#596 Packers Unscripted: Youth is served

training camp rolls around. But wrapping up the off season here this final week, veterans essentially excused from the on field O t a work, So this week is one that is very much focused on the young players on this uh. This Packers ninety man roster and UH just another opportunity for young guys to get their feet under them, to learn the playbook a little bit more, to get ready for we're training camp when they will be fighting for those roster spots. Absolutely, and I want to talk

about Jordan's Love. I want to talk about Josh Meyers. I want to talk about Eric Stokes and all these young guys. I got a chance to get some reps during these three days of O t S. But before we get there. I want to talk about Aaron Jones for a minute now. This is voluntary. Guys were excused. Matt Lafleur even said it a couple of weeks ago, if you participate in the virtual portion of this week, you'll still get credit for being here. I believe that

was one of the things he mentioned. So Aaron Jones was excused. And it's not that Aaron Jones is there, he's making a statement. This is I just want to offer this into evidence for exactly why the Green Bay Packers made it such an emphasis to resign this young man back in March. Because running backs it's a tough position, Mike, it's tough to get paid, it's tough to last. But Aaron Jones is different. He's different as a playmaker on the field, he's different as a guy in the locker room,

and for everything that he's been through this offseason. I just thought it was very adding that that guy stuck around finished this thing out. And as I said to you even at one point in the practice, I mean, if you ever wanted a better example of seeing one guy just kind of being a notch above you know, everyone else, it was kind of Aaron Jones out there, the way he moves the plays, he makes a little bit of a man among boys. He was just a little delf there with all the rest of these young

guys on the roster. No offense to anyone paid running backs in the league. Now he's dealing with a bunch of guys who are rookies, first year players, and guys trying to make this roster, and here's Aaron Jones out there doing his thing. I just thought that was an

incredible testament to him. And again, for as difficult as I know this offseat and has been for him these last three months have been for him, just to see him out there kind of brought a smile to my face as you and I walked out on a Clark hainkle Field on Tuesday. Yeah. Well, a couple of those young guys that we'll talk about here, you and I writing about them on Packers dot com this week. We'll start with second round draft pick Josh Meyers at center.

And I know we talked about this a little bit on an earlier show, but when you look at you look at collectively everything we saw through the O T A S, through minicamp, all of the reps that Josh Myers took in, particularly in the eleven on eleven where he was the center with the number one offensive line. However it was constructed for that given day or that

given practice period. The number of times that he was taking the snaps as the number one center, it sure looks like they are going to give this young man every opportunity to be the starting center on the offensive line as a rookie. Do you get that. I'm not saying anybody's handing him the job, but he's going to be given He's going to be given the chance to nail down this job as a rookie. That's the sense I get. It's not even future tense, Mike, it's past tense.

I mean, you look at how they use these six practices that you and I were able to go and watch. Now. Obviously, Elton Jenkins was there for the early Porsche the offseason program was out of it the second half of it, but Lucas Patrick, John Runnyan Jr. There are number of guys that could have factored into that center spot. The Green Bay Packers made it a point that Josh Myers

is going to take these reps. It reminds me of the same exact thing they did with j C. Tread Or, you know, and some of these other guys where they drafted them and there they committed them to that position. And I just feel like, again, he's going to have to earn this. We got to see what it looks

like when the pads go on. But from a mental aptitude perspective, and just the way that he plays that position, and coming from the program that he did, Josh Myers seems to have what it takes from a pure on paper perspective to be a year one starter. And the fact that Green Bay had all these other options they could have looked at for the center position, the fact that they gave him that sort of acknowledgement. This offseason program, I think speaks volumes about where they view him right

now and where they think he could be later this summer. Yeah, when you when you watch the videos looking at Josh Meyers, his his sessions with the media, We've had a couple of them now. The way he talks about his game, his coach, the way he wants to go about learning everything, all the ins and outs of the offense, and and just the way he handled himself and he carries himself. You can see why the Packers like this guy and why they invested a second round draft pick in him.

