0 points
0
0
Oppy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 01:26 am

I would agree it wasn't surly, but he was short with the answer to Spofford's question and immediately shut down the presser- which was the shortest post game presser I've seen him do- and calling out Mike Spofford by name and saying "I'll see you back home" was odd.

0 points
0
0
kevgk's picture

August 31, 2018 at 02:59 am

much ado about nothing

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:11 am

Think he just said need to review the tape. Reasonable answer. It is people’s lives here remember and it’s often the small things that divide at this point.

Not seeing the drama in his response.

0 points
0
0
Oppy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:33 am

1 minute, 45 second post game presser is a little odd.

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:00 am

4 th preseason and less than 48 hours to evaluate the roster and cut 37 players. He stated they would be starting film review on the plane. He has a busy few days. Doesn’t seem odd to me

0 points
0
0
Bear's picture

August 31, 2018 at 02:14 pm

Press conferences with coaches is garbage. To think they have to respond to people who know little about what is really happening is ridiculous!
We as fans act like we know everything and deserve answers to stupid questions is very sad.
It’s about winning and only winning forget about the other junk!

0 points
0
0
Green Bay Shareholder's picture

September 04, 2018 at 12:38 pm

Guy needs to be shown the door. If not for Arod at QB this guy would be out of the league ! I wonder how abyssmal his record is in the games Arod is injured, even against sub .500 teams ?

0 points
0
0
Chris YB's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:05 am

Thanks for the info. Useful stuff for those like me who didn't watch the game. Just one thing, I don't think alas means what you think it means...

0 points
0
0
calabasa's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:28 am

Shhhh... don’t tell him. I love his pioneering use of the English language. Proper grammar has met its match!

0 points
0
0
jeremyjjbrown's picture

August 31, 2018 at 03:11 am

Inconceivable!

0 points
0
0
GLM's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:58 am

Indubitably!

0 points
0
0
Johnblood27's picture

August 31, 2018 at 02:35 pm

Alas, I second the aforementioned comments...

0 points
0
0
TKWorldWide's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:52 pm

Aforementioned!!!

0 points
0
0
Tundraboy's picture

August 31, 2018 at 01:36 am

Strange game. Considering nearly the entire starting lineup did not play,they actually looked very good for awhile, and then little by little turned absolutely Ugly. On the bright side saw some solid tackling and Scott had some booming punts. Thank god we have Rodgers and the preseason is finally over.

0 points
0
0
jeremyjjbrown's picture

August 31, 2018 at 03:07 am

It's the 4th game. There where a lot of guys playing at the end who will get cut. It's sad to see younf mens NFL dreams end, but I guess you saw why.

0 points
0
0
jeremyjjbrown's picture

August 31, 2018 at 03:05 am

I liked what Kendall Donnerson did in that game.

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:15 am

I would echo that. I want to think he is good enough to be on the 53. Is that because Odom and Beigel are so unimpressive though?

0 points
0
0
jh9's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:01 am

I don't recall Tonyan dropping a pass in any preseason game. He seems to catch the ball effortlessly. I believe he will be a valuable contributor to some NFL team, and I hope it will be with the Packers.

0 points
0
0
Turophile's picture

August 31, 2018 at 04:49 am

I've had Tonyan tagged as a keeper for a while. It's possible he is kept over FB Ripkowski (with the Pack going bare there for the first time in....forever.

I'd also put Tonyan above Kendricks, he has youth on his side, and could be even more valuable in a couple of years when Graham and Lewis are gone. He could be a long-term no.2 TE, with some more weight on him.

After seeing Boyle's play against the Chiefs, you have to consider whether he might clear waivers and gets to the PS, allowing an extra WR (Kumerow), TE (Byrd), OLB (Donnerson) or DL (Looney).

Great to see OT Spriggs finally coming on. The Packers really needed a tackle behind Bakh and Bula, and I'd bet he and Pankey are the guys.

0 points
0
0
Bert's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:47 am

I think it's pretty safe to say Boyle would pass through waivers. He simply isn't ready to be on any teams final 53 at this point.

