WEBVTT - #709 Packers Unscripted: Historic anticipation 0:00:06.880 --> 0:00:10.600 Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:10.640 --> 0:00:13.600 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford. He is my 0:00:13.720 --> 0:00:16.840 trusted colleague West and Hodkowitz. We're coming to you here 0:00:16.880 --> 0:00:21.720 from different locations at lambeau Field and wes. OTAs are 0:00:21.800 --> 0:00:24.239 underway this week for the Green Bay Packers, and not 0:00:24.400 --> 0:00:28.000 long after we get done recording this episode, we will 0:00:28.040 --> 0:00:31.040 be headed out to the practice field for the one 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:34.479 ota per week that is open to the media that 0:00:34.680 --> 0:00:37.200 is later today, and we have a lot to talk 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:39.760 about in terms of storylines things will be watching for 0:00:39.920 --> 0:00:42.120 over the next few weeks when we do get to 0:00:42.159 --> 0:00:47.000 watch practices. But we have to begin with the news 0:00:47.080 --> 0:00:51.159 that broke yesterday afternoon. Late in the day, it was 0:00:51.200 --> 0:00:55.120 announced by the NFL that the host city for the 0:00:55.240 --> 0:00:59.840 twoenty twenty five NFL Draft will be none other than 0:01:00.200 --> 0:01:05.160 green Bay, Wisconsin. And I'm a Wisconsin native. I've lived 0:01:05.160 --> 0:01:08.319 in Green Bay for roughly twenty five years now. You 0:01:08.360 --> 0:01:11.399 are a Green Bay area native. You grew up here, 0:01:11.640 --> 0:01:13.640 you have lived here your entire life, you went to 0:01:13.720 --> 0:01:17.560 college here. All of that tell me what this means 0:01:17.720 --> 0:01:20.720 to a Green Bay native For an event of this 0:01:20.920 --> 0:01:24.759 magnitude to be coming to northeast Wisconsin. 0:01:25.000 --> 0:01:27.680 So after the announcement was made Mike and it obviously 0:01:27.760 --> 0:01:31.720 was fast and furious. Following the owner's vote in Minneapolis 0:01:31.880 --> 0:01:36.759 on Tuesday night, I should say Monday night. Sorry, Yeah, 0:01:36.840 --> 0:01:39.959 getting my days mixed up already. I thought back to 0:01:40.000 --> 0:01:42.680 my grandfather, my late grandfather who passed away in two 0:01:42.680 --> 0:01:47.200 thousand and fifteen, and he was the one when the 0:01:47.240 --> 0:01:51.280 whole referendum was happening about the atrium. You know, in 0:01:51.560 --> 0:01:55.760 Bob Harlan practically knocking on doors trying to get drum up, 0:01:55.960 --> 0:01:59.720 you know, interest and support for you know that the 0:01:59.760 --> 0:02:01.880 Saale Ells tax changes the amount of money that was 0:02:01.880 --> 0:02:04.680 gonna be pumped into Lambeoufield. And I'll never forget my 0:02:04.760 --> 0:02:08.959 grandfather saying that, you know, he enjoyed all these years 0:02:08.960 --> 0:02:11.680 of Green Bay Packers football. This is the move that 0:02:11.840 --> 0:02:15.760 is going to set up my lifetime of Packers football. 0:02:16.200 --> 0:02:18.360 And it was so true because not only did the 0:02:18.360 --> 0:02:22.160 Atrium become a huge success in the renovations, I think, 0:02:22.200 --> 0:02:24.560 honestly at Lambelefield have set the standard for the National 0:02:24.560 --> 0:02:27.880 Football League and how you can have a stadium and 0:02:28.000 --> 0:02:31.400 hold true to your character and your history. But also 0:02:31.800 --> 0:02:35.239 continually improve it, right, and then we saw Title Town 0:02:35.320 --> 0:02:37.960 go up, and we've seen the Rush Expo go up 0:02:37.960 --> 0:02:41.080 across the street. We've seen Green Bay grow in so 0:02:41.200 --> 0:02:44.680 many ways, Mike, and for it to finally culminate in 0:02:44.720 --> 0:02:47.639 an NFL Draft coming here, I just thought about how 0:02:47.639 --> 0:02:50.040 exciting the last twelve months have been for Packer fans 0:02:50.080 --> 0:02:53.200 to finally go to London for a game the last 0:02:53.200 --> 0:02:56.160 team in the International Series. Mike. That wasn't because the 0:02:56.240 --> 0:02:59.239 NFL wasn't interested in it. It's because every away team 0:02:59.280 --> 0:03:01.000 in the National Football League? What did it? Let the 0:03:01.000 --> 0:03:01.760 Packers go? 0:03:02.320 --> 0:03:02.600 Right? 