WEBVTT - #725 Packers Unscripted: Waiting game 0:00:07.200 --> 0:00:10.880 Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:10.920 --> 0:00:14.080 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spoffer, joined as always 0:00:14.080 --> 0:00:17.439 by my trusted colleague West and Hodkitz, who actually has 0:00:17.600 --> 0:00:20.680 Vince Lombardi behind him just like I do. As we 0:00:20.800 --> 0:00:25.000 come to you from different locations here at Lanmbelfield and Wes. 0:00:25.040 --> 0:00:28.160 We are told, and we've been being allowed to say 0:00:28.160 --> 0:00:31.920 this on the show, that this is the last zoom 0:00:31.960 --> 0:00:34.760 episode of Unscripted. We will be back in the studio 0:00:34.880 --> 0:00:38.640 with new cameras and a whole new setup and everything 0:00:38.760 --> 0:00:41.360 for our next show. But for now here we are. 0:00:41.640 --> 0:00:44.560 But yeah, Vince is in your background as well as mine. 0:00:44.560 --> 0:00:45.680 That's actually kind of cool. 0:00:46.120 --> 0:00:48.479 Yeah, it really is. And the Lombardi Show you can 0:00:48.520 --> 0:00:51.920 call this one. No, I mean, the thing about it is, 0:00:51.960 --> 0:00:53.880 I mean, obviously we're in a big transition right now 0:00:53.920 --> 0:00:55.680 with our control room, and as much as I want 0:00:55.680 --> 0:00:57.680 to be back in your physical presence and be able 0:00:57.680 --> 0:00:59.480 to work off of each other and have that real 0:00:59.560 --> 0:01:03.600 inner per dialogue, this past like four or five months 0:01:03.640 --> 0:01:05.160 kind of brought me back to COVID a little bit. 0:01:05.240 --> 0:01:07.080 When I'm sitting in my attic and you're sitting in 0:01:07.120 --> 0:01:09.080 your living room or your office, whatever it was, and 0:01:09.880 --> 0:01:12.240 kind of just making this whole thing work. But you know, 0:01:12.319 --> 0:01:13.520 the beautiful thing about. 0:01:13.240 --> 0:01:15.080 It, we figure it out as we go, right. 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:17.840 The beautiful thing about is we have some incredible microphones. 0:01:17.880 --> 0:01:19.560 So for the people that actually just listen to this 0:01:19.600 --> 0:01:22.360 as a podcast probably have never actually seen anything different. 0:01:22.800 --> 0:01:25.640 But I certainly am looking forward to being back and 0:01:26.040 --> 0:01:28.280 doing these things up close and personal. 0:01:28.760 --> 0:01:32.480 Yeah, well, for this episode we posted, we recorded and 0:01:32.520 --> 0:01:35.839 posted a little bit early because we needed to get 0:01:35.880 --> 0:01:39.120 this done prior to all of the news that is 0:01:39.160 --> 0:01:43.600 going to happen on Tuesday, Tuesday afternoon with regard to 0:01:43.680 --> 0:01:47.840 the roster reductions, and we will get to some thoughts 0:01:47.920 --> 0:01:51.000 outlining that in a minute, but first to recap the 0:01:51.040 --> 0:01:56.120 Packers pre season finale against the Seattle Seahawks wes the 0:01:56.160 --> 0:01:58.560 final tune up for the starters, and of course, in 0:01:58.600 --> 0:02:01.360 that regard, most of the attention all month long has 0:02:01.440 --> 0:02:03.880 been on Jordan Love and the offense. That's where so 0:02:04.000 --> 0:02:08.120 much youth on the Green Bay Packers resides. And for 0:02:08.160 --> 0:02:11.040 the third straight game, Jordan Love and the number one 0:02:11.080 --> 0:02:17.040 offense produced a touchdown in their brief cameo, and yeah, 0:02:17.080 --> 0:02:19.240 some things could have gone a little bit better, a 0:02:19.240 --> 0:02:22.120 little bit smoother. But to score a touchdown in each 0:02:22.160 --> 0:02:25.040 of the three preseason games with your new starting quarterback, 0:02:25.080 --> 0:02:27.840 that's not a bad way to go into the regular season. 