Speaker 1: Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from
Speaker 1: Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spaffer, joint as always
Speaker 1: by my partner and Everything Packers, Wes Hodkowitz. We're coming
Speaker 1: to you here from the Potawatomy Sportsbook studio inside the
Speaker 1: walls of lambeau Field and Wes, continuing our discussion of
Speaker 1: OTAs since our last show. We had an opportunity to
Speaker 1: watch practice locker room interviews after that practice another day
Speaker 1: of locker room interviews on Wednesday, So all kinds of
Speaker 1: stuff to talk about, and I think it starts first
Speaker 1: and foremost with Michael Parsons. He spoke with the media
Speaker 1: after practice. He's obviously not practicing, but he gave an
Speaker 1: update on where things are. There's a story on packers
Speaker 1: dot com if you want to check that out for
Speaker 1: all the details there, but we'll talk about it here
Speaker 1: as well. Basically, Parsons is looking at this as he's
Speaker 1: got five months down, he's got four months left to go,
Speaker 1: and but he's he's willing to be patient, as difficult
Speaker 1: as it is, but he's willing to be patient to
Speaker 1: get everything right before he's back on the field.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it was such a mature response from Micah too,
Speaker 2: and I really enjoyed the story you wrote on Packers
Speaker 2: dot com. You can check that out for all the details.
Speaker 2: But this is it's about legacy, it's about winning championships
Speaker 2: and as important as the month of September is, Micah understands,
Speaker 2: especially for a guy when you when you're dealing with
Speaker 2: multiple ACL injuries and dealing with significant stuff like obviously
Speaker 2: with he had the meniscus as well, as he said,
Speaker 2: you know kind of factored into that, right. You just
Speaker 2: have to be mindful of the process and understand, Okay,
Speaker 2: there's probably a nine month window there where you want
Speaker 2: to make sure the day that he steps back out
Speaker 2: on the field, the day that he runs out of
Speaker 2: that tunnel at lambeau Field or wherever it happens, that
Speaker 2: he is ready to contribute in a major way and
Speaker 2: there's no risk of reaggravation, reinjury setbacks. And to have
Speaker 2: that kind of viewpoint, I think is just really important
Speaker 2: right now because the Packers every they want to win
Speaker 2: a championship in twenty twenty six, twenty twenty seven. This
Speaker 2: is the window that they've played for, and Mike understands
Speaker 2: the role that he has in that so his focus
Speaker 2: has been set on getting back as quickly as healthy
Speaker 2: as possible, but also still being the same Micah Parson
Speaker 2: as he was in Denver the day that he went out.
Speaker 2: So always fun to listen to him. Obviously, when when
Speaker 2: Micah Parsons speaks, everybody in the football world listens. And
Speaker 2: for the Packers, I think it's gonna be great for
Speaker 2: them too, because in that interim, let's say he does
Speaker 2: start on pupp Let's say he's out the first month
Speaker 2: of the season. All hypotheticals, but let's say that's how
Speaker 2: it plays out. That's where it does come on Lucas Vans,
Speaker 2: Baron Surrell, the rest of those edge rushers to kind
Speaker 2: of stem the tide and step up and really show, Okay,
Speaker 2: when Micah is back in the lineup, who are gonna
Speaker 2: be the guys running alongside him.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And he expressed all kinds of confidence in the
Speaker 1: defensive line, kind of holding down the fort until he
Speaker 1: got it's back, talking both about the interior guys as
Speaker 1: well as the edge rushers. I mean, we've heard him
Speaker 1: talk many times. You know how how impressed he's been
Speaker 1: with DeVante Wyatt and and you know, he was Wyatt's
Speaker 1: injury happened last year before Parsons did, and he was
Speaker 1: he was really bummed out when Dy went down. So
Speaker 1: he's excited for Wyatt to get back. He's very excited
Speaker 1: for what Lucas van Ness can do, with van Ness
Speaker 1: having dealt with a couple of different injuries the last
Speaker 1: couple of years. So there's a lot to look forward
Speaker 1: to there. And I think as much as at least
Speaker 1: what I heard is Micah is sort of trying to
Speaker 1: convince himself to enjoy this recovery rehab process, and it's
Speaker 1: not easy, but he does seem to enjoy the time
Speaker 1: that he does get with his teammates and just being
Speaker 1: able to you know, I mean it it brightens some
Speaker 1: of those drab rehab days, right when you're around the
Speaker 1: guys and you know, they get to talk about him
Speaker 1: coming back at some point and maybe some celebrations are
Speaker 1: going to do on the field or whatever the case
Speaker 1: might be, and and that's when you sort of see
Speaker 1: the smile return to his face a little bit. And
Speaker 1: and yeah, I mean, this is a this is a
Speaker 1: tough deal, and this is a premiere Hall of Fame
Speaker 1: trajectory player who's never gone through anything like this before
Speaker 1: and he's figuring out how to deal with it. And
Speaker 1: but the one thing he said is that he's he's
Speaker 1: just doing everything he can to come back better than ever.