0:03:02.840 --> 0:03:06.440 This is the home of professional football. This is one 0:03:06.480 --> 0:03:09.239 of the pillars of this league. There's never gonna be 0:03:09.240 --> 0:03:11.080 a super Bowl here, and let you and I both 0:03:11.160 --> 0:03:14.240 know that, but the fact that the NFL Draft can 0:03:14.280 --> 0:03:16.960 come here is honestly just as big in my mind. 0:03:16.960 --> 0:03:22.480 And talking to people friends, Packers fans, packers writers, packers 0:03:22.560 --> 0:03:27.240 bloggers on Monday night, you can see how excited they are. 0:03:27.280 --> 0:03:29.520 I think everybody's thinking about how this isn't just gonna 0:03:29.520 --> 0:03:31.960 be a three day celebration of the NFL Draft. It's 0:03:31.960 --> 0:03:34.040 gonna be a three day celebration of football. Honestly, a 0:03:34.040 --> 0:03:35.800 whole week long celebration of football. 0:03:36.200 --> 0:03:38.400 Yeah, it's going to be really exciting to see. And 0:03:38.680 --> 0:03:41.040 it's it's kind of hard to process right now that 0:03:41.120 --> 0:03:44.960 we actually have two entire football seasons to play and 0:03:45.000 --> 0:03:47.920 to cover and to talk about and everything before we 0:03:48.000 --> 0:03:50.720 get to this twenty twenty five NFL Draft, and we 0:03:50.720 --> 0:03:54.600 don't even know exactly all the logistics and machinations of 0:03:54.640 --> 0:03:56.960 how this is gonna work in terms of how's Lambeowfield 0:03:57.000 --> 0:04:00.320 gonna be involved. You have Title Town across once, you 0:04:00.320 --> 0:04:03.800 have the Rush buildings across the other street, everything's going 0:04:03.880 --> 0:04:07.160 to be you know, in use I think in some way, 0:04:07.200 --> 0:04:09.320 shape or form. We just don't know all the details 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:11.840 and how that's going to shake out just yet. But 0:04:11.920 --> 0:04:14.440 it's it's it's really gonna be something when you look 0:04:14.480 --> 0:04:16.960 at what has happened the last couple of years, the 0:04:17.480 --> 0:04:20.400 crowd that has been seen on television for the draft, 0:04:20.480 --> 0:04:23.039 especially for those first two rounds on Thursday night and 0:04:23.080 --> 0:04:26.480 Friday night, and and to think about think about that 0:04:26.600 --> 0:04:29.880 kind of atmosphere going on, as you said, a celebration 0:04:29.960 --> 0:04:32.480 of football here in Green Bay and surrounding Lambeau. It's 0:04:32.480 --> 0:04:33.440 going to be pretty awesome. 0:04:33.640 --> 0:04:35.080 Well, and I want to just mention that quick at 0:04:35.120 --> 0:04:36.760 I mean to try to jump in there, but the 0:04:36.839 --> 0:04:38.600 fact is, I know there are a lot of people 0:04:38.720 --> 0:04:41.320 nationally and people saying, well, is there infrastruction? Is the 0:04:41.360 --> 0:04:43.840 infrastructure in place? Is green Bay big enough for it? 0:04:44.680 --> 0:04:47.800 I mean, obviously there's two different types of people, the 0:04:47.800 --> 0:04:49.240 ones that have been to Green Bay and the ones 0:04:49.279 --> 0:04:53.160 who haven't. And I actually ran a half marathon on 0:04:53.279 --> 0:04:57.159 Sunday and there are people out in their front yards 0:04:57.160 --> 0:05:04.200 handing people beer during race. This city, this community, the 0:05:04.240 --> 0:05:07.720 way that they embrace one another on an average day, 0:05:08.360 --> 0:05:11.320 let alone a game day or a major sporting event 0:05:11.839 --> 0:05:14.080 or something like this where it's potentially a once in 0:05:14.120 --> 0:05:16.640 a lifetime type of deal. With the NFL Draft coming here, 0:05:17.279 --> 0:05:19.760 you're gonna have not just all the community leaders, not 0:05:19.800 --> 0:05:21.680 just the green Packers, You're gonna have the whole city 0:05:21.720 --> 0:05:25.119 of Green Bay and the surrounding towns and suburbs all 0:05:25.160 --> 0:05:28.440 being completely all in on this. And you know, I 0:05:28.440 --> 0:05:32.159 think the Aaron BnB, you know, rates and things in 0:05:32.160 --> 0:05:35.240 Green Bay are just gonna be you know, incredible, and 0:05:35.760 --> 0:05:37.599 how many people are probably gonna open up their homes 0:05:37.600 --> 0:05:40.640 to this thing as well. And that's the aspect that 0:05:40.680 --> 0:05:42.640 I don't think a lot of people can appreciate if 0:05:42.640 --> 0:05:45.200 you've only just kind of, you know, just sort of 0:05:45.279 --> 0:05:48.040 dropped in and tried to offer an analysis here. I 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:50.920 think back to twenty eleven too, Mike, you were well 0:05:50.960 --> 0:05:52.960 in time, you know, entrenched in your role as a 0:05:53.000 --> 0:05:56.880 Packers writer. I was just a little lowly quote taker. 0:05:57.480 --> 0:06:00.680 I'll never forget walking around lambeau Field during the Kickoff 0:06:00.680 --> 0:06:03.200 concert game before the Packers played the Saints. And I 0:06:03.240 --> 0:06:05.200 don't know if there's an aerial shot of that or not. 0:06:05.279 --> 0:06:08.240 Maybe justin our producer can swoop it in. But it 0:06:08.320 --> 0:06:11.159 was just a massive humanity for the kickoff concert, for 0:06:11.240 --> 0:06:14.280 everything we have put on big events here in Green Bay, 0:06:14.320 --> 0:06:18.120 the EAA, what they do down in Oshkosh, This community 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:20.920 in the state of Wisconsin has done this before. The 0:06:21.640 --> 0:06:24.440 Democratic National Convention was in Milwaukee. The Republican one, I 0:06:24.440 --> 0:06:27.440 think is gonna be in Milwaukee. We're not just some 0:06:27.600 --> 0:06:32.279 little town that's never seen an event before. I joke 0:06:32.320 --> 0:06:35.240 to somebody on Twitter, this analogy will completely go over 0:06:35.240 --> 0:06:37.200 your head. But I was like, this isn't going to 0:06:37.240 --> 0:06:39.640 be John Snow and mans Raid are trying to get 0:06:39.640 --> 0:06:41.520 the figure out what to do with the wildlings and 0:06:41.600 --> 0:06:44.240 game of throne like they are going to know and 0:06:44.440 --> 0:06:46.320 have two years to prepare for this, and honestly, I 0:06:46.360 --> 0:06:48.480 just I think it's going to be a great exhibit 0:06:48.520 --> 0:06:51.160 of Green Bay and everything that this community stands for. 0:06:51.520 --> 0:06:53.800 Yeah, we will have a lot to talk about in 0:06:54.640 --> 0:06:59.600 the coming years, certainly especially after twenty twenty four football 0:06:59.600 --> 0:07:03.360 season ends, and then everything in the NFL be looking 0:07:03.400 --> 0:07:06.680 forward to that twenty twenty five draft. But I do 0:07:06.760 --> 0:07:10.240 want to get to the storylines things we'll be watching 0:07:10.280 --> 0:07:13.040 for in OTAs as the Packers hit the practice field 0:07:13.040 --> 0:07:16.640 here for the next few weeks. I will take care 0:07:16.680 --> 0:07:20.200 of some sponsor business first. However, Serious XM NFL Radio 0:07:20.480 --> 0:07:23.240 delivers hard hitting analysis and up to the minute NFL 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:26.320 news that true football fanatics need twenty four to seven, 0:07:26.840 --> 0:07:29.200 three sixty five. And at Cousin Subs, we have something 0:07:29.240 --> 0:07:32.160 for everyone like our Wisconsin cheese curds, mac and cheese, 0:07:32.200 --> 0:07:34.720 golden fries, and creamy shakes, all paired with your favorite 0:07:34.720 --> 0:07:38.440 sub or sub in a bowl. Cousin Subs fifty years 0:07:39.200 --> 0:07:44.120 of better, all right. Obviously, the biggest storyline of OTAs 0:07:44.240 --> 0:07:47.160 will be that you know, it's another step in the 0:07:47.240 --> 0:07:50.000 transition to Jordan Love as the starting quarterback. Right that 0:07:50.160 --> 0:07:54.320 being said, Jordan Love has been the number