0 points
0
0
NickPerry's picture

August 31, 2018 at 05:37 am

Can Vince Biegel be put on the PS? He's actually much worse than Frackrell which is so sad IMO. Had high hopes the guy could at least be a decent rotational piece but he's so far away from "Decent" I can't imagine spending a roster spot on him.

0 points
0
0
RCPackerFan's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:11 am

I thought he played ok. His pass rush needs work for sure. I think part of that is the fact he didn't get training camp last year. And when he came up to play he didn't get a lot of practice time in the season.

I honestly really wonder if he would be a better ILB. I have wondered about that from the beginning honestly. Similar to Joe Schobert.

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:41 pm

Agreed. Really thought Biegel was a sam ILB. I hated the draft pick at the time, and still do.

0 points
0
0
Packer Dave's picture

August 31, 2018 at 05:56 am

I'm not sure I've heard of a single good thing about Josh Jones this offseason. Sounds like he should just be stuck back at LB and left there. Highly likely a safety is brought in one way or another soon.

Curious if there was a Looney sighting yesterday?

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:17 am

Raven Greene. Already have a prospect. To be fair, safety was not a glaring weakness for me last night.

0 points
0
0
RCPackerFan's picture

August 31, 2018 at 06:57 am

2 players that stood out to me in this game that I think have a realistic chance of making the 53.

Robert Tonyan and Raven Greene.

If they keep 3 or 4 TE's I think Tonyan deserves a spot on the 53.
If the final spot on the roster is between Whitehead or Greene, I take Greene based on last nights performance. Whitehead was exposed and not very good. Greene stood out.

Cut downs are going to be interesting. The first half of the game you could see why they were talking of keeping Boyle on the 53. The 2nd half, not so much. While he has a great arm, he has a long ways to go. I am not sure if they will keep him on the 53 or try to get him on the PS.

Other thoughts...

Aaron Jones man I am going to miss him the first 2 weeks.

I am not sure how many WR's they will keep. I think MVS is on the 53 based on that he didn't play late in the game. Going by that I have to wonder if Moore and/or ESB make it on the 53. Moore looked good last week but didn't this week. Would they release him even though he was a 4th round draft pick? Then what do they do with Davis & Kumerow?

Spriggs looked really good IMO.
I also thought Pankey looked pretty good at RT.

It was great to see Scott flipping field with his booming punts. We haven't had that in pretty much forever. That one from the end zone, he was about half way in it when he punted the ball, and the guy caught it at the 37? That ball was in the air for 65+ yards. Incredible!

Cuts are going to be interesting, I am looking forward to seeing what happens.

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:06 am

I wanted to pick up on and compliment your Pankey observation. I omitted him in my comments and haven’t seen him mentioned, but you are absolutely right. Pankey played well to the point where we did not notice him (I was focused on Spriggs).

Pankey has turned into a keeper. He may allow us to IR Murphy. Given that he can play guard too, I think this could be as almost as important for the roster balance as Spriggs stringing together some good performances.

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:44 pm

Pass protection was fine most of the game. Pankey, Spriggs, McCray, everyone had a better day. I don't think KC played 1s much, of course.

0 points
0
0
croatpackfan's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:34 am

After last preseason game here is what I think will be staring Packers roster for the season:

O
2 QB - Aaron, Kizer

4 RB - Aaron, Williams, Monty, Devante Mays (Mays may be placed on PS and Joel can be instead in)

7 WR - Davante, Randall, G-Mo, C'mon Moore, MVS, ESQ, Davis

8 OL - Corey, David, Brian, Justin, Lane, Jason, Lucas, Bell

4 TE - Jimmy, Lewis, Lance, Tonyan

D
5 DL - Kenny, Mike, Mo, Adams, Lowry

4 ILB - Blake, Morrison, Thomas, Oren

6 OLB - Clay, Nick, Reggie, Fackrell, Vince, Donnerson

5(6) CB - Tramon, Jaire, Kevin, Josh, Davon, (Green)

4(5) S - Ha-Ha, Josh, Kentrell, Evans, (Green)

ST
K - Mason

P - Scott

LS - Triner

PS

Boyle, Byrd, Waters, Martini, Odom, Looney, Alex Light, Martini, Joel Bouagnon, Ryan Smith

IR
Kyle Murphy, Jake Kumerow

This roster is roster at the moment of available players. Of course it depends on GM moves if he will find any other players of the waivers...

