Packers Practice Roundup - Family Night, 2023
The Packers held their annual Family Night Practice at Lambeau in front of a full stadium.
MISCELLANEOUS
Murphy claimed they weren’t streaming the Family Night Practice worldwide for competitive reasons, noting they were making some adjustments to the scheme this year with a new starting quarterback.] Nagler noted: They haven’t streamed Family Night since they changed broadcast partners years ago, so this answer from Murphy feels pretty disingenuous.
I thought watching practice on television might be very good. And it had some nice clear views. I did find when they cut away to a commercial when there was a drill or two-minute drive transpiring on the field quite irritating, and some of the banter was either not insightful or just a distraction. TGR
Not practicing on Family Night: Eric Stokes Lew Nichols Rashan Gary Jake Hanson David Bakhtiari Josiah Deguara Grant DuBose. Wood
Quick thoughts after tonight’s practice: - Love settled in well after early incompletions - Musgrave’s playmaking was on display. - Kraft’s best day as a pass catcher - Brooks, Wooden, Wyatt flash as pass rushers - Excellent night from Carlson - LBs playing well v. Run. 2) Dontayvion Wicks is so fun to watch, especially in one-on-ones. He really knows how to create space with that release and suddenness of his routes. Bretl
Gutekunst asked why it was best not to re-sign Marcedes Lewis: "When guys need to play and need the snaps, when (veterans) are out there, other guys aren't." Feel like you could use the same answer on the possibility of the Packers bringing in a veteran receiver. Wood
Gutekunst points out that he just spent valuable draft capital on two tight ends and needs to see them on the field when asked about not re-signing veteran Marcedes Lewis, who is now a member of the Bears. Silverstein
Still have no idea if the Packers offense is going to be any good, but the speed of Christian Watson and Luke Musgrave is incredible. Will be one of the fastest WR-TE tandems in football. Maybe the fastest? Kruse
Malik Heath and Carrington Valentine are probably the two fringe roster guys who have helped their cases for the initial 53 most so far. Both having good nights again tonight. Karl Brooks two "sacks" in current period, too. Schneidman
Players of the day: Andrers Carlson (Easily) Karl Brooks Tight Ends (Musgrave/Kraft/Davis). Herman
INJURIES:
Elgton Jenkins didn’t practice tonight because of an illness. Schneidman
QUARTERBACK/WIDE RECEIVER:
First play - false start 2nd play - Love deep to Doubs - looked slightly underthrown but Doubs didn't make a great read on it either - incomplete (0/1) Quay all over a run play inside to Jones Doubs wide open with an amazing route against Jaire - Love overcooked it - can't miss that one. (0/2) Click on Andy Herman to read all of Andy's tweets!.
Red zone for Love: 1. Dillon run inside, not much there 2. Dillon toss left for a TD, great blocking by Kraft, Watson, and Musgrave! 3. Love pressured, throws over the middle, dropped and incomplete. Contested play. Holding defense though wipes out the incompletion. Looks like Reed might have caught it on replay. Not counting it in the stats for Love. 4. Rollout, defense is all over it and messes up the timing, ball is incomplete to Watson. (1/6) 5. Love buys time, defense may have given up a bit on some pressures to protect Love but play continues and Love finds Jones for a TD. (2/7). 6. Wyatt absolutely destroys Royce Newman on a pressure, Love finds Reed wide open for a TD though, def got it off before the "sack." (3/8) Herman
Back to team drills with the 1's:" 1. Jones run inside - Campbell and Clark all over it 2. Nice patience by Jones and a great block by Runyan, good pickup 3. Love to Doubs complete short. Douglas right there to make the stop. (4/9 for Love now). 4. Royce Newman a great block on Karl Brooks springs a nice run by Dillon. 5. Love to Musgrave for 5 on a quick out. (5/10) 6. Love short to Goodson in the flat for about 4. (6/11). 7. Devonte Wyatt sack. Herman
#1's in team again, deep in their own end zone 1. Pressure by Van Ness - incomplete wide left from Love. (6/12) 2. Slant to Doubs, PBU by Jaire (6/13) 3. Slant to Doubs again, this time complete (7/14) 4. Inside run by Jones for a few 5. Jones run inside, Owens all over it 6. Love's best throw of the night on a crosser to Reed against Valentine. Pick up of 10+ (8/15). Herman
Love in 2-minute drill: Ball on the 25 - 1st & 10 - Ball on 25 - 2:00 minutes remaining - 3 timeouts (I think) 1. Love to Musgrave over the middle for a huge play up to the opposing 45 (30-yard completion) 2. Love to Watson on a slant in stride for 20 yards 3. Handoff inside, not much doing - 4 yards 4. Love to Watson - jump ball over Ballentine. Nice placement but amazing catch by Watson. Offense wins the drill with 1:07 left and didn't use any of their timeouts. Great drill by Love! Love 11/18 on the day now. Herman
1x1's Watson beats Valentine, but nice rep by 37. Kraft wins a quick out. Toure dominates Nixon. Jaire all over Doubs. Melton drops a td, had SJC beat. Reed beat Gaines clean, underthrown, couldn't come up with the catch. Musgrave absolutely smokes Savage for a huge play. Deuce Watts beats Ballentine for a TD. Awesome catch Malik Heath beats Tyrell Ford. Kraft can't catch up to a deep ball. Wicks with a nice move on Thomas but ball was wide. Bonds incomplete w/ Jaire in coverage. Nixon great contest late on Toure, denies a TD. Davis with a nice catch inside on Sapp. Chrest drop against Hooper, nice slant but dropped it. Heath great route on Ford, complete inside on a slant. Owens nice coverage on Austin Allen. Jayden Reed smoked Nixon inside, easy money. Doubs cruises by SJC, he had no chance. TD 87. Herman
Clifford 2 minute drill 1. Complete to Wicks outside 2. Valentine jumps the route - if the throw was accurate he would have housed it - instead a nice PBU 3. Karl Brooks with another day and another sack. 4. Clifford to Melton short completion 5. Clifford finds Tyler Davis on a great seam throw. Big pickup 6. inside run by Goodson - short pickup 7. Valentine PBU covering Melton 3rd & 6 - 31 seconds left - Ball on opposing 26 8. Sack by Brooks AGAIN 9. FG unit comes on for the win - 51 yarder - GOOD! Carlson ends the day 9/9 (or 9/10 w/ the bad hold). Practice over. Herman