0:02:27.760 --> 0:02:29.840 And to end, you know, and all those games feeling 0:02:29.880 --> 0:02:32.320 pretty good about yourself. I mean, it went from Cincinnati 0:02:32.680 --> 0:02:36.720 to New England to you know, that finale against the 0:02:36.720 --> 0:02:38.880 the Seahawks, you know, all three times I think it 0:02:38.919 --> 0:02:41.600 was like, oh, the offense got better today. I felt like, 0:02:42.120 --> 0:02:44.360 you know, one of the arguments I made for playing 0:02:44.800 --> 0:02:47.320 love and the starters in these games was the ability 0:02:47.360 --> 0:02:50.000 to maximize the reps afforded to you during training camp, 0:02:50.040 --> 0:02:52.280 and we said from day one, Mike, the Packers needed 0:02:52.320 --> 0:02:54.560 every single one of them they can get, whether it's 0:02:54.560 --> 0:02:58.720 the public practices, the private practices, any of them. This 0:02:58.840 --> 0:03:00.200 is one of the big things that you have to 0:03:00.240 --> 0:03:04.480 go about doing. So I really look at it, as 0:03:05.120 --> 0:03:09.320 you know, fifteen plays, eighty yards, talking to Christian Watson 0:03:09.320 --> 0:03:11.920 about it afterwards, it was all the things that happened 0:03:11.960 --> 0:03:14.960 on that series that make me feel really confident about 0:03:15.000 --> 0:03:18.679 where the Packers are heading. Offensively, it's vanilla defenses, Mike, 0:03:18.760 --> 0:03:20.600 But as we talk about, if you don't move the 0:03:20.600 --> 0:03:23.640 ball against vanilla defenses. That's also a cause for concern. 0:03:24.000 --> 0:03:26.040 The Packers were able to do that. They did it 0:03:26.080 --> 0:03:28.960 with a left tackle and Rashid Walker, who had played 0:03:29.000 --> 0:03:32.240 four special team snaps a year earlier. Now he's blocking 0:03:32.240 --> 0:03:34.920 the blind side of Jordan Love. Well, David Baktiari sits 0:03:34.960 --> 0:03:37.640 out of the preseason game. You did it with Patrick 0:03:37.680 --> 0:03:40.280 Taylor in Emmanuel Wilson cycling in the background. You did 0:03:40.280 --> 0:03:43.800 it with Malik Heath, an undrafted free agent, catching a 0:03:43.800 --> 0:03:46.160 big slant route for fifteen yards. Oh and then, by 0:03:46.200 --> 0:03:48.960 the way, when it came time for paydert sixty yard 0:03:49.040 --> 0:03:52.360 touchdown to Christian Watson. And as Watson told us afterwards, 0:03:52.640 --> 0:03:54.640 that's a one on one play that he expects to 0:03:54.640 --> 0:03:56.840 make and the Packers hope to continue making this season. 0:03:57.200 --> 0:03:59.680 I thought, for Jordan Love's final audition here before we 0:03:59.680 --> 0:04:04.320 get in regular season, it was an absolutely outstanding performance. 0:04:04.960 --> 0:04:07.680 Yeah, I think I think the Packers offense feels pretty 0:04:07.680 --> 0:04:10.560 good about itself heading into the regular season. Obviously, they 0:04:10.600 --> 0:04:14.360 know they didn't necessarily face everybody's number ones on the 0:04:14.400 --> 0:04:17.240 defensive side of the ball. Nobody's you know, nobody's saying 0:04:17.240 --> 0:04:19.600 they've got this all figured out or anything like that. 0:04:19.880 --> 0:04:22.200 They got the reps they needed, they put points on 0:04:22.240 --> 0:04:25.320 the board on a fairly regular basis. They started to 0:04:25.360 --> 0:04:29.279 smooth smooth some things out, and now things will shift 0:04:29.320 --> 0:04:32.159 into the whole game planning phase. This isn't you know, 0:04:32.200 --> 0:04:34.960 it's not just practicing the playbook anymore. It's going to 0:04:35.040 --> 0:04:39.040 be starting to game plan for the Chicago Bears in 0:04:39.120 --> 0:04:42.279 Week one. But in your last comment you mentioned two 0:04:42.279 --> 0:04:45.760 players that I think are worth talking about here within 0:04:45.800 --> 0:04:51.360 the context of guys who made a you know, it's 0:04:51.520 --> 0:04:54.599 it's a it's a cliche meteoric rise, but I'll say 0:04:54.600 --> 0:04:57.880 it anyway, A rise of that type up the depth 0:04:57.960 --> 0:05:01.119 chart in this training camp and preseason. And I'm talking 0:05:01.160 --> 0:05:04.200 about Rashid Walker on the offensive line and maliek Heath 0:05:04.839 --> 0:05:09.080 in the receiving corps. Rashid Walker, as you mentioned, a 0:05:09.120 --> 0:05:13.320 seventh round pick a year ago, took in some senses, 0:05:13.360 --> 0:05:15.760 took a red shirt year as a rookie here in 0:05:15.800 --> 0:05:19.640 Green Bay, and now by the end of his second 0:05:19.720 --> 0:05:23.400 training camp he is the number two left tackle. He 0:05:23.600 --> 0:05:26.360 was the guy filling in the back half of training 0:05:26.400 --> 0:05:30.080 camp for David Baktiari when he was not lined up 0:05:30.120 --> 0:05:33.560 with the first unit. And then maliek Heath, an undrafted receiver. 