Speaker 2: Yeah, in my verbiage there, I kind of muddled what
Speaker 2: I was trying to say in terms of like the
Speaker 2: way our training staff, the way the Packers' training staff
Speaker 2: approaches that nine month window of no football, and that
Speaker 2: comes from multiple ACL injuries that they've dealt with in
Speaker 2: the past, whether you go back to Jordi Nelson, some
Speaker 2: of the other guys that have been involved in this thing,
Speaker 2: and that process of when you get these guys back
Speaker 2: out on the field. It is about not just today
Speaker 2: and this season. It's about the longevity of the career.
Speaker 2: And I think again for Micah being at the point
Speaker 2: that he is as young as he is to be
Speaker 2: the player that he's been in the league, I mean,
Speaker 2: it just shows that, uh, that that long term viewpoint
Speaker 2: of understanding what his value is to this football team
Speaker 2: and what it means for him to be on the field.
Speaker 2: You can look at it just from those last five
Speaker 2: weeks of the season, right the Green Bit Packers did
Speaker 2: not win a football game without Micah Parsons right at
Speaker 2: the end of the year. Now, there was a lot
Speaker 2: of other guys involved with that too, whether it was
Speaker 2: Tucker Kraft, whether it was Devonte Wyatt.
Speaker 1: And there were opportunities to win games, clearly.
Speaker 2: There were, so for for Mica being able to do
Speaker 2: this is gonna be is gonna be cool to see.
Speaker 2: And as you said, I think there was an energy
Speaker 2: in an uptick this week just having him back in
Speaker 2: the building and understanding what his contribution is this football
Speaker 2: team beyond even the field. And he's done a lot
Speaker 2: of interviews in the last couple of weeks too, where
Speaker 2: he's spoken in some of these podcasts he's done where
Speaker 2: he's talked about it's this is his home now, Like
Speaker 2: it's not just Okay, well I got traded to Green
Speaker 2: Bay and I'm you know, this is just where I work.
Speaker 2: I Mean, he's really embraced this. He's embraced the community's
Speaker 2: embraced this organization, and he understands and appreciates how the
Speaker 2: view him.
Speaker 1: Right.
Speaker 2: I mean, one thing Michael wanted everybody focused so much
Speaker 2: on the contract and long term security and everything when
Speaker 2: he was in Dallas, but it was also about the
Speaker 2: need and the want to be included, to be viewed
Speaker 2: as a face of the franchise. And I think since
Speaker 2: the very moment that that piece of paper came across
Speaker 2: the NFL's offices desks, Michael Parsons has definitely been that
Speaker 2: Green Bay and he appreciates that role.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And just to explain the timeline, so he had
Speaker 1: the surgery on his knee on December twenty ninth, and
Speaker 1: so the nine months of no football, which of course
Speaker 1: there's a lot of rehab conditioning, and you know there's
Speaker 1: a ramp up to running full speed and doing everything
Speaker 1: you would do on the football field, but you're just
Speaker 1: not actually practicing against other guys yet. You know, we
Speaker 1: saw Christian Watson go through that, We're going to see
Speaker 1: Tucker Kraft go through that, you know, and as you mentioned,
Speaker 1: Jordan Nelson, all these other guys over the years we've
Speaker 1: seen it. The nine months would put him at late
Speaker 1: September YEP for the potential return to the practice field.
Speaker 1: So then you're thinking, Okay, gets a couple of weeks
Speaker 1: of practice, and so I think we're probably looking at
Speaker 1: you know, mid October, give or take as far as
Speaker 1: when he can be back in game action as long
Speaker 1: as everything these next four months goes as well as
Speaker 1: the first five and everything that Micah has said, he's
Speaker 1: very happy with where things are at. And man, he's
Speaker 1: expecting he's expecting the timeline to be you know pretty much.
Speaker 2: That it's just wild to watch. I mean, and part
Speaker 2: of it is the technology aspect of it in social media.
Speaker 2: But I mean these videos too, I'm sure you've seen
Speaker 2: them by now of Tucker you know, and some of
Speaker 2: the stuff that he's doing behind the scenes. I mean,
Speaker 2: Tucker Craft looks like he is ready for a fight
Speaker 2: on Saturday. I mean, he looks like he is in
Speaker 2: as good as shape as he's ever been. But certainly
Speaker 2: it's it's about understanding what your timeline is in running
Speaker 2: the race for and only for yourself. Yeah, and if
Speaker 2: you do that well, it'll help the football team. If
Speaker 2: you do that well, you'll be back on in front
Speaker 2: of the spotlight. And it's just unfortunate, man. I Mean,
Speaker 2: I've always I've said the story before on the podcast
Speaker 2: before over the years, but you know, I go back
Speaker 2: to Mike McCarthy right after Jordan Nelson had the ACL
Speaker 2: tear in twenty fifteen, in saying, I mean the way
Speaker 2: that this game works. If you look at the law averages,
Speaker 2: pretty much every team has two three ACL tears a year.
Speaker 2: It's just a matter of where they happen. Right. Sometimes
Speaker 2: it ends up being your backup guard. Sometimes it ends
Speaker 2: up being one of your guys on special teams, and
Speaker 2: unfortunate occasionally it's maybe two of the best four players
Speaker 2: on your entire football team. As it relates to Tucker
Speaker 2: Craft and Michael Parsons. So all that being said, the
Speaker 2: second half run is what this thing's going to be about,
Speaker 2: and the Packers need to win games, and need to
Speaker 2: win all the games if they can do it during
Speaker 2: that time in which Micah Parsons is not available at
Speaker 2: the beginning of the season. But be that as it may,
Speaker 2: it's about that push. And we certainly saw Mike with
Speaker 2: him not having a training camp here, with him dealing
Speaker 2: with some injuries in Dallas and not having a full
Speaker 2: compliment of reps even before he got traded to Green Bay,
Speaker 2: how he was able to jump in, yeah, and assimilate
Speaker 2: to this defense and become within a matter of weeks
Speaker 2: the focal point of that defense is still one of
Speaker 2: the most impressive things I think I've seen in my
Speaker 2: time covering the Packers.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's a high impact player. Anytime his cleats touched
Speaker 1: the field, There's no doubt about that, and we'll be
Speaker 1: looking forward to when that happens this fall, shifting gears
Speaker 1: to practice observations and the guys that we did see
Speaker 1: on the field. On our last show, we talked about
Speaker 1: a couple of the rookies who we saw rotating in
Speaker 1: with the first unit, Brandon Ceesay Chris mcclellen on defense.
Speaker 1: So we need to mention another one that we saw
Speaker 1: on Tuesday at practice, and that's offensive lineman Jagger Burton,
Speaker 1: the fifth round pick out of Kentucky. Now this comes
Speaker 1: with you know, the little bit of the caveat that
Speaker 1: you know, Zach tom is out, Jacob Monk is out,
Speaker 1: Donovan Jennings is out, so you know, the Packers are
Speaker 1: not at full strength on the offensive line by any means.
