WEBVTT - #295 Packers Unscripted: OTAs are underway 0:00:00.840 --> 0:00:20.759 Hi, everybody. Welcome to Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com. 0:00:20.800 --> 0:00:23.880 I am Mike Spofford and he is my trusted colleague, 0:00:23.960 --> 0:00:26.520 Wes Hodko. It's we're coming to you here from our 0:00:26.560 --> 0:00:29.160 studios at lambeau Field and West. O t A s 0:00:29.280 --> 0:00:32.440 are underway. And for those who are wondering what that means. 0:00:32.880 --> 0:00:35.559 O t A stands for Organized Team Activity. It's just 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:39.080 a fancy phrase or acronym, whatever you wanna call it 0:00:39.159 --> 0:00:42.360 for a spring practice in the NFL, which is no pads, 0:00:42.800 --> 0:00:46.360 helmets and shorts. Um. Really, what it boils down to 0:00:46.640 --> 0:00:50.640 is the Packers using the next few weeks to install 0:00:50.720 --> 0:00:53.920 their playbooks on offense and defense, which makes this set 0:00:53.920 --> 0:00:56.960 of O t A sessions not quite your garden variety 0:00:57.440 --> 0:00:59.760 annual O t A s Because the Packers have brand 0:00:59.800 --> 0:01:03.279 new offensive coordinator, brand new defensive coordinator. There's a lot 0:01:03.320 --> 0:01:05.320 of work to be done, a lot of change, even 0:01:05.360 --> 0:01:07.440 for the veteran players who are coming back with what 0:01:07.480 --> 0:01:09.240 they need to learn. Yeah, I mean, and I think 0:01:09.240 --> 0:01:11.040 this is a really interesting year because you have guys 0:01:11.040 --> 0:01:12.760 like Clay Matthews who are going to be learning a 0:01:12.760 --> 0:01:15.559 new playbook for the first time in their career after 0:01:15.600 --> 0:01:18.440 working solely and Dom's Caper system for being the better 0:01:18.440 --> 0:01:22.640 part of nine years. So yeah, it's always interesting. There's 0:01:22.640 --> 0:01:25.520 always some small minor tweaks that you notice, whether it's 0:01:25.520 --> 0:01:28.440 how players are utilized or you know, just changes that 0:01:28.480 --> 0:01:32.080 players have made in their own you know, body and conditioning. 0:01:32.840 --> 0:01:34.360 The thing I guess I look for the most in 0:01:34.400 --> 0:01:37.280 this and you touched on it was the installation. Uh 0:01:37.480 --> 0:01:39.479 So in some ways this is sort of like an 0:01:39.480 --> 0:01:43.959 exaggerated walk through, but at the same time, you're getting 0:01:44.000 --> 0:01:46.240 so many different guys meeting at a center point, the 0:01:46.319 --> 0:01:49.120 rookies coming in for the first time, uh and practicing 0:01:49.160 --> 0:01:50.760 now with the veterans and having to catch up to 0:01:50.840 --> 0:01:54.120 speed the veterans in this particular instance, both on offense 0:01:54.160 --> 0:01:56.760 with Joe Philbin now back his offensive coordinator and with 0:01:56.840 --> 0:01:59.720 Mike Petton as a defensive coordinator, learning what's going to 0:01:59.760 --> 0:02:02.400 be asked of them in the scheme, Jimmy Graham coming 0:02:02.400 --> 0:02:05.200 in as a free agent. So it's like it's been 0:02:05.640 --> 0:02:08.160 four months of build to this point and now you 0:02:08.200 --> 0:02:10.120 have everybody kind of meeting at the crossroads on this 0:02:10.200 --> 0:02:13.000 ninety man roster. And if people are wondering just how 0:02:13.000 --> 0:02:15.800 how okay, So how do you go about installing a playbook? Like, 0:02:15.840 --> 0:02:18.880 what does that mean? Well, it's about breaking down the 0:02:18.880 --> 0:02:22.160 playbook into the different segments, and the different segments being 0:02:22.200 --> 0:02:25.440 the different situations that are part of a football game. 0:02:25.480 --> 0:02:27.200 That's really the best way I can describe it. And 0:02:27.200 --> 0:02:28.840 what I mean by that is you have your what 0:02:28.919 --> 0:02:31.000 are called your normal down and distance, you know, kind 0:02:31.000 --> 0:02:33.640 of your first and ten, second and seven all that 0:02:33.720 --> 0:02:35.600 kind of stuff. But then the rest of the game 0:02:35.639 --> 0:02:39.800 of football is all about situations, third downs, red zone, 0:02:40.200 --> 0:02:44.040 short yardage, goal line backed up, which is when your 0:02:44.080 --> 0:02:46.440 offense is back like on its own five yard line, 0:02:46.520 --> 0:02:48.320 you know, where you have to kind of be careful 0:02:48.360 --> 0:02:50.919 how to how to make your way out. So it's 0:02:50.919 --> 0:02:56.120 all about the playbook has a certain set of situations 0:02:56.120 --> 0:02:59.360 and plays for all of those, uh, circumstances that come 0:02:59.400 --> 0:03:00.920 up and then obvious, so you have them both on 0:03:01.040 --> 0:03:04.519 offense and on defense. So that's what they're walking through. 0:03:04.560 --> 0:03:07.040 As you said, it's kind of an exaggerated walkthrough, although 0:03:07.080 --> 0:03:10.600 they do some stuff pretty close to full speed, but 0:03:10.639 --> 0:03:13.800 it's not full contact because you don't have pads on, yeah, exactly, 0:03:13.919 --> 0:03:16.640 and you've got guys that you know you're hoping for 0:03:16.720 --> 0:03:18.480 at this point, and Mike McCarthy talked about it is 0:03:18.520 --> 0:03:21.240 Tuesday morning news conference, you know, mental errors, cutting down 0:03:21.240 --> 0:03:23.079 on that, making sure the tempo is where it needs 0:03:23.080 --> 0:03:24.800 to be. Now, is it going to be at the 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:26.600 same tempo that you're going to have in July or 0:03:26.639 --> 0:03:28.880 what you expected to be in July. No, but if 0:03:28.919 --> 0:03:31.000 you're able to stay to that script and be efficient 0:03:31.000 --> 0:03:33.400 in the time that you have. These practices are so 0:03:33.440 --> 0:03:36.240 important from the standpoint of we know the restrictions that 0:03:36.280 --> 0:03:38.600 are in place now with the offseason program, and they've 0:03:38.600 --> 0:03:41.760 been in place for the last seven eight years. Coaches 0:03:41.800 --> 0:03:43.840 have had to tailor their game plans that players have 0:03:43.880 --> 0:03:46.440 had to adapt to it. Guys had to do more studying, 0:03:46.520 --> 0:03:48.240 you know, and being in their playbooks so when they 0:03:48.280 --> 0:03:51.520 are on the field, they're making the most of that time. Uh. 0:03:51.520 --> 0:03:53.720 And I think the thing for me that's always interesting 0:03:53.760 --> 0:03:55.920 as well as you know Aaron Rodgers, is at these 0:03:55.920 --> 0:03:59.080 practices you have the top guys and at least the 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:01.640 way the Packers do it with their workoup bonuses and whatnot. 0:04:02.480 --> 0:04:04.400 More often, not every year that I can remember, the 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:06.440 top guys have been here with maybe the exception of 0:04:06.480 --> 0:04:09.120 one year I think where maybe Sam Shields wasn't, but 0:04:09.200 --> 0:04:12.480 other have their incentives incentives there. So what the point 0:04:12.480 --> 0:04:14.160 I'm trying to make with that is you have these 0:04:14.240 --> 0:04:16.800 rookie receivers coming in, this is their first work with 0:04:16.839 --> 0:04:20.640 Aaron Rodgers, Jimmy Graham's first work with Aaron Rodgers. These 0:04:20.680 --> 0:04:23.560 guys getting up to speed not only with the playbook 0:04:23.640 --> 0:04:26.480 but also with the very best in the game at quarterbacks. 0:04:26.560 --> 0:04:30.320 So yeah, in some ways it doesn't really have like 0:04:30.400 --> 0:04:32.840 this big hype and build like Training Camp does. The 0:04:32.880 --> 0:04:35.600 twenty Training Camp practices where you know every day is 0:04:35.640 --> 0:04:38.400 so important, but it's still in its own right and 0:04:38.440 --> 0:04:40.640 own regard. It's in a very important time for these 0:04:40.680 --> 0:04:43.280 guys because after this, when you get through this segment 0:04:43.320 --> 0:04:46.159 of practices and you get to mini camps, once you know, 0:04:46.279 --> 0:04:49.000 July comes around, guys have to be up to speed. Yeah, 0:04:49.040 --> 0:04:51.839 and that's that was a key point that Mike McCarthy 0:04:51.920 --> 0:04:55.559 made in talking about particularly the rookies and the young guys. 0:04:55.560 --> 0:04:57.159 And we'll talk a little bit later in the show 0:04:57.160 --> 0:05:00.000 about maybe some competitions that are getting started to keep 0:05:00.040 --> 0:05:02.520 an eye on, but you don't want to overplay the 0:05:02.600 --> 0:05:05.760 competition part of it. At this stage, it's really with 0:05:05.960 --> 0:05:08.600 especially with regards to the young players. Mike McCarthy made 0:05:08.600 --> 0:05:10.760 it very clear it's about keeping up. He wants to 0:05:10.760 --> 0:05:13.200 see guys who can keep up mentally in the playbook 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:16.640 not look completely lost out there with the other veterans. 0:05:16.680 --> 0:05:18.560 And there will be stages through O t a S 0:05:18.600 --> 0:05:21.200 in the mini camp between now in the middle of June, 0:05:21.200 --> 0:05:23.760 where veterans will be given the day off and then 0:05:23.800 --> 0:05:26.360 the coaching staff actually goes back through all of the 0:05:26.360 --> 0:05:28.600 things that haven't gone quite so well in the O 0:05:28.760 --> 0:05:30.240 t a S to that point with the rookies, and 0:05:30.240 --> 0:05:33.320 they review everything and give them a practice where they 0:05:33.320 --> 0:05:36.120 can focus on maybe some do over, so to speak, 0:05:36.360 --> 0:05:39.520 so that come the end of July, it's like everybody 0:05:39.600 --> 0:05:41.760 you know is in the starting blocks and let's go. Yeah. 0:05:41.800 --> 0:05:43.960 And I strongly encourage people not to pay too much 0:05:44.000 --> 0:05:47.040 attention to the depth charts. I mean, I've covered practices 0:05:47.040 --> 0:05:50.200 where Alex Green took snaps before Eddie Lacey before his 0:05:50.279 --> 0:05:52.880 eventual Rookie of the Year season, Matt Blancher taking snaps 0:05:53.080 --> 0:05:55.919 before Brett Hunley back in two thousand fifteen. That's just 0:05:55.960 --> 0:05:57.600 the way this thing goes. Veterans are going to be 0:05:57.600 --> 0:05:59.520 the guys leading the groups at first, but once you 0:05:59.520 --> 0:06:01.240 get to train camp, you know those things will start 0:06:01.279 --> 0:06:03.200 to sort themselves out. All right. With that, we're gonna 0:06:03.240 --> 0:06:05.440 go to a break back with more on Packers Unscripted 0:06:05.520 --> 0:06:27.160 right after this. Welcome back to Packers Unscripted. Mike Spofford 0:06:27.160 --> 0:06:30.080 in this chair, West hodk wits in that one. So okay, West. 0:06:30.080 --> 0:06:32.680 The Packers have three weeks worth of O T A 0:06:32.800 --> 0:06:35.239 s here. One each week is open to the public 0:06:35.279 --> 0:06:37.960 for those who are local. That would be May two, 0:06:38.080 --> 0:06:41.239 May thirty one, and June four before the mini camp. 0:06:41.279 --> 0:06:44.400 Then June twelve through fourteen, So three weeks of O 0:06:44.560 --> 0:06:47.320 T as one week of mini camp. What's the kind 0:06:47.320 --> 0:06:49.320 of the biggest thing maybe you've got your eye on 0:06:49.360 --> 0:06:51.160 as you go out to watch some of these workouts, Well, 0:06:51.160 --> 0:06:52.920 if you think about it, Mike, the Packers had four 0:06:53.000 --> 0:06:56.440 big acquisitions in the off season, Jimmy Graham, mo will Kerson, 0:06:56.480 --> 0:06:59.360 Truman Williams, and then also Deshaun Kaiser, who was acquired 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:03.400 in that trade from the Cleveland Browns. Mike McCarthy has 0:07:03.400 --> 0:07:05.960 talked a lot about Kaiser this offseason. He even mentioned, 0:07:05.960 --> 0:07:08.520 I think it was shortly after the draft um that 0:07:08.600 --> 0:07:10.960 it was. It was a rookie orientation camp actually, where 0:07:11.400 --> 0:07:13.360 you know, he felt like if DeShawn Kaiser would have 0:07:13.360 --> 0:07:15.720 stayed another year at Notre Dame, he would have been 0:07:15.720 --> 0:07:18.040 in that same conversation with those top four or five 0:07:18.120 --> 0:07:20.800 quarterbacks in this year's draft class, as far as you know, 0:07:20.840 --> 0:07:23.880 the top ten and in that area they've Packers feel 0:07:23.920 --> 0:07:26.320 really good about the prospect they're getting. But as he 0:07:26.360 --> 0:07:28.560 also talked about on Tuesday, I mean, he's young, and 0:07:28.600 --> 0:07:31.120 he's having to learn a new system after dedicating himself 0:07:31.320 --> 0:07:34.560 to being the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns for 0:07:34.760 --> 0:07:37.760 fifteen games as a twenty one year old rookie quarterback. 0:07:37.800 --> 0:07:39.480 So in some ways you have to flush that now 0:07:39.800 --> 0:07:43.280 move forward and understand your role behind Aaron Rodgers. That 0:07:43.440 --> 0:07:46.400 competition for the number two spot between him and Brett Huntley. 0:07:46.680 --> 0:07:48.720 I've been very you know, open about this since the 0:07:48.760 --> 0:07:50.640 day that they acquired him. I think this is the 0:07:50.640 --> 0:07:53.080 biggest competition the Packers have had now in you know, 0:07:53.120 --> 0:07:55.720 really ten years. I think going back to when Brian 0:07:55.800 --> 0:07:58.080 Brown was drafted and Matt Flynn came in as the 0:07:58.160 --> 0:08:02.240 quarterbacks as far as the quarterbacks, absolutely, Uh, two guys 0:08:02.240 --> 0:08:03.880 that I think you have a lot of experience. I've 0:08:03.920 --> 0:08:05.800 had a lot of playing time now in the NFL 0:08:06.080 --> 0:08:08.480 getting a chance to you know, push each other now 0:08:08.520 --> 0:08:10.800 for that number two spots. Yeah, it's an interesting challenge 0:08:10.840 --> 0:08:13.960 for Kaiser because he goes from Notre Dame to the 0:08:14.000 --> 0:08:16.520 Cleveland Browns and so you're learning a whole new offensive 0:08:16.560 --> 0:08:18.600 system as a rookie and now his second year in 0:08:18.640 --> 0:08:21.320 the NFL he's got to start over again and learn 0:08:21.400 --> 0:08:23.480 the whole new thing again. Now he did go to 0:08:23.520 --> 0:08:25.760 Notre Dame, so there's gotta be some you know, some 0:08:25.800 --> 0:08:28.400 smarts there. I think he's gonna pick things up, you know, 0:08:28.520 --> 0:08:32.199 fairly quickly, maybe relatively speaking. But but that being said, 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:34.040 this is this is a big challenge. This is not 0:08:34.120 --> 0:08:37.000 an easy situation for him to walk into. But he 0:08:37.120 --> 0:08:40.240 is walking into a situation where there's a coaching staff 0:08:40.240 --> 0:08:43.440 in a personnel department that really liked him coming out 0:08:43.440 --> 0:08:46.160 of college and they're very interested to see how he 0:08:46.200 --> 0:08:48.959 can perform in this offense and with this coaching staff. 0:08:49.000 --> 0:08:51.240 And here's the other thing too, Mike frank Signetti, the 0:08:51.240 --> 0:08:55.400 new quarterbacks coach, Mike McCarthy all these guys that are 0:08:55.400 --> 0:08:57.640 going to be working with him. The one benefit that 0:08:57.760 --> 0:08:59.800 Kaiser had out of that season with the Browns is 0:08:59.800 --> 0:09:04.079 they have roughly eight offensive snaps to review last year 0:09:04.120 --> 0:09:06.480 what happened in Cleveland. Now, like I said, there's gonna 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:08.480 be a transition going into this offense, but they can 0:09:08.520 --> 0:09:11.000 break down the mechanics, they can break down the decision making, 0:09:11.360 --> 0:09:13.640 they can look at what he did and where the 0:09:13.679 --> 0:09:15.880 emphasis needs to be. Now that he's in Green Bay. 0:09:16.040 --> 0:09:18.800 That's a huge benefit. And in the same vein Brett 0:09:18.840 --> 0:09:21.079 Huntley is in the same boat after starting I believe 0:09:21.080 --> 0:09:23.560 it was nine games last season for the Packers, in 0:09:23.559 --> 0:09:25.760 the ups and downs that he experienced, the highs of 0:09:25.840 --> 0:09:29.440 you know, Pittsburgh and some of the lows along the way. Now, 0:09:29.480 --> 0:09:31.880 trying to have those guys take the next step. By 0:09:31.880 --> 0:09:33.800 no means is either one of those guys a finished 0:09:33.800 --> 0:09:35.760 product at this point. And I think that's the thing 0:09:35.760 --> 0:09:38.600 Mike McCarthy has been preaching. In addition, um, you know, 0:09:38.640 --> 0:09:42.160 you also have have Tim Boyle in that conversation as well, 0:09:42.520 --> 0:09:46.440 that they're as an undrafted rookie now out of Eastern Kentucky. 0:09:46.559 --> 0:09:48.640 So a lot of different things for the packers to consider, 0:09:49.040 --> 0:09:51.000 But I think that that competition, seeing how all those 0:09:51.000 --> 0:09:52.880 guys push each other behind Aaron Rodgers, will be one 0:09:52.880 --> 0:09:54.640 of the more compelling things to watch in training camp. 0:09:54.840 --> 0:09:57.120 And as much as is going to potentially be written 0:09:57.120 --> 0:09:59.680 about it, we'll be talking about it on this show. Uh. 0:09:59.720 --> 0:10:02.320 You know, through the spring, nothing is going to be 0:10:02.360 --> 0:10:05.320 decided as far as this number two quarterback thing until 0:10:05.400 --> 0:10:08.520 we get through the preseason. There isn't even a decision made. 0:10:08.679 --> 0:10:11.440 I don't believe as as to how many quarterbacks are 0:10:11.440 --> 0:10:13.360 gonna be kept on the fifty three man roster at 0:10:13.400 --> 0:10:16.040 the end of training camp. This is just the beginning 0:10:16.160 --> 0:10:19.000 of what's going to be a long process to sort 0:10:19.040 --> 0:10:22.480 things out here for who will be the number two 0:10:22.520 --> 0:10:26.040 guy behind Aaron Rodgers should anything happen again. Hopefully it 0:10:26.080 --> 0:10:28.600 won't like last year. And Mike McCarthy has been very 0:10:28.600 --> 0:10:30.280 open about this. I'd seen in the last four or 0:10:30.280 --> 0:10:32.839 five years, if he had his druthers, he'd loved to 0:10:32.880 --> 0:10:36.240 have four quarterbacks on the roster at all times. You know, 0:10:36.280 --> 0:10:38.680 three guys on the roster, a guy on the practice squad. Sure, 0:10:39.160 --> 0:10:41.400 the mentality has kind of changed a little bit there 0:10:41.400 --> 0:10:43.720 and yeah, well that fourth guy, if you would ever 0:10:43.760 --> 0:10:46.520 go that direction, isn't gonna get much work. There is 0:10:46.559 --> 0:10:48.800 a benefit to being able to have them constantly in 0:10:48.800 --> 0:10:51.360 the meeting rooms and have them involved because of all 0:10:51.360 --> 0:10:53.600 the time you're missing now in the off season program, 0:10:53.600 --> 0:10:56.800 and and obviously the encyclopedia of information that Aaron Rodgers 0:10:56.880 --> 0:10:59.840 is the situational play itself out. We've seen the Packers 0:10:59.840 --> 0:11:02.880 to four through the first three preseason games. We've see them, 0:11:02.920 --> 0:11:04.880 you know, go with three right at the start. They've 0:11:05.040 --> 0:11:06.959 they've taken two in a season, they've taken three into 0:11:06.960 --> 0:11:09.679 a season. Basically, as you kind of alluded to it, 0:11:09.720 --> 0:11:12.040 there's really been no set patterns. So seeing how these 0:11:12.040 --> 0:11:14.160 guys perform and who rises to that challenge is going 0:11:14.200 --> 0:11:16.360 to be ultimately what dictates who's going to be on 0:11:16.360 --> 0:11:18.520 that fifty three and who will be around on week one. Yeah, 0:11:18.640 --> 0:11:21.199 another new acquisition you mentioned was Jimmy Graham, and I 0:11:21.200 --> 0:11:23.280 want to get to him after the breakback with Moron 0:11:23.320 --> 0:11:44.600 Packers Unscripted right after this Welcome back to Packers Unscripted. 0:11:44.600 --> 0:11:47.720 Mike Spofford here, Wes Hodko, wits over there West, Jimmy Graham, 0:11:47.720 --> 0:11:51.560 the Packers new tight end. Again, an interesting situation because 0:11:51.600 --> 0:11:55.000 this will be the third consecutive year that Aaron Rodgers 0:11:55.040 --> 0:11:57.560 and the offense will be incorporating a new tight end 0:11:57.559 --> 0:12:02.160 and a potentially significant weapon in this offense um into things. 0:12:02.280 --> 0:12:06.559 Jared Cook two thousand sixteen, Martella Spente and Lance Kendricks 0:12:06.559 --> 0:12:11.560 now in it's Jimmy Graham certainly an accomplished player. When 0:12:11.559 --> 0:12:14.679 we heard from him at the start of offseason workouts 0:12:14.720 --> 0:12:18.360 in the middle of April, sounded he sounded to me 0:12:18.480 --> 0:12:20.800 like a guy who was awfully excited to be here 0:12:20.920 --> 0:12:23.199 and to learn this offense and to work with Aaron 0:12:23.280 --> 0:12:26.080 Rodgers and to and to get things going. Kind of 0:12:26.240 --> 0:12:28.320 a guy who feels like maybe he's still got a 0:12:28.320 --> 0:12:31.160 little bit to prove when some of his statistics numbers 0:12:31.160 --> 0:12:33.520 from those years in Seattle obviously didn't match up to 0:12:33.520 --> 0:12:35.480 what he did in New Orleans. It's really funny, though, Mike, 0:12:35.480 --> 0:12:37.680 because if there's you know, the stats being what they are, 0:12:37.880 --> 0:12:39.439 there's still a lot of tight ends out there that 0:12:39.480 --> 0:12:42.599 would have taken those But you know, Graham set the 0:12:42.640 --> 0:12:45.400 standards so high in New Orleans with how he was 0:12:45.480 --> 0:12:49.400 utilizing his productivity those four or five years that you know, 0:12:49.440 --> 0:12:51.760 I don't know how many people could have reached that 0:12:51.920 --> 0:12:54.320 level moving on to the next spot, But I think 0:12:54.320 --> 0:12:57.520 he sees Green Bay's offense, He sees the connection with 0:12:57.520 --> 0:13:00.600 Aaron Rodgers, Mike McCarthy as a condo where to returning 0:13:00.600 --> 0:13:02.880 to that kind of form. Going back to the beginning 0:13:02.880 --> 0:13:05.120 of the offseason program, the first thing he stated when 0:13:05.160 --> 0:13:08.360 people asked, when reporters asked if he's still that same guy, 0:13:08.520 --> 0:13:10.960 he mentioned he still runs a four or five, he's 0:13:10.960 --> 0:13:14.520 still six ft seven, those tools he believes are still 0:13:14.559 --> 0:13:16.760 with him. And now having the chance to come into 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:21.359 Green Bay. Uh, this really you watch you look historically 0:13:21.360 --> 0:13:23.880 at the way the Packers offense is structured, and and 0:13:23.920 --> 0:13:25.840 there's so many guys that if a guy gets cut 0:13:25.920 --> 0:13:28.320 or he becomes a free agent, that fans are always like, 0:13:28.679 --> 0:13:31.520 you know, they need to sign him. Probably more than 0:13:31.600 --> 0:13:34.600 anybody during my time on the beat that's been linked 0:13:34.600 --> 0:13:37.559 to the Packers that's made more like Jimmy Graham is 0:13:37.559 --> 0:13:39.600 the one that's made the most sense because of the 0:13:39.640 --> 0:13:42.440 parallels to what the Saints did and because of exactly 0:13:42.440 --> 0:13:44.520 how the Packers used the tight end in their offense. 0:13:44.559 --> 0:13:47.280 I thought Jared Cook was a great example of the 0:13:47.280 --> 0:13:49.480 type of body type and the type of player you 0:13:49.520 --> 0:13:52.000 want Jamichael Finley. I think they got away from that 0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:54.720 a little bit with Martellis Bennett. But now bringing in 0:13:54.800 --> 0:13:57.679 Graham as a slot type receiver, a hybrid, I think 0:13:57.679 --> 0:13:58.959 it's gonna go a long way to get in this 0:13:59.040 --> 0:14:00.880 offense back to where once to be. Yeah, when you 0:14:00.920 --> 0:14:03.440 look back to two years ago when Jared Cook came in, 0:14:03.640 --> 0:14:07.400 the impression that I got is that I think everything 0:14:07.440 --> 0:14:11.240 with Cook would have progressed a lot faster and a 0:14:11.240 --> 0:14:14.160 lot more smoothly if not for the injuries he had. 0:14:14.200 --> 0:14:17.559 Something He had injury situations both in the off season 0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:20.800 and in the regular season. And then we saw when 0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:23.920 the Packers were below five hundred in the middle of November, 0:14:24.080 --> 0:14:26.480 and when Jared Cook was back to full strength, suddenly 0:14:26.520 --> 0:14:29.480 the offense hit a different gear. You know, was was 0:14:29.520 --> 0:14:31.520 at a different level. Obviously, you don't want to have 0:14:31.560 --> 0:14:34.840 to wait till Thanksgiving for that to happen again here 0:14:34.880 --> 0:14:38.200 in eighteen. But if Jimmy Graham is healthy, with Aaron 0:14:38.320 --> 0:14:42.960 Rodgers his knowledge, his experience, I don't see the chemistry 0:14:43.040 --> 0:14:46.400 the incorporation taking too long. As long as both guys 0:14:46.440 --> 0:14:48.080 are on the field and getting their work well, and 0:14:48.400 --> 0:14:51.400 might go back to let's go back to Michael Finley's 0:14:51.440 --> 0:14:54.560 rookie year in his second NFL season, um and as 0:14:54.600 --> 0:14:56.760 he started to really come into his own as a 0:14:56.800 --> 0:14:58.960 tight end, what was the thing that worked so well 0:14:59.040 --> 0:15:00.600 for him? It was the fact that he could be 0:15:00.600 --> 0:15:02.760 in the slot, he could be on the boundary, no 0:15:02.800 --> 0:15:04.560 matter where he was lining up, he could be in 0:15:04.600 --> 0:15:07.160 line tight end. The defense had to respect that, The 0:15:07.200 --> 0:15:10.840 defensive coordinator had to account for that. And really that's 0:15:10.840 --> 0:15:12.960 why I've said before I think the Packers, when this 0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:15.920 offense is at its best, has that type of threat 0:15:15.960 --> 0:15:18.360 in the offense. Randall Cobb, you don't know where he's 0:15:18.360 --> 0:15:20.840 gonna be. Davante Adams has shown he can play anywhere 0:15:20.840 --> 0:15:23.240 he needs to be, although obviously he he got his 0:15:23.320 --> 0:15:26.680 contract and Pro Bowl accolades working from the outside. When 0:15:26.680 --> 0:15:29.520 you have that kind of multiplicity and that kind of versatility, 0:15:29.560 --> 0:15:31.680 I think it adds a different dimension. I've said it before, 0:15:31.720 --> 0:15:34.200 I'll say it one more time. The threat of a 0:15:34.280 --> 0:15:37.400 healthy Randall Cob and having Jimmy Graham, their body types 0:15:37.400 --> 0:15:39.320 of the different ways that they can be utilized, I 0:15:39.320 --> 0:15:41.280 think could really be the backbone of this offense going 0:15:41.280 --> 0:15:43.400 into two thousand eighteen. Yeah, I agree with you. I 0:15:43.400 --> 0:15:45.880 think I think if if fans are wondering, who is 0:15:45.920 --> 0:15:48.880 the biggest X factor when it comes to this Packers offense, 0:15:48.920 --> 0:15:51.360 when you're talking about you know, Philbin being back and 0:15:51.720 --> 0:15:54.760 the new playbook, and you know Time Montgomery being healthy again, 0:15:54.840 --> 0:15:57.120 the rookie running backs from last year having another year 0:15:57.120 --> 0:16:00.400 of experience. If I'm talking about one X actor for 0:16:00.440 --> 0:16:02.560 this offense and the guy at the top of my 0:16:02.600 --> 0:16:04.720 list is Graham, yeah it is. And I think, in 0:16:04.760 --> 0:16:06.720 my opinion, we'll see again how it plays out. Guys 0:16:06.800 --> 0:16:08.520 up to stay healthy. But this is one of the 0:16:08.560 --> 0:16:10.960 deeper cores the Packers have had offensively in terms of 0:16:10.960 --> 0:16:13.720 the competition. So I think seeing that cream rise to 0:16:13.760 --> 0:16:16.880 the top during training camp and how that really influences 0:16:16.920 --> 0:16:19.040 what that week one lineup looks like is going to 0:16:19.080 --> 0:16:21.040 be something that's gonna be pretty exciting for fans. A track. 0:16:21.120 --> 0:16:22.840 All right, with that, we will go to another break 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:43.120 back with more and Packers Unscripted right after this. Welcome 0:16:43.160 --> 0:16:46.920 back to Packers Unscripted. Mike Spofford alongside West hodkuh its West. 0:16:46.960 --> 0:16:48.880 Before we go, we have to touch on the defense here, 0:16:48.880 --> 0:16:51.280 and we've been talking a lot of offense today on 0:16:51.320 --> 0:16:55.000 the show. You mentioned Mo will excuse me, Mo. Wilkerson 0:16:55.120 --> 0:16:58.120 obviously a key free agent acquisition in the off season. 