0:05:33.680 --> 0:05:36.040 We know this is a young receiving corps. There were 0:05:36.080 --> 0:05:38.960 three draft picks that were brought in, but by the 0:05:39.040 --> 0:05:41.479 end of training camp in the final preseason game, Malik 0:05:41.560 --> 0:05:45.599 Heath is out there running with the ones, catching passes 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:50.120 from Jordan love In in that final preseason game. Those 0:05:50.160 --> 0:05:52.360 are two guys that at the beginning of training camp 0:05:52.400 --> 0:05:54.279 we wouldn't have said that we're gonna be, you know, 0:05:54.400 --> 0:05:57.040 spending a whole lot of time talking about them, but 0:05:58.760 --> 0:06:02.280 their rise individually up the depth chart at their respective 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:03.760 positions very impressive. 0:06:04.160 --> 0:06:07.279 Absolutely, and it's starting off with Walker. I asked, you know, 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:10.120 Sean Clifford after the game on Saturday. You know Clifford 0:06:10.160 --> 0:06:12.280 that was his left tackle at Penn State. Yeah, for 0:06:12.320 --> 0:06:14.760 I believe two years. And you know he even said 0:06:14.800 --> 0:06:16.920 he's like, you watch his film from a year ago 0:06:17.040 --> 0:06:19.120 to watching it now, not even just looking at the 0:06:19.120 --> 0:06:21.200 Penn State stuff, just in Green Bay, just seeing the 0:06:21.279 --> 0:06:24.240 quantum leap that Walker made and the story I keep 0:06:24.240 --> 0:06:26.880 telling people, Mike, if you go back to the twenty 0:06:26.960 --> 0:06:31.599 twenty one NFL Draft and you have those immediate like, hey, 0:06:32.080 --> 0:06:34.599 what you know, way too early predictions for the draft 0:06:34.600 --> 0:06:36.680 for the following year. There are a lot of pundits 0:06:36.720 --> 0:06:38.320 out there that thought that Rashid Walker was going to 0:06:38.360 --> 0:06:40.839 be a first round pick the next year, and unfortunately, 0:06:40.839 --> 0:06:43.120 some injuries and things happened. He ends up falling to 0:06:43.120 --> 0:06:45.440 the Packers in the seventh and the actual twenty twenty 0:06:45.440 --> 0:06:48.320 two NFL Draft virtually red shirts. It comes back this 0:06:48.400 --> 0:06:51.520 year looking to be at a completely stacked position with 0:06:51.680 --> 0:06:54.480 yosh Naiman coming back on the tender. Certainly you had, 0:06:54.560 --> 0:06:57.080 you know, Zach Tom looking like he's going to start somewhere, 0:06:57.640 --> 0:07:00.680 and here comes Rashid Walker. And not just the fact that, okay, 0:07:00.720 --> 0:07:02.640 he made this big improvement, the fact that the Packers 0:07:02.640 --> 0:07:05.320 trusted him enough to block the blind side of Jordan 0:07:05.440 --> 0:07:07.560 Love in two preseason games in which they're going to 0:07:07.560 --> 0:07:09.440 be under the microscope, wanting to make sure that he 0:07:09.480 --> 0:07:11.880 stays healthy. I think that showed a lot of faith 0:07:11.880 --> 0:07:14.480 in him. And then from a Leak Heath standpoint, now 0:07:14.520 --> 0:07:16.760 again we're gonna post this, We're gonna see how everything 0:07:16.800 --> 0:07:19.600 shakes out. But guys who I thought made a great 0:07:19.600 --> 0:07:22.960 account of themselves as undrafted rookies as college free agents. 