one quarterback 0:07:54.360 --> 0:07:58.480 for this offense during this period during OTAs for the 0:07:58.560 --> 0:08:01.480 last couple of years. So while we will certainly be 0:08:01.560 --> 0:08:04.320 watching that and we'll be talking to Jordan Love after practice, 0:08:04.360 --> 0:08:07.920 I believe today at his locker, I want to hit 0:08:07.960 --> 0:08:11.840 on some other things just in general. And I made 0:08:11.840 --> 0:08:14.080 this comment in an inbox the other day as far 0:08:14.120 --> 0:08:16.400 as okay, what as a reporter, like, what do you 0:08:16.440 --> 0:08:18.560 look for when you go to the practice field at OTA? 0:08:18.680 --> 0:08:20.680 Is like what are you watching for? And in a 0:08:20.760 --> 0:08:23.800 very general sense, the first couple of things I look 0:08:23.880 --> 0:08:28.400 for are one, where are the rookies and particularly the 0:08:28.480 --> 0:08:31.440 draft picks lining up in terms of where's their spot 0:08:31.560 --> 0:08:33.880 on the depth chart as things start right now? Is 0:08:33.880 --> 0:08:36.320 there anybody who's working with the first units when they 0:08:36.360 --> 0:08:38.960 go eleven on eleven? We may see Lucas van Nests 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:42.840 doing that, we may not. I don't know, are they 0:08:42.960 --> 0:08:45.400 are they with the twos when the twos take the field? 0:08:45.440 --> 0:08:47.520 Are they back with the threes? So it's a matter 0:08:47.559 --> 0:08:49.280 of you know, and you don't put a whole lot 0:08:49.280 --> 0:08:51.840 of stock in it's their first practices other than rookie 0:08:51.880 --> 0:08:55.000 mini camp in the NFL. But you make those mental notes. 0:08:55.200 --> 0:08:58.200 The other thing is, this is our first time to 0:08:58.320 --> 0:09:03.600 actually see the retur hearning players in person. And you 0:09:03.679 --> 0:09:06.120 always talk about and you hear about the jump from 0:09:06.200 --> 0:09:09.079 year one to year two that NFL players can make. Well, 0:09:09.120 --> 0:09:12.280 the first thing that we sometimes notice is a player 0:09:12.320 --> 0:09:16.160 whose body physically from year one to year two looks different. 0:09:16.200 --> 0:09:18.480 It's sort of like, Wow, that guy, like he grew 0:09:18.600 --> 0:09:20.640 up really fast, so to speak, right, And I don't 0:09:20.679 --> 0:09:24.480 mean to disparage anyone who comes into the NFL as 0:09:24.480 --> 0:09:27.040 a young man, but you know what I'm talking about, 0:09:27.080 --> 0:09:29.559 There are guys whose bodies will look different than they 0:09:29.600 --> 0:09:32.800 did as rookies. They've had an offseason to rest and 0:09:32.840 --> 0:09:36.560 recuperate and then train and get ready for this time. 0:09:36.640 --> 0:09:38.720 So those are a couple of the things in a 0:09:38.800 --> 0:09:42.079 general sense that I'll be watching for as we get 0:09:42.080 --> 0:09:44.440 a chance once a week for the next three weeks 0:09:44.760 --> 0:09:46.600 to see the players on the practice field. 0:09:46.920 --> 0:09:49.439 Yeah, and it can go a variety of different ways too, Mike. 0:09:49.480 --> 0:09:51.599 I think about Aaron Jones two summers ago when he 0:09:51.640 --> 0:09:53.760 cut out candy and he comes back and just looked 0:09:53.880 --> 0:09:57.320 lean and healthy and strong. I mean, like the guys 0:09:57.360 --> 0:09:59.079 have to figure out what works best for them. I'm 0:09:59.120 --> 0:10:02.760 guessing because of Jason Vrabel's comments last week, Samori Tourey 0:10:02.880 --> 0:10:05.080 is going to be a very popular player in the 0:10:05.080 --> 0:10:07.360 locker room the next few days. You know, Rabel, the 0:10:07.400 --> 0:10:10.079 receivers coach, mentioning that you know, he looks like a 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:12.960 completely different guy right now. But for me, I mean 0:10:12.960 --> 0:10:15.120 the biggest storylines that I think I'm going to be tracking. 