The other thing I will say is that again, nobody's nobody's handing in the job. But if Josh Meyers through training camp in the preseason can prove that he he is the guy at center, that he can be the guy to hold down that job, it really simplifies a lot of things for the for the Packers. Because we've talked about, Okay, guys like Elton Jenkins, Billy Turner, Lucas Patrick, their versatility, their ability to play multiple positions has been

extremely valuable and will continue to be extremely valuable. But if Josh Meyers can nail down the center position so that Lucas Patrick doesn't have to focus as much attention there and can focus on guard, Elton Jenkins doesn't have to try to play every position, but maybe he's going to fill in at left tackle if Boxer he's not back, But also then you know he can focus on guard

and maybe left tackle. Billy Turner in that respect also maybe gets to focus that much more of his attention at right tackle, which, as we've talked about, he proved last year of all the different spots he can play and play well. Right tackle is probably his best fit in his best spot, particularly in this offense and the way it runs. If Josh Meyers can't be the guy, the Packers will figure out a way. They will, But it just feels like if he can be, things start

to simplify a lot on the offensive line. It it reduces the number of options and combinations that you have to consider, which I think is going to be helpful for all those players as as valuable as they've been with their versatility. Well, and a few things to this. First and foremost relates to Myers. The fact that he has been at center. That has opened the door for how Green Bay has wanted to use the rest of that offensive line. And what I mean by that isn't

just okay, here's this guy is gonna go there. This guy's gonna go there. No, it's allowed it. So it's like, Okay, what are our different guard combinations that we want to try. Who are the guys we want to run at the tackle positions. Knowing that you may not have David Baktiari in the early part of this season, could have him guessing that's what he's planning to do, but you just don't know until a guy gets cleared. So that's where you saw Billy Turner at left tackle. You saw Elton

Jenkins at left tackle. The two guys that have basically been pretty stationary where Myers at center and Lucas Patrick at right guard, which is valuable for Lucas to a guy that's still only really been entrenched as a one year starter, just getting to learn one position after being in a rover roll for a number of years. So

all that stuff is important. But seeing the rest of this competition way out, Royce Newman getting some number one snaps throughout the spring, Ben Braden kind of coming out of nowhere for a lot of people being able to get some work at left tackle after Elton Jenkins was missing. That's gonna be where this sort of fire is flamed throughout training camp and trying to figure out what the

best combination of five is going to be. Because, as you and I have said since the day we wrote our position by position series going into the draft, even before Josh Myers is a member this roster, Green Bay has a lot of ways they can go on this offensive line. In the more guys that can get pegged into certain spots that starts to clear that picture up now for the two thou season. Yeah, I think that's gonna be something definitely to watch in training camp quickly.

Here West Serious x M NFL Radio delivers hard hitting analysis and up to the minute NFL news that true football fanatics need. Seven three turning our attention here to first round draft pick Eric Stokes, and UM, just to let everybody know, there is a story on Josh Myers that is on Packers dot com. There's also one on Eric Stokes written by you. I did the Myers when

you did the Stokes one on Packers dot com. We've talked a bit about Stokes already and UM, but some of the angle that you took with regard to your story I thought was interesting because when you look at the whole picture here, you know the athletic ability, all of the all those physical traits that Eric Stokes is

bringing into his young career in the NFL. And then for a three day minicamp last week, he gets to work side by side with Jayar Alexander, one of the best cornerbacks in this game and a guy who was a rookie and a very young player, not that long ago, right, and then combine that with the fact that his position coaches Jerry Gray, a former Pro Bowl player himself and then a longtime coach in the NFL who has coached a number of Pro Bowl and All Pro defensive backs

through a rather distinguished coaching career. Eric Stokes couldn't ask for a better situation almost when. And that's not to take anything away from, you know, from Kevin King and Shannon Sullivan and what those guys are going to bring to this secondary. I'm not discounting that at all. But in terms of a young guy learning the ropes and figuring it out and finding his role in this defense whatever,