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:25.640 I don't think, really, Milie Heath could have done much 0:07:25.640 --> 0:07:28.440 more to impress this team, and precious coaching staff led 0:07:28.440 --> 0:07:31.400 the Packers with receiving in the preseason and in every 0:07:31.400 --> 0:07:34.560 opportunity he was given, I thought absolutely capitalized on it. 0:07:34.600 --> 0:07:38.280 For a guy that came in as a backdoor college 0:07:38.280 --> 0:07:41.840 free agent to be starting with the number one offense 0:07:41.880 --> 0:07:44.760 in that preseason finale and even getting those work those 0:07:44.800 --> 0:07:47.640 reps in practice the week leading up to it, I 0:07:47.640 --> 0:07:50.000 think really speaks volumes about what the coaching staff thought 0:07:50.040 --> 0:07:52.040 of him and the camp that Heath really put together 0:07:52.120 --> 0:07:53.480 in Green Bay. Yeah. 0:07:53.520 --> 0:07:57.040 Absolutely, Well, another question I want to throw your way 0:07:57.720 --> 0:08:01.680 with this training camp in pre season now in the books, 0:08:01.680 --> 0:08:03.640 and we talk a lot about the rookies, of course, 0:08:03.920 --> 0:08:06.120 and where they are and how they're going to fit in. 0:08:06.680 --> 0:08:10.680 So the twenty twenty three draft class for the Packers, 0:08:11.240 --> 0:08:15.040 which draft pick impressed you the most over the past month. 0:08:15.280 --> 0:08:18.280 Luke Musgrave, just because I thought the strides he made 0:08:18.280 --> 0:08:20.960 from day one to where it ended, I mean, he's 0:08:21.000 --> 0:08:23.600 going to be asked to fill a really pivotal role 0:08:23.640 --> 0:08:26.000 in this offense now, especially with Tyler Davis out for 0:08:26.040 --> 0:08:28.880 the year. You know, Joside Deguar has a lot of experience, 0:08:28.920 --> 0:08:31.200 but he's used more as an h back. When they 0:08:31.240 --> 0:08:33.640 go to eleven personnel packages in the middle of the field, 0:08:33.720 --> 0:08:35.480 you're going to see number eighty eight quite a bit. 0:08:35.960 --> 0:08:38.000 And I felt like the Packers that you know, they 0:08:38.040 --> 0:08:40.720 made an investment towards the future, the highest they've drafted 0:08:40.760 --> 0:08:43.000 a tight end in twenty three years since Bubba Franks, 0:08:43.000 --> 0:08:46.800 when they took Musgrave at number forty two, and you 0:08:46.880 --> 0:08:49.720 saw the speed, you saw the length, you saw the legs, 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:51.600 you saw all the things that fit with him. But 0:08:51.840 --> 0:08:53.959 I like the grind that he kind of was on 0:08:54.040 --> 0:08:56.800 throughout camp. He didn't rest on his athleticism. He wants 0:08:56.840 --> 0:08:58.640 to do the nitty gritty parts of the tight end 0:08:58.640 --> 0:09:01.280 position as well. A lot of these guys, I think 0:09:01.320 --> 0:09:03.320 on paper, we had a really good idea of what 0:09:03.360 --> 0:09:06.120 these prospects are going to look like. Loose Luke Musgrave, 0:09:06.200 --> 0:09:07.880 especially coming off of that injury, was the guy that 0:09:07.880 --> 0:09:10.240 I thought impressed me the most in terms of what 0:09:10.360 --> 0:09:13.640 he offered to this football team that went beyond the 0:09:14.360 --> 0:09:17.320 resume and the draft grades that ultimately got him selected 0:09:17.320 --> 0:09:18.080 in the second round. 0:09:18.480 --> 0:09:21.240 Yeah, and my selection with regard to this is actually 0:09:21.240 --> 0:09:23.120 going to be from the same round of the draft, 0:09:23.160 --> 0:09:25.320 the second round, and it's it's Jayden Reid, the wide 0:09:25.360 --> 0:09:30.480 receiver from Michigan State. He from almost the moment he 0:09:30.920 --> 0:09:35.040 began taking reps with the number one offense, he just 0:09:35.400 --> 0:09:38.440 has looked like he fits this offense, that he's he 0:09:38.679 --> 0:09:41.360 is what the Packers have been looking for in that role. 0:09:41.440 --> 0:09:45.240 They tried Amari Rodgers as a draft pick, they tried 0:09:45.320 --> 0:09:48.160 a veteran like Taevon Austin a couple of years back. 0:09:48.640 --> 0:09:52.200 They've tried different guys in that slot role. Obviously Randall 0:09:52.240 --> 0:09:55.480 Cobb was here, and no offense to Randall Cobb. Jayden 0:09:55.520 --> 0:09:58.240 Reid looks like he fits this offense better than Randall 0:09:58.320 --> 0:10:02.440 Cobb ever did. And what he's done as a rookie 0:10:02.480 --> 0:10:05.560 and what appears to be his very extensive knowledge of 0:10:05.600 --> 0:10:08.280 the playbook and the connection that he's developed with Jordan 0:10:08.360 --> 0:10:11.680 Love in a very short time. You said it, Musgrave 0:10:11.760 --> 0:10:13.559 is going to play a big role in this offense. 