GREEN BAY \u2014 Kyron Drones\u2019 rough night in Pittsburgh in Thursday evening\u2019s preseason opener surely didn\u2019t help his chances of sticking on the Green Bay Packers\u2019 roster, but it might\u2019ve been how well Kyle McCord played against the Steelers that really made the difference.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Whatever the case, the Packers are down to three quarterbacks \u2014 starter Jordan Love, veteran backup Tyrod Taylor and McCord \u2014 after releasing Drones on Saturday.<\/p>\n
The Packers didn\u2019t immediately fill Drones\u2019 roster spot, but having battled nagging injuries that thinned their depth at multiple positions, the Packers figure to add a non-quarterback to fill his spot.<\/p>\n
Earlier in camp, head coach Matt LaFleur said Drones is \u201ccertainly a talented guy\u201d but in the same sentence acknowledged that Drones had \u201ca big learning curve in front of him\u201d after going undrafted out of Virginia Tech.<\/p>\n
Against the Steelers, Drones played just six snaps late in the game and dropped back to pass four times. He was sacked on three of those four drop backs and threw an incompletion on the other.<\/p>\n
McCord, meanwhile, took over after Love (nine snaps) and Taylor (13) called it a night before halftime and was impressive. He played 32 snaps and \u00a0finished the night 12 for 16 for 102 yards without a touchdown or an interception (91.1 passer rating) but stood in against pressure behind the backup offensive line and engineered a field-goal drive just before the first half ended.\u00a0<\/p>\n
LaFleur was particularly impressed with a third-quarter throw on which McCord hit Isaiah Neyor for an 11-yard gain and a first down with Steelers defensive lineman Anthony Goodlow bearing down on him.<\/p>\n
Goodlow was flagged for a questionable roughing-the-passer penalty, and after McCord hit J. Michael Sturdevant for a 14-yard gain on third-and-6 to keep the drive alive, rookie kicker Trey Smack made his third field goal of the game to give the Packers a 9-7 lead.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe went out there, and I thought he showed everything that you look for in a quarterback in terms of the poise to stand and deliver,\u201d said LaFleur, who also praised McCord for getting Smack in position for the 58-yard field goal just before halftime. \u201cWe cut a guy loose when he hit Neyor on the on the short side of the field, and for him to stand in there and deliver \u2014 that’s exactly what you’re looking for.\u201d<\/p>\n
In reality, the best McCord can hope for is to be the third quarterback on the team\u2019s practice squad. The Packers have kept a third quarterback on the 53-man roster coming out of camp only once since Brian Gutekunst became the general manager in 2018: They kept three in 2020, with Aaron Rodgers, Tim Boyle and Love.<\/p>\n
The 23-year-old McCord played three college seasons at Ohio State and one at Syracuse before the Philadelphia Eagles took him in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He spent all of last season on the Eagles\u2019 practice squad before signing a futures deal with the Packers on Jan. 20.<\/p>\n
McCord figures to get plenty of work in the Packers\u2019 next preseason tilt, on Friday night at Denver against the Broncos.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew I was going to get an opportunity and I thought I did well,\u201d McCord said after the Steelers game. \u201cThere\u2019s obviously some good [but also] some plays I wish I had back. But all really good experience getting in the game and getting to go against a different defense than what you see every day in practice.\u201d<\/p>\n
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