#2's & #'3's back with real football/tackling 1. Jimmy Phillips tfl 2. Jimmy Phillips tackle in the flat ----You can't stop Jimmy Phillips you can only hope to contain him 3. Tariq Carpenter atones for his drop earlier in the week and picks off Clifford over the middle. 4. Goodson run inside. Nice block by Telfort 5. Tyler Goodson with a nice run. Quick as a hiccup that guy 6. Tyrell Ford tackle on Goodson 7. Deuce Watts with a quick screen from McGough 8. Austin Allen with a catch over the middle and runs right through Benny Sapp 9. Wicks great route - throw from McGough - Sapp with a big hit - jars the ball loose - pops right to Carpenter. Not sure if it was a fumble or pick, I'd say fumble - but either way another turnover for the defense. Herman
It's raining touchdowns inside Lambeau Field. Sean Clifford hits Tucker Kraft in the end zone from inside the 10. Kraft snuck past Anthony Johnson Jr. on an out route. A rookie to a rookie, against a rookie. Wood
Jayden Reed can pluck it, man. Good crossing route vs Valentine and the No. 1 offense gets the two first downs it needed in the backed-up period. [Reed catches a bullet eye-level with just his hand extended. Reed does that well. TGR] Love hit Doubs on a crosser for 20 on third-and-10 for the first (set of new downs). Hodkiewicz
Next four plays: Jordan Love to Luke Musgrave for 30(!) yards Jordan Love to Christian Watson for 20(!) yards Aaron Jones run up the middle for 4 yards Jordan Love to Christian Watson on a fade route for 21-yard TD. That's 75 yards in 4 plays, just 53 seconds. Damn. Wood
TIGHT ENDS:
Luke Musgrave with another drop. Wide open down the left sideline, and Jordan Love lofts it for him. Musgrave just couldn't come down with it. Wood
So far, and at least off the top of my head, I would say this is Kraft’s best practice as a pass catcher. Has showcased some of that YAC ability, made a contested red zone catch, and did well in 1v1s. 2) Tyler Davis continues to hold up really well as a blocker. Bretl
OFFENSIVE LINE:
Of note - the Packers fumbled the opening exchange of the #1’s 2-minute drill. That’s the 5th time there’s been a botched exchange between center and quarterback during camp. 3 with Love - 2 with the backups. The center on all 5 - Josh Myers.
First rep of 2-minute drill. Josh Myers snaps the ball without Jordan Love even looking at him. Matt LaFleur on fumbled shotgun snap to start 2-minute drill: “That was sloppy play. Can’t have that.” Wood
Slightly concerning as Matt LaFLeur had mentioned this week that Bakhtiari's schedule was set up this week for Bakh to practice on family night. [Bakh didn’t dress for Family Night. TGR] Herman
DEFENSIVE LINE:
Devonte Wyatt's impressive camp continues. Just beat Josh Myers with a bullrush for what would have been a sack on Jordan Love. Wood
Devonte Wyatt man-handling Josh Myers and forcing an incompletion. Packers desperately need him to take that second-year leap. Jacobson
Nice pass rush rep by J. Ford. [he No. 2 line is Walker, Rhyan, Schneider, Empey and Caleb Jone, per Hodkiewicz. This is probably against the #2 defense. TGR] Jonathan Ford gets into the backfield quickly. Clifford looks for Heath down the right sideline, Moore all over it. Goodson picks up a 4-5 yards running to the left. Good push by IOL. Clifford dumps it off to Kraft who has room to run. Bretl
3. Karl Brooks with another day and another sack. 8. Sack by Brooks AGAIN. 1. In 2s and 3s Team Drills: 1. Wooden and Brooks combine for a TFL - Wooden the first there. 5. Colby Wooden sack but Clifford fires anyway to Heath for a 56ish yard TD. 4. Royce Newman a great block on Karl Brooks springs a nice run by Dillon. [Brooks has been physical, and he seems to have some juice, but run defense is also I am looking for. TGR] 6. Wyatt absolutely destroys Royce Newman on a pressure, Love finds Reed wide open for a TD though, def got it off before the "sack." In 2s - Jonathan Ford with an immediate pressure for a would be sack. Play continues and Malik Heath makes a nice catch downfield. [These are all also above in QB/WR section. TGR]
LINEBACKERS:
Tariq Carpenter, who switched from safety to inside linebacker this offseason, intercepted Sean Clifford on a ball lofted over the middle for Tucker Kraft. [The Packers are using the middle of the field more, and they have weapons with YAC possibilities in their WR room and TE room, but working the middle does have a higher chance of interceptions. TGR]
3. Enagbare with a likely sack. [Included in QB/WR by Andy Herman area. TGR]
DEFENSIVE SECONDARY:
Luke Musgrave made that look very, very easy 1v1 against Darnell Savage. Kruse
Jonathan Owen and Rudy Ford opposite Savage today.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
Carlson 40 good 44 good 49 good. Huber
Anders Carlson with three more field goals: 43L good 45L good 50R short (That one wasn't on Carlson. Low snap, not a smooth recovery on hold. Carlson almost made it anyway.) On the night, Carlson is 5-6 in Lambeau Field debut. He likes this place much more than Nitschke Field. [I think Whelan held on the bad snap. TGR]. 2) Anders Carlson going long distance now: 51L good 53R good Make that 7-8 inside Lambeau Field tonight. He's a gamer. Wood
Starting KR unit: Carpenter - McDuffie - Taylor - Wilson - Gaines Kraft - Davis - Musgrave Owens - Ballentine Nixon. Herman [I assume that is ILB Eric Wilson, not RB Emmanuel Wilson. TGR]
Can Gaines land a spot on the 53 if he is the backup to Nixon in the slot and for general STs? I don’t know if that’s enough. RB Patrick Taylor is on the kick return unit, which is a unit the Packers hope will be a weapon with Nixon as the returner, but returners need some good blocking as well. Goodson looks like a fun player to watch and he has versatility, but being on STs might be a prerequisite to making the 53. Emmanuel Wilson and Lew Nichols have had problems with drops, another important item in the job description for RB #3. TGR
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Comments (72)
PatrickGB
August 06, 2023 at 10:58 am
Great job. I love your stuff!