Speaker 1: But we saw Burton getting rotated in at guard with
Speaker 1: the number one offensive line as some things are being
Speaker 1: shuffled around. But you know, some different different groups and
Speaker 1: different combinations in front of Jordan Love in practice, as
Speaker 1: we talked about on our last show, that's that says something.
Speaker 1: When a rookie draft pick is getting an opportunity to
Speaker 1: uh to take reps with the first unit, whatever the
Speaker 1: circumstances are, it's something to pay attention to.
Speaker 2: You have to get it. You have to get an
Speaker 2: offensive line out there, and you have to have players
Speaker 2: that are gonna be protecting your quarterback. And for Burton
Speaker 2: to get that assignment I think is really critical right now.
Speaker 2: I think it's key and it also speaks to where
Speaker 2: Green Bay fields he is right now, because yes, they're
Speaker 2: they're missing a lot of their top in line guys,
Speaker 2: but there are other options. You know, there are other
Speaker 2: dudes that are back from last year's roster and they
Speaker 2: want to take an extended look at Jager Burton in
Speaker 2: these instances. Now, again it's not in pads. You're not
Speaker 2: getting bull rushed the way you will you know in
Speaker 2: a that regular season game or even in a training camp.
Speaker 2: But that being said, it's about getting those reps. It's
Speaker 2: about understanding and working with Jordan Love and seeing what
Speaker 2: he's like and what he's looking for. And the other
Speaker 2: thing I think is really critical too for Burton working
Speaker 2: back at guard. Again, this is a guy that has
Speaker 2: that background of being a center. I think the Packers
Speaker 2: drafted him thinking, Okay, this could be a guide, we
Speaker 2: could develop it develop at center. But how many times
Speaker 2: over the years, Michael, have we seen it where somebody
Speaker 2: like Zach Tom was kind of viewed as a center
Speaker 2: and next thing you know, he's your franchise right tackle
Speaker 2: and unanimously undisputedly the number one guy in your offensive
Speaker 2: line and one of the top players on your football team.
Speaker 2: You have to take the opportunity with when it's there
Speaker 2: and how it presents itself. David Baktiari did Corey Linsley,
Speaker 2: did JC Tretder did so for Burton. All this matters.
Speaker 2: All these reps are important, and I think it's cool
Speaker 2: for him to being able to actually extend himself again.
Speaker 2: And obviously he played multiple positions at Kentucky, but he
Speaker 2: finished out at center and there could be a very
Speaker 2: good chance that his rookie season the NFL, he doesn't
Speaker 2: touch the ball once at center. You just got to
Speaker 2: go out there and kind of see how the cards
Speaker 2: get dealt to you.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Also on the offensive side, Josh Jacobs, Packers number
Speaker 1: one running back. He was practicing while his legal situation
Speaker 1: plays out. There's really been no update as far as
Speaker 1: that legal situation, so we'll see what happens there. But
Speaker 1: it was good to see him out there on the
Speaker 1: practice field. And I think this brought a smile to
Speaker 1: both of our faces because as we've talked a lot
Speaker 1: about everything that's happened in the receiver room with the Packers,
Speaker 1: Romeo Dobbs leaves in free agency, D'antavian Wis gets traded.
Speaker 1: There's kind of this clear pecking order now as far
Speaker 1: as the top three ye Christian Watson, Jayden Reid, Matthew Golden.
Speaker 1: Then you have another draft pick from last year, saving
Speaker 1: on Williams right behind. But then don't sleep on bow
Speaker 1: Melton right because suddenly it practice on Tuesday. Three times
Speaker 1: Jordan Love is taking a shot downfield, deep downfield to
Speaker 1: bow Melton. Then two of the three he's the throw
Speaker 1: is on target, He's able to make the play, get
Speaker 1: behind the defense. Bo Melton is going to help this
Speaker 1: team in some way, shape or form in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 1: He's not going to be on anybody's list of the
Speaker 1: top twenty five players on this roster. That's not going
Speaker 1: to happen. But Bo Melton is going to help this
Speaker 1: team because that's what he does.
