Packers Morning Buzz: Mike Pettine preaching pressure in simplified defense

Welcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com.

The Packers are on their regular-season practice schedule, meaning players were off Tuesday. Preparations for their regular-season opener Sunday night against the Chicago Bears resume Wednesday.

We'll start with Ryan Wood's in-depth look at how Mike Pettine spent the two years between losing his job as Cleveland Browns head coach and joining the Packers: The story also gets into how Pettine's thinking has evolved when it comes to simplifying his scheme for young players:

Ryan writes:

With less practice time during the offseason, coaches are limited with what they can teach young players.

“You’re dealing with so many guys on first contracts,” Pettine says, “and just the way the rules have changed and just the lack of time that you have with them. I think scaling back the scheme was one of the biggest things I took from it. Sometimes, when you have insecurities as a coach, you sort of want to make up for it with scheme, and just feel better, sleep better at night knowing you have so much in, depending on which direction the offense goes.

“I just don’t think you can be that way anymore. You end up not very good at a lot of things.”

Pettine realized in 2015 he had to simplify his defense. (It also underscored the value of veterans who know his system, hence the Packers signing defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson and cornerback Tramon Williams, who have played for Pettine in the past.) Base principles still apply — “the pressure is omnipresent,” Ryan says — but Pettine changed the way it’s taught.

He combed through his playbook on sabbatical, abridging the terminology. His goal was to retain the same complexities that have given offenses problems, while making it easy for young players to learn.

“I’ve evolved,” Pettine says, “to the point where less is more.”

His playbook isn’t the only thing that’s changed over the years.

Be sure to read the whole story here:

Two-year 'sabbatical' steers Pettine to Packers

Tom Silverstein and Jim Owczarski go position-by-position in analyzing the Brian Gutekunst's 53-man roster decisions in their Packers Podcast:

Silverstein and former Packers safety LeRoy Butler discuss the impact of the Bears' acquisition of Khalil Mack in the first of their weekly "5 Questions" segments:

Silverstein and Butler break down how the Packers can cope with blocking Mack their weekly "X's and O's" session:

Tickets for the Packers' opener against the Bears are in high demand despite the fact it's on Sunday night:

Elsewhere, Jason Wilde writes in the Wisconsin State Journal on how undrafted rookie Tim Boyle beat the odds to win a backup quarterback job:

Pete Prisco has his initial Power Rankings for Week 1, and look who's No. 1:

The MMQB staff makes Super Bowl predictions ... how do the Packers fare?

Also from The MMQB, former Packers executive Andrew Brandt discusses why none of the four big-money deals that have gone down will change the NFL:

Cheesehead TV assesses Gutekunst's first offseason: