2019 Green Bay Packers offseason - OTAs/minicamps

[Shanedorf]

https://www.packersnews.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2019/06/14/running-game-reps-evidence-packers-offensive-emphasis-change/1445328001/

From the very beginnings of his tenure as head coach of the Green Bay Packers, Matt LaFleur has held a strong conviction about one facet of the offense he brought with him from Tennessee: His team will run the ball.

There is rep after rep of run plays, inside, outside, with backs looking for cutback lanes and trying to press the heels of the linemen in front of them. A handoff is often the first play of team drills.

But it’s not just for show. The repetitions of plays, and technique, have been important for a largely veteran offensive line group.

“I think personally in the run game, there’s still some thinking going on because things are different, and we’re looking at things a little different than we used to,” right tackle Bryan Bulaga said. “Which is fine, but that takes a little while to get totally comfortable. And I feel like in the pass game, I feel like almost there.”

Lots more in the article

[vegas492]

43 minutes ago, Shanedorf said:

that's a bit of a strawman argument from my view. You took a simple comment about getting the RBs more involved in the passing game and took it to an illogical conclusion - and then suggested the Packers are "doing it wrong" as a result of that erroneous conclusion.

Here's the original tweet -

"An early trend for the Matt LaFleur offense is how involved RBs seem to be in the passing game. #Packers using tailbacks all over the formation and dedicating drills to fundamentals of receiving. Could be a way to get more touches for Aaron Jones. "

Not sure how it is a "strawman" argument when LeFleur's second leading receiver (catches) last year was Dion Lewis.

Now...seeing the other side of it, they lost Walker early.  And outside of Corey Davis (who is quite young), I can't name you another WR they have off the top of my head.  So, maybe that number was out of necessity.

I feel like our WR's/TE's are better than theirs.  Hopefully MLF does as well and will tailor his offense to the talent that is on the roster.  

[vegas492]

20 minutes ago, Shanedorf said:

https://www.packersnews.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2019/06/14/running-game-reps-evidence-packers-offensive-emphasis-change/1445328001/

From the very beginnings of his tenure as head coach of the Green Bay Packers, Matt LaFleur has held a strong conviction about one facet of the offense he brought with him from Tennessee: His team will run the ball.

There is rep after rep of run plays, inside, outside, with backs looking for cutback lanes and trying to press the heels of the linemen in front of them. A handoff is often the first play of team drills.

But it’s not just for show. The repetitions of plays, and technique, have been important for a largely veteran offensive line group.

“I think personally in the run game, there’s still some thinking going on because things are different, and we’re looking at things a little different than we used to,” right tackle Bryan Bulaga said. “Which is fine, but that takes a little while to get totally comfortable. And I feel like in the pass game, I feel like almost there.”

Lots more in the article

Good article.  What caught my eye was a "balance" between running and passing.  I didn't take that to mean 50/50, that's just inefficient.  But, I like the commitment to the run as it decreases hits on the QB, opens up passing lanes and wears down the defense.

Lane Taylor showing a little bit of attitude with his quote, too, which made me LOL!

[Shanedorf]

53 minutes ago, vegas492 said:

Hopefully MLF does as well and will tailor his offense to the talent that is on the roster.  

my thoughts as well
I don't think we can use the Titans offense as a barometer of how the AR-led  Packers will deploy the RB's in the passing game

[Leader]

I think its safe to say the Packers offense will (at least try to.....) become more conservative moving forward.

How that plays with AR - and if he will retain the right to kill any/all running plays at the LOS - nobody's saying yet. 

AR should head in to the "Autumn Phase" of his career: handing the ball off more and utilizing a quicker/shorter passing game to limit the adventures of holding the ball for extended periods waiting on deeper routes to develop/clear.....which is less efficient and hazardous to ARs health. 

The components of a good offense:
More running  =  yards per rush
Quicker releases  =  yards after catch.
More / steadier first downs and a healthier AR for the long haul.

.

[MrBobGray]

The thing is running the ball more isn't about being a more conservative offense.  Something the Packers offense seemed to outright forget in recent years (and I say Packers offense because I have no idea who was most responsible for this between all the involved parties) was that a successful running attack creates big play opportunities.  If you want to strike down the field you have to manipulate the safeties somehow, and there's not a lot of better ways to do that than a successful running game.  The sad thing is, the Packers should know this better than anyone; Rodgers second best year was 2014, which was basically "11 Personnel - the story of Eddie Lacy and the 500 Play Action TDs".  I mean, their TEs were a post-ACL Andrew Quarless and rookie DickRod, their 4th best wide receiver by yards was Jarrett Boykin who had a whopping 23, and even their primary WR set was one whole guy who could attack downfield at that point (Nelson).  I mean, look at this depth chart:

• WR - Nelson, Cobb, Adams, Boykin, Janis, Dorsey
• TE - Quarless, Rodgers, Bostick
• RB - Lacy, Starks, Harris

and here's Rodgers stat-line with that group:

• 341 of 520 (65.6%) for 4381 yards (8.4 YPA, 2nd best in his career), 38 TDs (7.3 TD%, 2nd best in his career), 5 INTs  (1.0 INT%, best in his career)

How can you reconcile those numbers with that group of skill position players?  Because that's what happens when teams have to consistently deal with a run game that can gash them and you have a QB as good at pushing the ball down the field from the edges as Rodgers.  PA roll-outs that year were the kind of stuff that had D Coordinators wake up in the middle of the night screaming.  The Packers ran the ball 435 times in 2014 (14th in the league), compared to only 333 in 2018, which was good for DEAD LAST in the NFL.  This has been part of a trend since 2015, and while I have my suspicions on why that is, in the end the biggest thing is that the Packers would really do well to get back to running the ball.  They have the best group of downfield receivers Rodgers has ever had and I'd love to watch safeties try to chase them down from behind again like the good old days.  

