There was a different vibe and sound to practice number six at the Green Bay Packers training camp.
Both were provided by shoulder pads as the team put on the gear for the first time this summer. You could feel an uptick in the energy and there were long awaited football drills taking place, like the always interesting one on one pass rushing drill between offensive and defensive linemen.
Pro Bowl guard Elgton Jenkins, now learning the left tackle spot in David Bakhtiari’s absence got in three straight reps with Preston Smith. Each more spririted than the next. Rookie center Josh Myers got an education from Kenny Clark who flattened him to the ground just after he snapped the ball and Billy Turner got reacquainted with Rashan Gary by giving him a fist jam under the chin the that eventually dislodged Gary’s hat right off. Ah, football.
In team periods, the defense won the day with a couple of big plays. The biggest were interceptions. Aaron Rodgers looked a safety off to his right and tried to squeeze the ball back to the left but Jaire Alexander was lurking. He made a great break on the ball and picked it off, racing up the sidelines until the whistles blew but Alexander wasn’t done. In a single leap, he cleared the bleacher wall of Ray Nitschke Field and threw up his arms in triumph with smiling fans. I wonder if the covid cops might issue a citation for breaking protocols with that celebration.
The nearly two hour practice ended with a pair of two minute drills for the second straight day. Aaron Rodgers hit free agent Juwann Winfree on a 20 yard sideline route to get into position for a hail mary chance. Instead he dumped a screen to Marquez Valdes-Scantling who got chased down. For Winfree, it was another eye opening play in what’s been a solid camp. The second series was quarterbacked by Jordan Love and it didn’t end well for him. Practice ended just fine for big rookie defensive tackle T.J. Slaton who came down with a batted ball at the line of scrimmage and rumbled into the end zone for a pick six.
The team wasn’t in full gear, just helmets and shoulder pads and Head Coach Matt LaFleur told his guys to avoid getting too amped for safety’s sake but there was still one injury of note. During those 1 on 1 rush drills, second year linebacker Kamal Martin came hard off the edge and just as he was ready to lean into the offensive tackle, he buckled to the turf. Martin stayed down for a while getting attended by trainers and eventually got up and even jogged into the Hutson Center for treatment.
Randy Ramsey wasn’t so fortunate. The linebacker went down during Monday’s practice and LaFleur had an update before Tuesday’s practice. “It was not a good injury”, said LaFleur, “and that’s shame.” He said Ramsey was already a key special teams player and held his own as a backup outside backer. He hoped Ramsey can come back at some point but the left ankle injury will likely send him to injured reserve.
There was a new number 80 on the field. Rookie free agent wide receiver Bailey Gaither from San Jose State informed the team he was retiring and was placed on the Reserve/Retired List. Gaither had perhaps the most impressive catch of the spring workouts, laying out for a bomb down the middle but the receiver room is also crowded with talent, especially with Randall Cobb back in the fold. Gaither is the second player to call it a career in the last couple of days joining last year’s sixth round pick, Indiana offensive lineman Simon Stepaniak. Taking his place on the roster and his jersey number is Daniel Crawford a free agent tight end from Northern Illinois. The Packers have two tigh ends still on the Physically Unable to Perform list in Josiah Deguara and Dominique Dafney.
After practice, David Bakhtiari made his first appearance in the media auditorium.
Bakhtiari has worked on the side throughout the off-season after undergoing ACL surgery in January. He wouldn’t say if he’s ahead of schedule saying there’s no timetable and no expectation. What the All Pro did explain was the benchmarks to recovery that have been laid out by team physician Dr. Patrick McKenzie.
Bakhtiari is also doing his part to help Elgton Jenkins rep his left tackle position. Jenkins looks very comfortable over there so far.
We also heard from number one draft choice, defensive back Eric Stokes.
The speedy Georgia cornerback has gotten nearly all the reps with the first team defense with Kevin King opening camp on the Non Football Injury list. It’s proven to be a necessary evil, especially trying to defend Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams.
Stokes expected as much but understands it’s part of the process. Eric said he’s been in Alexander’s ear every day on the field and in meetings. About those meetings, Stokes offered up a humorous tale about his NFL initiation. He made the mistake of bringing a snack to a defensive back meeting early in camp and Alexander said what about the rest of us?
The Packers will have a closed walk through session on Wednesday but Aaron Rodgers is scheduled to talk via zoom after the practice. They’ll return to Ray Nitschke Field on Thursday.
