Observations from Practice 2 of Green Bay Packers OTAs

Who replaced David Bakhtiari? What's up at receiver? How did Jordan Love do running the offense? That and more from Tuesday at Clarke Hinkle Field.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
May 26, 2021 11:14 AM EDT

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers are in Week 1 of organized team activities. Here are some observations from Tuesday’s practice, which was open to media.

Elgton Jenkins at Left Tackle

With All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari recovering from a torn ACL, Pro Bowl left guard Elgton Jenkins moved out to left tackle. That was a departure from the end of last season, when Billy Turner moved from right tackle to left tackle and veteran Rick Wagner stepped in at right tackle.

The No. 1 line on Tuesday: Jenkins, Jon Runyan at left guard, rookie Josh Myers at center, Lucas Patrick at his customary spot at right guard and Turner at right tackle.

Shifting Jenkins makes sense. Any lineman will tell you it’s easier to go from left tackle to left guard (or right tackle to right guard) than it is to go from left tackle/guard to right tackle/guard. So, Jenkins can still work on his left-side footwork and be ready to move back to left guard upon Bakhtiari’s return.

Where are the Receivers?

The most noteworthy thing about Tuesday’s practice was the absence of the team’s veteran receivers. Highlighted by superstar Davante Adams, Adams, Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Equanimeous St. Brown and Devin Funchess were absent. That meant there was a not-so-grand total of five NFL receptions on the practice field – all by Malik Taylor.

What that means is anyone’s guess. One obvious scenario is it’s a pro-Rodgers boycott, though, if Adams is bent out of shape regarding his contract, maybe it’s a pro-Adams boycott. Maybe they’re hopping on a plane to get together with Rodgers. Or perhaps it’s nothing more than a bunch of coincidences and they all had separate reasons to skip the voluntary practice.

On the Other Hand, Aaron Jones Practiced

It’s easy to focus on who wasn’t at practice but it’s also important to note who was present. Tight end Marcedes Lewis, who is as close to Rodgers as anyone on the roster and recently celebrated his 37th birthday, practiced. Fellow tight end Robert Tonyan, who had a breakout third season, practiced even though he hasn’t signed his restricted free-agent tender.

Running back Aaron Jones practiced, as well.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Jones said of being the veteran of the group. “I feel like I’m just as young as them. We all get along so well, and we’re just all teaching each other and we want the best for each other. We’ve got some really smart guys in that room, we’ve got some competitors, so I’m excited. I’m going to try to bring out the best in all of them, because that’s going to make the team better. I’m going to continue to push all the backs and myself, as well.”

Dean Lowry’s Not Going Anywhere

The Packers are about $2.7 million under the salary cap. That’s not enough money to get through the season. Beyond a restructure of Aaron Rodgers’ contract and an extension for Davante Adams, the last sizable bit of cap savings remaining on the roster belonged to defensive tackle Dean Lowry. The Packers could wait until after June 1 and release Lowry to create $4.8 million of cap space.

Well, that’s not going to happen. As usual, it was Kenny Clark and Lowry lining up as the linemen with the No. 1 defense.

Potential Overreaction: Amari Rodgers Is Good

It’s dangerous to make too much out of a shorts-and-helmets practice in May. The 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 periods were a tick or two below full speed. That being said, third-round slot receiver Amari Rodgers has the potential to make a big impact as a rookie.

Coach Matt LaFleur is so good at getting his playmakers the ball in space. Rodgers, with his speed and strength, is going to be a nightmare to tackle in one-on-one situations. Swing passes, receiver screens and jet sweeps are all easy touches to get Rodgers involved while he learns the finer points of the game.

Finally, What About Jordan Love?

This goes back to the competitive drills being run at something less than 100 percent and the top receivers being absent.

Did Love make some good throws? Yes. Was he hesitant and slow through his progressions? Yes. Did he generally avoid throwing the ball downfield? Yes.

On the latter points, though, it’s impossible to know the reason why Love looked a bit slow and hesitant. Perhaps the point was for Love to cycle through every man in his progression. And if that was the point, it stands to reason that Love often threw the ball to his checkdown option because the checkdown is the last man in that progression.

If anything, he threw the ball with authority and accuracy during individual drills. He was a mess at times last year, when there were no offseason practices and he was learning on the fly in training camp. There was an errant ball or two but, typically, Love’s throws were thrown with power and accuracy. That’s a good sign if it indeed is going to be Love vs. Blake Bortles for the starting job.

"I think it’s just more about the process of playing the position, of going up, whether it’s a run play or pass play, just building a routine and having consistency with that," LaFleur said. "Right now, I think even as we’re scripting, we’re less concerned about trying to put maybe the perfect person in position like we would in a game plan situation. It’s more about just making sure that we’re putting Jordan in situations so he can continue to progress."