Packers Announce Offseason Practice Schedule, Eliminate Week of OTAs

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur is hoping a less-is-more approach to the offseason will pay dividends.

Rather than the usual three weeks of organized team activities – the voluntary, shorts-and-helmets practices – the team will hold only two weeks this year. Those practices will be held on May 27, 28 and 30 and June 2, 3 and 5.

The mandatory minicamp will be held the following week. It’s scheduled for June 10 through June 12, though it’s possible LaFleur will cut that short by a day to hold a team-building event.

Why eliminate three additional opportunities to hit the practice field?

“If you look at where the calendar fell, you’re going into late June,” LaFleur said after the draft wrapped up on Saturday. “I think we all know the rigors of an NFL season and how long it is. You’ve got to decide in terms of the value from the end of the offseason to the start of training camp how much time (off) you want to give these guys. We’re going to have plenty of time to be together. I think collectively across the league, most teams feel that way.”

Because of the chaos surrounding the draft – and the detours surrounding the stadium – LaFleur made Week 1 of the offseason program virtual.

Veteran players arrived this week for Phase 1 of the offseason program, which is focused on strength and conditioning work and meetings. For this week, rules allow quarterbacks to throw to receivers; rules forbid quarterbacks to throw to receivers with coverage from a defensive player. Strength and conditioning coaches are allowed on the field; position coaches are not.

Phase 2 begins next week and will run for three weeks. Coaches are allowed on the field and can run individual drills, but offense vs. defense work is forbidden. The offense can walk through plays against a defense consisting of offensive players, and the defense can do the same against an offense consisting of defensive players.

Meanwhile, rookies and first-year players will arrive on Thursday for the rookie orientation camp on Friday and Saturday. Those will include individual drills and 11-on-11 work but without contact.

“We’ve got a condensed offseason in terms of the first week being virtual and the last week, we’re kind of cutting it a little short, which I think about 28 of the 32 teams from what I saw are doing the same thing,” LaFleur said.

“It’s about our time and what we do when we’re in the building – just being urgent. To me, if you want more and you want to go further, you’ve got to be willing to give more. That’s what we’ve got to do. It’s going to be a collective effort. We need everybody to have that mindset, to come in with that mindset, and get to work.”

According to the league schedule, almost half the league – the Ravens, Bears, Browns, Cowboys, Jaguars, Chiefs, Raiders, Chargers, Rams, Vikings, Patriots, Saints, Giants, Jets and Seahawks – is scheduled to have three weeks of OTAs.

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