Also I was in deep doubt to put Green on PS and Martini on the roster, so it may be like that, depends of how Mike Pettine sees team needs...

0 points
0
0
Qoojo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:36 am

I think you're a little light at OL and heavy at OLB.

0 points
0
0
RCPackerFan's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:47 am

Overall I think you're close. Remember though that Jones is suspended for the first 2 games and will have an open roster spot.

I do think they keep Pankey on the OL and Donnerson goes to PS.

I also think they will add an OLB that isn't on the team.

0 points
0
0
croatpackfan's picture

August 31, 2018 at 11:43 am

might be...

0 points
0
0
4thand1's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:46 pm

Trading Hundley frees up a roster spot. Rip will free up another one. Davis had his chance to shine, he looks to free up another spot. Boyles to practice squad. A Jones is the real deal, put Tonyan on the 53 for the 1st 2 weeks.

0 points
0
0
lucky953's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:21 am

I don't think Tonyan would make it through waivers. I'd take him before Kendricks, who has been a disappointment. Antonio Morrison is as advertised: Exposed in coverage but he can tackle in the open field. This D has given up chunks of yards to the bubble screen, so it was nice to see Jaire Alexander completely blow one up.

0 points
0
0
Lare's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:39 am

Another factor in roster decisions is the salary cap. For example, Kendricks costs $2.2 million this year, Tonyan only $480,000. Personally I don't think Kendricks adds any more to the team than Tonyan for that amount of money.

0 points
0
0
RCPackerFan's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:48 am

I wonder if they keep Tonyan over Rip. Basically go with 4 TE's and 0 FB's.

0 points
0
0
Handsback's picture

August 31, 2018 at 07:49 am

I listened to the broadcast last night and have to say Martini was mentioned a lot but it was always several yards down the field. Can't say how good/bad anyone looked last night but listening it didn't seem as Boyle didn't do anything after the half to make me think he's a QB that will be taken off the PS.

0 points
0
0
Qoojo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:33 am

Somewhat of a bittersweet moment after the last preseason game. But I feel for the players that don't get to make it after a lot of hard work.

- Boyle, I thought has the physical tools, it's the judgement and vision that went all wrong in 2nd half. That can be fixed with more experience.
- Jones is so shifty and powerful. At least it's only a couple games and not 4 game suspension.
- Davis, he looked pretty much the same but with some rust.

I only had half my attention (sometimes less) on the game. I had to listen to KC announcers, and they think that they are loaded at WR too. Maybe that's a common thing for fans. Worrying about getting that 7th/8th WR to PS.

Overall, both teams had coverage issues, and I don't put too much into evaluating the players.

Do you think Jackson is higher on depth chart than Alexander? Seems like Jackson has tighter coverage whenever it's throw his way, but I can't see what's happening when it's not thrown their way.

0 points
0
0
Andrew Lloyd Peth's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:53 am

On another thread, Al shut me down before I could respond to several blatant lies from WKU, and even said WKU doesn't start these battles--which is absurd.

I won't respond to WKU here, so as not to re-open the case on another thread. But I just want to register publicly my frustration with the ongoing bias on this site.

It needs to stop.

0 points
0
0
Johnblood27's picture

August 31, 2018 at 02:44 pm

ALP, some of us know who the problem is...

0 points
0
0
Since'61's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:54 am

I was not able to watch the game last evening but I've seen a few highlights, the box score and the comments here.

Sounds like the Packers won the first half but didn't show up for the second half. All that's left for the preseason now is the chucking and the crying. Time to move on to the games that count.

Good to hear that Spriggs and Jones looked good. I hope that MM sees the light and chucks Rip but keeps Tonyan. From the sound of it we should cut bait on Fackrell and Beigel with a schmear as well.

I haven't seen any mention of injuries. Did anyone who watched the game notice if anyone was hurt? If not we have come through the preseason pretty much unscathed which would be a great way to start the regular season.

Maybe Gute finds a backup OLB who can actually contribute over the weekend. Either way bring on the Bears. Thanks, Since '61

0 points
0
0
Coldworld's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:11 am

Looked like no significant injuries Since 61. Hawkins was evaluated after a play and Waters cramped up. McCarthy seemed to think nothing of note.

0 points
0
0
Since'61's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:43 am

Coldworld - I appreciate you taking the time to respond about the injuries.
Nothing major which is good. It will be nice to start a season with a healthy 53. Let's hope it stays that way. Thanks, Since '61

0 points
0
0
Qoojo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:23 am

I missed the beginning of the 3rd, but the second half was all about turnovers on bad throws or bad decisions, like the INT where Boyle simply did not see the DB in the middle of the field in zone coverage. On another, Boyle overthrew Byrd deep by 2-3 yards into the arms of the safety. Another INT was a pick 6.

0 points
0
0
Since'61's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:51 am

Qoojo, thank you for taking the time to reply. I've seen the second half picks on the game highlights. Most the guys playing in the second half probably won't be on the team in a few days. I'm just glad the preseason is over and our team seems pretty healthy to start the regular season. Thanks, Since '61

0 points
0
0
Johnblood27's picture

August 31, 2018 at 02:48 pm

Since 61, you're right on with Biegel, PS at best, maybe a switch to ILB? Seems as if his career trajectory at OLB has landed in a schmear.

Fackrell may save his 53 spot with ST play. Depth is thin without someone there...

Odom, Donnerson? I prefer the kid, he is athletic and aggressive, dont have to teach that. Odom... did he even play a snap this pre-season? Hard to tell...

Hope our top 3 can stay healthy...

0 points
0
0
PatrickGB's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:25 am

I listened to the game on SiriusXM. I also watched the stats on ESPN. It was the radio feed from wtmj. Homers. And I agree with most of the posters here. From what I “saw”, M. Adams and Biegel got pushed around, Spriggs did not. KCs offense was fooling our backup defense a lot. Coverage on kicks sucked but our punter did not. Our Backup QBs fell back into old habits and their backups are better than our backups on defense. Yet, once again, even many of our starters were run over in the run game. OLB looks thin and weak. If Pettine has a great defensive plan, he sure did not show it.

0 points
0
0
TKWorldWide's picture

August 31, 2018 at 10:31 am

I absolutely do not think the preseason is time for any coach to reveal any great plans. I’d say it’s more about player evaluation: “Can this OT function on an island?” “Can this LB or DB cover one on one?” And when those answers are “no”, we have to avoid the regular season mentality of “why don’t they chip to help that OT?” “Why don’t they scheme to avoid that man to man coverage matchup?” Etc etc

Years ago I was watching GB practice in training camp and one of the backup QB’s threw a couple incompletions in a row and the fan in front of me started yelling “That guy stinks! Get him out of there! Put Favre back in there!”

I have to admit I struggled to value his divergent view of what he was watching.

0 points
0
0
DraftHobbyist's picture

August 31, 2018 at 10:38 am

I agree with you, but I also think we learned how Biegel can't be used. He's a guy that needs to be schemed open by stunting inside, putting him in coverage, etc. If you just line him up to pass rush on the outside he's going to get mauled.

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:54 pm

I went to the CHTV blog tweety thing for several reasons, including reading El Tkintinador, but alas, unless you were vaca, in which case you were off your game, no cigar.

0 points
0
0
TKWorldWide's picture

August 31, 2018 at 01:04 pm

Must confess last eve was tweet free, but I appreciate the sentiment.
El TKstiñador (the international version) will be back soon!

0 points
0
0
4thand10's picture

August 31, 2018 at 04:52 pm

He gets mauled because he is not a NFL defensive end or an Edge rusher. 10-15 more lbs of muscle... maybe who knows. I’m not going to advocate for beigle but I’m just saying. Most NFL tackles can handle a 240 lb guy. That part of the 3-4 is dangerous because it is a Blitz dependent defense. If a blitz doesn’t get home...somebody is open. I hate to keep pounding the point, but how can your team get consistent pressure if you only have 2DL in the middle and really light OLBs as “ edge rushers” and ALL of the ILBs ar dropping into coverage??Might as well give the other team a 5 yard head start with that set up.
That said, I think they have been putting players on islands all preseason for evaluation purposes. Because aside from an improved secondary...I didn’t see anything different from last years defense. I really hope that’s a part of a mastermind evil plot by Pettine because we have been playing different players but it still looks Caperish to me.