Thegreatreynoldo
August 06, 2023 at 10:59 am
It sounds like Joe Burrow will still be unable to play when the Packers and Bengals play next Friday. He might not have, anyway.
It sounds like Royce Newman had an up and down day. He got destroyed by Wyatt for a pressure and turned around and moved Karl Brooks out of the hole on a running play. One should always keep in mind when a young, not-yet-established player does something good (or bad) who the other player was. Newman beat Brooks, a #2 DL and got destroyed by a #1. Also, almost all of Wyatt's positive tweets are for pass rushing rather than run defense.
Not many mentions of Alexander or Douglas. The TEs generally had a good day. Kraft and Musgrave both with blocking and receiving. Tyler Davis continues to block well. It seems to me as though Nixon has been up and down in the slot while still being very competitive there. Quay is good in coverage (I lost that tweet somewhere, I think). Coverage was a strength for Quay last year, as well. His run fits are better this year, but the true test comes against other teams during the preseason and in the upcoming joint practices with NE.
With Bakh and Jenkins out, I was interested in how the backups would step up. I didn't see any tweets on the LT or RT, and I assume Newman was at LG (so he got one up and one down tweet), and Myers at center (5th poor snap exchange).
I used a photo of Anders Carlson since he had a perfect day, if one doesn't count the bad snap. Not sure that makes Carlson a gamer, but it is good to see him be solid inside Lambeau Field itself.
Watching practice on TV was great but also weird in some ways. The 1 x 1s to the wide receivers matched against a DB was great: I could really see it well, whereas at practice sometimes someone will stand up or there an event staffer partially blocking my view. Replays were nice the few times they happened. Obviously, the television people do decide what you are going to see rather me deciding where I want to concentrate my focus when I attend practice in person. I normally like Larry and Wayne but I thought about muting them.
LeotisHarris
August 06, 2023 at 03:57 pm
"Obviously, the television people do decide what you are going to see rather me deciding where I want to concentrate my focus when I attend practice in person. I normally like Larry and Wayne but I thought about muting them."
I hit mute early. I suppose if I wanted to watch what happened at Family Night, I should have attended in person. While it was great to see what I could of our newest Packers on TV, I found the production infuriating. I mean, I understand the slender-brained-mouth-breathing American public cannot be trusted to turn their attention to the proper events occurring on a football field, but Jebus Bald-headed Cripes, would it kill the production staff to back out of facemasks and earholes and let viewers SEE what's happening? Ohhh, look Helen, the ones wearing the red jerseys are trying to throw the ball in a net! Walt, come quick, Josh Sitton is on the tee vee!
And, yes, TGR, Wayne, Larry and the cast of characters rolled out on the sidebar just added to the freaking reality TV program feel that is NFL football. While I have listened to Wayne and Larry for years, and Jim and Max before them, I feel Wayne has become increasingly inaccurate in his play-by-play, and I'm tired of his faux excitement. Larry is authentic, and I appreciate his work.
So, soon we'll be able to watch NFL 2023: The Quest for Lombardi, starring a select few quarterbacks, and who's ever hot on the winningest team at the moment. Get ready for even more on-screen graphics, oddly-placed TV timeouts, endless shots of coaches with play sheets held in front of their faces (because how else would we know how the QB gets the play?), instant replayssssssssssssss, and Booth Reviews up the yingyang.
It's a pivotal year in my NFL fandom. I'll always love the Packers, but I'm not sure how much longer I can watch NFL games given how this great game is presented to us.
jont
August 06, 2023 at 04:04 pm
"would it kill the production staff to back out of facemasks and earholes and let viewers SEE what's happening?"
👍
More and more the bradcasts are aimed at people who do not know what they're watching. If the NFL keeps presenting color and noise and close-ups of the celebrity players, then we will have more and more people say football is just three seconds of action and then a minute of standing around and shrinking audiences.
Thegreatreynoldo
August 06, 2023 at 08:12 pm
That's a nice rant. You never seemed to be at a loss for words no matter how disgusted you were. Thumbs up.
Some folks might remember my (if I do say so myself) epic rant about Richard Rodgers after his rookie season. Or Bird Dog Uni's about Mike Freakking Neal. Good times!
TKWorldWide
August 07, 2023 at 04:30 am
Hey TGR! Do you attend all the practices? Thinking about riding my sweet Hog up there next time it’s open to the public (and no mention of rain; sure, I’m tough as a $2 steak, but riding in the rain is not my idea of fun!)
Thegreatreynoldo
August 07, 2023 at 09:23 am
I have to take a vacation day to attend. I have vacation requests in for 3 days next week but none have been approved yet.
Sadly, I have more vacation days than destinations in mind.
