Morning Buzz: Ready for second open OTA
Aaron NaglerWelcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here atPackersNews.com. Grab a cup of coffee (or brew some tea, if that’s your thing) and get caught up on everything you need to know about the Green and Gold before we get our second OTA glimpse later today.
We’ll start with Ryan Wood’s deep dive intoTy Montgomery’s metamorphosis from wide receiver to running back.
When Montgomery returned to Green Bay for the team’s offseason program, he sat in the film room with running backs coach Ben Sirmans. Together, they took inventory of Montgomery’s short introduction to the backfield.
Sirmans already knew what they would find. Not long after the season, he gathered film and started analyzing. A trend emerged.
“(Until) putting together cut-ups on him and really studying all of his runs,” Sirmans said, “you really don’t realize how many tackles he broke last year. You really don’t think of a guy – I know he’s close to 220 – but as a receiver you don’t imagine a guy being able to break that many arm tackles or getting hit and still running. He actually at the end of the day did a really good job, and you can see it as an instinctive runner.”
Instincts carry a tailback only so far. This offseason, Montgomery said, has been about acquiring knowledge.
Jordy Nelson spoke about how he uses OTAs to prepare for training camp:
The Packers announced the signing of Vince Biegel late Wednesday afternoon:
I answered a bunch of reader questionson my latest podcast, including a query about Davante Adams possibly being next in line for a contract extension:
Aaron Rodgers spoke on working with the young receivers on the roster:
Elsewhere, Larry McCarren broke down Jahri Evans’ game for the team’s official website:
The MMQB has its offseason grades up for the NFC North, with the Packers earning a B:
The last time we saw Aaron Rodgers on the field he was trying, and failing, to will his Green Bay Packers to victory against a young and fast Atlanta defense.
The Falcons extinguished Green Bay’s running game and plowed through the Packers’ injured offensive line to pressure Rodgers on nearly half of his dropbacks in the 44-21 NFC championship win against Green Bay.
The Packers have gone to the playoffs in each season since 2009, Rodgers’ second as a starter, and that likely will continue in 2017. They have the best thrower of the football in the game today—and possibly in NFL history—and paired with one of the best football minds in Mike McCarthy, it‘s implausible to think Green Bay won’t be playing in January.
But the two areas that plagued the Packers in the Georgia Dome and kept them from their second Super Bowl appearance with Rodgers and McCarthy were addressed in less-than-satisfactory ways this offseason.
Fun idea from the Power Sweep. Behold, the bad predictions podcast:
Bill Huber notes that what Jordy Nelson did last season at the age of 31 is close to unheard of:
The Packers fare quite well in predictions from ESPN’s Football Power Index:
Not surprisingly, FPI's top team in the NFC is our projections' decisive choice to take its division. The Packers have the No. 2 offense, per FPI, and are favored in each of their six division games. The Vikings' defense ranks No. 2, according to FPI, but their 24th-ranked offense ensures their spot behind the Pack.
Michelle Bruton asks if Jayrone Elliott the Packers need him to:
Former Packers tight end Jared Cook compared his new quarterback to his old quarterback:
Eye In the Sky looks at Montravius Adams’ game:
Solid advice, kid: