Packers Practice Roundup: Day 10. August 5, 2019

Packers Practice Roundup: Day 10.  August 5, 2019

The Houston Texans came to Lambeau for a scrimmage today.  The two teams will do it again tomorrow.  Here is a sampling of the tweets by media observers.

Injuries, Usage, Formations, Personnel:

  • Packers attendance report: New DNPs: Corey Linsley (biceps), Curtis Bolton (groin). Returned: Bryan Bulaga (day off). Still out: Kevin King (hamstring), Jamaal Williams (hamstring), Aaron Jones (hamstring), Josh Jackson (foot), Kendall Donnerson, Greg Roberts (abdomen), Spriggs (trapezius), Brown (calf).  Demovsky
  • Gutekunst says he doesn’t think Kevin King’s hamstring injury is a long-term concern.  Nagler
  • Looks like Trevor Davis is going to head inside. It looked like he may have gotten facemasked on the return and landed awkwardly.  Herman
  • Kumerow gets his hand examined by the trainer Herman
  • Raven Greene just dropped out of practice with an injury.  Had a sack earlier.  Herman
  • Raven Greene is back.  Nagler
  • First big scuffle after Texans S Lonnie Johnson Jr. hit Packers TE Jace Sternberger so hard his helmet flew off. Lucas Patrick and the rest of the O-line jumped in immediately. They're take Sternberger inside to get checked out, presumably for a concussion.  Demovsky
  • Sternberger returned to practice after the hit.  Nagler
  • That was the 2nd time Sternberger for absolutely leveled over the middle. The first time things were ok. This time the benches cleRed. It would seem cooler heads have now prevailed. Two bush league plays by the Texans safeties.  Herman
  • Za’Darius Smith has his right ankle taped now. Still walking with a bit of a limp. He’s taking heavy steps with his right foot, trying to put more pressure on the right ankle. Think he’ll be just fine.  Schniedman
  • McCray is at center with the 1s.  Nagler
  • Lucas Patrick with the 1s at LG to start team.  Herman

Quarterbacks and WRs:

  • Jawill Davis with a diving catch from Boyle. Impressive catch!  Herman
  • Kizer picked by Dylan Cole who is having a monster day for the Texans. Horrible, horrible decision and throw for Kizer.  Herman
  • Brutal pick from Kizer trying to hit EQ down the seam. Ball just died and the DB just took it.  [Same play as above, I think.]  Nagler
  • Kizer sacked by at least 3 Texans.  Herman [2nd team OL has problems?] 
  • Rodgers to MVS down the sideline on a deep out cut off play action.  Herman
  • Rodgers to EQ on a drag for a nice pickup.  Herman
  • Rodgers had MVS deep. Overshot him.  Kruse [Lot of tweets about missing MVS so far this year.]
  • Now Rodgers has MVS wide open on a crosser that should be a huge play but it’s a tad in front of MVS who can’t catch it.  Herman
  • Great throw and catch from Rodgers to Shepherd on a slant. Big play from Shepherd there. Will gain 12s trust!  Herman
  • Sweet snag in traffic by Darrius Sheppard. Rodgers had some mustard on it to fit it in a tight window.  [Same play as above]  Nagler
  • Rodgers has Allison on a slant but he can’t hang on. One that Allison has to catch.  Herman
  • Rodgers to Kumerow for 6 over the middle.  Herman
  • Boyle pressured and throws well low for Trevor Davis.  Herman
  • J’Mon Moore from Kizer over the middle. Nice play from those 2 off play action.  Herman
  • Really nice throw from Kizer to Moore on an in-cut. Good coverage, throw just beat it.  [Same play as above.]  Nagler
  • Receivers really struggling to find separation in 7x7s. Quarterbacks having to hold the ball a long time. Manny Wilkins does a nice job in the 7x7s making a couple short completions.  Herman

Tight Ends:

  • Sternberger having his best day of camp.  Herman
  • Kizer beautiful throw up the seam to Sternberger for a huge completion. Huge hit by the Texans that may have drawn a defenseless player flag in a game. Sternberger holds on!!!  Herman
  • Big play Rodgers to Tonyan.  Herman
  • Rodgers gets the defense to jump then fires a LAZER to Tonyan down the seam for a big gain.  Nagler
  • Speaking of young TEs, Robert Tonyan continues to impress. Tonyan beat safety Justin Reid on a skinny post. Caught a perfect ball from Aaron Rodgers, whose trust in Tonyan keeps growing.  Wood
  • Boyle to Sternberger off a boot and Jace shows his RAC ability. Nice juice from the rookie.