that's going to be his rookie year. To to have Alexander on one shoulder, so to speak, and Jerry Gray on the other, it's it's a perfect setup. Yeah, And Shamar John Charles is in the same spot right now, to the fifth round pick on Appalachian State. Apple Acchian State. I always mess that up, well, depending on who you talked to, a mess set up. But the thing about when you look at everything with Stokes is he jumps

off the page. You know, the way he broke out in his true junior year, the forty time that he registered all of those things made him a first round pick. It's it's just it does you know in the size and all that. But I think what I witnessed the most during this offseason program was one the value of this for young players. Uh you can even just tell the way that he's talking. I mean, yeah, there's a

long way for Stokes to go. There's a lot of information that has to go osmosis from Jerry Gray passing it down to his first round pick here, but just listening to the way Gray talked about it and listening to the lessons that Stokes has already learned, because yeah, you're not tackling, Yeah you're not doing all those type of things, but understanding what you're seeing on the field in a blink of an eye, with how fast the

pieces are moving out there. In translating that to what how you react to a play, that's the step man.

That's where a guy goes from playing with his athleticism and his natural talent wixed with you know, some fledgening cornerback skills at the college level to doing what your Alexander has done now in the national Football League, And I think that's what I like the most about Stokes and and listen to him talk and the enthusiasm and the energy, even getting you know, sometimes jumping over a word or two because he's so excited about you know

what he's saying. I just get the feeling. You can tell why the Packers when they sat down with this guy, when Jerry Gray had the conversations with this guy in the pre draft process, why they liked him so much. Now you talked about the way this lines up in the secondary, this is picture perfect. He has Alexander and Great to learn from, but he also has Kevin King and Shandon Sullivan and you know Will Redman. In the dime. There's all these guys, Josh Jackson returning as well. There's

these guys competing for playing time. So it's not like Green Bay's just saying, Okay, Stokes, you have to be a first your starter. You're gonna be starting on the perimeter. He's gonna have time to learn here. And as he goes kind of climbed that depth chart. But in terms of just low pressure, you know, high upside in terms of what learning in an offseason program, I just think

it was set up for him perfectly. Yeah, I think it's uh, he he's going to be He's going to be one to watch in uh in training camp, just you know, especially when I'm most curious. I think when the pads go on. He he mentioned um, you know, and you quoted him in the story talking about how he's he's so much more accustomed to being a press

man corner. And so I'm very interested when the pads go on because obviously all of the all of the stuff through the spring is nonpadded, but when he when he is actually jamming wide receivers at the line and you know, the contact you know, ramps up a little bit when you get to that stage of training camp. I'm really interested to see just just how he looks, uh, you know, because he's certainly shown to this point he

looks like he belongs. But then you also want to see those guys take take the steps, take those strides from what they do as a rookie in the spring with all kinds of promise too then tow then what they show when they're out there in eleven on eleven with with all of the you know, all the big dogs, and you could see why he was a press man corner at Georgia with his size and his speed that is tailor made for the sec and being able to be physical the line of scrimmage but also have the

quickness and acceleration to make up for it. You know, if a guy gets behind you at all, especially at that level where quarterbacks probably aren't throwing balls on a you know, a rope like you're gonna see at this level. So it makes total sense, but you need more in That was one of the big messages that Jerry Grace said with the entire cornerback room last year was making

sure they understand zone man, press off. There's so many different components that they have to master and we actually really don't know what the big emphasis is going to be yet with Joe Barry, Yeah what what this is all gonna look like? But certainly, uh, those lessons and being able to understand what's expected of him when he isn't directly in a receiver's face, those are things that

are going to pay dividends down the road. Yeah. Well, with all the focus on the young players on the roster this last week here the offseason program, I want to I want to toss a question at you, and I'm sure we'll talk about this more when we come back and get behind these microphones again during training camp. But I'm just curious your thoughts on these young guys that we know we're going to be fighting for roster spots and whatnot based on what you saw this spring.

