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General Details

Location: Lambeau Field
Time: 6:00 pm C, 7:00 pm E
Where Can I See the Game: Wisconsin Resident-Your Local CBS Channel, Outside Wisconsin-I will update this post if anything comes up.

Players Most Likely to Sit Out the Game:

James Jones, Scott Wells, Josh Sitton, Ryan Pickett, KGB (possibly), AJ Hawk, Charles Woodson (possibly), Al Harris (possibly), Atari Bigby, Nick Collins (possibly)

What to Watch For:

Since this if the final preseason game of the year this is the game where the Packers will mostly rest their starters. Starters are actually only expected to play one series in the game. This means that our backups will receive a lot of playing time this game. That is actually a good thing since we need the extra looks to see who we will be cutting to make it down to the 53 man roster limit. While this might lead to a pretty boring game it is necessary to get a good feel on which players should make the final roster. Here are some things to really watch in tomorrow’s game in my opinion:

1)   The Packers starters might only play a series but it is worth seeing how well they do in that series. Ryan Grant will also be making his first appearance of the season so we can see what kind of shape he is in after the injury and the holdout. KGB might also play so that will be another thing to watch. Hopefully the starters can have a successful series to instill confidence going into the season.

2)   The Titans will be playing their starters for most of the game. The Titans are one of the few teams in the league that actually prefer to sit their starters for the third game and play their starters for most of the fourth game. So if the Packers are creamed tomorrow night I wouldn’t worry too much. I actually would expect it. If the Packers are competitive or actually win I would seriously start worrying if I were a Titans fan. Even though our backups most likely won’t win it is a good opportunity for these players to face some tougher competition.

3)   I think the running back competition will actually come down to this final game. At this point I really couldn’t tell you who will win the competition. I think all three running backs are in competition for the one or two open running back spots on the roster. I think Herron will need to show more explosive plays. Morency will need to show more consistency. Lumpkin will need to show more of his potential. A new idea is actually being floated out there that the Packers could use Lumpkin as a fullback. If Lumpkin is given some time at fullback and he shows some potential at the position I think he will make the roster as a RB/FB.

4)   Like the running back battle I think the linebacking battle will be just as tight. At this point Abdul Hodge, Desmond Bishop and Tracy White are competing for one or two spots on the roster (there is a slim chance that they will keep all three). Just like at running back I think this battle will come down to the Titans game. While I didn’t think both Hodge and Bishop could make the team I am now thinking that it could be a possibility. Supposedly Bishop has got some work at OLB so if he is able to play OLB I think the Packers could keep both of them on the roster. If that doesn’t work out though I think only one of them will make the roster. Meanwhile Tracy White needs to show that he is more than a special teamer. If he can’t show he is more than a special teamer I think he might be shown the door since we have several other really good special teamers.

5)   The last big competition in my opinion is at defensive end. At this point I think Jason Hunter and Michael Montgommery will be competing for the final defensive end spot on the roster. Both have things working for them and against them. For example Hunter is a great special teamer and has finally shown some pass rushing ability but he is terrible in run defense and needs to be more consistent in his pass rush. Meanwhile Michael Montgommery is a pretty good run stuffer and can actually play defensive tackle as well. He lacks top speed though and has never been a great pass rusher. I think only one will make the roster so whoever shines more will get the spot in my opinion.

6)   I would recommend watching Brohm and Flynn. I have told you to watch them every game but I think this game is the most crucial. This will be the most time either of them have gotten in a game. Hopefully they can actually do something in this game or we could be in a lot of trouble if Rodgers gets hurt. Hopefully this will be their last gametime of the year and they should take advantage of it as they grow as NFL quarterbacks.

7)   Finally watch the bubble players. This is the last chance for bubble players to either win a spot on the roster or blow their chances of making the team. At this point some players I would consider to be bubble players include: Jarrett Bush, Joe Porter, Tyrone Culver, Charlie Peprah, Michael Montgommery, Jason Hunter, Brandon Chillar (very slim chance of being cut), Demsmond Bishop, Abdul Hodge, Daniel Muir, Alfred Malone, John Kuhn, Vernand Morency, Noah Herron, Kregg Lumpkin, Tory Humphrey, Joey Haynos, Breno Giacomini, Junius Coston, and Tony Moll. While some of these players have a good job of keeping their spot on the team, at this point I wouldn’t guarentee any of them a roster spot on the team. I bet there will be at least one surprise that doesn’t make the roster and one that does make the roster.

What will you be watching for in the Titan’s game?

Today was the final training camp practice opened to the public. Green Bay Press Gazette and Packers.com have reports on the practice. A couple things stood out to me though.

Donald Driver’s drops returned to practice again. At this point I am not too worried since Driver has had troubles with drops at the beginning of previous seasons and he fixed the problems. Driver really needs to stop the drops once the regular season begins since we have enough troubles as it and we don’t need to add the trouble of dropping passes that should have been caught in the first place.

The defense appeared to have a very good practice. Will Blackmon, Joe Porter, Pat Lee, and Tramon Williams all made big plays in practice today. While some people might take this as a negative against the offense I like to think of it as a positive for the defense. It appears that our backup cornerbacks are starting to make plays and not blow coverages (two things they couldn’t do against the Broncos).