0:16:58.520 --> 0:17:00.640 I'm not sure exactly how much we're gonna be able 0:17:00.680 --> 0:17:03.520 to see or tell about a guy like Wilkerson during 0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:05.359 O t A s when the pads aren't on, you know, 0:17:05.400 --> 0:17:07.879 there isn't the contact. I mean, I'm sure he's gonna 0:17:07.880 --> 0:17:10.440 make his presence known, but we'll we'll definitely see more 0:17:10.480 --> 0:17:13.320 of that come training camp on the defensive side of 0:17:13.320 --> 0:17:16.959 the ball. Aside from that, anything else you in particular 0:17:16.960 --> 0:17:19.080 will have your eye on. For the first time in 0:17:19.400 --> 0:17:22.159 nine years, eight years, the Packers have a new starting 0:17:22.160 --> 0:17:25.000 safety that isn't Morgan Burnett, a guy that started every 0:17:25.000 --> 0:17:27.600 single game that he played for Green Bay Ha ha, 0:17:27.720 --> 0:17:29.879 Clinton Dicks. I think is obviously picked up that mantle 0:17:29.920 --> 0:17:32.400 of leadership there. But who's going to be that guy 0:17:32.440 --> 0:17:35.120 that emerges? And the thing that's interesting about with Burnett 0:17:35.240 --> 0:17:38.360 is that it isn't just one spot. Really, it's inside 0:17:38.400 --> 0:17:41.800 hybrid linebacker. It was him playing slot cornerback. It was 0:17:42.040 --> 0:17:45.080 obviously his strong suit at strong safety. The ways that 0:17:45.160 --> 0:17:48.560 Dom Capers used him all right, that that that piece 0:17:48.560 --> 0:17:50.720 of the puzzle is no longer there. So who emerges 0:17:51.000 --> 0:17:53.320 in steps up to that challenge. The Packers had a 0:17:53.359 --> 0:17:55.440 lot of different ways they could have addressed this. Could 0:17:55.480 --> 0:17:57.200 have went the draft, could have went free agency. They're 0:17:57.200 --> 0:17:59.960 sticking by their guy, and that's Josh Jones and Kentrol 0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:02.880 Bryce and Marwin Evans and the litany of We talked 0:18:02.880 --> 0:18:04.679 for these past two years about how deep the Packers 0:18:04.720 --> 0:18:07.000 are at safety. Well, they're gonna tap into that now 0:18:07.200 --> 0:18:09.840 and see who it will emerge. U Mike McCarthy talked 0:18:09.880 --> 0:18:12.359 about it on Tuesday morning. The fact that you know 0:18:12.480 --> 0:18:14.760 Josh Jones, the experience he had last year kind of 0:18:14.760 --> 0:18:17.040 getting thrown into fire in a lot of different positions. 0:18:17.320 --> 0:18:19.000 Maybe it was a little too much on his plate. 0:18:19.320 --> 0:18:21.080 This year, the Packers are going to focus on one, 0:18:21.160 --> 0:18:23.800 maybe two positions with him and seeing how he responds 0:18:23.840 --> 0:18:27.520 to that. I think watching who emerges that that that 0:18:27.600 --> 0:18:30.880 safety spot next to Hahak, Clinton Dixon, who else could 0:18:30.920 --> 0:18:33.160 push for playing time in this nickel and dime packages. 0:18:33.720 --> 0:18:35.480 That's gonna be one of the intriguing things. And also 0:18:35.560 --> 0:18:37.840 how a guy like Mike Petton likes to use those players. 0:18:38.160 --> 0:18:40.920 Discovering that along this process will be will be something 0:18:40.960 --> 0:18:42.679 to watch. Yeah, and that's what I'll be watching for 0:18:42.840 --> 0:18:45.480 two just in terms of because with Mike Petton, you 0:18:45.480 --> 0:18:47.640 know the question of you know, well do you run 0:18:47.640 --> 0:18:49.920 a four three or three four? And his answer is yes, 0:18:50.080 --> 0:18:52.000 you know, so I want I just want to watch 0:18:52.080 --> 0:18:54.480 and see with regards to the front seven, when you're 0:18:54.480 --> 0:18:58.240 talking about Wilkerson, Mike Daniels, Kenny Clark, Clay Matthews, Nick 0:18:58.280 --> 0:19:01.919 Perry or In Burr exploit hunting as Jake Ryan, you know, 0:19:02.000 --> 0:19:04.199 Dean Lowry, all these guys that are in the in 0:19:04.240 --> 0:19:05.720 the front seven, you know they're going to be in 0:19:05.760 --> 0:19:08.879 the mix. Okay, So how many how many different alignments, 0:19:08.880 --> 0:19:11.680 how many different combinations maybe are we going to see 0:19:12.160 --> 0:19:15.000