WEBVTT - #542 Packers Unscripted: Promising progress 0:00:00.880 --> 0:00:14.840 Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted social 0:00:14.920 --> 0:00:18.600 distancing style from Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, 0:00:18.640 --> 0:00:22.520 as always joined by the one and only West had Ku. 0:00:22.640 --> 0:00:25.959 It's Western. You shaved. What happened to your face? You 0:00:26.000 --> 0:00:29.720 looked a little different on yesterday's Packers Daily video. Yeah. Well, 0:00:29.760 --> 0:00:34.839 first off, mahad so excited that I've shaved again. Um 0:00:34.840 --> 0:00:36.960 here here's the thing, Mike. I wish I could grow 0:00:37.040 --> 0:00:40.239 glorious beard. I can't, and it wasn't gifted with that 0:00:40.320 --> 0:00:42.839 ability like so many of our colleagues here at Packers 0:00:42.880 --> 0:00:45.880 dot com. But the thing was, as I was explained 0:00:45.880 --> 0:00:47.640 to you and some of our other stuff, when you 0:00:47.680 --> 0:00:50.839 have to wear a mask for two and a half hours, 0:00:50.840 --> 0:00:53.519 like we did for the last twelve practices, and you 0:00:53.600 --> 0:00:56.959 have a nose like I have, it is really difficult 0:00:57.000 --> 0:01:00.400 to keep that thing on your face. The facial are 0:01:00.440 --> 0:01:02.560 allowed me to do that, And then the benefit was 0:01:02.600 --> 0:01:04.080 I think you and I only did like two of 0:01:04.120 --> 0:01:07.640 these during that whole duration, so people didn't have to 0:01:07.640 --> 0:01:09.640 see the beer that often. I was kind of protected 0:01:09.680 --> 0:01:12.920 from it, but I got the extra security, the extra 0:01:13.080 --> 0:01:15.600 hold that I was looking for to be able to 0:01:15.640 --> 0:01:18.280 get through those practices with a mask on my face. 0:01:18.920 --> 0:01:21.920 All right. Well, since we last spoke in this setting, 0:01:22.040 --> 0:01:25.640 the uh, the Packers actually skipped today of practice to 0:01:25.720 --> 0:01:28.760 discuss some social justice issues that was certainly a big 0:01:28.800 --> 0:01:32.320 topic around the league and around the sports world last week. 0:01:32.680 --> 0:01:36.399 But then as the Packers resumed getting back to practice Friday, Saturday, 0:01:36.400 --> 0:01:40.480 Sunday Sunday was a big day. It was uh a 0:01:40.560 --> 0:01:44.720 close to full contact practice inside lambeau Field. The first 0:01:44.800 --> 0:01:49.200 unit's offense and defense ran about fifty plays against one another. 0:01:49.280 --> 0:01:52.760 It was the most eleven on eleven in a single 0:01:52.800 --> 0:01:55.360 practice that the Packers have had. They had the ambient 0:01:55.440 --> 0:01:58.640 crowd noise there in lambeau Field, trying to simulate a 0:01:58.680 --> 0:02:01.840 game situation as much as possible, and in a training 0:02:01.880 --> 0:02:05.400 camp with no preseason games. West Sunday afternoon at lambeau 0:02:05.440 --> 0:02:09.360 Field was was the closest thing to address rehearsal that 0:02:09.440 --> 0:02:13.200 the Packers are going to have before the upcoming Week 0:02:13.200 --> 0:02:16.000 one matchup in Minnesota. Yeah, and it really was. It 0:02:16.120 --> 0:02:17.920 felt like a game day. I mean, even you and 0:02:17.919 --> 0:02:20.680 I walk into the building, the security staff was was 0:02:20.720 --> 0:02:22.720 handling it like it was going to be a game day. 0:02:22.760 --> 0:02:25.639 Just to give everybody those repetitions before we all get 0:02:25.720 --> 0:02:27.639 used to something that's gonna be very different this year 0:02:27.639 --> 0:02:30.560 with these regular season games. The coaches, as you pointed out, 0:02:30.560 --> 0:02:32.680 with some of them more in the press box, Matt Laflora, 0:02:32.760 --> 0:02:34.320 is headset down on the field. I believe you have 0:02:34.400 --> 0:02:39.720 the play sheet out. They did everything unscripted, no pun intended, Uh, 0:02:39.760 --> 0:02:41.520 just because they wanted to make sure that they at 0:02:41.600 --> 0:02:43.480 least get these guys used to it. There's gonna be 0:02:43.560 --> 0:02:45.919 rookies that are going to be involved in this offense 0:02:45.960 --> 0:02:47.960 and defense. There's going to be young players that are 0:02:47.960 --> 0:02:50.280 gonna be getting used to new roles. They need to 0:02:50.400 --> 0:02:54.520 be able to have some semblance of normalcy before going 0:02:54.560 --> 0:02:57.560 into US Bank Stadium for that opener against the Minnesota Vikings. 