Brohm appeared to struggle once again in practice. I am guessing this training camp is not what a lot of people expected out of him when we drafted him. I wouldn’t worry too much though. Quarterbacks usually struggle in their first season. I can remember Aaron Rodgers really struggling during his first season. Obviously he has overcome most of those problems. I would give Brohm some more time before I would even consider calling him a bust.

Jermichael Finley appeared to have a good practice. He supposedly caught everything that even came near him. I honestly don’t know why some Packer fans are so negative about him. He hasn’t been perfect this training camp but he has shown multiple times that he has the skills to be a very good NFL TE. Today is the perfect example. I think Finley could already be used as a pretty good pass catcher. The one thing he needs to work on in my opinion is his blocking. Most TEs out of college struggle with their blocking but most eventually learn how to be pretty good blockers. I think Finley ahs a very bright future with the Packers.

So that is the final training camp report of the season. Next year I will continue the training camp reports but it is now time to focus on real football and the regular season. While some people might be pretty negative about the season I am quite optimistic and think the Packers will win around 11 games this season. As long as the Packers can get their players back from injury and avoid to many more injuries in the regular season I think the Packers are Super Bowl contenders. Be sure to check out my final 53 man roster prediction after the Titans game.

So what are your expectations for the season? Do you think the Packers will compete for the Super Bowl, the first pick, or somewhere in between? I would like to hear other Packer fans expectations on the upcomming season.

News coming out of camp regarding the offensive line is not very positive. According to the Green Bay Press Gazette Sitton will likely miss a month with his injury. This is not a positive in my opinion. The Packers were about to finally developing some chemistry amoungst the offensive line and now we have to start over again with a new line. With Wells possibly being out as well the Packers could be in some serious trouble.

If Wells stays out it appears that Spitz will play center while Colledge and Moll play the guard spots. Now I want to know why in the world is Moll starting over Barbre. What does the coaching staff have against Barbre. In my opinion he has looked pretty good and the coaches were raving about him heading into training camp. Since training camp has begun they have pretty much given him absolutely no shot at winning the starting spot. First there was Colledge. Then there was Sitton. Now there is Moll. I seriously want to know what Barbre did to not even deserve a chance at the starting spot. He must have insulted one of the coaches since that is the only thing that explains what is happening. The coaches have kept saying that Barbre is still in competition for one of the starting jobs but I will believe it when I see it. I am not saying that Barbre should for sure be the starter but I have no idea why he isn’t even given a chance.

With the mess at offensive line I hope we can sort it out quickly and get Sitton and Wells back soon. Wells appears pretty likely to be able to start the opener which is a good thing since then we can at least start the sam offensive line we had last season (Spitz and Colledge). If Wells misses extended time we are in a lot of trouble this season.

Hopefully we can sort this offensive line mess out soon or we will be crushed in Minnesota since I don’t think it is a good idea to have a huge mess in the middle of your offensive line when the opponent has the best DT tandem in the league. We better sort this situation out soon or we could be in for a very long season.

So are you worried about the offensive line situation or do you think we will be fine this season?

In the second to last practice open to the public there isn’t a whole lot of news to report on. For a more detailed report you can check out the Green Bay Press Gazette’s Coverage of the practice. If you haven’t heard already the Packers made their move to get down to the 75 player roster limit. You can check out my thoughts on the cuts here.

There is just one story that really stood out to me that is coming out of today’s practice. It appears that Brohm had a very good practice. I have a feeling that Brohm will win the backup job. From what it sound like Brohm looked great in practice as he lead the backups to a 60 yard touchdown drive. On the other hand it doesn’t sound like Flynn played well. Even though Flynn has played better in the preseason games I think the Packers will keep Brohm as the backup since he has played better in practice. Unless Flynn has a really good game vs the Titans I think the job will be Brohm’s.

Tomorrow will probably be the last training camp report of this season since tomorrow is the last practice that will be open to the public. When there are closed practices it is usually hard to get any information about what happened so I will probably be retiring the training camp reports for the season after tomorrow. To replace the training camp reports I am coming up with some more features that should debut next week. I will also still stay up to date with all the latest Packer news so keep checking back.

This morning the Packers released their moves to get under the 75 man roster limit. The moves included cutting DeShawn Wynn (RB), Ryan Powdrell (FB), Chris Francies (WR), and Ryan Considine (OL). THe Packers also placed Justin Harrell on the six week PUP list. These moves didn’t really surprise me. I knew Ryan Powdrell, Chris Francies, and Ryan Considine would be cut.

I thought that Harrell would eventually be put on the PUP list. He hadn’t practiced pretty much all of camp and he still hasn’t practiced yet so he definently has some healing to undergo yet. Hopefully he will be ready to contribute after the six weeks. To fill his spot I think the Packers will either pick up another defensive tackle or trade for one.

The move that surprised me the most was DeShawn Wynn. I thought he wouldn’t make the final roster but I thought the Packers would either give him the next week to try and prove himself or we would try to sneak him on IR. Neither was the case though. I don’t disagree with the move though. Wynn showed a lot of potential last season but he just can’t stay healthy. Our team is too deep at this point that we can’t waste a roster spot on a player that can’t stay healthy for longer than one game at a time.

The Packers have now made all the moves that they need to make in order to get under the 75 man roster. I can see another move coming though since I think the Packers will either trade for a DT or pick one up from free agency.

So what are your thoughts on the moves to make the 75 man roster limit? Do you disagree with any of the cuts? Are you disappointed that Harrell will miss the first six games of this season?