Paul Bretl | 6/3/2025
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Tuesday was the Packers’ fifth OTA practice and the second that the media was able to observe.
As has been the case, these practices have been on the lighter side. Even with the continuity that the Packers’ roster has, there is always an element of starting over that comes this early in the season. So the focus right now is on building a strong foundation by making sure that everyone is playing with the right fundamentals, technique, and that the communication component is clean.
“We don’t even have any pads on,” LaFleur said after Tuesday’s practice, “and I mean most of it’s just the majority of our practice, as you guys have seen, is mostly jog through. And that’s just kind of like where we’re limited now, and so what we’re looking for is these guys being able to line up, communicate, know what to do, and then you would think, with a slower pace, that their fundamentals will be flawless.
“The problem is, you got guys going at different tempos, and then it kind of gets messy at times. So, but that’s really what we’re trying to get done.”
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So with that in mind, here is what you need to know from Tuesday’s practice.
Taking attendance. Not at today’s voluntary practice were Nate Hobbs, who was away due to a personal matter, Quay Walker, Jaire Alexander, Trey Hill, John Williams, and Elgton Jenkins. In the rehab group were Christian Watson, Collin Oliver, Nesta Jade Silvera, and Warren Brinson.
Back on the practice field was MarShawn Lloyd, who missed last week’s practice that we were able to attend. Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks were still ahead of Lloyd in terms of reps with the first and second team offenses, but it’s easy to spot the burst he has with the ball, and in the past, Matt LaFleur has mentioned that the Packers view him as a pass-catching option out of the backfield as well.
“I think we have a feel for what he’s certainly capable of,” LaFleur said. “I mean, we’ve seen enough. He’s an explosive player. I’m really excited about the player. Again, I think he’s in a lot better spot. He trained his butt off before, like, from the day the season ended to coming back here and he worked really hard to get back, and then he had another thing pop up. So, but he’s in a lot better spot right now, and we’ll give him more as tolerated.”
Kenny Clark did not participate in team drills but recently returned to individual drills. As Clark described after practice, he suffered a foot injury in Week 1 of last season that eventually required surgery in January.
“It was tough,” Clark said of his play in 2024.. “It was a tough year for me. I had surgery on my foot in January, so it was a tough year. But I’m excited. I’m back out practicing, back doing indy, so today was my second day doing indy with the team, and just have to keep building forward.”
The offensive line configuration. With Jenkins not present, we saw a similar offensive line configuration as last week with the starters, which included Rasheed Walker at left tackle (initially), followed by Aaron Banks, Jacob Monk, Sean Rhyan, and Zach Tom. Jordan Morgan would rotate in with the ones at left tackle, but Walker still took the initial reps. On the second unit during the two-minute period, Morgan was at left tackle, followed by Kadeem Telfort, Donovan Jennings, Tyler Cooper, and Anthony Belton.
Other lineup notes: Chris Brooks and Emanuel Wilson each had their own opportunities to take the RB2 reps behind Josh Jacobs. Zayne Anderson was the third safety behind Xavier McKinney and Evan Williams.
What about at cornerback? With Hobbs not present, Carrington Valentine lined up opposite of Keisean Nixon with Javon Bullard in the slot. Kalen King and UDFA Johnathan Baldwin–who played safety–each had some backup nickel snaps. Kamal Hadden was the third outside cornerback today. Gregory Junior held that role last week.
Without Quay Walker last week, we saw a lot of Ty’Ron Hopper with Isaiah McDuffie and Edgerrin Cooper. Hopper still had some opportunities today in that middle linebacker role, but we saw more of Isaiah Simmons than we did a week ago. Simmons is an impressive athlete and brings a unique skill set to both the defense and special teams units, where he’s gotten reps as a flier on the punt coverage unit.
“He’s extremely athletic,” LaFleur said of Simmons, “and we kind of knew that coming in, bringing him in here, and he’s doing a better job, I would say, of learning our scheme and again, showing improvement.”
Brandon McManus got the opportunity to kick today. On six field goal attempts ranging from extra points to 44 yards, he was 5-for-6. His lone miss came on a 44-yarder that went left.
After practice, we got the opportunity to speak with Romeo Doubs, who has put on some muscle this offseason. He’s also continued to be a steady presence in the passing game for Jordan Love.
“Every day is how he comes in the building and watching him work and, I mean, he looks great out there,” LaFleur said of Doubs. “I don’t know if you guys can tell a difference in his physique, he does look like a specimen out there. But he does, he does a great job. He just, he’s come in, and he’s just worked, and obviously he’s played a lot of snaps for us and has had a lot of production. So I’m excited about where he’s at.”
The wide receiver rotation continued. We again saw a heavy rotation at the wide receiver position. Doubs, Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Malik Heath, and Bo Melton all saw varying first-team opportunities. One difference from last week was that Mecole Hardman got some one-rep reps as well, and he also came up with some receptions from Malik Willis during the two-minute portion. With so many players being cycled in and out, making the most of the reps each player gets will be a must as playing time is sorted out. I would say Doubs, Golden, and Reed had the most opportunities.
“The kid’s playing fast right now,” Doubs said of Golden. “So I’m excited to see him.”
The defensive linemen have been gathering at Kenny Clark’s house during OTAs to watch film together from the individual drills they go through in practice. Along with making a change at defensive line coach by hiring DeMarcus Covington, the Packers front is also going to be playing more technique this season, rather than simply pinning their ears back.
“We’ve been doing it pretty much this whole offseason,” Clark said of watching film at his house. “We did it a little bit last year, get together and watch indy and all that kind of stuff. But we’ve been more consistent with it, just picking each other’s brain, talking about different formations, fronts. The main thing with them, I’m trying to get all the younger guys to understand formations and how to play the blocks. We’re going back to more playing technique so it’s huge for them to understand formations and how people are going to try to block the front.”
Two-minute drills: The scenario was that the offense had the ball at their own 25-yard line and were down by a touchdown with 1:40 left on the clock. Up first was Willis, who was 4-for-7 passing, which included–as mentioned–two completions to Hardman, but the drive stalled out in the opponent’s territory. The key play was a dropped pass over the middle by recently signed wide receiver Sam Brown. Also of note, Colby Wooden–who has been playing some nose tackle–had a pressure and a batted pass.
The first team offense faced the same situation, and just like last week, Jordan Love was incredibly crisp out there. He finished the drive 6-for-7 passing, which included a terrific 30-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Reed in the back right corner of the end zone. The ball was dropped right over Reed’s right shoulder, where only he could get it. The offense then went for two and the win, and Love connected with Doubs on a slant.
During the two-minute drill, with the second team defense, Lukas Van Ness was on the field at defensive tackle once again. In those obvious passing situations, the opportunity to move Van Ness inside–where he played at Iowa–in order to get three defensive ends on the field could be something the Packers attempt to utilize more this season.
“I think situationally, you can do that,” LaFleur said of Van Ness playing inside. “I think in known passing situations there’s some thought around that. A lot of it’s going to be just dependent upon everybody else as well. So Lukas has shown a lot of growth, and I’m excited to see him once we get pads on, and really all those guys, how they compete.
We again saw a lot of two tight end sets out of this Packers team, which included Luke Musgrave hauling in a few receptions over the middle. While he’s dealt with injuries, he brings a different dynamic to the tight end position with his speed, which can create mismatches for him and others to exploit.
“He’s another guy that I’m excited about,” LaFleur said. “The whole key is we have to keep him on the field and keep him healthy. I just think both of those guys (Musgrave and Kraft) are unique in their own ways, and they both bring a little something different. But I’m really excited about both those players in our system.”