0:02:57.840 --> 0:03:00.600 I think that practice accomplished that. The one thing that 0:03:00.639 --> 0:03:02.360 really hit home with me, Mike. I don't know if 0:03:02.360 --> 0:03:04.880 you really thought about this too often, but just how 0:03:04.960 --> 0:03:07.560 different this training camp looked. And it's not just the 0:03:07.560 --> 0:03:11.240 three practices inside lambeau Field. There were no half line 0:03:11.320 --> 0:03:13.560 drills like you and I have always become, you know, 0:03:13.600 --> 0:03:16.040 grown accustomed to over the years. Uh. They were very 0:03:16.080 --> 0:03:19.440 deliberate in their seven on seven routes on air periods, 0:03:19.480 --> 0:03:22.680 they dedicated more time to eleven on eleven and that 0:03:22.760 --> 0:03:25.960 was never more evident than that practice at lambeau Field. 0:03:25.960 --> 0:03:28.360 To move the ball periods, I believe both Tim Boyle 0:03:28.800 --> 0:03:31.160 and also Jordan's love getting three series of piece in 0:03:31.160 --> 0:03:34.440 addition to all the work that Aaron Rodgers did, they thudded. 0:03:34.480 --> 0:03:36.960 They didn't go to the ground like a traditional scrimmage, 0:03:37.000 --> 0:03:41.880 but being able to actually go through the process, understand 0:03:41.880 --> 0:03:44.840 what it's like, have the full uniform on. I think 0:03:44.880 --> 0:03:46.520 there was a lot of benefits to that. And then 0:03:46.600 --> 0:03:49.440 obviously the most the biggest thing the fact that there's 0:03:49.480 --> 0:03:51.480 no fans there, and there's going to be no fans 0:03:51.560 --> 0:03:53.720 there for the first month of the season. You have 0:03:53.800 --> 0:03:56.280 to be able to not only get yourself, you know, 0:03:56.400 --> 0:03:59.360 prepared and energized, but also get used to that ambient 0:03:59.440 --> 0:04:02.080 noise at the NFL is piping in which to my 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:07.920 ear taste was very extreme. Yeah, it was when I 0:04:07.960 --> 0:04:10.480 know later in the practice they toned it down a 0:04:10.480 --> 0:04:12.320 little bit, but when it first started it was kind 0:04:12.320 --> 0:04:14.840 of like, holy cow, like, how can you hear anything 0:04:14.880 --> 0:04:17.039 out there? I mean, it was it was noisy. It 0:04:17.080 --> 0:04:19.000 was definitely loud. I thought it was gonna be the 0:04:19.000 --> 0:04:21.120 longest two hours of my life, Mike, I'm not lying 0:04:21.200 --> 0:04:23.719 that first team period, and it was funny. Matt Lafleur 0:04:23.760 --> 0:04:25.960 even mentioned it, like, it was the same decibel level 0:04:26.040 --> 0:04:28.000 is what they had it set to in the previous practice, 0:04:28.040 --> 0:04:31.479 but for whatever reason, it was much louder. And unfortunately 0:04:31.520 --> 0:04:32.880 they did tone it down a little bit and I 0:04:32.920 --> 0:04:36.320 was able to hear myself breathe. Yeah. Well, Matt Lafleur 0:04:36.400 --> 0:04:40.160 did say after Sunday's practice that this week the Packers 0:04:40.160 --> 0:04:44.159 are transitioning. Even though roster cuts roster reduction is not 0:04:44.240 --> 0:04:48.040 until Saturday, there's still one week here, but they're transitioning 0:04:48.080 --> 0:04:50.279 into more of a regular season mode in terms of 0:04:50.279 --> 0:04:52.160 what practice is going to be. Like. There's still gonna 0:04:52.160 --> 0:04:54.839 be some competitive eleven on eleven, but there's also going 0:04:54.880 --> 0:04:58.279 to be in the practices coming up here Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, 0:04:58.600 --> 0:05:01.200 some scout teamwork. What they all going off of cards 0:05:01.200 --> 0:05:03.479 where you have one side of the ball that is 0:05:03.520 --> 0:05:07.159 mimicking something that the opponent, in this case the Minnesota Vikings. 