Running Backs:

  • Dexter Williams with a nice catch and run up the sideline.  Herman
  • Matt LaFleur trusts Danny Vitale to lead block in the run game, pass protect as a singleback, run routes of all kinds and catch the football all over the field. He's a lock for the roster.  Kruse
  • Huge play alert. Who else. Rodgers to Danny Vitale deep. The legend grows.  Herman
  • Vitale makes a contested catch downfield. You can’t stop him. You can only hope to contain him.  Nagler
  • Rodgers finds Vitale wide open in the flat. Packers best weapon.  Herman
  • Already knew Danny Vitale could catch, but didn’t realize he could CATCH. Just leaped over Texans ILB Zach Cunningham for a terrific grab on a fade some 25 yards downfield. Not bad for a fullback.  Wood
  • Dexter Williams finds a crease for 5-6. Nice run.  Herman

Defensive Backs:

  • Tony Brown all over Hopkins and forces the incomplete pass. Big rep for him.  Herman
  • Tony Brown wasn’t exactly lacking for confidence before but he battled Hopkins 1x1 today on multiple occasions & came out on top. No easy task.  Herman
  • Watson to Hopkins. Very short gain. Tony Brown right there. Tony Brown all over Vyncint Smith. Brown had a better chance at the ball. Tony Brown having a great camp.  Herman
  • Ka’Dar Hollman beautiful coverage on Vyncint Smith for a pbu! Great play by the rook.  Herman
  • Kabion Ento with a WOW play and a huge pass breakup as he absolutely sky-walked for the breakup.  Herman

Safety:

  • Lamar Miller finds a hole inside, Adrian Amos does a nice job filling it. Always in the right spot!  Herman
  • Watson nice throw on a deep out to Fuller. Amos in coverage.  Herman

Linebackers:

  • Preston Smith run stuff.  Herman
  • Fackrell is running circles around these second-team OTs.  Kruse
  • Looney & Fackrell converge on the QB for a would-be sack.  Herman
  • Dominant team period for Fackrell. If he’s your fourth best rusher, you’re probably in really good shape.  Kruse
  • Screen play completely blown up Martinez.  Herman

Kicker/STs:

  • Tyron Johnson just had a big KR for the Texans against the Packers ST unit. Looked like he would have housed it. Now another kickoff and another monster return. This one may have gone too. Some serious work to do for Shaun Menenga’s special teams unit.  Herman
  • Packers kick return goes nowhere and let me know if this shocks you... there’s a flag on the return.  Herman
  • 81 - 85 - 36 -42 - 54 - 19 in front, then Kumerow Lazard, then Vitale and Carson, with Davis back deep.  Kick return unit per Herman
  • Crosby: 33, 39, 45, 51 good, missed from 48.  Ficken: 5 of 5 good same distances.  Schneidman

Offensive/Defensive Line:

  • Montravius Adams with his 2nd sack today.  Herman
  • Montravius with a “sack”.  Herman
  • Fackrell and Montravius just destroyed Texans second-team OL. Would have been an easy sack.  Kruse
  • Za’Darius just powered through for a sack while being held. So impressive.  Herman
  • Rashan Gary & Za’Darius Smith continue to flash. No matter the opponent.  Herman
  • By the way, tremendous block from Bryan Bulaga against J.J. Watt on this play. Gave Rodgers enough time to hit Tonyan.  Wood
  • Montravius Adams big run stuff.  Rashan Gary says no no no on a stretch run. Completely shut down.  Lancaster with a run stuff.  Herman
  • Billy Turner just escorted one of the Texans DL to the ground.  Kruse
  • Lucas Patrick w/ a serious pancake of Carlos Watkins.  Herman
  • Lane Taylor just drove Joel Heath into the ground on a run to his side. Wonder if Taylor got a bit of a jolt with Jenkins taking some of his snaps yesterday.  Nagler
  • Lucas Patrick 2-0 be Brandon Dunn. Joel Heath and Cole Madison go 1-1. Pancake on the 2nd for Madison. There is seriously so much going on. This is insane. Davin Bellamy & Gerherd de Beer go 1-1.  DJ Reader goes 2-0 vs McCray. Taylor & Carlos Watkins go 1-1. Mercilus gets the best of Bakhtiari first, DBak rebounds for a win the 2nd time around. Elgton Jenkins absolutely manhandled Albert Huggins in 1x1’s twice in a row. Insanely impressive.  Alex Light 1x1 vs JJ Watt goes about as expected in 1x1s. Turner goes 2-0 with a serious man handle of Angelo Blackson.  Herman

Overall/Miscellaneous:

  • Boyle sacked before throwing it away. That does it for practice. Some ups and downs today for GB. Texans probably won this session.  Herman
  • Packers running game a major work in progress. Nothing doing for any of the backs so far.  Herman
  • Texans much better today in most phases to be brutally honest. Injuries, poor special teams, and incompletions summarize the day so far for GB.  Herman
  • Entire field being utilized right now - 4 drills at once.  Owczarski [hard for observers to see everything.]
  • Sitting next to a CFL scout at practice today. Remember their focus is on players that are likely to get cut but he said the player that’s stood out to him was Jawill Davis. Also mentioned he’s keeping an eye on Teo Redding, Malik Taylor, J’Mon Moore, Darrin Hall & Corey Grant.  Herman
  • LaFleur says if Aaron Rodgers gets enough good work in tomorrow, he won’t play Thursday vs. Texans and just start preparing for Week 2 of preseason.  Nagler
  • Today’s camp standouts: Tony Brown!!! Za’Darius Smith Dylan Cole (Texans) Kabion Ento Montravius Adams!!! Jace Sternberger!!! Adam Pankey Danny Vitale Robert Tonyan Rashan Gary.  Herman

Of the new injuries, the only player without an update is Trevor Davis.  The other players who were injured in the scrimmage all came back to practice.  It remains to be seen if all of those players will be able to practice tomorrow.

 

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2 points
 

Comments (30)

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

August 05, 2019 at 09:24 pm

“Rodgers gets the defense to jump then fires a LAZER to Tonyan down the seam for a big gain. Nagler”

I miss LAZER103. “102.9 The Hog” just doesn’t have the same ring to it.

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dobber's picture

August 05, 2019 at 09:58 pm

I miss "All My Packers"...which used to air on LZR back in the 80s. I don't think they could play that kind of stuff anymore...

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BradHTX's picture

August 06, 2019 at 06:50 am

There’s no need — the Packers haven’t been the same basket case they were back then after the Wolf/Holmgren/Favre era.

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dobber's picture

August 06, 2019 at 08:12 am

The characterizations were awesome.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 05, 2019 at 09:34 pm

I chose to use Montravius Adams' photo at the top of the article. He had a nice day with two or more sacks.

It was a close call with Tony Brown having to cover Hopkins on multiple occasions and doing well. That's an excellent sign, especially if King is out for any length of time. Vitale was also in the running. I've used photos already of both Brown and Vitale in prior articles, but that's just a tie-breaker: if they had done the best, I'd have put one of their photos at the top of the article.

It sounds like the 2nd string OL is having all kinds of problems. Not enough detail in the tweets to say too much, that is, whether it is the unit as a whole or a few weak links. Lots of tweets about the packer's running game (1st team and 2nd team OL) not doing much and the stretch plays in particular. Again, Aaron Jones and even Jamaal Williams might make a difference.

I was tempted to write a snarky comment on the STs and the Packers saving a few hundred thousand on the Coordinator's salary, but it is a new coach and a new system.

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Coldworld's picture

August 05, 2019 at 09:58 pm

Special Teams had their first real returns today. That said, the honeymoon is going to be short if the repeat the ineptitude of today on Thursday. No one can out Zook Zook!

Our Second O line (usually minus Light or McCray) looks completely lost at this level. I have to believe that the individuals are better than the sum of the parts, but none of them look ready to play yet.

If they don’t get a lot better soon the local hospital may need to open a QB ward.

Positively: Brown keeps getting better and Vitale is bringing a whole new level of offensive potential in the passing game to the position.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

August 05, 2019 at 10:35 pm

Nice to see Bulaga blocked JJ Watt well. Watt has been dinged up a bit, I guess. No Clowney either today.

Funny about the 2nd team OL. There have been a decent amount of positives about Jenkins, Madison, Pankey, and Light. Not many about Patrick, Nijman and de Beer, or really McCray.

Houston KR scored two TDs on returns.

It is early. The offense has been sloppy and confused at times, having to re-huddle at times when it was not expected to be necessary. We will see.

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Coldworld's picture

August 06, 2019 at 07:19 am

Only on an individual level, though Patrick did blow up an opponent yesterday, playing with the ones I think. Nijman, Jenkins and Madison have had some one on one moments if I recall correctly.

The problem is that one on one drills do not show readiness to play. Looks like a significant learning curve. I expected that with a Nijman type, less so with Jenkins. Madison somewhere in between. Hopefully they will be better Thursday or we won’t see much of value offensively once the ones leave the field.

It also gives me pause in evaluating the rushing successes of players like Summers and Bolton, look great, but how much is down to that back up line that the opposing backups also diced yesterday?

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PatrickGB's picture

August 05, 2019 at 09:44 pm

I was somewhat surprised that Herman felt that the Texans were the better team today. From all the glowing reports that I read from our local sites one would have thought it was the other way around. I appreciate truth in reporting even when I don’t like it. I expect our offense to slowly get better and begin to catch up with our defense. However, the biggest concern I have is that our “Special Teams” sucked again.

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PatrickGB's picture

August 05, 2019 at 09:46 pm

Oops, Double Post.

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Coldworld's picture

August 05, 2019 at 10:00 pm

Individual versus team I think. Texans are more settled in to their approach, so that isn’t a surprise I suppose. ST scares me more than the O still being in the process of coming together.

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Rick1's picture

August 05, 2019 at 09:52 pm

Really curious to see the second installment of joint practices. The biggest thing is that executions are sharp and mental mistakes are far less. The offense will gain more confidence if they can run the ball on the Texans. These are baseline plays and easy setups off of them.
The packers are going to keep repetitions high so the timing keeps improving. The play action game is just missing so I’m curious to see how many shot plays they have tomorrow.

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EdsLaces's picture

August 05, 2019 at 10:08 pm

Tony Brown is gonna make us all be like ....Kevin King who?

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Rak43's picture

August 06, 2019 at 03:39 am

I hope so, even if King stays healthy, of which I have serious reservations that he will.

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Coldworld's picture

August 06, 2019 at 07:21 am

Tony Brown looks good. King or no King, that’s good news. Glad the team didn’t listen to all those who wanted him gone after that tacky penalty verses the Lions.

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NickPerry's picture

August 06, 2019 at 07:25 am

I'm right there with you Ed... He still has a ways to go but I started keeping my eye on him last season...AFTER the 2 boneheaded plays of course.

I'm starting to get a little concerned about Jackson though. With King's hammy, they'll need more than Brown and Tramon Williams. Hey, maybe Holman pulls a Sam Shields and is able to contribute a lot as a rookie. I know Sam was an UDFA but I'm talking about contributions.

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wildbill's picture

August 05, 2019 at 10:14 pm

Excellent article, keep em coming. Was first real type action against a very good opponent and expected some hiccups but overall sounds like some very good things from the defense. The offense and STs have new concepts being introduced so a few issues are not uncommon. Looking forward to Thursday’s game.

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ShanghaiKid's picture

August 05, 2019 at 11:24 pm

I hope the defense can carry the team, because by the sound of it the O is struggling. I heard Rodgers is stepping back into throws instead of off-platform, could be re-working mechanics. Sounds like it’s going to take a while to get going. D’s gotta carry the load because for the first time since 2010, there’s more talent on D than O.

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Mojo's picture

August 06, 2019 at 12:01 am

On August 31st, the Pack need to consider adding a veteran QB who might get cut for cap reasons. They just can't go with the backups they have right now.

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Bure9620's picture

August 06, 2019 at 01:26 am

Highly unlikely unless that Veteran QB has history in this offense or a prior relationship with MLF/Hackett making it a relatively seamless transition for a player whom would need few reps. Josh McCown is available though "retired"

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Donster's picture

August 06, 2019 at 07:15 am

A bit worrisome the comment of "Receivers really struggling to find separation in 7x7s. Quarterbacks having to hold the ball a long time." Sounds to much like the past few seasons. Hope that it is just early in camp and will work itself out before the season starts.

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Coldworld's picture

August 06, 2019 at 07:24 am

Offense isn’t smooth or consistent yet. I’d expect that to happen at this point at times. Hopefully that will settle as camp progresses. I’d have preferred to see Rodgers getting time to start the game on Thursday for that reason.

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Packers2020's picture

August 06, 2019 at 09:59 am

Again, I know some of you will not like this but I have said this before. I believe we need a true #2 WR. We only have Adams. MVS, Kumerow, and Allison are nice #3 or #4 WR's but I do not believe they will be a #2 option long term. Fifth and sixth round picks or later usually do not transform into #2 WR's in the NFL. We have not picked a WR in the top two rounds since Adams in 2014. Donald Driver retired, Jones retired, and Jordy went down hill. We never replaced them except with Adams.

MVS might have a chance but I am still not optimistic. I hope I am wrong but we will see as the season progresses.

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Leatherhead's picture

August 06, 2019 at 08:04 am

When are they going to cut Kizer and get somebody else? He can’t do the job.

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greengold's picture

August 06, 2019 at 08:14 am

I don't understand some of the people here. Most of you are seasoned Packer fans. The offense ALWAYS starts out slower than the defense. ALWAYS.

Now, considering we have a new HC and system, and a ton of new players, it is possibly going to take even more time before LaFleur's offense starts showing well. These schemes are complex, and the nomenclature is completely different. 5 different groups all learning new things.

I'm encouraged by what I've heard thus far.

Personally, I'm hoping our D can carry us early in the season before this train really starts rolling, and I think they will. I'd be happy to see this offense running smoothly around week 4-5 of the regular season. Anything before then will be gravy, and a testament to LaFleur's coaching staff and his leadership..

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Leatherhead's picture

August 06, 2019 at 09:00 am

Green gold.......our offense is just about all returning vets, and our QB is recognized as one of the top players in the league.

Our defense has a lot of new pieces...I’m not sure why we’d think they might carry us early.

There’s no reason this offense shouldn’t be able to hang 30 on anyone.

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greengold's picture

August 06, 2019 at 09:43 am

Starting C out with a bicep injury, both starting RBs out, new starting RG in Turner, a very young WR corps outside of one real veteran, Adams. Jimmy Graham and Mercedes Lewis the only real veteran TE's. All of them in a new system year 1 of LaFleur's tenure.

I know there is a ton of talent, but my point is even with Rodgers at QB, there are a ton of moving parts, and everyone needs to know their assignments and the multiple checks, which is not easy to pull off.

I think we have the talent to hang 30 on anyone too, but, getting -everyone- on the same page takes time in a new offensive scheme. Different blocking assignments, different blocking techniques, different route trees, different personnel, nearly everywhere except 5 of the 11 positions on offense with 3 or more seasons in GB: Adams, Rodgers, Bak, Taylor, Bulaga. The scheme itself is new to all 11 starters on O.

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dobber's picture

August 06, 2019 at 10:02 am

Word on the veteran TEs you mention (Graham and Lewis) has been very sparse so far. Graham was all but guaranteed a spot on the roster when the Packers paid his bonus in March, but if father time has finally caught up with Lewis, he might be not for long on this roster.

"I know there is a ton of talent, but my point is even with Rodgers at QB, there are a ton of moving parts..."

I think you hit on a key piece here, too: this is not an offense that has been, in the past, predicated on pre-snap motion. That's going to be at least a minor adjustment for everyone, and potentially a major adjustment for receivers/backs/TEs and for #12 who liked to be able to use a static formation to scan the defense. That alone might make this transition a little more challenging.

3 points
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greengold's picture

August 06, 2019 at 10:26 am

Yeah. Figure, this year is going to be a lot like the D was last year, from the standpoint that every player will be thinking about their assignments, some more studied than others, and will be hoping their teammates will be following along assignment sure on adjustments, etc.

Next season, most players on O should be able to run free and react to what they are seeing, with confidence their teammates will be doing the same.

The thing about Mercedes Lewis is he is arguably the best run blocking TE in the NFL, and LaFleur will be calling. his RBs numbers a lot this year. I'm not worried about him at all.

Let's add that LaFleur is not going to want to show a ton in pre-season for other team's film reels. What we will most likely see these next 4 weeks is a lot of vanilla.

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greengold's picture

August 06, 2019 at 09:58 am

Like I said, if it all clicks before week 4, that would be a great testament to LaFleur and his staff for their ability to coach everyone up, put them in their best positions to succeed, to gameplan, adjust, and to lead.

I'm hoping it all takes by week 1 like everyone else. Just not going to expect that. I think week 4 is a reasonable amount of time to get all cylinders firing. Anything before that is pure gravy.

Running game not coming together quickly? Well, no s**t. Starting a rookie 6th Round pick with two new players behind him who've been here for 1 week or so.

UDFA Geronimo Allison is in his 3rd season in GB? How much play did he get last year? How much did Davis get? MVS, EQ, Kumerow, Moore all beginning year 2, now in a new system.

Also, with both starting RBs out with injury, Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams, how effective are we supposed to expect them to be if they only return just a week or so before the start of the season?

All I'm saying is there is a lot of stuff that needs to come together before we really start cooking on O, and expectations seem to be running a bit high in Packerland.

1 points
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