Are there guys that have sort of piqued your interest? I'll call them the under the weeder guys and maybe the fans, don't you know, they're not the household names, not a lot of the guys that we've been talking about, the draft picks and whatnot. But these under the radar guys that you think are gonna be are gonna be

worth watching when training camp here rolls around. Yeah, Marv is gonna love this from the production standpoint of overlaying video with the Patrick Taylor's of the world here making sure we have some of that available. But there are there's there's probably a list of five or six guys that have intrigued me. It starts with Patrick Taylor. This guy is a he looks like James Starks, but with probably twenty more pounds on his body. I mean, he's

just a full grown man. He's a guy that I still think would have been a draft pick a year ago had it not been for that List Frank or whatever. He was dealing with with the foot that basically kept him out for almost like a year and a half, but he got back at the end of last season. They you know, obviously they made the move with Mike Weber. It's kind of a three man race right now for that number three running back job, and he's fully entrenched

in that. The guy that I think probably heightened his draft his stock in the off season program more than anyone those Jowan Winfrey, who was a guy that was on the practice squad for basically of last season, was a pickup. Has some NFL experience before, but when you're talking about slot receivers and guys who can do things across the middle, Winfrey made a lot of impressive catches

this spring. I think he really helped his case. And and just seeing some of these other guys on the offensive line, I mean, we can't really derive a lot of information, but seeing Simon Stepanek for the first time in pads, uh not pads, but it's the first time in a uniform after last year missing the entire year with the torn a c L. Those first impressions are important, and I just feel like with some of these guys that the Packers kind of red shirted last year, seeing

which ones now can mount a push for a roster spot, it's gonna be really compelling theater come August. Yeah. I made a list of a few guys here as far as this young player category, and both Patrick Taylor and

Juwan Winfrey were on it. And again we just talked about, you know, with Eric Stokes and when the pads go on, and and and the press coverage obviously it's sort of almost goes without saying with regard to the running back and getting into the preseason games like we've mentioned before, but with a guy like Winfrey, that's also you want to see when the pads go on, when it gets more physical at the line of scrimmage, can he still get open and be making the catches, making the plays

that he made during the spring, Right That's the that's the next step that that these guys have to stake to take. So he's certainly on my list. I'm gonna throw one other one at you as far as a young returning player, and we've talked about the competition that there's going to be at the cornerback position, you know, with Josh Jackson in the mix and and Eric Stokes and Kudar Home in six round picks in recent years.

But Stanford Samuels undrafted, undrafted a year ago, he flashed, you know, made a couple of plays here in uh in this o t a mini camp um period of time in the spring and uh and you know this is this, this is a young man I think is uh, He's he's going to have a spotlight on him, I think even more so in the preseason games maybe than than in practice. Obviously you've got to prove it in

practice to you know, to earn that playing time. But but for a guy who for a guy who accomplished what he accomplished in college and was kind of a surprise to not get drafted. And then with all with you know, all these young guys, you know, second year guys. You could call him that that missed everything from a rookie offseason standpoint and a rookie preseason standpoint because of COVID and everything last year. These are the guys that

are going to be really interesting to watch. And Stanford Samuel's at cornerback is on my list A couple of things that I love that pick. Sanford Samuels was one of my guys last year. I actually in my unofficial fifty three, I actually had him on it last year. I was really impressed by the camp he put together,

and I love his backstory. The one thing that hurt him was the forty time and and that was something that you know how that works at this league, Mike, is that sometimes scouch latch onto height, wait forty bench reps, and they don't let it go um and sometimes it ends up being right. But in sometimes I think, as I even wrote about Insider Inbox this week, they tend to overthink things. Ben Braden's a guy that they kind

of overthought things with. No matter if Ben Braden becomes a starting caliber NFL offensive lineman or not, I don't think it matters. He already made it this far. He's already been in the league this long. And this is a guy that originally from NFL dot Com, got a chance to be in an NFL training camp. They didn't even say a chance to like try to make a roster.

