Throughout Packers training camp, we\u2019ll bring you the five things each day that caught our attention \u2014 whether it\u2019s a play at practice, something someone said in the locker room, a nugget of news or something offbeat that took us by surprise.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Welcome to The High Five.<\/p>\n
GREEN BAY \u2014 The music, the jersey giveaways, the constant upbeat music blaring over the loudspeakers, and of course the post-practice fireworks \u2014 those were all great.<\/p>\n
The actual football during the Green Bay Packers\u2019 annual Family Night practice inside Lambeau Field on Friday evening? Not so great.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it was definitely sloppy,\u201d head coach Matt LaFleur said in his initial assessment.<\/p>\n
The 2-hour, 12-minute practice was the longest of the summer so far \u2014 \u201dOur biggest workload we’ve had yet to date,\u201d LaFleur said \u2014 and by the end of the night, a bunch of players were pulled due to cramping.<\/p>\n
There were some uneven moments on both sides of the ball, an uptick in penalty flags thrown by referee Shawn Hochuli\u2019s NFL crew as compared to the number thrown by the local officials at regular practices, and several players who struggled \u2014 including cornerback Keisean Nixon in 1-on-1 drills against Matthew Golden and right tackle Anthony Belton in both 1-on-1 pass rush\/pass blocking drills and during 11-on-11.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it was really good for those guys to have to fight through fatigue. We’ll look at it,\u201d LaFleur said. \u201cIt’s a lot of good stuff for our guys to look at and learn from and to teach off of.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s our look at the five things that stood out on Friday night:<\/p>\n
1\ufe0f\u20e3 To say that Trey Smack dispelled all concerns would be an overstatement. But the rookie kicker did have a strong night, going 6 for 7 and looking far more in sync.<\/p>\n
While he went 8 for 13 (61.5%) in the two regular practices in which there were kicking periods, Smack was on point from his first kick (a 33-yarder) to the last (a 47-yarder after the 42-yarder he made was wiped out by a penalty).<\/p>\n
His only miss was a 51-yarder that he hooked wide left from the right hashmark.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know he missed the 51-yarder, but other than that, I thought he was dead on,\u201d LaFleur said.<\/p>\n
While Smack never seemed panicked after his up-and-down start to camp, he acknowledged that having a good showing on Friday night was obviously a positive.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, it’s good. Definitely built a little bit of confidence up tonight,\u201d he said. \u201cBut we can always kick better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier in the week, special teams coordinator Cam Achord said the winds at practice at Ray Nitschke Field are far trickier than those at Lambeau Field. Smack, who had kicked inside the stadium once earlier in camp, agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHonestly, [the wind] helps me out, I think, during practice because then I\u2019ve got to judge it more,\u201d Smack said. \u201cIf the wind\u2019s pushing 20 miles per hour at practice, it’s going to be a lot harder to hit a kick than when you\u2019ve got a big stadium and it’s blocking all the wind. So, at practice, it’s fun. I would say that it’s pretty fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not as fun as Family Night was. Smack was good from 33, 38, 43 and 45 yards before the 51-yard miss, then hit a 35-yarder, the 42-yarder that didn\u2019t count and the 47-yarder that did.<\/p>\n
Each of those kicks came at the end of an offensive possession as opposed to just kicking seven or eight times in one practice period.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt like it felt like a game for sure,\u201d Smack said. \u201cIt was a little fast, but it definitely felt like a game. So I definitely got my reps in tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked which kick he felt best about, Smack replied, \u201cThe kick I liked best was probably the first one. I always, I always like the first one because that kind of gets me settled a little bit. On the 51, just hit it off my toe and then got around it a little bit. Yeah, just didn’t hit it good.\u201d<\/p>\n
2\ufe0f\u20e3 The talk about second-year wide receiver Matthew Golden through the first 10 days of camp had centered around his readiness to elevate his game. On Friday night, he looked like he\u2019s doing just that.<\/p>\n
Golden not only had one of the biggest plays of the night \u2014 a 52-yard touchdown from Jordan Love on a deep ball that left nickelback Javon Bullard twisted up \u2014 but got the better of No. 1 corner Keisean Nixon on multiple reps in 1-on-1s.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel real confident just taking it day-by-day and just building chemistry with Jordan, being on the same page with him, communicating as much as I can,\u201d Golden said. \u201cI feel like each and every day we go out there in practice, I feel like the chemistry between us is growing for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for getting the better of Nixon, Golden said the two have been battling each other throughout camp and both are benefitting.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like we\u2019ve got great competition. In practice, he pushes me and I push him,\u201d Golden said. \u201cFor us, I feel like the competition we\u2019ve got between each other is good, and I feel like overall I\u2019m getting better from practicing against him.\u201d<\/p>\n