0:05:07.200 --> 0:05:09.920 The Packers will start preparing for them, so practice will 0:05:09.960 --> 0:05:13.120 take on a little bit different field training camp in 0:05:13.160 --> 0:05:16.120 the traditional sense of it, in terms of a lot 0:05:16.120 --> 0:05:19.000 of that competition for roster spots and and all of 0:05:19.000 --> 0:05:22.160 that is for all intents and purposes over here. And 0:05:22.560 --> 0:05:24.000 there are a couple of guys I think that are 0:05:24.000 --> 0:05:26.040 worth talking about here West because when you look at 0:05:26.040 --> 0:05:28.920 the training camp as a whole, look some of these 0:05:28.960 --> 0:05:32.920 main stays for the Packers, Aaron Rodgers, Aaron Jones, Davante Adams, 0:05:33.080 --> 0:05:36.320 Christian Kirksey j R. Alexander Adrian am Is, all guys 0:05:36.360 --> 0:05:39.040 in their several I left out. I thought they all 0:05:39.480 --> 0:05:41.560 did what they needed to do in this training camp. 0:05:41.560 --> 0:05:43.720 They look like they're ready to go. They look like 0:05:43.800 --> 0:05:47.080 the frontline players that they are, despite not having an offseason, 0:05:47.120 --> 0:05:50.240 despite not having any preseason games. But there are a 0:05:50.240 --> 0:05:53.719 couple of guys, and we've talked about this throughout the 0:05:53.720 --> 0:05:56.839 course of of the summer leading up to this, which 0:05:56.880 --> 0:05:59.920 guys for the Packers are going to need to take 0:06:00.120 --> 0:06:05.000 their games to another level here in to really help 0:06:05.040 --> 0:06:07.320 out and to contribute in the way that that the 0:06:07.320 --> 0:06:09.240 Packers are hoping they are. And I think there's one 0:06:09.279 --> 0:06:12.600 guy on each side of the ball who had a 0:06:12.760 --> 0:06:17.200 very very strong and impressive training camp, and I'm talking 0:06:17.240 --> 0:06:21.039 about Marquis Velda Scantling on offense and Rashawn Gary on defense. 0:06:21.480 --> 0:06:24.560 In terms of guys that boy, if they take what 0:06:24.600 --> 0:06:27.760 they did in training camp onto the game field starting 0:06:27.800 --> 0:06:30.880 week one in Minnesota, the Packers are going to be 0:06:30.880 --> 0:06:33.520 better for it on both sides of the ball. Yeah, 0:06:33.600 --> 0:06:35.600 And I know it was you and I have discussed 0:06:35.600 --> 0:06:38.120 that great length of the last two weeks. You know, 0:06:38.200 --> 0:06:40.760 we do the three things video after all these practices, 0:06:41.240 --> 0:06:43.880 and legitimately, Mike, for half of them, you could have 0:06:43.960 --> 0:06:48.480 done MVS and Rashaan Gary. They just stood out every 0:06:48.480 --> 0:06:51.240 single day and they made plays. And it wasn't just 0:06:51.320 --> 0:06:53.600 the fact that, Okay, well here's another deep ball to 0:06:53.800 --> 0:06:56.279 MBS from Rogers. Oh, it would have been a sixty 0:06:56.360 --> 0:06:59.040 yard touchdown. Now he did that the first day with 0:06:59.160 --> 0:07:01.040 that pass from Temple Oil. But for the most part, 0:07:01.440 --> 0:07:03.760 a lot of it was running and doing your routes 0:07:03.880 --> 0:07:08.120 precisely to where the sticks are. That that practice inside 0:07:08.160 --> 0:07:10.480 Lambeau Field, how many situations Mike I would count at 0:07:10.560 --> 0:07:13.880 least three in either third or fourth downs, MBS had 0:07:13.880 --> 0:07:15.640 to run a route to get the first down, and 0:07:15.680 --> 0:07:17.360 he did that, and he was able to break off 0:07:17.360 --> 0:07:19.520 his route the way he needed to and be where 0:07:19.760 --> 0:07:22.480 Aaron Rodgers expecting to be. He also made some really 0:07:22.520 --> 0:07:25.920 spectacular catches too. I think about that one that he 0:07:25.960 --> 0:07:28.640 hauled in off of his hip. You weren't there for it. 0:07:28.640 --> 0:07:30.280 It was the one when we were in the down 0:07:30.360 --> 0:07:33.040 Hudson Center due to weather, but the ball was slightly 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:35.840 behind him and he reached his handback his left hand back, 0:07:36.040 --> 0:07:38.360 trapped the ball against his hip and was able with 0:07:38.440 --> 0:07:41.800 his four three seven speed to stay within his stride 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:45.440 to turn up field. This is what this young man 0:07:45.560 --> 0:07:48.760 offers to this offense when he's going in he's right. 