Rookie / 1st year - camp opens

quote:

Originally posted by Hungry5:

How many make it to OTAs and TC?

quote:

First-round pick Nick Perry, who is switching from his preferred spot as a defensive end in a 4-3 defense to outside linebacker in the Packers' 3-4 scheme, lined up at left outside linebacker, the position typically occupied by Clay Matthews.

"We played Nick Perry exclusive on the left side," McCarthy said. "That will definitely be the starting point for him."

Jerel Worthy, Green Bay's second pick at No. 51 overall, immediately looked like the type of dominant force on the defensive line that the Packers are hoping he can become.

"His first step is clearly something that we were excited about when we evaluated him in college," McCarthy said of Worthy. "You could definitely see that. I don't like to compare players, but he has a very explosive first step, even for a big guy. Whether he's playing the 3-technique or even the shade, he's definitely going to be a factor inside. That was evident through our drill work today.

"Very explosive for a big guy." continue

quote:

Nick Perry played left outside linebacker in his first rookie orientation camp practice Friday, which raises at least the possibility that the Packers plan to move Clay Matthews to the right side.

Matthews played on the right side his rookie year of 2009, then the left side the last two seasons.

As a rule of thumb, teams that play 3-4 defenses generally play their bigger outside linebacker on the left side on the theory that offenses run more to their right (the defense’s left). Perry is about 270 pounds, which is 15 pounds heavier than Matthews’ listed playing weight last season.continue

quote:

Still on the left:
Linebacker Nick Perry played left outside linebacker for the second straight day in practice, although it’s still not clear if the Packers will keep Perry at that spot and move linebacker Clay Matthews to the right side.

Either way, the first-round pick likely will start somewhere.

Good impression:
Cornerback Casey Hayward did enough to impress McCarthy during his first practice on Friday.

McCarthy wasn’t ready to make predictions or proclamations about the second round pick, but he’s glad the Packers have him.

“He looks great,” McCarthy said. “He definitely looks very explosive through the hips. It’s something that jumped out at me the little bit I saw during drill work. He’s an excellent athlete. I think he’s an excellent selection.”continue

quote:

B.J. Coleman may not have been up to speed on Green Bay Packers history when he was drafted two weeks ago, but the seventh-round pick from Tennessee-Chattanooga was a living, breathing Wikipedia page by the time he stepped on the practice field for the first time Friday.

And what an impressive display of resourcefulness by Coleman. He even knows the franchise’s earliest name — the Indian Packing Co. — and the key dates — it was born in 1919 and joined the NFL in 1921 — right off the top of his head.

Think he was happy to be in the team’s rookie minicamp this weekend?

“What an awesome opportunity for all of us youngsters coming in here and being around these vets and seeing the Packer way and them showing you what the ‘G’ means on the helmet and represents on your chest,” Coleman said. “To be a part of it is great.

snip

“It was a great feeling to come to an organization like this and to see the history and success that they’ve had with their guys and how they develop them,” Coleman said. “They take it very seriously. You can tell when you shake the hands of the coaches how important it is for them with the development process and getting better. Being a part of that is special.”

Coleman got to experience how special it was Friday when he hit the practice field for the first time. He displayed an NFL-caliber arm and an easy throwing motion, but struggled with accuracy.

That might have been attributable to throwing mechanics. The Packers teach much different footwork than what Coleman is used to and there will be an adjustment period. continue

quote:

If Worthy is everything the Packers hope, perhaps they finally will have a replacement for Cullen Jenkins, who left in free agency last summer.

From a height and weight standpoint, the 6-foot-2, 308-pound Worthy practically mirrors Jenkins (6-2, 305), who in the Packers’ 2010 Super Bowl season had seven sacks in just 11 games.

Worthy, who lined up at right end in the base 3-4 defense and will play defensive tackle in the nickel package, comes to Green Bay with a chip on his shoulder.

snip

The Packers held Daniels out of practice and other than some light jog-through work, the 6-foot, 291-pounder won’t practice this weekend. McCarthy said Daniels could be cleared for individual position work next week and possibly be ready for organized team activities that begin on May 22.

