Gutekunst, Coaches Talk Jenkins at LT, Gary, Stokes, Barnes and More

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Will All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari be healthy and available when the Green Bay Packers kick off the 2021 NFL season at the New Orleans Saints in 35 days?

Perhaps not.

Shifted to left tackle, Pro Bowl left guard Elgton Jenkins has played at a high level during training camp. Asked what’s allowed Jenkins to thrive, regardless of position, general manager Brian Gutekunst on Sunday said:

“I think it’s just the overall skill-set. When you’re inside, things happen a little quicker, a little faster and you have a lot of bigger, more powerful guys, On the edge, you got more athletic, speed, in more space. Inside you’re operating in a phone booth, outside you have more space …

“I think it’s a credit to his talent and his work ethic and he’s a very smart, instinctive football player. He’s prototypical guard size rather than tackle size, but he’s such a unique athlete. We’ll see how it goes when we get into the regular season and how it fares, but it looks like he’s going to be able to do that.”

If you’re reading between the lines, that final sentence could mean something. Gutekunst said “when” and not “if” Jenkins has to play left tackle in the regular season.

From Bakhtiari’s perspective, getting back on the field for Week 1 would be ambitious. He suffered a torn ACL on New Year’s Eve. That means he’ll be about eight-and-a-half months removed from the injury when the season begins. On the optimistic end of the timeline, a torn ACL often requires nine months. Safety, Bakhtiari said last week, would be the key factor in determining when he returns.

Here are some noteworthy quotes from the defensive assistants who met with reporters on Sunday.

Defensive Coordinator Joe Barry Gets Physical

All-Pro cornerback Jaire Alexander recently shared a story about new defensive coordinator Joe Barry.

“The other day, in the defensive meeting room, he showed us an example of him tackling the air and he hit the ground and tackled the air. It was amazing to see,” Alexander said.

Barry confirmed that story.

“We talk about destroying blocks. We talk about tackling. We talk about taking the ball away,” Barry said. “When I was going through that, specifically talking about tackling and leveraging the ball, I got a little carried away. I was talking about making a left-shoulder tackle and how you’ve got to roll. I was going to ask one of the guys to come up and said, ‘No, I don’t want to do that.’ So, in the moment, I just flailed on the ground and rolled. I actually hit my frickin’ elbow on the damn ground and that hurt. But the guys loved it.”

Defensive Line Coach Jerry Montgomery on Fifth-Round Pick TJ Slaton

With Kingsley Keke having missed all of training camp with an ankle injury, Slaton has gotten some reps with the first-team defense. With Kenny Clark out on Family Night, Slaton got ample work with the 1s. With his size, he should be a solid run-stopper. He’s been more than that, though, with some flash as a pass rusher.

“Work in progress. Gotta get better. Right?” Montgomery said. “You know, it’s early but we’ve just got to get him to play to the standard of our room. He’s working every day, he’s doing some good things. So, I’m excited about him. But a work in progress. Early in camp. Got a lot of more snaps to get to before we’re where we need to be.”

Outside Linebackers Coach Mike Smith on Leadership

Za’Darius Smith, a team captain last year, has missed all of training camp with a back injury. In his place, Rashan Gary has stepped to the forefront as a player and leader.

“When Z’s on the field, he’s always a leader. He’s usually the first one to talk in the room,” Smith said. “But Rashan has been a guy, that’s been the biggest difference with Rashan so far in training camp is he’s talking. And I’m glad he is. He’s going to be a leader of this defense for a long time. He has the right. It’s his third year. He doesn’t take plays off. He does everything that you ask him to do. I’m happy for Rashan right now. He’s taking that step to become a leader. You can’t have enough of those guys. The more leaders you’ve got, the better you’re going to be on defense.”

Inside Linebackers Coach Kirk Olivadotti on Krys Barnes

Krys Barnes had one of the more incredible rookie seasons last year. An undrafted free agent, he failed to make the opening roster and spent most of the first week of the regular season on the practice squad before being promoted in time to start the opener at Minnesota. He wound up playing in 13 games (missed three due to COVID-19) with 10 starts, and finished second on the team with 78 tackles. His snaps-per-tackle rate was elite.

Now, Barnes is the unquestioned No. 1 player at the position.

“It’s a consistency that needs to happen, kind of day in and day out, and when you can put a bunch of days together that are pretty good, then you start believing what you’re seeing,” Olivadotti said. “Anybody can luck into something one day, two days or maybe you don’t have enough exposures. It’s always a slow process with those kinds of things and there was no real one wow moment of, hey, this is going to be something good. Every day, you have to come in and you have to perform.”

Defensive Backs Coach Jerry Gray on Eric Stokes

First-round cornerback Eric Stokes, not surprisingly, has absorbed his share of lumps. Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams have made mincemeat out of accomplished veteran cornerbacks, after all. In the eyes of Gray, it’s excellent on-the-job training for a player who could be a Day 1 starter.

“For me as a coach, when you draft a young kid, he really doesn’t get a lot of chances to go against the first group unless it’s scout team,” Gray said. “Well, you’re not going against scout team. You’re out there with the first unit, and the good thing is you’re going against one of the premier receivers in the league and probably one of the top quarterbacks in the league. And when you can do that on a daily basis, you’re actually going against good football players. So, on Sunday, your job should be a lot easier.

“Every receiver’s not going to be like Davante. Every quarterback’s not going to be like Aaron. And if you don’t get frustrated in practice, that’s only making you better. You’re going to get better. And guess what? You’re going to get beat. But, you know what? You’ll make your fair share of plays. And the good thing is we can’t hit Aaron in practice, but when 55 (Za’Darius Smith) and 91 (Preston Smith) and 97 (Kenny Clark) and 52 (Rashan Gary) is coming at the opposing quarterback, that’s going to speed him up a little more. That’s going to help him out with the pass rush and that will help you out with coverage also.”

Special Teams Coordinator Maurice Drayton on Returners

Drayton said he’s “leaning” toward using rookie receiver Amari Rodgers on punt returns and is “really vetting” rookie running back Kylin Hill on kickoff returns.

“He has an even-keel demeanor right now,” Drayton said of Hill. “He doesn’t get too high, doesn’t get too low, and he has the ability to stick his foot in the ground and get vertical. That is awesome as a returner when it comes to setting up blocks.”

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