Speaker 2: Yeah, And it's guys like Bou Melton that a couple
Speaker 2: times year are going to end up winning you a
Speaker 2: football game. The guys that maybe aren't the ones that
Speaker 2: are pulling down the big contract or having the billboards,
Speaker 2: you know, put up with their image on it, but
Speaker 2: the guys that are going to step up and play
Speaker 2: in Phil Roles and you know, certainly we've talked for
Speaker 2: years now, regardless of whether he's in the receiver room
Speaker 2: or the dB room. You know, bo is one of
Speaker 2: the top special teams players on the squad. And I've
Speaker 2: reiterated this countless times now, but I mean when you
Speaker 2: go back to looking at the flyer position, he's one
Speaker 2: of the best that have done it during my time
Speaker 2: covering this team. I think I put him the same
Speaker 2: conversation with Jared Bush, and I put him out there
Speaker 2: with Jeff Janis. Those are probably the.
Speaker 1: Those were the two guys. Those were the two guys
Speaker 1: I was going to say as well. He's very very
Speaker 1: reminiscent of those guys in terms of his effectiveness at
Speaker 1: that position.
Speaker 2: And what I appreciate about what the Packers have done
Speaker 2: with this philosophy with special teams is understanding, Okay, these
Speaker 2: are our starters on special teams. Where else do we
Speaker 2: play them on the offense and defensive side of the ball.
Speaker 2: Last year, let's just be honest, there wasn't going to
Speaker 2: be a great opportunity for Bo to play in that
Speaker 2: receiver room. There just wasn't too many guys, too many
Speaker 2: draft picks. That was going to be a hard ladder
Speaker 2: to climb, even with some of the injuries that they
Speaker 2: were dealing with. So they got a little creative. They
Speaker 2: had them try out the cornerback position, just see what happens.
Speaker 2: You know you're going to have him on special teams.
Speaker 2: You know you can throw them in at receiver if
Speaker 2: you need to. What else can you do to keep
Speaker 2: them busy? And that was something they looked at ultimately
Speaker 2: with the changes they made. As much as we focused
Speaker 2: on Matthew Golden and Savion Williams and what the trade
Speaker 2: of Dontavian Wicks and the departure of Romeo Adaps what
Speaker 2: it meant for those second year players, it also meant
Speaker 2: something for bow Melton too. And you want to talk
Speaker 2: about a guy being the heartbeat of your football team. Right,
Speaker 2: those are the two biggest plays we saw in practice,
Speaker 2: those two deep balls. The way that the offense, not
Speaker 2: the guys on the field, the guys on the sideline
Speaker 2: responded to that moment, right, it tells you everything you
Speaker 2: need to know about Bow Melton, the player he is,
Speaker 2: the person he is, and what his value and meaning
Speaker 2: is to this football team and me personally. I miss
Speaker 2: seeing eighty out there. I think that was the greatest
Speaker 2: little bow eighty you know, kind of way to mess
Speaker 2: around with the jersey number. But number sixteen is pretty
Speaker 2: cool too.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he wears He certainly wears it well. And for
Speaker 1: everything that you said about what was going on at
Speaker 1: receiver for the Packers last year, and you know, kind
Speaker 1: of a tough lineup for bow Meltin to crack. But
Speaker 1: he's catching a forty five yard touchdown pass against the
Speaker 1: Chicago Bears at Lambell Field to put the Packers at
Speaker 1: that time, you know, to help win that game and
Speaker 1: put the Packers in first place. So that's that's Bo.
Speaker 1: And I just know we're gonna we're going to see
Speaker 1: a play or plays like that at some point this year.
Speaker 1: A couple other thoughts I want to get to but
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Speaker 1: to seven, three sixty five. Welcome back to Packers unscripted, Wes.
Speaker 1: I want to get your thoughts here because for the
Speaker 1: first time we heard from veteran linebacker Zayir Alexander, first
Speaker 1: time that he's spoken to the media since coming to
Speaker 1: Green Bay. I was not a part of kind of
Speaker 1: the media scrum in front of his locker, but I
Speaker 1: know that you were, so I'd like to get your
Speaker 1: impressions of just what you thought of what you thought
Speaker 1: of Franklin and and kind of how things lay out
Speaker 1: for him in his new home.
