GREEN BAY \u2014 Unless they are Oscar-worthy actors, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst and head coach Matt LaFleur certainly didn\u2019t sound like two guys who are ticked off at veteran cornerback Keisean Nixon.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe loves making a headline doesn\u2019t he?\u201d LaFleur quipped.<\/p>\n
Nixon certainly made headlines on Sunday, when he said he felt he was being \u201cpunished\u201d by working with the No. 2 defense on occasion in recent practices.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe way I look at it is this: Then I guess our whole team is being punished because everybody’s in competition,\u201d LaFleur said before Tuesday\u2019s practice. \u201cI’m a big believer that competition will bring the best out of people. I want everybody to play the chip on their shoulder. If they feel like they have something to prove, you’re probably going to get more out of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nixon spent the vast majority of Tuesday\u2019s practice with the No. 1 defense, although at one point the defensive coaches rotated him, Benjamin St-Juste and Carrington Valentine at the left cornerback spot while rookie second-round pick Brandon Cisse manned the right cornerback position.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey’re moving guys around. That’s what this time of year is for,\u201d Gutekunst said of Nixon\u2019s work with the No. 2 defense at times. \u201cSometimes you’re going to want to see a younger player go against better receivers to see how they do, and you’re just moving guys around to kind of see how that works. So we’re in that phase, and just trying to get as much information on these guys as we can before we get to the regular season.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked specifically about Nixon, Gutekunst replied in part, \u201cKei has always answered the bell. I mean, every time we’ve given him any opportunity, he’s performed. He’s a very competitive dude. I think the more guys we can get like that, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n
The implied challenge LaFleur and the defensive coaches have issued for Nixon is for him to be a more consistent tackler, emphasizing how vital it is to the defense that the cornerbacks are physical and willing in that department.<\/p>\n
But on Tuesday, he certainly didn\u2019t sound like he was down on Nixon.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love Kei. He’s been awesome since the day he’s been here,\u201d LaFleur said. \u201cI don’t read any of that stuff. I’m not going to micromanage what everybody says. If he feels a certain type of way, I mean, it is what it is. But I do think that it’s a benefit to the team to have people that you feel are capable to go in there and play, and we’ll all be better for that.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, I’m not afraid to do that in that [cornerback] room, either. But I think certainly he’s capable of playing really good football. We’ve seen it and he’s got to continue to do that moving forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
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