0:07:49.000 --> 0:07:51.560 I thought Jason Braby Rabel last week when he spoke 0:07:51.600 --> 0:07:55.240 to us, made a really interesting salient point about MBS 0:07:55.280 --> 0:07:58.440 and his development. He doesn't question that MBS wasn't that 0:07:58.480 --> 0:08:01.280 he blacked any confidence. He felt like he was still 0:08:01.360 --> 0:08:03.960 confident in the receiver that he was, but it was 0:08:04.000 --> 0:08:06.560 having the confidence in the scheme and being able to 0:08:06.600 --> 0:08:09.480 match up his natural abilities with what was being asked 0:08:09.480 --> 0:08:12.200 of him. Now with Matt Lafleur in this offense, they 0:08:12.240 --> 0:08:14.800 feel like he's made a major stride there. As far 0:08:14.840 --> 0:08:18.720 as Rashaan Gary is concerned, Mike, I don't want to 0:08:18.720 --> 0:08:21.640 get hyperbolic about it. I don't like doing offseason m 0:08:21.720 --> 0:08:25.000 vps because, honestly, two thousand fifteen, when Mike McCarthy said 0:08:25.040 --> 0:08:27.760 that Davante Adams was an offseason MVP, he really was. 0:08:28.160 --> 0:08:30.480 It just didn't translate. He didn't he got hurt, it 0:08:30.480 --> 0:08:32.520 didn't work out, and then everybody held that against him. 0:08:32.520 --> 0:08:34.840 So I don't like putting those labels out there on guys. 0:08:35.360 --> 0:08:37.400 But for a twenty two year old player that was 0:08:37.440 --> 0:08:40.160 the twelfth overall pick a year ago, I thought, if 0:08:40.200 --> 0:08:43.720 you're the Green Bay Packers, you saw every single advancement 0:08:43.800 --> 0:08:45.880 in Rashaan Gary's game that you wanted to see in 0:08:45.880 --> 0:08:47.920 this camp. Now we need to see it in games. 0:08:48.160 --> 0:08:50.319 We need him to be a difference maker. He needs 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:52.160 to be a guy that can step up and take 0:08:52.200 --> 0:08:55.240 some of those reps off of Preston Smith and'sa Arias Smith. 0:08:55.640 --> 0:08:57.360 But in terms of just was what was being asked 0:08:57.360 --> 0:08:59.800 of him in these practices, the one on one periods 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:03.000 against the offensive lineman, the way he was able to 0:09:03.080 --> 0:09:05.720 rush and disrupt plays and team periods when he got 0:09:05.760 --> 0:09:08.120 reps with you know what would be the starting offense, 0:09:08.480 --> 0:09:10.839 he did it all Mike in this camp, and as 0:09:10.840 --> 0:09:12.760 I wrote an insider inbox, I want to see it 0:09:12.760 --> 0:09:15.360 translate now to games. Not for any personal reasons, but 0:09:15.440 --> 0:09:18.640 so this whole process makes sense to me because we 0:09:18.720 --> 0:09:22.640 saw guys make significant strides and practice. Now can we 0:09:22.679 --> 0:09:25.200 see in two weeks time and then beyond that that 0:09:25.280 --> 0:09:28.760 actually translates. Yeah. I think it's been really interesting to 0:09:28.800 --> 0:09:32.760 watch the evolution of these two players, in particular this summer. 0:09:32.840 --> 0:09:35.640 You said it with MVS that he showed in this 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:39.080 training camp that he's not just the one dimensional deep 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:41.800 threat speed guy to take the top off of the defense. 