0:10:15.440 --> 0:10:18.080 As you said, you pay attention to where the rookies are, 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:21.120 but it doesn't mean everything, right I am curious to 0:10:21.120 --> 0:10:23.839 see what they do with Lucas fans because realistically, I 0:10:23.880 --> 0:10:25.920 think the only other person that potentially could be running 0:10:25.960 --> 0:10:28.120 with the ones right now is you know, JJ and 0:10:28.240 --> 0:10:30.960 a Barre, and he's only in a second year, so 0:10:31.360 --> 0:10:34.480 it conceivably, you know, Vanas could be in that role 0:10:34.520 --> 0:10:37.360 across from Preston Smith right off the bat, kind of 0:10:37.400 --> 0:10:40.640 like Darnell Savage in twenty eighteen. But the other thing 0:10:40.640 --> 0:10:44.920 I'm very interested to see play out is defensively, there 0:10:45.000 --> 0:10:48.000 is a huge spot open right now at safety. Rudy 0:10:48.080 --> 0:10:50.360 Ford is the incumbent. I think you would consider a 0:10:50.360 --> 0:10:53.360 guy that played in that role last year, but Jonathan 0:10:53.400 --> 0:10:56.520 Owens started seventeen games, played almost a thousand snaps last 0:10:56.520 --> 0:10:59.520 season in Houston. Tarvarius Moore has been in that role 0:10:59.640 --> 0:11:02.960 in this gains played down the stretch last season. We've 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:05.400 talked a lot about that wide open competition at safety. 0:11:06.200 --> 0:11:08.360 That's going to be probably the biggest one defensively to 0:11:08.440 --> 0:11:11.959 kind of keep your eye on, and offensively, just as 0:11:12.000 --> 0:11:15.160 you mentioned Mike, seeing how you know, Christian Watson has grown, 0:11:15.200 --> 0:11:18.960 seeing how Romeo Dobbs has grown, and even a guy 0:11:19.000 --> 0:11:21.800 like maybe Zach Tom, who we talked last year about 0:11:21.840 --> 0:11:24.680 having everything structurally but maybe just needing that first offseason 0:11:24.679 --> 0:11:27.400 in the NFL to get his body, you know, to 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:30.200 let himself grow a little bit. So a lot of 0:11:30.200 --> 0:11:32.640 things attract, for sure. And it's always interesting when you 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:34.240 go out there and you take attendance for the first 0:11:34.320 --> 0:11:36.439 time and you're kind of keeping an eye on all 0:11:36.600 --> 0:11:39.080 ninety guys on the roster, and I'm sure there'll be 0:11:39.120 --> 0:11:40.360 plenty written and said. 0:11:40.720 --> 0:11:42.840 Yeah, and what you bring up about Zach Tom is 0:11:42.880 --> 0:11:45.240 interesting because I think one thing that we'll all be 0:11:45.360 --> 0:11:48.719 watching is exactly where is he going to line up. 0:11:48.760 --> 0:11:51.440 We've heard he'll be competing for a spot, a starting 0:11:51.520 --> 0:11:54.040 spot on the offensive line, but will he be lining 0:11:54.120 --> 0:11:56.800 up at right tackle or right guard or maybe at center, 0:11:57.240 --> 0:11:59.240 We don't really know. And the other thing, too, is 0:11:59.760 --> 0:12:02.600 what whatever we see today or whatever we see next 0:12:02.640 --> 0:12:05.080 Wednesday or whatever the day is that we're out there, 0:12:05.360 --> 0:12:07.680 we can't put too much stock in it because here's 0:12:07.720 --> 0:12:10.000 the thing. We might go out there today and Zach 0:12:10.080 --> 0:12:12.719 tom will be at right tackle and everybody's going to 0:12:12.760 --> 0:12:14.840 write about that and be talking about that. Well, you 0:12:14.840 --> 0:12:17.280 know what, tomorrow, when the media is not there, he 0:12:17.400 --> 0:12:19.160 might be lining up at right guard, and then the 0:12:19.200 --> 0:12:21.520 next day he might be lining up at center. Those 0:12:21.600 --> 0:12:24.200 days that we don't see because the coaches will have 0:12:24.360 --> 0:12:27.400 these things on a rotation for guys that are that 0:12:27.480 --> 0:12:29.920 are trying out different spots and whatnot, and when we're 0:12:29.960 --> 0:12:31.880 not there every day. When we're there every day in 0:12:31.920 --> 0:12:34.440 training camp, it's