Edited June 14, 2019 by MrBobGray

[Leader]

1 hour ago, MrBobGray said:

This has been part of a trend since 2015, and while I have my suspicions on why that is, in the end the biggest thing is that the Packers would really do well to get back to running the ball.  They have the best group of downfield receivers Rodgers has ever had and I'd love to watch safeties try to chase them down from behind again like the good old days.  

I agree.

My previous comment wasnt meant to convey a "3 yards and a pile of dust" scheme. Those days have been relegated to the NFL Archives. Rather - to utilize the RBs more (be it running or the short passing game) to take the pressure off AR and make our offense smoother, quicker paced, more efficient.....balanced.

We've been specifically drafting all these hyper-athletic (generally tall and fast) guys. Good. Lets get the ball into their hands and let them use their skills - after the catch.

Fact is that as he "mellows" - our guy's getting beat up and breaking down more. That wont decline if the character of our offense continues to be AR holding on to the ball excessively - or running around with it to create openings downfield.

The first box on the "How to Succeed List" is protecting AR - better than we have been at least.

New recruits to the OL is a much needed start in that direction. Getting the ball out faster will also influence the D to move up - making them  more susceptible to downfield shots.

[Shanedorf]

from PackersNews

McCray, Patrick get center reps

In the organized team activities, the Packers elected to give center reps to Justin McCray, Lucas Patrick and Cole Madison instead of second-round pick Elgton Jenkins, who played that position exclusively for two years at Mississippi State.

The start of the minicamp was no different, but McCray and Patrick wound up doing a lot more work at the position as starter Corey Linsley was held out of most of the day for precautionary reasons.

“Any reps (are good),” Patrick said. “Like last spring when Lane (Taylor) was dealing with some stuff, I was able to play next to David (Bakhtiari) and Corey. That’s huge learning, just to hear how they think through things, how they talk in a game, to hear 12 say a few things, bounce a few things off them. Even coached. There’s definitely instances – I’m headed in my fourth year but I’ve only got somewhere like eight starts, not as much as these guys – so they can say hey, on this why don’t you be a little heavier here, lighter here, more hands, less hands. It’s always good to get reps with those guys.”

At this juncture of the offseason, the Packers have moved players around on the line. Cole Madison has also taken reps at center while Billy Turner has worked at right tackle. So it wasn’t a surprise to Patrick or McCray to work that much over the ball.

[Shanedorf]

[Shanedorf]

[Shanedorf]

[Shanedorf]

https://packerswire.usatoday.com/2019/06/25/new-packers-offense-will-prioritize-rbs-in-the-passing-game/

Training camp and the preseason will help reveal more of what the Packers are expecting to do in the passing game, but the offseason made it clear that the running back position is going to be a featured one for LaFleur, both as runners and receivers.

It’s an offseason emphasis that should translate to the field. During stops in Atlanta, Los Angeles and Tennessee, LaFleur was involved in offenses committed to throwing the ball to running backs. For example, the 2016 Falcons threw 115 combined passes to Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman.

Last season, Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams combined to catch only 53 passes for 416 yards and one touchdown.

[Shanedorf]

From PackersWire:

 

 

Danny Vitale believes the Green Bay Packers’ new offense will provide an opportunity to do a little bit of everything, which is just fine for the versatile fullback. In fact, he told Wes Hodkiewicz of the team’s official site that Matt LaFleur’s offense is a “fullback’s dream.”

“It opens up so many opportunities instead of just being a smashing fullback,” Vitale said. “You can bump out and run routes out of the backfield, anything really. The sky’s the limit in this offense for a fullback.”

From Wes Hodkiewicz:

Vitale had an interesting offseason. On top of his usual weight-lifting regimen, the #Packers fullback mixed in boxing, Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu for cardio. Trained with Jake Hager/Jack Swagger and UFC's Ricardo Lamas.

Edited June 25, 2019 by Shanedorf

[vegas492]

15 hours ago, Shanedorf said:

From PackersWire:

 

 

Danny Vitale believes the Green Bay Packers’ new offense will provide an opportunity to do a little bit of everything, which is just fine for the versatile fullback. In fact, he told Wes Hodkiewicz of the team’s official site that Matt LaFleur’s offense is a “fullback’s dream.”

“It opens up so many opportunities instead of just being a smashing fullback,” Vitale said. “You can bump out and run routes out of the backfield, anything really. The sky’s the limit in this offense for a fullback.”

From Wes Hodkiewicz:

Vitale had an interesting offseason. On top of his usual weight-lifting regimen, the #Packers fullback mixed in boxing, Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu for cardio. Trained with Jake Hager/Jack Swagger and UFC's Ricardo Lamas.

WE.  THE PEOPLE!!!!

 

I liked him in the WWE.  Always thought they used him incorrectly.  Happy to see him having success outside of the WWE.

[Arthur Penske]

On ‎6‎/‎14‎/‎2019 at 5:37 PM, Shanedorf said:

Eddie ??