0:09:42.200 --> 0:09:45.480 He was used in on possession routes, in those move 0:09:45.559 --> 0:09:48.760 the chains type of situations, and he came through for 0:09:48.840 --> 0:09:52.920 Aaron Rodgers. That's rounding out a young players game. And 0:09:52.960 --> 0:09:55.640 I think in the same respect with for Shawn Gary, 0:09:56.000 --> 0:09:58.960 his background as a defensive lineman, essentially a down lineman 0:09:58.960 --> 0:10:01.640 at Michigan. You where Shawn Gary could stop the run, 0:10:02.000 --> 0:10:05.560 and he whether wherever he lines up defensively, he seems 0:10:05.559 --> 0:10:08.040 to be a pretty good run defender. The question is 0:10:08.280 --> 0:10:11.400 can he consistently get after the quarterback when the whistle 0:10:11.440 --> 0:10:13.440 blows in In that aspect of the game, and I 0:10:13.480 --> 0:10:17.440 think we saw we saw a lot more activity in 0:10:17.520 --> 0:10:19.720 terms of him getting into the backfield and getting after 0:10:19.800 --> 0:10:22.720 quarterbacks in this training camp. Again an evolution of a 0:10:22.800 --> 0:10:26.520 young player. And as you said, West, the games are 0:10:26.559 --> 0:10:28.680 where it's gonna matter. I mean, these guys have to 0:10:28.720 --> 0:10:32.320 prove it in the games when it counts, because once 0:10:32.600 --> 0:10:34.960 you know, the ball is kicked off in Minnesota in 0:10:35.000 --> 0:10:38.320 week one, whatever happened in training camp almost doesn't even 0:10:38.360 --> 0:10:41.160 matter anymore. I mean, it's it's it's about what happens 0:10:41.400 --> 0:10:44.280 when it really matters. And um, both of these guys 0:10:44.280 --> 0:10:49.280 have set themselves up for for promising and productive seasons. 0:10:49.400 --> 0:10:51.439 Now they have to come through well. And that was 0:10:51.480 --> 0:10:54.280 the thing too regarding Gary, why I was so impressed 0:10:54.280 --> 0:10:55.920 with him last year, even though there were a lot 0:10:55.920 --> 0:10:58.640 of people on the outside questioning, you know what, why 0:10:58.640 --> 0:11:01.839 did they pick him? Is this guy gonna be bust whatever? Well, one, 0:11:01.920 --> 0:11:05.880 he's twenty one years old too. He's really strong. If 0:11:05.920 --> 0:11:08.400 you've noticed that in these games and in these practices 0:11:08.960 --> 0:11:11.360 over the last year and a half, there's just a 0:11:11.360 --> 0:11:14.320 lot of natural, God given ability in that young man's body. 0:11:14.720 --> 0:11:17.000 And I think you saw this offseason him really take 0:11:17.040 --> 0:11:18.920 it to another level. He's not afraid to work to 0:11:18.960 --> 0:11:21.600 get it, and he definitely did that. But the last 0:11:21.600 --> 0:11:23.160 thing is what you touched on there, and it was 0:11:23.200 --> 0:11:25.640 his run defense. The guy can set an edge and 0:11:25.679 --> 0:11:27.240 that probably has something to do with the fact that 0:11:27.280 --> 0:11:30.480 he goes at about two seventy seven to seventy that's 0:11:30.520 --> 0:11:33.560 a little bit bigger than the traditional outside linebacker that 0:11:33.600 --> 0:11:36.439 you remember hearing about in Dom Keeper's defense when this 0:11:36.480 --> 0:11:39.720 whole thing got implemented. But Gary fits that and I 0:11:39.800 --> 0:11:43.280 really think that when you talk about the pass rush prussures, 0:11:43.320 --> 0:11:45.200 those things will come if you have the ability, you 0:11:45.200 --> 0:11:47.199 have the technique, and a coach like Mike Smith that's 0:11:47.200 --> 0:11:49.000 gonna be able to get it out of you. But 0:11:49.080 --> 0:11:51.160 it's are you willing to actually go the extra mile 0:11:51.200 --> 0:11:53.520 against the run some of those small things, the thing 0:11:53.600 --> 0:11:55.360 that the things that aren't gonna get you a massive 0:11:55.400 --> 0:11:58.319 contract but ultimately decide whether or not your defense is 0:11:58.320 --> 0:12:02.079 gonna play winning football, and Gary most definitely can do that. Yeah, 0:12:02.160 --> 0:12:05.040 I think another guy that's worth talking about in terms 0:12:05.040 --> 0:12:09.240 of you know, this transition from and this is a 0:12:09.280 --> 0:12:13.520 completely different context, but Lane Taylor on the offensive line 0:12:13.559 --> 0:12:17.920 for the package you're coming back from a significant bicep 0:12:18.000 --> 0:12:20.360 injury that knocked him out of the starting lineup and 0:12:20.480 --> 0:12:23.520 ended his season in Week two, essentially after two games 0:12:23.640 --> 0:12:26.040 last year, because I believe the injury happened in practice, 0:12:26.080 --> 0:12:31.240 correct me if I'm wrong, lest but yeah, But for 0:12:31.360 --> 0:12:33.720 him to come back from that, and hey, you know, 0:12:33.960 --> 0:12:35.920 he decides to take a pay cut to come back 0:12:35.920 --> 0:12:39.000 to Green Bay to compete for a starting job, there's been, 0:12:39.040 --> 0:12:42.319 you know, essentially a three way competition for two starting spots. 