a little bit easier to report on 0:12:34.480 --> 0:12:36.800 it and feel a little bit more confident as to 0:12:36.800 --> 0:12:39.520 what is exactly going on in OTAs you have to 0:12:39.559 --> 0:12:42.120 be a little bit more careful in terms of that. 0:12:42.240 --> 0:12:46.000 But that said, we'll definitely be watching where he's lining 0:12:46.080 --> 0:12:50.120 up and where he's competing, and a couple other things too. 0:12:51.280 --> 0:12:53.880 A few weeks ago, we thought when we got to 0:12:53.920 --> 0:12:57.439 this stage, we were going to be potentially watching competitions 0:12:57.840 --> 0:13:02.000 getting going at long snapper and at kicker, and but 0:13:02.160 --> 0:13:05.600 since then, Jack Coco has been released, so veteran Matt Orzik, 0:13:05.679 --> 0:13:08.760 the free agent signing in the offseason, he's the he's, 0:13:09.040 --> 0:13:11.360 you know, clearly the number one long snapper. There is 0:13:11.600 --> 0:13:14.559 an undrafted rookie behind him, but I think the you know, 0:13:14.640 --> 0:13:17.800 the the pecking order there is pretty clear as as 0:13:17.840 --> 0:13:21.600 we head into OTAs here. And then at kicker, Parker 0:13:21.600 --> 0:13:24.679 White was released and Anders Carlson, the sixth round pick 0:13:24.679 --> 0:13:28.680 out of Auburn, is the only kicker on the roster currently. 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:32.080 So those are things that that maybe we thought we're 0:13:32.120 --> 0:13:34.560 going to be a little bit more intriguing as things 0:13:35.040 --> 0:13:38.240 got going here in late May, but but maybe not 0:13:38.360 --> 0:13:40.040 quite so much at least at this point. 0:13:40.320 --> 0:13:42.160 Yeah, and that's how it usually goes, right. I mean, 0:13:42.200 --> 0:13:43.960 even think back to last year a training camp, we 0:13:44.000 --> 0:13:46.840 thought stephen Wardle going up against Jack Coco was gonna 0:13:46.840 --> 0:13:49.400 be a camp long competition, and then Jack basically I 0:13:49.400 --> 0:13:51.920 think got that job either, right, before the first preseason 0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:55.360 game or after family night. Yeah, it can go a 0:13:55.400 --> 0:13:57.199 bunch of different ways. And certainly when you have a 0:13:57.280 --> 0:13:59.640 ninety man roster in certain positions you want to fill up. 0:13:59.800 --> 0:14:02.560 It's tough to have six guys at a specialists, you know. 0:14:02.600 --> 0:14:05.720 I mean, it's tough to have competition at each spot. 0:14:06.600 --> 0:14:08.880 The other thing that is fun though about this process, Mike, 0:14:09.400 --> 0:14:11.800 Certainly you have to take everything with a grain of 0:14:11.880 --> 0:14:14.600 salt because we're just seeing one practice this week. But 0:14:15.160 --> 0:14:17.400 I go back to last year with Romeo Dobbs, and 0:14:17.440 --> 0:14:19.560 it was right out of the gate, Dobbs look the part, 0:14:19.720 --> 0:14:21.640 and it's something that you and I we were joking. 0:14:21.680 --> 0:14:24.760 I think even Matt Leffleure referenced it a couple times, like, well, 0:14:24.760 --> 0:14:26.440 he just has to keep stacking days. And the next 0:14:26.440 --> 0:14:27.960 thing you knew, it was the end of the preseason 0:14:28.000 --> 0:14:31.040 and the guy still really hadn't blinked yet. It's cool 0:14:31.080 --> 0:14:33.640 when you can watch a rookie come in and not 0:14:33.840 --> 0:14:36.320 necessarily look like a superstar, but just look in his element, 0:14:36.360 --> 0:14:39.200 look comfortable, look at home. So it doesn't really matter 0:14:39.240 --> 0:14:41.800 if it's a quarterback. Could be Sean Clifford, it could 0:14:41.880 --> 0:14:45.640 be Anders Carlson as a kicker. Just the guys that 0:14:46.520 --> 0:14:48.880 their eyes aren't too big, you know, they're looking at 0:14:48.920 --> 0:14:51.360 the opportunity for what it is, and they're realizing that 0:14:51.400 --> 0:14:53.120 this is just an extension of what I've been doing 0:14:53.160 --> 0:14:55.560 the last three, four or five years at the college level. 