0:10:13.600 --> 0:10:15.600 I think Jaden Reid is going to play just as 0:10:15.640 --> 0:10:17.800 big a role in this offense as a rookie, and 0:10:18.440 --> 0:10:20.839 Packers are going to They're going to have some growing 0:10:20.880 --> 0:10:23.160 pains on offense because they're going to be counting on 0:10:23.600 --> 0:10:26.240 young guys like this who have so much to learn 0:10:26.320 --> 0:10:28.079 and so much to figure out. And it is such 0:10:28.160 --> 0:10:30.880 a long season. It is such a grind, especially for 0:10:30.960 --> 0:10:34.120 rookies who have gone through all of that pre draft 0:10:34.160 --> 0:10:36.520 stuff and then and then after you get drafted, then 0:10:36.559 --> 0:10:38.640 you get thrown into a rookie mini camp, and then 0:10:38.640 --> 0:10:42.079 you're thrown into OTAs with the veterans and mandatory mini camp. 0:10:42.280 --> 0:10:44.160 You get about a month of a break and then 0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:47.200 you've got to be, you know, in training camp full 0:10:47.240 --> 0:10:49.400 speed ahead, and you're the one. You're the guys who 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:52.240 are taking a bunch of snaps in the preseason games 0:10:52.320 --> 0:10:54.439 because the coaches want to get you ready because they're 0:10:54.480 --> 0:10:56.599 going to be counting on you. This is going to 0:10:56.640 --> 0:10:59.520 be a long haul for these rookie draft picks that 0:10:59.559 --> 0:11:02.800 the Packers are going to be counting on. But both 0:11:02.880 --> 0:11:05.280 Jade and Reid and Luke Musgrave sure look like they're 0:11:05.320 --> 0:11:06.800 ready to play those big roles. 0:11:07.120 --> 0:11:10.439 And kids, if you ever wanted to have that testimonial 0:11:10.600 --> 0:11:12.640 or that decision of whether or not to play football, 0:11:12.679 --> 0:11:14.480 or what it's going to take to accept the excel 0:11:14.480 --> 0:11:17.400 at the NFL level. Just run back that Mike Spofford's 0:11:17.400 --> 0:11:19.000 speech right there, because I'll tell you what, I don't 0:11:19.040 --> 0:11:21.000 think I would have been tough enough to handle it myself. 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:24.160 I wouldn't have been the other thing I love. 0:11:24.000 --> 0:11:26.360 About Reid too. So many years I said this to 0:11:26.360 --> 0:11:28.320 you during the game on Saturday. But so many years. 0:11:28.360 --> 0:11:30.240 You know, people want to protect looks and all you 0:11:30.280 --> 0:11:32.360 want to get to. But packers are running end a 0:11:32.440 --> 0:11:34.400 rounds of Jayden Reid. They don't care if they put 0:11:34.440 --> 0:11:36.840 it on film, They'll do it in practice whatever. Because 0:11:36.840 --> 0:11:39.120 again I think it's not some trick play. This is 0:11:39.160 --> 0:11:40.880 going to be this young man's role in the offense 0:11:40.880 --> 0:11:43.520 and they want to get those reps down. An explosive 0:11:43.559 --> 0:11:46.040 young player. And as we've talked about time and time again, 0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:49.080 Matt Arvin, our beloved Matt Arvin here in the game 0:11:49.120 --> 0:11:54.079 presentation department. He loves Jayden Reid from the beginning. A 0:11:54.200 --> 0:11:57.320 Michigan State alumnus, always took a liking to this kid 0:11:57.360 --> 0:11:59.960 coming out of you know, that part of the country. 0:11:59.840 --> 0:12:01.440 But I'll tell you what, he lived up to the hype. 0:12:01.440 --> 0:12:03.960 And I just think there's fast twitch, muscle fiber there. 