Case in point, Donnerson was a DE in college, Reggie Gilbert was a DE. Both are labeled “OLBs”. But they rush like DEs because that’s what they do. Can a 230-240 OLB get pressure on the outside once in a while? Sure. Can they set an edge once in awhile? Sure. But depending on that, counting on consistent pressure , sacks with regularity? That’s unrealistic. So I hope we see better things. Certainly having Daniels in the middle will help...but that doesn’t completely solve the puzzle.

0 points
0
0
DraftHobbyist's picture

August 31, 2018 at 09:43 am

2018 53-man roster prediction:
Offense (24):
QB 3 Rodgers, Kizer, Boyle
RB 2 Williams, Montgomery
FB 1 Ripkowski
WR 6 Adams, Cobb, Allison, Moore, Valdes-Scantling, Davis
TE 4 Graham, Lewis, Kendricks, Byrd
OL 8 Bakhtiari, Taylor, Linsley, McCray, Bulaga, Spriggs, Murphy, Patrick

Defense (26):
DL 6 Daniels, Clark, Adams, Wilkerson, Lowry, Lancaster
OLB 5 Matthews, Perry, Gilbert, Biegel, Fackrell
ILB 4 Martinez, Burks, Morrison, Martini
CB 6 Williams, Alexander, Jackson, House, King, Goodson
S 5 HHCD, Jones, Brice, Evans, Whitehead

Special Teams (3):
PK 1 Crosby
PT 1 Scott
LS 1 Bradley

Suspended/IR/PUP/Reserve (1/1/0/1):
SUS 1 Jones
IR 1 Ryan
RES 1 Madison

Practice Squad (10/10): WR St Brown, G/T Pankey, C Day, DL Looney, DL Mbu, RB Mays, TE Tonyan, S Greene, ILB Thomas, OLB Donnerson

0 points
0
0
TheBigCheeze's picture

August 31, 2018 at 10:13 am

Davis and Biegel are trash!!!!......Jones looked good, but it was against their scrubs....unfortunately...Boyle's gotta go.....backup QB is irrelevant.....no Rodgers.....no championship......case closed.....

0 points
0
0
DraftHobbyist's picture

August 31, 2018 at 10:17 am

What if Rodgers goes down for say 3 weeks, where having just 1 win in those 3 weeks can potentially save our playoff hopes?

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 31, 2018 at 12:57 pm

You are not seriously suggesting that Boyle can come in and win an NFL regular season game, are you? Or just more generic response, I suppose about backup QBs in general, in which case I agree we need a QB who can go 1-2 if AR goes down for 3 games. Boyle to the PS.

0 points
0
0
Green Bay Shareholder's picture

September 04, 2018 at 12:43 pm

Right On Big Cheeze

0 points
0
0
Cartwright's picture

August 31, 2018 at 01:00 pm

What I found reassuring in this game was the play of Spriggs. He held up and played decent last week. He stacked two decent games in a row. Maybe he's finally catching on. If he can turn the corner here we just got a significant boost. Hopefully, he turns out like Mike Wahl, who if I recall stank real bad early in his career was often chided for his bad play then got it together and had a decent career.

0 points
0
0
Johnblood27's picture

August 31, 2018 at 02:53 pm

Wahl just had to dump the salt water out of his cleats...

0 points
0
0
LayingTheLawe's picture

August 31, 2018 at 08:02 pm

I will echo some of what others have said. I have not seen anything that lets you keep Biegel or RIpkowski. If your fullback is a crunching blocker and a useful short yardage guy or receiver he can contribute but alas, Ripkowski can not perform those duties. I would rather see them keep Tonyan as a 4th TE and ditch the Ripper. And there has to be someone about to lose a job with more upside than Biegel.

0 points
0
0