The Packers report to training camp on Friday with 21 of the 22 players who started the playoff game at Arizona back for another run at the Lombardi Trophy. Because of this stability – not to mention the league’s No. 6 offense and No. 2 defense – Green Bay should be one of the elite teams. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t some important questions that need to be answered. Here are the top 10 (in descending order): Who’ll be the No....
Read more »

Training camp doesn’t open for another three days and there may not even be a season in 2011, but that didn’t stop us from taking a quick glance at the Packers who could be unrestricted free agents next March. Assuming – and as of today these assumptions are about as enormous as Ryan Pickett’s pre-training camp belly – that the players and the owners agree to a new collective bargaining agreement and that the number of accrued seasons to achieve true freedom...
Read more »

General manager Ted Thompson has been prudent when it comes to spending money. Long gone are the days of handing lucrative long-term extensions to broken-down veterans and lavishing millions of dollars on other team’s castoffs. Instead, Thompson has rewarded players on his own roster – usually with contracts that ultimately proved to be fair for both sides. The deals given to Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Grant, Nick Barnett, Aaron Kampman and Cullen Jenkins are perfect examples of this. But Thompson hasn’t been infallible....
Read more »

Fans and members of the media were shocked when Green Bay decided to keep three fullbacks on the active roster last season. At a time when many teams have only one player at the position, holding on to John Kuhn, Korey Hall and rookie Quinn Johnson seemed excessive. But there proved to be a logical reason behind the move – Johnson simply wasn’t ready to play and GM Ted Thompson didn’t want to risk placing him on the practice squad. Ironically, this...
Read more »

If you listen to the national media, the Packers defense should be the second-coming of the ‘86 Bears this season. NFL.com’s Pat Kirwan recently proclaimed the secondary to be the best in the league, and just the other day, Yahoo Sports’ Jason Cole ranked the linebackers at No. 3. “Someday in the near future, NFL people will talk about how the Packers linebacking corps is like some four-headed nightmare,” wrote Cole. “With Nick Barnett, Clay Matthews, Brad Jones and A.J. Hawk (who...
Read more »

With Johnny Jolly suspended for the season, converted nose tackle Ryan Pickett will likely move into the starting lineup at left defensive end. As far as depth is concerned, the Packers have four intriguing young players on the roster, but only one of them has started a game in the NFL. Here’s a brief look at the contenders for the backup jobs at end: Justin Harrell – Chosen 16th overall in the 2007 draft, the former Tennessee star has missed 35 games...
Read more »

Johnny Jolly’s suspension will hurt the Packers, but it won’t hurt Justin Harrell. In fact, the former No. 1 pick is now – provided he can stay healthy – almost a lock to make the final roster. That’s because of all the young defensive linemen who’ll be fighting for backup jobs this summer, he’s the only one who can play both end and nose tackle. Why’s versatility so important? Because without Jolly, backup nose tackle Ryan Pickett is going to be counted...
Read more »

The regular season doesn’t start for another two months, but the Packers have already suffered a significant loss. The NFL on Friday suspended Johnny Jolly indefinitely for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. The veteran defensive end will not play in 2010. The exact cause of the lengthy suspension is not yet known. What is known, however, is that stopping opposing offenses has just gotten more difficult. Jolly wasn’t always the most disciplined player in the world, but his unique blend of...
Read more »

Since round the clock coverage from ESPN obviously isn’t enough to feed his giant ego, Brett Favre has taken an additional step to ensure that he’ll be THE story when training camps open for all 32 teams at the end of the month. The veteran quarterback sat down recently for an interview with Men’s Journal – a story that will conveniently hit the newsstands this weekend. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune ran excerpts from the wide-ranging interview on Wednesday. Favre talks to writer Stephen Rodrick...
Read more »

Coach Mike McCarthy continues to leave the door open to the possibility of acquiring an outside linebacker before the start of the regular season – and for good reason. As of today, the Packers look to be extremely thin at arguably the most important position in a 3-4 defense. Even if one assumes that second-year man Brad Jones will blossom into a quality player – and that’s far from a given – the backups are dubious at best. Brady Poppinga is the...
Read more »