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  • Tue., May. 28, 2013 11:30AM - 1:00PM CDT Organized Team Activities (OTAs) The Packers announced details on the remainder of their offseason schedule, including the fact that five of the team’s offseason practices will be open to the public, weather permitting.

    The open practices will be three organized team activities (OTAs) and two mandatory minicamp workouts. The open OTA practices are slated for three Tuesdays — May 21, May 28 and June 11 — and will begin at 11:30 a.m. CT. The two mandatory minicamp practices are scheduled for June 4 and 5 with a start time TBA.

    Due to ongoing preparations on Ray Nitschke Field for training camp, the OTA and minicamp workouts will be held on Clarke Hinkle Field this year. Viewing of the open practices will be standing-room only along the Oneida Street side of Hinkle Field.

  • Sat., Jun. 01, 2013 8:30AM - 3:30PM CDT Junior Power Pack Clinic The 16th Annual Junior Power Pack Clinic will take place June 1, 2013 inside the Don Hutson Center, the Packers indoor practice facility. Reserved exclusively for members of the Junior Power Pack kids fan club (ages 5-14), this event features the chance to run skills and drills with other Packer backers and a few up-and-coming Packers players.
  • Sat., Jun. 08, 2013 3:00PM - 5:00PM CDT Jerry Parins Cruise for Cancer The Green Bay Packers are gearing up for the 10th annual Jerry Parins Cruise for Cancer event, set for Saturday, June 8. The event once again features a motorcycle ride, but non-riding fans who want to support the cause are welcome to attend the post-ride party at Lambeau Field’s North Loft, the rooftop deck below the TundraVision in the north end zone.
     
    On the day of the ride, registration begins at 9 a.m. and will continue through 10:30 a.m. at Vandervest Harley-Davidson in Green Bay. The post-ride party begins at 3 p.m. at Lambeau Field in the North Loft, which can be accessed through the Bellin Health Gate. The party will include food and drink for purchase, a silent and live auction and fun while bringing awareness to cancer. Attendees will also have the opportunity to get autographs from Packers players in exchange for a $10 donation to the event.
  • Tue., Jun. 11, 2013 11:30AM - 1:00PM CDT Organized Team Activities (OTAs) The Packers announced details on the remainder of their offseason schedule, including the fact that five of the team’s offseason practices will be open to the public, weather permitting.

    The open practices will be three organized team activities (OTAs) and two mandatory minicamp workouts. The open OTA practices are slated for three Tuesdays — May 21, May 28 and June 11 — and will begin at 11:30 a.m. CT. The two mandatory minicamp practices are scheduled for June 4 and 5 with a start time TBA.

    Due to ongoing preparations on Ray Nitschke Field for training camp, the OTA and minicamp workouts will be held on Clarke Hinkle Field this year. Viewing of the open practices will be standing-room only along the Oneida Street side of Hinkle Field.

  • Wed., Jul. 24, 2013 11:00AM - 1:00PM CDT Packers Shareholders Meeting

    The Green Bay Packers 2013 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be held Wednesday, July 24, at 11 a.m., at Lambeau Field. The meeting will take place rain or shine.

  • Sat., Jul. 27, 2013 6:30PM - 11:45PM CDT 5K Run at Lambeau Field The computer-timed run is highlighted by a neighborhood route that ultimately takes participants into Lambeau Field and around the famed gridiron. The event has a special finish line – the Packers’ ‘G’ painted on turf located in the parking lot.

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House one of stars of spring

Posted Jun 11, 2012


Never draw conclusions from OTAs or minicamp. Repeat that three times before continuing to read.

Now that proper perspective has been achieved, which is to say we will succumb to neither excitement nor worry as we head into this week’s spring-ending, three-day minicamp, let’s make some observations about the “Underwear League,” better known as the spring practice season.

If we were to name an MVP, second-year cornerback Davon House might be that player. House has flashed impressive coverage skills in each of the three OTAs practices that have been open to the media and fans.

A fourth-round pick a year ago, House came to the Packers following a college season that was dogged by a significant ankle injury that kept him in a protective boot each week until game day. Just as he appeared to be making gains in last summer’s training camp, House went down with a significant hamstring injury that pretty much ended whatever chance he had of making a move on playing time.

House dedicated himself to a disciplined conditioning regimen through the winter, and it’s already paying dividends. OTAs, as Mike McCarthy has said, are best for evaluating movement skills, and House’s movement skills are noticeably improved.

His play of the spring is a break-on-the-ball beauty in which he broke up a pass for wide receiver Diondre Borel as Borel worked back toward the quarterback. Forcing a receiver to come back for the ball is victory alone for a defensive back, but House was explosive enough to close on the ball and knock it from Borel’s grasp.

Another memorable play of the spring belongs to third-year cornerback Sam Shields, who ran step for step with Jordy Nelson on a deep ball, and then jumped to intercept the pass at the goal line. That kind of play-the-ball-in-the-air skill isn’t something you can teach. It’s a natural skill that cries out for playing time and continued development.

The defensive backs overall might have been the most impressive group in OTAs. Of course, the “Underwear League” is made for movement players, so it usually follows that the “Boys of Spring” are likely to be wide receivers and defensive backs. This column gives the nod to the DBs.

Second-year safety M.D. Jennings has put himself into position to contend for playing time. In fact, the young defensive backs as a whole have played impressively enough to demand every opportunity to compete for jobs in a secondary that was last in the league last season.

Defensive Coordinator Dom Capers is determined to fix a defensive ranking that is the only stain on his resume, and a decidedly more athletic group of defensive linemen and linebackers, combined with the young defensive backs, offer Capers hope.

Offensively, neither Aaron Rodgers nor his receivers have been at the test this spring. Rodgers and company are the heart and soul of this football team and need to prove nothing.

Graham Harrell has been under the microscope in his quest to establish himself as the Packers’ backup quarterback, and Harrell can take that distinction into training camp with a solid minicamp performance this week. Harrell’s passes have been as sharp as his command of the offense.

The “Underwear League” is not a stage on which linemen star, but the Packers’ cast of young offensive linemen is offering a strong sense of security at a place of traditional worry. You can never have enough big guys, the saying goes. The Packers, however, have several young big guys who have a down-the-road look to them.

Derek Sherrod might hold the key to feeling good about the offensive line. Sherrod was sidelined during OTAs as he continues his recovery from a late-season broken leg, but McCarthy maintains that Sherrod will be ready to go full tilt in training camp and, should that be the case and Sherrod makes a full recovery, depth concerns at tackle will be eased.

T.J. Lang has clearly established himself as a quality starting guard, along with Josh Sitton, and Evan Dietrich-Smith has the look of a guy who wants to push for playing time at one of the three inside spots.

What about running back? That appears to be the question on everybody’s lips. Are the Packers content with what they have, which is to say James Starks, Alex Green and Brandon Saine? McCarthy says he views running back as a position of depth.

Starks has shown flashes of brilliance through the first two years of his career. He needs to stay healthy and develop consistency. Green is recovering from a midseason ACL and hasn’t participated in practices. Will he make it all the way back in training camp? McCarthy referred to Saine as potentially the most consistent of the Packers’ backs. Might Saine, an undrafted player last year, come out of nowhere to seize the starting job?

Never draw conclusions from OTAs or minicamp. Take it all with the proverbial grain of salt.

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