0:12:42.320 --> 0:12:45.199 You have Taylor at guard, you have Rick Wagner at tackle. 0:12:45.280 --> 0:12:47.840 You have Billy Turner who could play guard or tackle 0:12:48.160 --> 0:12:52.240 on the right side. I don't know ultimately what the 0:12:52.280 --> 0:12:54.319 coaches are going to decide. If you ask me for 0:12:54.400 --> 0:12:57.400 my prediction, my prediction is I think Lane Taylor is 0:12:57.440 --> 0:12:59.440 going to be lining up as the starting right guard 0:12:59.440 --> 0:13:02.080 in Week one, but it's not my decision to make that. 0:13:02.200 --> 0:13:06.240 Being said, what Taylor has done, regardless of what the 0:13:06.240 --> 0:13:09.000 final decision is, I think is really impressive because there 0:13:09.000 --> 0:13:10.800 are a lot of people who wrote this guy off. 0:13:11.160 --> 0:13:13.520 A lot of fans were not even counting him in 0:13:13.520 --> 0:13:16.640 the equation for the offensive line for the Packers in 0:13:17.720 --> 0:13:20.720 and he he showed up every day in this training camp, 0:13:20.800 --> 0:13:26.160 Weston and his steadiness, um, his consistency, his reliability, It 0:13:26.320 --> 0:13:28.360 showed up on a daily basis, and I think it's 0:13:28.360 --> 0:13:30.640 something the Packers are are potentially going to be counting 0:13:30.679 --> 0:13:34.800 on here in Lane Taylor is such a throwback for me, 0:13:35.320 --> 0:13:37.240 not only in just the way he plays the position, 0:13:37.280 --> 0:13:40.800 but just his mentality. Nowadays, if a guy gets hurt 0:13:40.880 --> 0:13:43.080 or he loses his starting job, the first thing he 0:13:43.160 --> 0:13:44.920 usually wants to do is is look for a new 0:13:44.920 --> 0:13:48.640 opportunity to get out of a contract, to move on. Lane. 0:13:48.640 --> 0:13:51.079 Taylor wanted to be back here, and I asked him 0:13:51.080 --> 0:13:53.120 that one of his recent conference calls, and he said, 0:13:53.120 --> 0:13:54.400 you know, it was kind of the roots that his 0:13:54.440 --> 0:13:56.320 family had laid down in Green Bay. The fact this 0:13:56.360 --> 0:13:58.679 is the only place he's ever been, the fact that 0:13:58.920 --> 0:14:00.240 this is the team that took a chance ants on 0:14:00.280 --> 0:14:02.080 him when nobody else wanted to draft him back in 0:14:02.080 --> 0:14:04.840 two thousand thirteen, all those things kind of came to 0:14:04.840 --> 0:14:06.960 the surface for him and he realized that this is 0:14:06.960 --> 0:14:09.320 where his best opportunity was going to be to continue 0:14:09.720 --> 0:14:11.800 his NFL career. And I think one way or another, 0:14:11.880 --> 0:14:14.120 what this training camp has proven is that lane. Taylor 0:14:14.200 --> 0:14:16.560 is still a starting guard in this league. Um, you 0:14:16.600 --> 0:14:19.000 know these next year, everything that follows will find it out. 0:14:19.000 --> 0:14:20.680 But he wants to play football for a long time, 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:22.200 and I think he's going to be able to do that. 0:14:22.720 --> 0:14:24.480 The guy he's just you talked about his one on 0:14:24.480 --> 0:14:26.840 one drills this year. He was going against Kenny Clark 0:14:26.840 --> 0:14:29.720 pretty much every day, uh, during those padded drills, and 0:14:29.800 --> 0:14:31.680 he was holding his own. It didn't matter if it 0:14:31.760 --> 0:14:34.200 was Kenny, didn't matter if his dean lowerry. He just 0:14:34.280 --> 0:14:36.920 does his job. And he's so strong, he's so good 0:14:37.400 --> 0:14:39.120 in terms of being able to to be a really 0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:43.720 impenetrable and movable force down on the line that it 0:14:43.800 --> 0:14:45.120 was good to see him be able to come back 0:14:45.120 --> 0:14:47.680 because he said that bicep was pretty much zero when 0:14:47.680 --> 0:14:49.440 he got done with practice that day. He had to 0:14:49.440 --> 0:14:51.680 have surgery on it, and he spent a lot of 0:14:51.720 --> 0:14:53.720 time thinking, a lot of time, you know, with his 0:14:53.800 --> 0:14:56.560 family and now being able to continue his NFL career. 