“I’m just here to do my job, keep my mouth shut, go to work and learn every day,” Daniels said. “These guys get after it, and it’s definitely going to be an experience. The pressure’s on me. I have to come in and work at the same level as guys like that.” continue

quote:

Maybe the most telling part of Mike McCarthy’s response to a question about the centers at the Green Bay Packers’ rookie orientation camp is that he opened by talking about his coaches.

The Packers’ coach has three former NFL centers on staff: offensive line coach James Campen (seven-year NFL career), assistant offensive line coach Joel Hilgenberg (10-year career) and tight ends coach Jerry Fontenot (16-year career).

Genus was one of the most improbable players to stick with the Packers last season, even if it was on the practice squad. At 6-0, he’s unusually short for an offensive lineman — Wells at 6-1 7/8 is short for the position, and he’s noticeably taller than Genus.

Yet Genus won a spot on the practice squad because of his strength and natural leverage as a blocker. Though he’s short, he weighs 320 pounds, and at his college pro day at South Florida a year ago did 28 bench-press reps of 225 pounds. The question is whether he has enough strength and intangibles to make it in a big man’s game.

“You have to work harder every place to make up for the (height) disadvantage,” Genus said. “Even talking to (defensive lineman B.J.) Raji, he’s like, ‘You have the perfect height.’ Even he hates competing against me sometimes because leverage is everything. I have a good base and am pretty stable. I kind of like it.” continue

quote:

"Playing in the ACC, all the D-ends there are, it's ridiculous." Datko said of the competition he's faced. "Going against that talent prepares you to come here. Every defensive end that has played over me in practice has gone on to play in the NFL.

"And our next one is going to go in the first or second round. Practice always helped me out a lot."

In Datko, coach Mike McCarthy might have a boom or bust player given his injury history. Had he not had three surgeries on his shoulder dating to high school, his combination of size (6 foot 6, 315 pounds), agility (4.54 seconds in the shuttle drill) and productivity (four sacks allowed in his final three seasons) would have made him a potential first-round pick.

...Datko was so competitive the coaches were willing to let him protect quarterback Christian Ponder's blindside his true freshman season.

"I grew up playing basketball and footwork is key in basketball," Datko said. "I only started playing football in high school. I started as a freshman so I was real undersized and my coach just sat me down and said, 'Listen, you have to be a technician, you have to use footwork and get in good position.'

"I do that and now I've added size so it helps a lot."

He is cleared to do everything at Packers camp and has regained most of his strength, although he thinks there's room for him to bulk up beyond the 40 pounds he gained in college. continue

quote:

The good news for Packers fans is a weekend-ending practice on Sunday that was praised by McCarthy.

“Today was our best practice. The tempo was the best we had of the three. I really felt the practice environment for the team as a whole got better through the weekend. That’s a credit to the players and a credit to our coaches. We actually finished a little ahead of schedule coming off the practice field today. I don’t think that’s ever happened for a rookie orientation camp. They were flying around today,” McCarthy said.

“Gurley and Borel stood out and that’s what you expect. It’s a camp that you don’t have a lot of contact. You look for their skill set, what they bring to the table, how they fit, the potential for a roster spot. There are definitely a few guys that’ll have a chance to stay,” McCarthy said of the receivers group in general.

“I don’t concern myself with (roster spots) in May. Create the competition and your roster will come to you. I don’t chase roster moves in May and June. I don’t ever try to pick the team this early.”

“Andrew (Quarless) will be challenged for training camp. Alex (Green) looks great. Derek Sherrod is really progressing. I’m hoping Derek and Alex will be ready for training camp, and Andrew, from a time table standpoint, is a question mark for training camp,” McCarthy said.
continue

quote:

Originally posted by titmfatied:
This guy is going to be quite the character. Should be a lot of stories about him through training camp. Past the click BJ Coleman talks a bit more about how he wound up working out with Favre and there's a quote from MM on his first impression of Coleman on the field.