Speaker 2: I'm going to talk a ton about Zayire Franklin here
Speaker 2: in a second, because there's a lot to discuss in
Speaker 2: just listening to some of the veterans in the locker
Speaker 2: room talk about them already, you can tell the type
Speaker 2: of aura this guy has, the type of leadership he has,
Speaker 2: in the type of player he has. But I'm going
Speaker 2: to say this, there is years where Packers did not
Speaker 2: sign a lot of free agents, so the guys that
Speaker 2: they bring in would usually be like more in that
Speaker 2: twenty five to thirty player range, right, They're going to
Speaker 2: be competing at various spots or you know, the draft
Speaker 2: picks themselves. The coolest thing about this era when Brian
Speaker 2: Goodekuntz has signed guys and brought them in is having
Speaker 2: a chance to get to know them a little bit
Speaker 2: the first time, getting a chance to talk to him.
Speaker 2: And I'll tell you this, Michael, all these years I've
Speaker 2: been doing this Zaire Franklin, Javon Hargrave, and then also
Speaker 2: Tyrod Taylor talking at the end of locker Room on Wednesday,
Speaker 2: when you match up the players they are and what
Speaker 2: the Packers are looking for on the field with you
Speaker 2: know what Brian Goudikunk in his scouts thought of these
Speaker 2: guys in terms of their personalities and what they bring
Speaker 2: off the field. It's just really impressive. Right. Zaire is
Speaker 2: a guy that was a former seventh round pick. I mean,
Speaker 2: you want to talk about a dude that has climbed
Speaker 2: the depth chart from the very bottom. As he said
Speaker 2: in his interview with US, he knows what it's like
Speaker 2: to try to make a roster. He was an All
Speaker 2: Pro linebacker, one of the highest paid guys at his position,
Speaker 2: and at one point in his career he wasn't even
Speaker 2: guaranteed a spot on the fifty three. Yeah, you don't
Speaker 2: see that a lot. When he's day and age. You
Speaker 2: get drafted in the firs one hundred and twenty picks,
Speaker 2: you're basically on the roster already. And for him to
Speaker 2: have that type of perspective and how he can relate
Speaker 2: to really anybody on the roster, I think is really important.
Speaker 2: And then listen to Tyrod Taylor as well, and just
Speaker 2: the way he speaks, the calm and his voice, the composure,
Speaker 2: the wisdom. This is a guy that Aaron Rodgers in
Speaker 2: our five Things story that I wrote a couple months
Speaker 2: back on him, how Aaron Rodgers just spoke glowingly about
Speaker 2: what it was like to have him with him in
Speaker 2: that room and to have that perspective at that juncture
Speaker 2: of his career. You can only imagine what that's going
Speaker 2: to do for Jordan Love now, having a guy that
Speaker 2: has much like Franklin had to scratch, had to claw.
Speaker 2: Former six round pick won a Super Bowl in year two,
Speaker 2: but hasn't been back since when he was backing up
Speaker 2: Joe Flacco in Baltimore. He started, he was a three
Speaker 2: year starter, a guy that ended up getting a contract
Speaker 2: to be the franchise quarterback of the Buffalo Bills. And
Speaker 2: now he here, he is at thirty seven years old,
Speaker 2: being able to bring that wisdom, being able to bring
Speaker 2: that experience to the room with Jordan Love. That's the
Speaker 2: coolest thing about this year when you get to when
Speaker 2: you get to see these guys and I understand these
Speaker 2: guys I've talked for a really long time. I'm gonna
Speaker 2: throw it back to you. There's plenty to talk about
Speaker 2: what Zion Franklin as a linebacker that I think is
Speaker 2: going to add to this defense. But just being able
Speaker 2: to have a little bit of infusion of that veteran
Speaker 2: leadership now I think is going to go a long
Speaker 2: way for this football team.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and just seeing seeing some of Franklin's comments, my
Speaker 1: my first impression is is this guy is a realist.