0:12:04.160 --> 0:12:06.280 I love the way he catches the football. I just 0:12:06.280 --> 0:12:07.800 feel like he's going to be a difference maker and 0:12:07.960 --> 0:12:09.640 a needle mover and a guy that's going to help 0:12:09.679 --> 0:12:11.640 you move the chains in might. The more you talk 0:12:11.640 --> 0:12:13.600 about this football team, if they stay healthy, they have 0:12:13.679 --> 0:12:16.080 so many of these guys, right, Musgrave falls in that 0:12:16.160 --> 0:12:20.200 category obviously, as we just talked about with Heath. With Reed, 0:12:20.440 --> 0:12:23.400 you have Heath potentially in that equation. Samori two Rays 0:12:23.440 --> 0:12:25.880 could potentially be coming back. And then, by the way, 0:12:25.880 --> 0:12:28.760 we're not even talking about Christian Watson and Romeo Dobbs. Yeah. 0:12:28.800 --> 0:12:31.640 And when you're talking about a ceiling for a football 0:12:31.679 --> 0:12:33.440 team and being on the younger side of things and 0:12:33.440 --> 0:12:36.480 wanting to see where youth can take you, I mean, 0:12:36.520 --> 0:12:38.760 there's so many guys to be excited about on this ride. 0:12:39.200 --> 0:12:41.520 Yeah, and you talk about youth potentially putting points on 0:12:41.559 --> 0:12:43.920 the board. You got six round draft pick Onders Carlson, 0:12:43.960 --> 0:12:46.800 a kicker who made a fifty seven yard field goal 0:12:47.160 --> 0:12:49.800 at Lambo. The interesting thing to me, because we've talked 0:12:49.840 --> 0:12:51.960 about a lot of his ups and downs and everything 0:12:51.960 --> 0:12:55.240 that he went through when Anders Carlson was kicking in 0:12:55.320 --> 0:12:56.080 lambeau Field. 0:12:56.080 --> 0:12:56.760 This summer time. 0:12:56.880 --> 0:13:01.720 He was smarting Odden with every exactly I mean, his 0:13:01.720 --> 0:13:04.679 his his downs in terms of the ups and downs 0:13:04.960 --> 0:13:07.480 they took. That took place on the practice field over 0:13:07.520 --> 0:13:10.760 at Nichki, you know a little bit in Cincinnati and in 0:13:11.000 --> 0:13:13.720 that first preseason game when he's been kicking in lambeau 0:13:13.760 --> 0:13:17.080 Field Family Knight. The preseason games he's been, uh, he's 0:13:17.120 --> 0:13:20.719 been as good as anyone. And the Packers are are 0:13:20.760 --> 0:13:23.840 ready to ready to roll. There there is one and 0:13:23.960 --> 0:13:27.080 this is relates to Anders Carlson. There is one roster 0:13:27.240 --> 0:13:31.560 move that the Packers did make before we turned on 0:13:31.600 --> 0:13:34.199 the cameras to tape this, and that is they have 0:13:34.280 --> 0:13:37.520 decided to go young at punter with Daniel Wheeland. The 0:13:37.640 --> 0:13:41.040 veteran pad O'Donnell has been released, and of course that 0:13:41.320 --> 0:13:45.280 impacts Carlson because Daniel Wheelan will be his holder on 0:13:46.160 --> 0:13:49.720 place kicks. An interesting decision here for the Packers. But 0:13:50.080 --> 0:13:53.240 but you know, Brian gudakuns to he He's dropped all 0:13:53.320 --> 0:13:55.960 kinds of hints every time he has spoken with the 0:13:56.000 --> 0:13:59.120 media over the last several months. He's dropped all kinds 0:13:59.160 --> 0:14:01.160 of hints that he is not afraid to go young. 0:14:01.480 --> 0:14:03.760 He is not afraid to put together a young team 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:08.560 that he sees potentially growing together. And this initial roster 0:14:08.720 --> 0:14:12.000 move on Monday that was made at punter certainly speaks 0:14:12.040 --> 0:14:12.280 to that. 0:14:12.760 --> 0:14:15.080 It does, Mike, because Pat o'donald is one of the 0:14:15.080 --> 0:14:17.280 three guys the Packers have that was actually over thirty 0:14:17.360 --> 0:14:20.600 years old, you know, a very young football team. He 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:22.760 was one of the guys that you know, tended to 0:14:23.200 --> 0:14:26.480 lean a little bit more towards that veterans side first 0:14:26.480 --> 0:14:28.760 and foremost. You know, we're taping this. We got to 0:14:28.760 --> 0:14:30.560 get to see what the initial fifty three looks like. 0:14:30.600 --> 0:14:33.080 