TKWorldWide
August 07, 2023 at 04:26 am
Some of your best work, Leotis my friend! Well done, top to bottom!
My hat is off!
RedRight49
August 07, 2023 at 07:06 am
Excellent summary of what was a marginal quality broadcast for anyone who actually tuned in to see new Packers players play, regardless of how scripted or limited the plays were.
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 04:59 pm
Yes, Newman was next to Nijman. I have to watch again to see how he played.
Had to mute as well. Easier to focus. Totally get what you mean pluses & minuses of tv broadcast v. being on fence at Clarke Hinckle or stands at Ray’s.
I thought Gaines had a decent day. Won his 1 on 1 with Reed. I’m a little more concerned about Savage than Gaines. Musgrave left Savage in his dust on a great big reception in 1 on 1s.
TKWorldWide
August 07, 2023 at 04:31 am
Safe to say Newman has regressed? Didn’t he start 2 years ago?
greengold
August 07, 2023 at 06:04 am
TK, Newman surprised the hell outta me. I thought he played well in the FN practice.
All of this OL stuff will shake itself out, but for comparative purposes, we’re talking about Elgton’s backup. OL depth starting to look quite good.
LoftKing
August 06, 2023 at 11:07 am
One of the things I noticed was Daniel Whelan. Not just on the punts, but on the kickoffs. He was hitting the back of the endzone.
Thegreatreynoldo
August 06, 2023 at 11:17 am
Forgot: the Packers have or are about to sign Kurt Benkert. I hate the idea of keeping 3 QBs on the 53 man roster, btw.
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 12:23 pm
Gute suggested that that was unlikely during the regular season when asked about the change. He did say perhaps in the playoffs.
Oppy
August 06, 2023 at 07:15 pm
What? This can't be right... right?!
Why would they add two QBs, release Etling, then sign a guy who they felt wasn't worth keeping on a roster with Etling in previous years?
This doesn't pass the sniff test.. and if the Packers make this move.. it stinks.
Thegreatreynoldo
August 06, 2023 at 08:15 pm
To be honest, Love has been able to move the team during 2-minute and red zone drills. Clifford looks like a gamer, but not so hot in practice. Not impressed with the backup QBs.
Oppy
August 06, 2023 at 10:29 pm
I have no concerns about Love's technical ability, it is purely about how he handles the big lights- I tend not to be concerned about that, either- but we won't know until we know.
Clifford looks like a young player trying to learn a new offense at an accelerated pace. Throws some ugly picks, but that's the growing pains. He's not a guy anyone is expecting to be a franchise QB, he's a guy the Packers are hoping will be able to be molded into a viable back up QB to manage closing out a game in an emergency or hold down the fort for a few weeks, as well as keep the unnecessary reps off Love's arm during the season. McGough is camp arm/practice squad guy the packers are kicking the tires on to see if any upside shakes out.
Kurt Benkert's only upside over McGough (they are roughly the same age and both were in the XFL last season) is a knowledge of the system. Benkert is a known quantity and it wasn't enough for the Packers to retain him, or to entice other NFL teams to sign him.
I'm all for trying to improve the QB room, but Benkert ain't progress.
TKWorldWide
August 06, 2023 at 10:44 pm
Highly suspicious.
TKWorldWide
August 07, 2023 at 04:33 am
If I’m coaching Clifford:
1. Do not throw picks
2. Hand it to 33/28
3. See #1
LLCHESTY
August 06, 2023 at 11:43 am
Brooks seems like he's probably locked up the backup 3T spot unless things really go South for him. Not sure you want him playing DE with those arms. Still question why Slaton is getting the majority of snaps with Clark in the two DL looks but I assume Wyatt will be in there on passing downs.
Big thing I'll be looking for in preseason is someone that can take enough snaps at DE to keep Wyatt halfway fresh on big downs(2nd and 3rd and long). But so far the depth looks better than it did a month ago with both Wooden and Brooks having their moments.
beerandbrats
August 06, 2023 at 11:51 am
Pretty comprehensive family night review and I'm liking what I hear! Thanks TGR!
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 12:19 pm
One somewhat obscure change that could be significant. This time Caleb Jones played on the right it seems. That could mean that they feel the need to get him ready to allow Tom to play C due to Bakhs questionable availability and as swing T in such circumstances. It’s looking more likely that the reason Nijman is mostly back on the left is because there’s a real
Possibility they will need a tested guy there.
Myers continues to be a weak link. I thought Runyon had a better night. Melton continues to look like he can play well enough to justify snaps, but he can’t drop those: his hands will be crucial. Wicks too. He’s here for his contested ability in part. Still too many concentration (?) drops from Reed and Musgrave too. I hope that’s due to still overthinking. Not unexpected, but this O gets much better if that improves.
Still no clue about Goodson as a protector. That’s probably going to take games. I love the potential to disrupt in this O line group. Even Ford showed that. However I want to see them run at hard and often before getting excited.
Austin Allen still looks a better prospect than Davies to me, but STs probably nixes a competition there. Love looked tight early on. That will pass. On the bad long snap, I didn’t see who had to catch it, but to be honest I don’t think it mattered given how bad it was. Thus team is fast and sudden. It still looks raw on O, but that should be expected.
CheesedDeadHead
August 06, 2023 at 02:00 pm
" That could mean that they feel the need to get him ready to allow Tom to play C due to Bakhs questionable availability and as swing T in such circumstances. It’s looking more likely that the reason Nijman is mostly back on the left is because there’s a real
Possibility they will need a tested guy there.