3\ufe0f\u20e3 The Packers starting offensive line might\u2019ve signaled a changing of the guard(s).<\/p>\n
The Packers spent most of the night with a starting offensive line of Jordan Morgan at left tackle, rookie Jager Burton at left guard, Sean Rhyan at center, Jacob Monk at right guard and Anthony Belton at right tackle.<\/p>\n
Starting left guard Aaron Banks (knee) and starting right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele (knee) both had the night off, and neither has done an 11-on-11 rep so far in camp.<\/p>\n
LaFleur liked what he saw from Burton and Monk \u2014 \u201cBoth those guys have done a really nice job and are pushing to crack the lineup,\u201d he said \u2014 while Belton had a rough go of it for much of the night.<\/p>\n
Belton, who started seven games at right guard last season as a rookie second-round pick, appeared rusty at times at tackle, even though he was a left tackle throughout his college career at North Carolina State.<\/p>\n
Although Belton worked at right tackle earlier in the week, the vast majority of his reps had been at right guard before that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love Belton. I love his versatility. Certainly, I think the tackle position comes a little bit more natural for him,\u201d LaFleur said. \u201c[But it\u2019s] just time on task. But I think he continues to show great promise at guard, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Belton was forthright about his performance and acknowledged that he has to be more consistent.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got to be able to perform. There’s no excuse to, I guess, [do] some of the things that happened tonight,\u201d Belton said. \u201cAin’t nothing to blame it on about guard or tackle. I\u2019ve just got to be able to do it. It\u2019s that’s simple. So I\u2019ve just got to be a better player.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just got to just be bought in, whether it’s guard or tackle. I\u2019ve just got, to start off, know the assignment and just execute. I\u2019ve got to do my part to really be more of a student in the game and learn from my mistakes.<\/p>\n
\u201cRepetitive mistakes are kind of [a sign that] you\u2019re not getting nowhere. It\u2019s no signs of growth for you going out there messing up on the same thing. So I\u2019ve just got to get to a point where I just got to consistently show up mentally and physically perform.\u201d<\/p>\n
4\ufe0f\u20e3 Rookie cornerback Brandon Cisse, the team\u2019s top draft pick, continues his steady climb.<\/p>\n
Although he left practice early with cramps, Cisse said he felt he could have continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing serious at all,\u201d he said. \u201cI could\u2019ve gone back in. That wasn\u2019t my decision.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also said that one practice \u2014 even one held inside the historic stadium \u2014 is nothing more than another step forward for him. He not only looked good in 1-on-1s but also continued to get extended work with the No. 1 defense opposite Nixon in place of an injured Carrington Valentine.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust one day at a time and challenging myself, just trying to continue to get better every day. I\u2019ve still got a long way to go,\u201d Cisse said. \u201cYou take the same approach every day. You try to come in and be a pro and prepare the right way and good things will come to you. It\u2019s unfortunate, what happened to Carrington. I can\u2019t wait for him to be back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked if he\u2019s progressing how he\u2019d like, Cisse replied, \u201cHonestly, no. I set really high standards for myself, so I\u2019ll never be, \u2018Hey I\u2019ve progressed to where I want to be.\u2019 I\u2019m nowhere near as good as I\u2019m going to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
5\ufe0f\u20e3 If training camp is all about trusting the process and getting ready for the Sept. 13 season-opener against the Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis, then the No. 1 offense\u2019s ups and downs shouldn\u2019t be too worrisome.<\/p>\n
That said, other than the big play to Golden, there weren\u2019t many notable moments on Friday night.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere’s some moments that you’d like to make sure we capitalize on that we haven’t, but it’s hard to really put it into words at this stage of the game,\u201d LaFleur said. \u201cI think as we transition, and we’re just throwing all the installs at these guys, it’s not like you\u2019re game-planning [at] practice. There\u2019s certain things that just don\u2019t draw up very good versus our defense.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat being said, guys have got to figure out how to navigate around that. There\u2019s some good and certainly there\u2019s a lot of stuff we\u2019ve got to clean up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Said wide receiver Jayden Reed: \u201cWe ain\u2019t even scratched the surface yet. Still a lot of work to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n
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