0:14:56.120 --> 0:14:59.400 And I think that's the most exciting thing about this process. 0:14:59.480 --> 0:15:03.040 Along with that, We're going to see guys like Caleb Jones. 0:15:03.040 --> 0:15:05.760 We're going to see, you know, Jonathan Ford, players that 0:15:05.800 --> 0:15:08.080 were like virtual red shirts last year that have had 0:15:08.080 --> 0:15:10.160 a full year to grow and now not only want 0:15:10.160 --> 0:15:12.320 to compete for jobs, but want to compete for roles 0:15:12.600 --> 0:15:16.160 on their respective side of the ball. It's tough because 0:15:16.160 --> 0:15:17.680 I think the offseason you don't want to make too 0:15:17.760 --> 0:15:20.200 much out of it, as you illustrated, But it's also 0:15:20.240 --> 0:15:22.640 the most exciting time because it's it is sort of 0:15:22.680 --> 0:15:25.600 like opening up the presence here after Christmas and seeing 0:15:25.600 --> 0:15:28.200 what we have here in a football team that ultimately 0:15:28.240 --> 0:15:30.040 is going to decide the destiny of the twenty twenty 0:15:30.040 --> 0:15:30.680 three Packers. 0:15:31.080 --> 0:15:33.040 Yeah, I think I think a lot of the notes 0:15:33.040 --> 0:15:35.160 that we make, things that we will write and talk 0:15:35.200 --> 0:15:37.560 about over the next few weeks. It's things that you 0:15:37.640 --> 0:15:39.960 jot down or make mental notes, and you file away 0:15:40.040 --> 0:15:42.800 because the things that you see when they're just out 0:15:42.840 --> 0:15:45.920 there in shorts and helmets at this stage of the spring, 0:15:46.680 --> 0:15:48.640 you make those notes because you want to see then 0:15:48.680 --> 0:15:51.760 if those players carry it over into training camp when 0:15:51.760 --> 0:15:54.040 the pads go out, and then you're looking at the 0:15:54.080 --> 0:15:56.880 same player that you saw in the spring, and and 0:15:56.960 --> 0:16:00.240 things don't necessarily change in terms of their impact, in 0:16:00.320 --> 0:16:03.040 terms of in terms of the way they carry themselves, 0:16:03.080 --> 0:16:04.960 you know, as you get further into training camp. So 0:16:04.960 --> 0:16:07.880 it's about making those those kind of notes. A couple 0:16:07.920 --> 0:16:10.040 of stories I'll share from when I first got here 0:16:10.040 --> 0:16:13.400 when you talk about a rookie making an impression, and 0:16:13.440 --> 0:16:16.440 then also the growth from one year to the next. 0:16:16.840 --> 0:16:20.800 My first year, I actually got hired here at Packers 0:16:20.800 --> 0:16:22.640 dot Com in two thousand and six in the middle 0:16:22.640 --> 0:16:26.800 of OTAs, so I walked out to watch, you know, 0:16:26.960 --> 0:16:30.520 my first OTA practice as a writer for Packers dot Com. 0:16:31.280 --> 0:16:34.560 And the guy who was absolutely jumped off the practice 0:16:34.560 --> 0:16:37.640 field right from the beginning was a rookie receiver named 0:16:37.640 --> 0:16:41.160 Greg Jennings. The way he ran his routes, the way 0:16:41.200 --> 0:16:43.280 he cut off of his brakes, the way he caught 0:16:43.280 --> 0:16:46.600 the ball with his hands. Everything you're you know, everybody's 0:16:46.720 --> 0:16:48.720 kind of looked and I was a little sheepish because 0:16:48.720 --> 0:16:51.080 this was my first time out here, but I noticed 0:16:51.080 --> 0:16:53.440 that everybody was looking around and talking like, is this 0:16:53.440 --> 0:16:55.840 guy really a rookie wide? This guy does not look 0:16:55.920 --> 0:16:58.920 like a rookie. Everybody files that away, and then you 0:16:59.040 --> 0:17:01.240 wait and see and train camp when the pads go on, 0:17:01.280 --> 0:17:03.480 when there, when he's out there in the preseason games, 0:17:03.600 --> 0:17:06.000 does he still look like the same guy? Obviously, Greg 0:17:06.080 --> 0:17:08.199 Jennings did still look like the same guy. He was 0:17:08.200 --> 0:17:11.080 a rookie wide receiver who was ready to go from 0:17:11.119 --> 0:17:15.280 the jump. The other story I'll share is two thousand 0:17:15.280 --> 0:17:17.560 and seven. I distinctly remember coming back. 