Myers continues to be a weak link. I thought Runyon had a better night. "
They may be trying to keep down the variability (sans injury) of who plays where on the OL. As has been discussed by you and others before, they need to replace one of Runyan or Myers (with Myers the main target as he hasn't been really successful outside of a few games and Runyan has) so that is either Tom for Myers or Rhyan for Runyan. If they are likely to go with Tom at C then Yosh will be the LT for 4-6 games (IIRC there are 3 or 4 astroturf games this year) for Bakh. That leaves a reliable RT for 4-6 games. If Jones or Walker can handle 4-6 games at RT then I think they go with Tom at Center (injuries will obviously lead to changes to "the plan"). That gets the "5 best on the field" the most with minimal juggling of position (Yosh swings between LT and RT).
I focused some of my time watching last nights "practice" on how Sean Rhyan was performing. I think he looked pretty good, although preseason games will be the true test. Rhyan and Tenuta just manhandled the DL on a run where they had pushed the defenders 5 yards downfield (wasn't sure who they pushed around as the TV coverage didn't like to show any repeats in case we missed the gems from the broadcasters!). Rhyan also seemed to be pretty stout at contact and really wasn't getting pushed around - he was holding the point well. While I don't think they are likely to demote Runyan he will have to improve if they replace Myers with Tom, or Rhyan may be an option at RG.
WD
August 06, 2023 at 12:31 pm
The center position is the Achilles heel for the offensive line. Love, like Rodgers will be defenseless with a good pass rush up the middle. Hint: Zach Tom belongs in the starting front five. And. yes lets keep Caleb "the giant"Jones. Could be an added plus in short yardage situations in which the Pack had more than it's share of problems.
Packers0808
August 06, 2023 at 01:30 pm
Have feeling Love is going to be a big surprise and be borderline great as a first year starter!
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 06, 2023 at 09:24 pm
Been saying Jordan Love is going to be damn good since prior to draft night April 2020. I have been looking forward to Love as QB1 for sometime. Still question why Love didn't get more playing experience during the 5 game thumb injury last year. Just damn strange!
Packers0808
August 07, 2023 at 09:08 am
Agreed experience now would have been great!
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 09:39 pm
I totally agree with you, Packers0808!
Totally.
We’ll see some wonky stuff as they all get to really know each other on the field, but once they do? LOOK OUT!
I’m guessing Week 6 to Week 8 it becomes a party.
Ferrari-Driver
August 06, 2023 at 01:37 pm
TGR, when you say "It's raining touchdowns inside Lambeau Field."
I hope you mean it is an indication of good offensive play as opposed to a porous defense... (this is where that little smiley thing is supposed to go).
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 02:46 pm
Ferrari, our D let up a few times I noticed to not injure the QB, which extended some of those plays for scores.
This D is for real. So is the O. And, ST. Carlson was nuts. Hitting everything.
Ferrari-Driver
August 06, 2023 at 02:53 pm
Thanks GG. I'm in a bad market for Packer broadcasts with three California teams out here. I subscribed to NFL Sunday Ticket for the regular season, but it does little to keep fans like me up to date this time of year.
If the trip back there goes well, I'll stop in to see you in a little less than two months.
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 02:59 pm
Cool. I shared what I saw on the Family Night Watch Party thread for some more info if you want.
Ferrari-Driver
August 06, 2023 at 03:48 pm
Great. I would like to see more. Thanks in advance.
Lphill
August 06, 2023 at 02:26 pm
Puzzling why Wyatt got limited snaps last year had he gotten in more snaps he would be looking at a breakout season now.
Tundraboy
August 06, 2023 at 05:29 pm
I agree this team can drive one crazy. From my perspective. It's like they act as if they have the luxury of a lot of depth so they can bring guys along slowly. We don't have that luxury and haven't for years. So if there's talent that's shown play the damn player. At this stage the sooner we bring the obvious talent up to full game speed, the better. And of course the sooner, we find out if the borderline players are going to cut it against real NFL competition.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 06, 2023 at 09:26 pm
Exactly my point above Tundra relating to why didn't Love get more game experience last year?
Racingdad
August 06, 2023 at 09:51 pm
My opinion on why j love did not get more playing time when 12 had thumb injury was because 12 would not allow it as love may have outplayed him and his EGO can’t handle that!!!
greengold
August 07, 2023 at 06:08 am
BINGO.
BANGO.
BONGO.
Tundraboy
August 07, 2023 at 03:08 pm
Yeah, I think that was more about Rodger's though and they didn't have the guts to even do the normal thing. Like give his hand a week to heal, but we've seen this with other players way too many times before.
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 02:26 pm
Tariq Carpenter had 2 INTs on the night. Wow. The Packers Linebacker Room is looking great. Carpenter, McDuffie, Campbell & Walker are impressive. Phillips had a nice play too.
Tucker Kraft had a dynamite block on Campbell to spring AJ Dillon for his TD run. Kraft also with a nice TD reception.
Heath’s “TD,” shouldn’t have happened as Brooks could have destroyed Carpenter on a sack but let up 1-2 count before Carpenter threw that. Brooks is damn good.
Nice work, TGR!
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 06, 2023 at 09:27 pm
Brooks is going to be one hell of a player for us!
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 09:43 pm
YES! He’s going to make one helluva lotta noise! Wooden too! What a Day 3 Brian Gutekunst appears to have put together.
NickPerry
August 06, 2023 at 06:48 pm
I say this NOT to be critical of Love, but I'm wondering if others aren't a LITTLE BIT concerned about Loves completion percentage throughout TC? Before Family Night it was below 55%. People who know my posts here know I'm a pretty optimistic person when it comes to the Packers, probably a bit to a fault. I also understand this is his first season starting, BUT it's also his 4th year in the NFL and 4th in this offense.
Obviously have nothing but 2nd year guys and rookies to throw to isn't going to help, not THIS early. But in THIS offense, and offense designed to be super QB friendly and give the QB some easy completions, should he at least be a little higher than the 53% I heard it was.