0:14:56.880 --> 0:14:58.720 I keep saying it over and over again, but the 0:14:58.720 --> 0:15:01.360 fact is he's the fourth longest tenured player on this team. Now. 0:15:01.400 --> 0:15:03.640 It's incredible when you think about it that way. But 0:15:03.720 --> 0:15:05.720 he's not afraid to still be doing that grunt work 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:08.320 and those drills that are typically reserved for the young 0:15:08.320 --> 0:15:11.000 guys on this roster, Lane Taylor is still very much 0:15:11.000 --> 0:15:12.400 a part of this. And when you talk about the 0:15:12.400 --> 0:15:15.840 beauty of training camp, even if it was different this year, 0:15:15.880 --> 0:15:19.840 even if it was modified, the story that that Taylor 0:15:19.920 --> 0:15:22.880 told throughout the last three weeks, I think really speaks 0:15:22.880 --> 0:15:25.000 to him both as a person and as a football player, 0:15:25.000 --> 0:15:27.720 and that he's not afraid to to get back out 0:15:27.760 --> 0:15:31.560 there and earn what he's already earned. Yeah, and when 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:33.440 you think about it too, this is really the first 0:15:33.480 --> 0:15:37.000 time you could argue in three years that Lane Taylor 0:15:37.040 --> 0:15:40.000 probably feels fully healthy. Because you go back, Okay, so 0:15:40.080 --> 0:15:43.200 twenty nineteen he had the bicep injury, you go back 0:15:43.200 --> 0:15:49.320 to he he dealt with a significant offseason ankle injury 0:15:49.360 --> 0:15:52.320 that that you know, slowing him down. And he's not 0:15:52.360 --> 0:15:55.120 a guy to make excuses, you know, in the days 0:15:55.280 --> 0:15:57.040 back when we were talking to these guys at their 0:15:57.040 --> 0:15:59.840 lockers as opposed to over you know, through a computer screen. 0:16:00.080 --> 0:16:01.920 He's not a guy who's ever going to make any 0:16:01.960 --> 0:16:05.720 any excuses. You know. His his whole approaches. Hey, if 0:16:05.720 --> 0:16:07.480 I'm healthy enough to play, I'm gonna play, and I've 0:16:07.520 --> 0:16:09.680 I've got to play to a certain standard. But he 0:16:09.720 --> 0:16:12.280 would be the first to admit afterwards there were games 0:16:12.320 --> 0:16:14.680 that he wasn't really playing up to his standard because 0:16:14.680 --> 0:16:16.640 he wasn't fully healthy, but he was doing what he 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:19.520 had to do to help the team. We could be 0:16:19.640 --> 0:16:25.040 seeing here in Lane Taylor finally, you know, fully healthy 0:16:25.160 --> 0:16:29.400 and and back into that mold, in that form that 0:16:29.480 --> 0:16:34.360 he was back in seventeen when when he first took 0:16:34.400 --> 0:16:37.040 over the starting job and and was the kind of 0:16:37.040 --> 0:16:39.080 guy that you didn't really talk about a whole lot 0:16:39.120 --> 0:16:41.760 on the offensive line because he was just so steady 0:16:41.760 --> 0:16:44.120 and reliable. Well even think about the beginning half of 0:16:44.200 --> 0:16:47.000 last year, Mike. So he does win the left guard job. 0:16:47.120 --> 0:16:49.640 He maintains that he starts the first two games, but 0:16:49.680 --> 0:16:52.720 they were still rotating in Alton Jenkins for a couple 0:16:52.760 --> 0:16:54.640 of series here every now and then. And as we 0:16:54.720 --> 0:16:56.920 found out throughout the course of season, Alton Jenkins is 0:16:56.960 --> 0:16:59.000 the real deal. That wasn't