They were saying a chance to be on a ninety man roster and I think sometimes people latch onto certain attributes about guys and they just hold them to that because there's a lot of guys to look at. But Stanford Samuel's and then another guy I'll throw out there too is kaban Into. Uh. You know, last year had an unfortunate injury right at the beginning of the season, kind of derailed any hope he had of being able to play. Got to practice a little bit, but wasn't

able to be in any games. As former receiver from Colorado State, I believe they have a really deep cornerback room with Kadar Holman coming back from injury. He was back during the training the off season program. You look at it with Josh Jackson being in that competition, there's so many ways that it can go and it's gonna be really interesting see which of those young guys in the cornerback room can kind of make a push uh this training camp to get a roster spot, because inevitably, Mike,

every year it happens. Yeah, it does, it does. And with with regard to how different everything was last year through the off season and training camp, it's all it's almost like this year there's there's this larger pool of the potential surprise guys you know, to be competing for those spots on the fifty three and and you know, realistically the sixty three, you know, with the with the practice squad, harverd many players are going to be on the practice squad? Is it going to be sixteen? Yeah?

That that's a That's another really interesting factor here, because love it, because yeah, with the withe Man off season roster, but fifty three and sixteen on the practice squad, you're not you don't necessarily really now, some of them you're going to get from elsewhere, right because your scouts have uncertain guys that are going to be on the waiver wire and whatnot. But you don't necessarily you don't You're not necessarily gonna lose as many guys because of so

many opportunities to bring guys back to the practice. And we could talk for two hours about all my reasons why I love the changes they've made with the practice squad. I've already talked about them in the past. But the other thing, and I'll close on this, Mike, that Green Bay had to figure out. I know there was a lot of consternation, a lot of discussion about the quarterback situation, Aaron Rodgers not being here, Jordan's loved taking of the

teams that we saw. But one way or another, whether or not twelve is back for training camp or not, green Bay needs to find a number three quarterback or could potentially be a number two quarterback. And I really like in the span of basically six weeks, eight weeks, two months, they acquired all these guys. Blake Bortles, you know, kind of you know, a guy that has experienced with Nathaniel Hackett, has played at the game's highest level, has

been in an NFC championship game. They go and get Kurt Ben Kurt, a guy that was on a practice squad and injury reserve for three years with Atlanta learning from you know, Matt shob and in Mattie Ice. And then joke Jake Delagata Dolla Gala six ft seven. If the guy would end up making a roster, would be the second tallest quarterback in Packer's history, like in a you know, a height race with three other guys to be the second tallest quarterback in NFL history. So they've

acquired different types of talent. I thought quarterback is one of those positions to that really emphasize what this time of the year is all about because we haven't seen it for a number years. Because you know who the number one is gonna be, you know who the number two is gonna be. But but just finding players in attributes, in things that you like in guys. Not everybody's gonna make it to camp, not everybody's gonna make it to

the first preseason game. But you have to cast a wide net at these positions, the specialist positions as well to figure out what you have to put together that best fifty three and that best six team man practice squad come September. Yeah, well, when we come back for training camp, we will certainly be breaking down all the position competitions the way we see them shaping up. We'll preview those on the website leading up to training camp with a with our second round of position by position

series that we do every year. One is pre draft, one is pre training camp because you you know, you really felt but yeah, absolutely, it's it's it's definitely been. Uh, it's definitely been an interest interesting offseason here in Green Bay. But with that, we're going to call it a wrap on this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure to follow all of our coverage of the team and all the preview coverage leading up to training camp next month. That will all be there for you on packers dot com

for Wes. I am Mike, thank you for tuning and everybody and we will see you at camp.