Just wondering TGR thoughts on this and some of the other folks here?
Oppy
August 06, 2023 at 07:21 pm
Completion percentage paints a picture but doesn't tell a story.
Are there drops? Are they bad throws? is the defense making plays? are new guys running new concepts and they're not all on the same page yet?
training camp is about trying new things and working out the kinks. Let's see what dress rehearsal looks like before we start getting concerned.
NickPerry
August 06, 2023 at 08:37 pm
All great points Oppy, thanks...
All I have is what I read and listen to. Thank God for pieces like this by TGR! It really helps get a good idea about some of these players and where they are.
"Is the defense making plays? are new guys running new concepts and they're not all on the same page yet?"
Bingo!...Plus this defense had better be giving this offense the blues right now.
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 07:46 pm
Nick, I noticed a bunch of sloppy contact they obviously were letting go which affected Love’s completion percentage, along with the stuff Oppy mentioned.
NickPerry
August 06, 2023 at 08:38 pm
Thanks greengold...
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 11:34 pm
Andy Herman has done a good job of putting Loves play/completion rate in perspective. If you have not, I recommend a quick Listen to his post family night podcast here.
Remember that they’ve been doing installs. After a few plays the veterans on the D have a pretty good idea of what the O is doing that day. One thing I do think was visible on Family night was that Love was a little tight that first series too. Nerves happen.
PackEyedOptimist
August 06, 2023 at 07:59 pm
He's also been matched up against the first-team defense a LOT.
I'm expecting to see many opposing QBs struggle against our DBs.
His WRs have dropped quite a few beautiful throws, too. Doubs in particular still seems to be inconsistent.
NickPerry
August 06, 2023 at 08:55 pm
Doubs will get it together I think. Hoping to see that "connection" between Doubs & Love sooner than later.
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 11:37 pm
I agree that there have been a lot of rookie drops from everyone. What struck me as odd is that my perception is that Doubs had in fact been the one least offending, along with Toure.
Thegreatreynoldo
August 06, 2023 at 08:32 pm
Yeah, you're a pretty optimistic person when it comes to GB!
Jaire and Douglas are probably one of the best or at least better CB1 and 2 combos in the NFL. That is part of it, but I'm not a fan of the safeties and I think Nixon is competing hard but hasn't locked down the slot position. That said, there are more misses than I'd expect, and it gives me pause. The misses are usually on deeper balls, but still. Drops don't help the stats, but I hope I can mentally separate those issues.
Love warmed up later. Was 1 for 6 and finished 11 for 18? I used to want the first play to be an out to any receiver so when the pumped up Favre threw it 5 yards over the receiver's head, it would be caught by someone on the sidelines and not a safety in the middle of the field. But that was an issue for Favre as a grizzled veteran whereas Love is still a young player with limited experience, really. It might pass give time.
NickPerry
August 06, 2023 at 08:52 pm
"That said, there are more misses than I'd expect, and it gives me pause. The misses are usually on deeper balls, but still."
This is what I've heard about this past week. The inaccuracy. They also like to mention that was an issue coming out.
Whatever happens is okay. This is SUCH a young team I really don't know what to expect. The "Optimist" in me thinks winning 10 games is a real possibly, hell even probable on those really optimistic days. But they could also win 6 games just as easy. Whatever the case I just hope it's progress each and every week.
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 11:49 pm
Love has thrown some off target. He’s also threaded a number of needles. Inaccuracy or inconsistency? Too many great throws to be deemed inaccurate yet still inconsistent. Let’s not forget, Rodgers wasn’t batting 1000 on long throws either. The concern is the shorter ones that still creep in.
NickPerry
August 07, 2023 at 05:58 am
Those are the ones, the shorter ones that had me a little concerned.
Thanks to ALL of you guys who commented.
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 08:56 pm
Agree with all of this. Forgot about that with Favre!
Good times. Good times.
There’s going to be changes at Safety. I don’t see either of Savage nor Ford as being above anyone else for starter roles, but a lot of battling remains to play out.
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 11:51 pm
For me, safety play requires an opponent to truly test mettle. That’s coming.
greengold
August 07, 2023 at 06:16 am
Exactly, Coldworld. The competition has really just begun at Safety, OLB & DL. All of them more dependent upon playing in pads.
OL should shake out in like manner, w joint practices/preseason game tests.
nagawicka
August 07, 2023 at 11:31 pm
No. This is 'how they lookin' ' season, and the numbers literally don't count, not TDs, not yards, not completions. Are Love's mechanics down? Did he progress effectively through his reads, did he know where to go? Reporting indicates Love looks improved, has stuff down to muscle memory, knows where to go w/o thinking about it, is making great throws. Expect there to be kinks bc the purpose of training camp is to find and work out any kinks, get in sync, do the installs and make sure those plays will run correctly in-game.
Numbers don't even count in preseason. Also, the Offense isn't game-planning the opponent, hasn't run any drives or gotten the feel for how sequences fall into place in-game, while Defense knows what they're facing, the Offense just isn't going all out. They're not running plays to rack up statistics, they're running plays to learn how to do them well. That's the qualitative thing Nagler and Herman look for. Practice completion %s are not used because they are not a valid metric, you wanna see it but it's not what they're looking at .
Leatherhead
August 06, 2023 at 08:49 pm
I think we're in great shape at this point in the season. The coaches have a pretty good idea who our core is (that's about 35 players who'll take the majority of our snaps) and where we could use better backups. Excepting Stokes and Gary, all our core guys are ready.