Speaker 2: Realist.
Speaker 1: I mean he because he was pretty much and he's
Speaker 1: pretty much asked point blank like Okay, you know you've
Speaker 1: been in this league for a while, but Indianapolis wasn't
Speaker 1: interested in keeping you around anymore. You know what do
Speaker 1: you have left, like what's left in the tank? Right?
Speaker 1: And he knows those questions are out there, like he
Speaker 1: you know, it's it's it's not like he you know,
Speaker 1: bristles or gets all defensive about like he understands. You know,
Speaker 1: you you start to get at his age, at his position,
Speaker 1: a position that takes a physical pounding because you're you know,
Speaker 1: you're racking up one hundred and fifty tackles a year
Speaker 1: or whatever the numbers are. So he knows, he knows
Speaker 1: those questions are out there, and and and he's his
Speaker 1: response is just I'm I'm gonna be me. I believe,
Speaker 1: I believe I've got plenty left. There's a reason the
Speaker 1: packers were interested in bringing me here. And and you know,
Speaker 1: I I you know, the whole chip on the shoulder
Speaker 1: thing is is you know, overused. But but he knows,
Speaker 1: he knows he has something to prove. And uh, but
Speaker 1: he's okay with it, you know. I guess that's that's
Speaker 1: where I say the realist, the realist part comes in
Speaker 1: and and uh, it's it's pretty cool, as you said,
Speaker 1: talking about the different perspective that he has had throughout
Speaker 1: his career. That perspective for you know, coming from a veteran,
Speaker 1: is is refreshing and need to see.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I want to really mention too. You know,
Speaker 2: he's twenty nine years old, he's he's bordering on thirty.
Speaker 2: But do you know who turned thirty during the year
Speaker 2: in which the Tampa Bay Buccaneers top alled the Green
Speaker 2: Bay Packers Super Bowl hopes Levonte Levante David and Levante
Speaker 2: David just retired right now this offseason, thirty six. Yeah,
Speaker 2: and he had already at that point been a few
Speaker 2: years removed from his all pro years, and he paired
Speaker 2: up in that defense and became, you know, the focal
Speaker 2: point of that thing and went on. When you talk
Speaker 2: about those Buccaneer defenses, not just the year they won
Speaker 2: the Super Bowl, but the ones that followed. What he
Speaker 2: was able to do and how he evolved his game
Speaker 2: is what kept him at the top. I view Franklin
Speaker 2: in the same light right now. The aggressiveness you expect that.
Speaker 2: You know, he said it himself. I mean, he is
Speaker 2: a dog. He's gonna be in the fray. He's is
Speaker 2: I think even say he's like, I'm gonna be looking
Speaker 2: to cause issues out there. I mean, he's not backing
Speaker 2: down from anybody. But at the same time, he understands
Speaker 2: what this job requires and how he's going to be
Speaker 2: looked to be a leader. He's going to be looked
Speaker 2: to be a communicator. He did joke about the fact
Speaker 2: that it's a little bit different right now for him.
Speaker 2: It's weird to be the new guy in the building.
Speaker 2: He's asking where the bathrooms are at lambeau Field, you know,
Speaker 2: those sort of questions. But to listen to Zabra McKinney
Speaker 2: talk about him and Javon Bullard, I mean, this guy's
Speaker 2: reputation preceded him coming to Green Bay. They knew that
Speaker 2: they were getting an NFL Walter Payton Man of the
Speaker 2: Year nominee and a team captain. But the way that
Speaker 2: people there is a Mercedes Lewis type vibe with him.
Speaker 2: That people they gravitate towards him. And the thing that
Speaker 2: I think is the coolest of all he is so
Speaker 2: geeked and geared up to work with Edrin Cooper. He
Speaker 2: said as soon as he ended up getting traded at
Speaker 2: Green Bay, he was watching Cooper's film. He knew him,
Speaker 2: he saw him, yeah, but he wanted to study him.
