The last little break is over for the Green Bay Packers as they returned to the practice field on Monday following the enjoyable Thanksgiving Day weekend. It was made even more enjoyable after the 29-22 victory over the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on the holiday, making it three wins in the last four weeks and pulling Green Bay to 5-6 and now only a half game behind the Minnesota Vikings (6-6) for the final Wild Card spot in the NFC playoff race after the Vikes got tripped up by the 4-8 Chicago Bears 12-10 at US Bank Stadium Monday night.
Heaters were up and running at practice Monday.
The team got in a mid-day workout on Clarke Hinkle Field Monday and there was a definite winter snap to the weather, sunny and a chilly 19 degrees with a wind chill of just 5 above. More of that will be on the way as the Packers prepare to face the defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs at Lambeau Field in prime time Sunday night.
Only three players didn’t participate in the workout, Aaron Jones, recovering from a sprained MCL suffered against the Los Angeles Chargers, A.J. Dillon because of a nagging groin injury and tight end Josiah Deguara dealing with a hip injury.
The most welcome sight was with the defensive backfield. Returning to drill work were Jaire Alexander who has missed three weeks with a shoulder injury suffered against the Los Angeles Rams which occurred after he sat out a couple of games with a bad back. Safety Rudy Ford has made it past a biceps injury. Darnell Savage continues to work toward his return from injured reserve with a calf injury suffered in Denver. Eric Stokes also participated as the Packers have designated him to return from IR as well. Stokes opened the season on the physically unable to perform list after ankle and knee surgeries last year. When he finally got activated off the PUP list, he lasted all of four snaps in Denver before pulling a hamstring going back on IR. The team now has three weeks to bring him back to the active roster. The clock has also been ticking with Savage but there is room for him now.
General Manager Brian Gutekunst created two openings on the roster by waiving wide receiver Bo Melton and running back James Robinson on Monday. Both were elevated from the practice squad for last week’s game in Detroit. Head Coach Matt LaFleur indicated the hope is to have Savage back on the the 53 by the Kansas City game. He said the safety was close last week but not quite there.
In addition to LaFleur’s session with reporters, we also heard from offensive assistant coaches.
Offensive line coach Luke Butkus said he’s been pleased with how his unit has fared in pass protection during the offensive resurgence. He plans on continuing the rotation at left tackle with Rasheed Walker and Yosh Nijman and sprinkling in some Sean Rhyan for Jon Runyan at right guard. The competition for playing time has benefited the entire O-line room without sacrificing communication required on game day.
Running backs coach Ben Sirmans admitted it has been a frustrating season for Aaron Jones. The hamstring injury suffered after an explosive season opener in Chicago was hard to overcome and then the scary knee injury from two weeks ago. Sirmans said Dillon has picked up some leadership slack not only in the running back room but with the entire offense and his play has grown stronger in November.
At wide receiver, position coach Jason Vrabel has been very pleased with the growth of his extremely young group. Not a single pass catcher has more than a season and a half of NFL experience but they’ve been diligent about their work habits and understanding of the offense and it’s now paying dividends in games.
Quarterback coach Tom Clements, like LaFleur, believes Jordan Love is playing his best ball of the year. Clements said Love has taken coaching criticism to heart, has fixed early season mistakes and is now making bigger plays. The next step is to do it consistently.
Tuesday’s another day off before the heavy lifting begins before the arrival of the 8-3, AFC West leading Chiefs.
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