It looks like we'll see Bakhtiari/Nijman at LT, Jenkins at LG, Myers at C, Runyan at RG, and Tom at RT. I think that's a pretty good line but I worry about the #7-#10 offensive linemen we have right now.....Rhyan, Newman, Walker and Mount Caleb. And yet, if history is any guide, at least one of those guys will be starting for us by the end of the season. Obviously Watson and Doubs, obviously Musgrave, obviously Jones/Dillon. Those are the ball movers for us. Reed, Toure, Kraft, Deguara,....may provide some timely contributions, but I think you want to keep Watson-Doubs-Musgrave and Dillon/Jones on the field as much as you can.
Defensively, Clark, of course, and he'll be supported by Wynn, Slaton, and a couple of rookies at this point. Ford is a big guy with a nice story but at this point he's going to have to make the squad. Emphasis is on pressuring the passer. Same with the linebacking corps, which looks now like Smith, Enagbare, Van Ness, (Gary, when he returns) and Walker and Campbell inside. Secondary looks like Alexander, Douglas, Stokes (when he returns),Savage, Nixon, Valentine and some safeties TBD. I don't really have a very good sense of how our safeties line up right now. Part of me says Ford, and part of me says we wouldn't have brought that dude from the Texans up here if we didn't think he could start for us.
That, and our kicker, holder-punter, and snapper are our core guys, and how many total games they miss are going to make the difference. The remaining 6 or 7 guys I'm not sure of yet. We've got a pretend game coming up in 4 days and it'll be nice to be able to see what we've got going. I get the sense from camp reports that we have a lot of plays on offense that we don't execute well and that's why the offense has been doing grass drills. As the man always says "We'll have to clean that up". We're not good enough at this point that we can stop ourselves 3 or 4 drives and expect to win, we're going to have to execute well enough that the defense has to stop us. That's what the exhibition season is for. I'd expect the first team offense to come out, execute a half dozen plays, and move the ball downfield. If we can't do that, I'll put on my official "concerned" face. Not yet.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 06, 2023 at 09:32 pm
LH,
I am just going to add many are sleeping on Wicks. Before the season ends I have a feeling he is going to surprise.
Coldworld
August 06, 2023 at 11:56 pm
Wicks needs to stay healthy. He’s shown he can separate. He’s shown his hands aren’t consistent yet. He’s a natural route runner. However, Heath seems to be faster than timed and Is separating, getting YAC and not dropping. Melton has probably made more splash plays in camp than anyone. That competition is going to be really cut throat even without Musgrave being used as a true receiver more.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 07, 2023 at 09:33 am
CW,
I know from draft night you have questioned Wicks because of his drops. Understandable! However, pretty much every talented WR we have drafted in the past 15 years has drop problems coming into the NFL their rookie year. Look no further than Doubs and Watson last year, or go back a few years and look at WR's, Adam's and J. Jones. Physically, Wick's has everything you would want in a WR. Truly believe he is going to be one hell of a good WR for the Packers. He will work and improve on catching the ball from year 1 to year 2.
Leatherhead
August 07, 2023 at 09:15 am
If Wicks is on the field, it probably means that Watson, or Doubs, or Reed, isn’t.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 07, 2023 at 09:42 am
That is a good observation and since Doubs missed 4+ games last year, and Watson 3+ games there are opportunities. Throw in the fact Lazard is gone more opportunities might be available.
The real provoking thought even since prior to draft night, as well as post draft is how often Musgrave will be used out wide, and in the slot.
Thegreatreynoldo
August 06, 2023 at 09:08 pm
This is a comment by Greengold. Too damn good to be in the wrong comment section. His impressions from watching a recording of Family Night the next day:
I’m just going to pile in whatever stuff I saw as best I can here throughout the day:
FN
Sharing this from the local broadcast for those unable to view the Family Night practice:
Live action
Play 1
Nijman, Newman, Myers, Runyan, Tom
Van Ness, Wooden, Slaton, Brooks, Smith
Love w a pitch left to Dillon that probably breaks all the way for a TD. Anthony Johnson Jr. let up on a possible tackle after Dillon won the 1D.
*LaFleur talking with DL Coach Jerry Montgomery after the play.
Play 2
Nijman, Newman, Myers, Runyan, Tom
Smith, Wooden (couldn’t make out the rest per camera angle)
Quick toss right to Musgrave for a short 4 yd. gain. Hollins on the stop.
Play 3
Nijman, Newman, Myers, Runyan, Tom
Van Ness 9T wide, Wyatt playing 5T Clark 3T, Walker over Newman, Hollins outside Nijman.
That’s a new one! Love in shotgun. Hollins & Walker stunt. Goodson pops out left relief valve reception going out of bounds for 4 yd gain.
Play 4
Nijman, Newman, Myers, Runyan, Tom
Van Ness, Walker standing up outside Runyan, Wyatt playing 1T over Myers’ left shoulder, Clark, Hollins.
Talk about an exotic look! Wyatt blew right between Myers & Newman for a would be sack on Love.
Play 5
Walker, Runyan, Schneider, Rhyan, Jones
Enagbare, Wooden, Ford, Brooks, McDuffie
Run left to Watson STUFFED, who TFL -3 yds by both Wooden & Brooks. Jonathan Ford in on it too, driving scrum that direction.
Play 6
Walker, Runyan, Schneider, Rhyan, Jones
Enagbare, Brooks, Ford, Wooden, Hollins.
Davis on Los takes Hollins, Kraft at F pushes Wooden’s right shoulder looping outstretched, and Etling avoids sack, scrambling left then middle for a 1D. Looked like a busted play.
Etling out, Clifford in
Play 7
Walker, Rhyan, Schneider, Empey, Jones
Enagbare, Wooden, McDuffie, Brooks, Hollins
Enagbare for a would be sack of Clifford and a 10 yd. Loss
Play 8
Walker, Rhyan, Schneider, Empey, Jones
Enagbare, Slayton, Ford, Brooks, Hollins
Clifford in Shotgun. Hands off to Taylor who runs around left, and STUFFED by Jonathan Ford & McDuffie. McDuffies with a nice job shedding Kraft’s 2nd level block.