Speaker 2: At that point and he thinks and that he was
Speaker 2: even asked what his first app was A Cooper, He's
Speaker 2: like that guy's big, you know, like in Lavante's you know,
Speaker 2: he goes at six feet and Edrin's obviously a taller,
Speaker 2: leaner linebacker. But those two guys together, we've seen it.
Speaker 2: Mike the linebacker. You have to have a good linebacker
Speaker 2: core in the NFL right now if you're gonna play
Speaker 2: as much Nichol as you have to play, and.
Speaker 1: They're asked to do so much out there.
Speaker 2: For sure, the Packers feel like they got a pretty
Speaker 2: good comment.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And from a personal standpoint, I got the impression
Speaker 1: that Franklin appreciates being wanted here in Green Bay and
Speaker 1: he doesn't want to let the Packers down, the faith
Speaker 1: that the Packers have shown in him where he is
Speaker 1: in his career. He he doesn't want to let anybody down.
Speaker 2: I don't want to read this quote quick. I don't.
Speaker 2: I don't. I think it's the first time ever read
Speaker 2: a quote off. But I mean you you pointed out
Speaker 2: to me after I wrote our little five things story
Speaker 2: this week, But this was Avier McKinney's comment on he's
Speaker 2: like hell of a player, hell of a person. He's
Speaker 2: a guy too. From a leadership standpoint, He's really going
Speaker 2: to help us from that aspect. And then obviously the
Speaker 2: play speaks for itself. There's more to go along with that.
Speaker 2: But I just feel like when you thought about the Packers,
Speaker 2: not that they don't have good leadership, they've had good leadership,
Speaker 2: but when you have those guys that everybody points to
Speaker 2: is Okay, he's wearing the communication headset, you know, all
Speaker 2: that type of stuff that's gonna be important. But when everybody,
Speaker 2: not just the linebackers, not just the defensive front, everybody
Speaker 2: is focused in on that guy, I think that's when
Speaker 2: special things can happen on defenses. I think when you
Speaker 2: think it doesn't have to be linebackers, you think back
Speaker 2: to Charles Woodson right in O nine and ten and
Speaker 2: how he was the force on that defense. I think
Speaker 2: there's a vibe with this guy man. I think it's special.
Speaker 2: And the fact that the Packers wanted him for so long.
Speaker 2: It's not just like, Okay, we're losing kway Walker. What
Speaker 2: are we gonna do? Who are we gonna get? Packers
Speaker 2: have been trying to get this dude four years.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and the familiarity with Jonathan Gannon now just sort
Speaker 1: of is a bonus to that, right, because this is
Speaker 1: a guy the Packers have had their eye on, They've
Speaker 1: they've been interested in bringing him in, and now he's here.
Speaker 1: You know, they made the decision they weren't going to
Speaker 1: offer the big contract to quay Walker, and they get
Speaker 1: they get an older veteran player at a much more
Speaker 1: palatable price, but a guy that they feel can be
Speaker 1: a leader and and be right in the middle of
Speaker 1: it every snap.
Speaker 2: And it's just it's also about being cognizant of where
Speaker 2: your roster is and how things are going to move too.
Speaker 2: This doesn't have to be about Okay, well they didn't
Speaker 2: want quay Walker. No, you got Edrin Cooper coming up here.
Speaker 2: You got another year of Edrin Cooper on his rookie deal,
Speaker 2: and then we're going to be talking about extensions with him.
Speaker 1: Yep.
Speaker 2: You always have to kind of have that forward looking vision.
Speaker 2: And I think for this team, this time, this place,
Speaker 2: I think Franklin is that guy.
Speaker 1: Yeah, all right, well, with that, we will call it
Speaker 1: a rap on this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure
Speaker 1: to follow all of our coverage of Packers OTAs and
Speaker 1: then next week is Mini Camp will have some more
Speaker 1: unscripted shows for you and lots more discussion coming up then.
Speaker 1: But for now for WES, I am Mike, thank you
Speaker 1: for tuning in everybody, We will see you next time.