But if this does work out this way, that Wheeland 0:14:33.640 --> 0:14:35.320 did in fact make the team, I saw a couple 0:14:35.360 --> 0:14:37.280 of things online. I believe he'll be the first Irish 0:14:37.280 --> 0:14:41.200 born NFL player in thirty eight years. Certainly, you've got to, 0:14:41.480 --> 0:14:45.200 you know, can't overstate the importance of the international part 0:14:45.240 --> 0:14:47.600 of this, for the for the league and where he 0:14:47.680 --> 0:14:50.920 comes from, and you know, his development and going to 0:14:51.040 --> 0:14:53.680 UC Davis and you know, finding a way through the 0:14:53.800 --> 0:14:56.280 XFL to get into the NFL. I mean, this kid's 0:14:56.320 --> 0:14:59.800 story is pretty remarkable. And you know, you tip your 0:14:59.840 --> 0:15:01.720 cat to him because I think so many times Mike, 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:04.280 you and I have covered these training camp battles, especially 0:15:04.320 --> 0:15:06.800 at the specialist positions, when you know Tim Mastay and 0:15:06.840 --> 0:15:09.360 Mason Crosby were here a lot of times. It was 0:15:09.400 --> 0:15:10.720 they bring in some guys, but at the end of 0:15:10.720 --> 0:15:13.480 the day, you got you got your two. You don't 0:15:13.480 --> 0:15:15.240 really think too much about who that next guy is 0:15:15.280 --> 0:15:17.840 going to be. And in Wheeland's case, he made himself undeniable, 0:15:17.840 --> 0:15:20.400 I felt, I mean, he showed a world class foot 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:24.360 Both him and Pat o'donald are really tall, very well 0:15:24.400 --> 0:15:27.400 built guys. I mean no disrespect to Jacob Schump, but 0:15:27.440 --> 0:15:29.080 you know, you go back to shum and sixteen and 0:15:29.160 --> 0:15:31.280 Jacob's just a little bit taller than I am. I 0:15:31.280 --> 0:15:34.040 mean it was a smaller type of smaller type of punter. 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:36.560 And now you get these like really long lever guys 0:15:36.600 --> 0:15:39.440 that could just put the ball, you know, miles down 0:15:39.440 --> 0:15:42.040 the field. That's going to be the big thing. But 0:15:42.120 --> 0:15:44.800 also the rapport in the development that's going to have 0:15:44.840 --> 0:15:50.600 to happen with Whalan Wheelan and Andres Carlson because that's 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:52.480 a big part of the relationship too. I know, there 0:15:52.520 --> 0:15:54.640 was so much trust that got built between Mason and 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:57.120 Pat last year I think that was a big calming 0:15:57.160 --> 0:15:59.320 influence on Mason and being able to kind of get 0:15:59.320 --> 0:16:02.720 back on track after the knee injury after some you know, 0:16:02.800 --> 0:16:05.840 we saw in twenty twenty one how difficult things can 0:16:05.840 --> 0:16:08.040 be at times if the wholer situation isn't quite figured 0:16:08.040 --> 0:16:09.800 out so that they're going to grow together is the 0:16:09.800 --> 0:16:12.720 biggest thing. But certainly the Green Bit Packers appreciated of 0:16:12.760 --> 0:16:14.960 what padd O Donald brought and now going to see 0:16:14.960 --> 0:16:16.320 what lies behind this next door. 0:16:16.960 --> 0:16:21.920 Yeah, well we'll take a further look at where things 0:16:21.960 --> 0:16:24.560 stand with these roster cuts and the deadline and everything 0:16:24.560 --> 0:16:27.520 in just a minute, West but some sponsor business First 0:16:27.560 --> 0:16:31.320 Serious XM NFL Radio delivers hard hitting analysis and up 0:16:31.320 --> 0:16:34.720 to the minute NFL news that true football fanatics need. 0:16:34.760 --> 0:16:37.680 Twenty four to seven, three sixty five and ed cousin subs. 0:16:37.720 --> 0:16:40.320 We have something for everyone like our Wisconsin cheese curds, 0:16:40.760 --> 0:16:43.480 mac and cheese, golden fries and creamy shakes, all paired 0:16:43.520 --> 0:16:45.840 with your favorite sub or sub and a bowl Cousin 0:16:45.960 --> 0:16:52.000 subs fifty years of better. All right, The deadline is 0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:55.320 three pm Central Time on Tuesday. The Packers will have 0:16:55.440 --> 0:16:59.520 to have their roster reduced to the NFL mandated fifty 0:16:59.560 --> 0:17:04.520 three plays. Then the waiver period goes until I believe 0:17:04.560 --> 0:17:09.120 it's noon on Wednesday, and then once the waiver period 0:17:09.200 --> 0:17:14.040 has passed and players have cleared waivers, then teams can 0:17:14.080 --> 0:17:17.639 start signing players back to their practice squad. And of 0:17:17.680 --> 0:17:22.280 course there are now sixteen spots on the practice squad, 0:17:22.400 --> 0:17:25.040 so there's a lot there's gonna be a lot of 0:17:25.080 --> 0:17:28.960 interest obviously in how this works out, because because honestly 0:17:29.040 --> 0:17:31.960 wes going into this, we don't really know are the 0:17:32.240 --> 0:17:34.920 how many how many running backs are the Packers going 0:17:34.960 --> 0:17:37.280 to have on the fifty three? How many wide receivers 0:17:37.359 --> 0:17:38.880 is going to be six? Is it going to be seven? 0:17:38.960 --> 0:17:41.439 What are they going to do at tight end? Tyler 0:17:41.520 --> 0:17:45.160 Davis who's out for the season, He was never really replaced. 0:17:45.840 --> 0:17:49.000 So is that a spot where Brian Gutukunstan company will 0:17:49.000 --> 0:17:51.800 be looking at the waiver wire to possibly claim somebody 0:17:51.880 --> 0:17:55.040 or sign a veteran, you know, who gets released maybe unexpectedly. 0:17:55.720 --> 0:18:00.159 There are all kinds of possibilities out there and we 0:18:00.240 --> 0:18:02.640 just have to we just have to wait and see 0:18:02.680 --> 0:18:05.679 what happens. Because, for as much as you can you 0:18:05.760 --> 0:18:07.560 try to get a handle on it, and there's certain 0:18:07.600 --> 0:18:09.560 things that you think you know, and this is how 0:18:09.600 --> 0:18:11.560 this puzzle piece is going to fit here and there. 0:18:11.880 --> 0:18:15.720 There is always something that happens at the roster cut 0:18:15.720 --> 0:18:18.840 down deadline that surprises us that none of us really 0:18:18.880 --> 0:18:22.480 saw coming. There's a decision made that the personal department's 0:18:22.480 --> 0:18:24.800 been thinking about it, but they kept it under wraps 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:27.879 and and suddenly it's a it's a surprise to everyone. 0:18:27.960 --> 0:18:30.400 So we'll just have to see what that might be 0:18:30.440 --> 0:18:31.760 come Tuesday afternoon. 0:18:32.119 --> 0:18:34.960 Yeah, it's very difficult. It's a tough situation, and obviously 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:36.520 your heart goes out to a lot of these guys 0:18:36.560 --> 0:18:38.919 because these are their hopes and dreams. Mike. I mean, 0:18:38.920 --> 0:18:40.879 there's so many guys I talked to and listen to 0:18:40.960 --> 0:18:42.720 in the locker room after the game. I mean talking 0:18:42.760 --> 0:18:45.320 about how you know, you got to keep a levelhead, 0:18:45.359 --> 0:18:47.760 you have to stay focused. I know Emmanuel Wilson, I thought, 0:18:47.760 --> 0:18:50.879 had a really interesting point about how he planned to 0:18:50.880 --> 0:18:53.199 spend the day. And you know, he likes a journal. 0:18:53.560 --> 0:18:56.680 He journals everything that he does. And you know there's 0:18:56.720 --> 0:18:59.280 a by the Rookie Hotel, there's a late you a 0:18:59.320 --> 0:19:00.960 little bit of body water down there. He was just 0:19:00.960 --> 0:19:02.440 going to go down there and pray and just try 0:19:02.480 --> 0:19:05.240 to stay as steady as you can be, because ultimately 0:19:05.440 --> 0:19:07.160 the work is done. I mean now you just got 0:19:07.200 --> 0:19:10.360 to kind of wait for the final results to show 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:12.640 themselves and then figure out, hey, is it fifty three, 0:19:12.720 --> 0:19:15.159 is it practice squad? Is it somewhere else the NFL. 0:19:15.400 --> 0:19:17.359