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:17.960 Now. 0:17:18.000 --> 0:17:20.359 This would have been after the whole first year of 0:17:20.400 --> 0:17:23.920 Mike McCarthy as the head coach, with Tom Clements as 0:17:23.960 --> 0:17:27.480 the quarterbacks coach, and the whole quarterback school in the offseason. 0:17:27.480 --> 0:17:29.320 They would have done it in two thousand and six 0:17:29.359 --> 0:17:33.040 and then again in two thousand and seven leading into OTAs, 0:17:33.520 --> 0:17:35.879 and I remember walking out there on the practice field 0:17:35.960 --> 0:17:39.040 for two thousand and seven OTAs and watching Aaron Rodgers, 0:17:39.080 --> 0:17:42.480 the number two quarterback behind Brett Favre. He started throwing 0:17:42.480 --> 0:17:44.439 the football and it was like it was like he 0:17:44.480 --> 0:17:47.480 had a brand new arm compared to two thousand and six, 0:17:47.560 --> 0:17:50.960 Like the ball was coming out harder, faster, the what 0:17:50.960 --> 0:17:53.000 do they say in the with major league pitchers, the 0:17:53.040 --> 0:17:55.520 spin rate or whatever of the of the ball. The 0:17:55.520 --> 0:17:58.120 ball was just spinning faster out of his hand. 0:17:58.160 --> 0:17:59.040 It was cold. 0:17:59.359 --> 0:18:01.399 You could see it with the naked eye. It was 0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:04.880 so obvious the progress made from two thousand and six 0:18:04.920 --> 0:18:07.560 to two thousand and seven, and everybody had filed that 0:18:07.600 --> 0:18:11.160 away as well. And obviously we know where eventually Aaron 0:18:11.200 --> 0:18:14.600 Rodgers ended up. So while you do take everything with 0:18:14.640 --> 0:18:17.639 a grain of salt, it is it is about making 0:18:17.680 --> 0:18:20.919 notes that you file away to refer to later. Because 0:18:20.960 --> 0:18:23.119 there will be some players who will jump out on 0:18:23.160 --> 0:18:26.000 an OTA practice field, and then in training camp they'll 0:18:26.040 --> 0:18:28.760 start to fade back into the background because they're not 0:18:28.840 --> 0:18:31.240 quite there yet. There are other guys who will jump 0:18:31.240 --> 0:18:33.280 out on an Ota practice field and then you start 0:18:33.280 --> 0:18:34.840 to see it again in training camp and in the 0:18:34.840 --> 0:18:38.080 preseason games, and those are the ones who you know 0:18:38.160 --> 0:18:39.919 have a real chance to stick around. 0:18:40.200 --> 0:18:42.280 Yeah, and then I'll close on this too, Mike. I 0:18:42.280 --> 0:18:44.600 mean I again, we're not there yet, But I go 0:18:44.680 --> 0:18:47.480 back to mini camp in twenty twenty one, June ninth, 0:18:47.520 --> 0:18:50.720 when Jordan Love had at that time the best practice 0:18:50.720 --> 0:18:53.760 he'd had as a Packers quarterback. Aaron Rodgers, as you mentioned, 0:18:54.359 --> 0:18:56.639 wasn't in town at that point, so Jordan Love was 0:18:56.680 --> 0:18:59.400 leading the number one offense and him and Juwan Winfrey 0:18:59.440 --> 0:19:03.320 on that day looked like honestly Montana and Rice. It 0:19:03.400 --> 0:19:06.200 was incredible watching out there because it wasn't just real, 0:19:06.720 --> 0:19:08.800 you know, Love's passes. I mean, Winfrey was making some 0:19:08.800 --> 0:19:11.720 really nice catches for him as well. And I felt 0:19:11.760 --> 0:19:13.440 like at a time that was a big turning point 0:19:13.440 --> 0:19:16.840 for Love because twenty twenty was very difficult, very tough, 0:19:16.960 --> 0:19:19.600 not any preseason games, very few practices, had to be 0:19:19.680 --> 0:19:21.920 very cognizant of how they were using players at that time. 0:19:21.960 --> 0:19:24.400 It was mostly about getting ready for Week one more 0:19:24.440 --> 0:19:27.840 so than just developing that rookie class. Twenty twenty one 0:19:27.920 --> 0:19:29.920 was where he made the big jump, the first big 0:19:30.000 --> 0:19:32.920 jump in his professional career, and obviously we've seen where 0:19:32.960 --> 0:19:34.480