just okay, we're trying to 0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:00.680 find the best fit now. I mean you had two 0:17:00.680 --> 0:17:04.600 guys that could both play, that could both go, and 0:17:05.119 --> 0:17:07.800 Lane was a total professional about that didn't raise a stink, 0:17:08.240 --> 0:17:09.760 just did what was asked about. When he's in there, 0:17:09.760 --> 0:17:12.280 he's in there. When he's not, he's not. And again 0:17:12.720 --> 0:17:15.920 that that's just something I think is becoming increasingly increasingly rare. 0:17:16.200 --> 0:17:18.000 When you talk about a guy that has started three 0:17:18.119 --> 0:17:21.080 four seasons in the league now and being able to 0:17:21.600 --> 0:17:24.320 have that humility to to not make a big fuss 0:17:24.359 --> 0:17:25.960 about it, just to do what's asked of him, I 0:17:26.000 --> 0:17:28.880 think that says a lot. And the fact that he's 0:17:28.920 --> 0:17:31.000 worked his way back from this injury to put himself 0:17:31.000 --> 0:17:33.879 in this conversation again, I think is another testament to 0:17:33.920 --> 0:17:36.080 the player he is and the man that he really 0:17:36.080 --> 0:17:38.720 has developed into over the last seven years. Yeah, no 0:17:38.840 --> 0:17:42.040 question about it. Well, roster decisions are going to be 0:17:42.119 --> 0:17:44.520 made on Saturday. The Packers will have to trim the 0:17:44.600 --> 0:17:47.680 roster to fifty three players by three o'clock Central time 0:17:47.720 --> 0:17:51.879 Saturday afternoon. Then on Sunday you start resigning guys to 0:17:51.960 --> 0:17:54.520 the practice squad, players that clear waivers and whatnot. And 0:17:54.560 --> 0:17:56.600 I know on our next show later this week we 0:17:56.640 --> 0:17:59.720 can get into some some more of those details because 0:17:59.720 --> 0:18:01.480 it is going to be different this year than it 0:18:01.480 --> 0:18:04.919 has been in in other years. But um, but that 0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:07.080 will be a topic for the next show. And if 0:18:07.119 --> 0:18:09.040 someone want to point out too, because you addressed it earlier, 0:18:09.040 --> 0:18:11.280 but I wanted to. I wanted to address and answer 0:18:11.359 --> 0:18:13.760 you're very good and eloquent question about the players that 0:18:13.760 --> 0:18:16.240 stood out. But you made a really interesting point about 0:18:16.280 --> 0:18:18.560 how this week they shifted to an end season schedule. 0:18:19.240 --> 0:18:22.320 That actually really is interesting because the practice squad has 0:18:22.359 --> 0:18:25.720 expanded this year. There's now sixteen players that are gonna 0:18:25.720 --> 0:18:27.560 be eligible to be on the practice squad once the 0:18:27.600 --> 0:18:29.919 Packers set their fifty three. That means there's gonna be 0:18:29.920 --> 0:18:37.360 fifty nine players in practice. Uh this season. I thought 0:18:37.359 --> 0:18:41.080 I said sixty nine. We'll play back that film. But 0:18:41.160 --> 0:18:43.880 either way, Mike, there's eighty guys on the roster right now, 0:18:43.920 --> 0:18:46.359 some of whom aren't playing, aren't participating because of the 0:18:46.359 --> 0:18:49.840 pup list. Yes, they need to cut the roster on Saturday, 0:18:49.880 --> 0:18:52.320 but Matt la Floor and his coaches, they also have 0:18:52.440 --> 0:18:55.800 to be able to go through this process and figure out, Okay, 0:18:55.800 --> 0:18:57.480 how are we going to make all these pieces fit 0:18:57.560 --> 0:19:00.000 in a practice. That's why I think this is really 0:19:00.080 --> 0:19:02.160 beneficial for them this week to be able to shift 0:19:02.200 --> 0:19:04.960 to an in season schedule and kind of get used 0:19:04.960 --> 0:19:07.840 to those new moving parts on the Scout team. Matt Arvin, 0:19:08.119 --> 0:19:11.480 our wonderful producer, also correcting me, I did say fifty nine. 0:19:11.680 --> 0:19:14.879 I apologize. That's okay. Well, we will get all the 0:19:14.960 --> 0:19:17.000 numbers and all of that straightened out on our next 0:19:17.000 --> 0:19:19.280