Play 9
Wyatt completely blows up Empey for a Clifford sack. No TD for Heath on that one.
Play 10
McGough under C. Run fake right to Wilson. Nice dump off pass to FB Henry Pearson left for a gain of 7.
1s back out for Live Action
Play 11
Nijman, Newman, Myers, Runyan, Tom
Smith, Wyatt, Slaton, Clark, LVN
Love under C, Watson in motion, fakes handoff to Dillon. LVN for the would be sack on Love given up by Tyler Davis, pass incompletion to Dillon. LVN way too much for Davis.
Play 12
Love with Wyatt in his face after beating Runyan with another solid pressure throws over middle to Doubs incomplete. Busted up by a flying Jaire w a great PBU over Doubs’ back.
Coverage is looking really good. So is the pressure, which appears relentless.
Play 13
Same play, this time Love completes slant over middle to Doubs on Jaire from his own end zone to about the 26.
Play 14
Really nice run by Jones on RPO play out of shotgun with phenomenal blocking by Tom & Runyan to wash out both Wyatt and then Quay who got caught in the fray. Jones faked left, juked right off edge of Tom’s block between hashes for 5 yds.
Play15
Love under C. Nice run by Jones for 5 more, keying off nice blocks by Tom on Clark & Musgrave on Quay. Tyler Davis also a nice bit of run blocking on LVN.
Play 16
Love in shotgun. Musgrave in motion left. Quay fakes blitz up middle. Musgrave w nice block and leak to flat. Love hits Reed on a nice crosser left for 15 plus another 10 yds RAC v. Ballentine who was punching at the ball all the way to the sidelines.
Etling and the 2s take over
Play 17
Walker, Rhyan, Schneider, Empey, Jones
Enagbare, Wooden, Ford, Hollins
Etling under C hands off to Taylor for about 9 yds at gap cleared by the gigantic Jones. This WOULD HAVE BEEN STUFFED by Jonathan Ford, who avoided taking out Taylor.
Play 18
McDuffie fills hole limiting Goodson to 3 yds, with FB Henry Pearson taking on Wooden on a double team with Rasheed Walker.
Play 19
Goodson outlet right goes nowhere with a crashing hit by Shemar Jean-Charles. Clean, just loud. Everyone is good.
Play 20
Toss to Davis for minimal gain.
Play 21
Carlson pumps a 51 yd FG. Beautiful. Like it was a routine 35 yd…
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 09:26 pm
Thanks TGR! I didn’t want to double post all of that. Actually stopped when I finally saw your review posted… a bit worn out at that point, eyes glazed over! Ha!
Btw, you were right it was Valentine #37 trying to punch that ball out.
This is fun stuff!
Watching it again I’m constantly reminded of the insane pressure this DL applies to the QB.
Coldworld
August 07, 2023 at 12:11 am
The interior rush looks good, but the run defensive capabilities have yet to be truly tested. If we can be sound in the run game then I will get excited.
Even Ford was making splash penetration plays last night. That’s great to see, but has anyone else noticed that almost all of the success is coming up the middle. First or second line, the Ts are holding up well, but the middle is getting schooled regularly. That’s worse for Love and the O. Obviously Jenkins was out Ill, but did anyone else think that Rhyan seemed the most steady G out there? Myers was the worst of the lot, including Newman who at least had good plays mixed in).
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 06, 2023 at 09:33 pm
Awesome!
greengold
August 06, 2023 at 10:09 pm
Might as well finish the job. Thanks again, TGR.
2s
Play 22:
Walker, Rhyan, Schneider, Empey, Jones
Cox Jr., Lewan, Ford, Slayton, Mosby (who looks the part)
FORD gets big penetration on new C Schneider allowing Phillips to bust through as both players take Wilson down for a loss of -3.
Play 23
Tariq Carpenter w INT. Benny Sapp III with a jarring hit on the ball to Wicks, sends it airborne into Carpenter’s arms.
Play 24
Jones, Empey, Schneider, Rhyan, Tenuta
Cox Jr., Slayton, Moultrie, Lewan, Mosby
McGough hands off to Goodson right for +4 yds.
Play 25
McGough hits Watts in flat for 5 yd gain
Play 27
McGough hit Austin Allen on a nice curl for a 1D then picks up another 6 yds after contact. Sapp III & Phillips on the stop.
1s back in
Play 28
Myers phantom snap in shotgun, ball on ground, Love recovers.
Play 29
One of the stupidest D front alignments ever. WTF. LVN a 7T. Clarks 4T. NOBODY IN MIDDLE over Newman, Myers, Runyan. Wyatt 5T. Hollins.
Of course it’s a throw over the middle to a wide open Musgrave for an explosive play. 30 yd gain.
Play 30
Another explosive play completion to Watson for 20 more.
Play 31
Jones run up middle for 5. Wooden on the stop.
Play 32
Christian Watson TD back shoulder. Balentine had no chance on him.
2s back in
Play 33
Valentine deflects Clifford’s pass to Melton. Nice PBU by Valentine. Fantastic play, so close but clean 100%.
Play 34
Clifford sacked by Brooks & Slaton - ON A STUNT! It’s been 3 years since I’ve seen a stunt by the Packers.
Play 35
Anders Carlson boots another 51 yd FG to end the Family Night Practice.
ImaPayne
August 06, 2023 at 11:08 pm
Great commentary. Looks like we got players. Going to be interesting to see who pops out unexpected and takes a seat at the table this year. I also wonder if they are working on a deal for Baht with the Jets and dont want him to get hurt. Would not be surprised to see him peddled for picks and money saving as well.
Other then the last two years we got our moneys worth out of him.