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Jansen Looks To Snap Up Opportunity
by Tom Fanning, Packers.com
posted 07/18/2008
As the Packers have strengthened their roster the past few seasons on the way to a 13-3 campaign in 2007, the number of roster spots up for grabs has diminished each year. One position that will see competition this season is long snapper, where rookie J.J. Jansen will be vying for the job come training camp.
Whether it is Jansen or first-year player Thomas Gafford that earns the snapping job, he will be stepping into a position that was held down by the well-respected Rob Davis for the past 11 seasons. Davis, who retired at the end of the '07 season and is now the team's director of player development, played in 167 consecutive games, trailing only quarterback Brett Favre and offensive lineman Forrest Gregg in franchise annals.
For Jansen, who signed with the team in May as a non-drafted free agent out of Notre Dame, Davis' retirement made Green Bay an even more desirable place to come in and compete.
"This was the number one spot that I wanted to be at," Jansen said. "Certainly Rob retiring is a big plus for a person in my position. You never want to follow somebody that is so well-regarded, and that's always kind of hard. At the same time, they treated him fantastic here for over a decade with just the way he conducted his business.
"It's just a fantastic organization and it's a lot like a school here. Back at Notre Dame it was a small town that kind of revolved around football, which seems to be the way it is here, and I really like that."
The interest was mutual, according to special teams coordinator Mike Stock, who said the Packers targeted Jansen following the draft. Jansen gained a reputation as one of the most reliable snappers in the country as he committed only one errant snap and had only one punt blocked during his final two seasons for the Fighting Irish.
"That's why he is here, because we think he has got a marvelous snap," Stock said. "He's got good accuracy and good velocity on the ball, and it's a tight spiral and easy to catch. Now it's going to be a matter of how he contends with the problems of pressure and contact and having to really block somebody with some strength and endurance, which he didn't have to do in college that much."
Jansen said that he and Gafford, who went to training camp with Green Bay in 2006 but was released in the final roster cutdown, have developed a good relationship this offseason even though they are battling for the same job.
"I think the biggest thing in the competition is we're friendly and we get along and we kind of push each other, but in the end we know it is competition and we're fighting for one spot, " Jansen said. "I think it adds a good level of competition in there. He has been through this a little bit, but certainly this is something new for me at the NFL level."
Jansen has a teammate in the specialists group who can relate, with kicker Mason Crosby having gone through a similar experience last year as he battled incumbent Dave Rayner for the kicking job during the preseason.
"I'm just trying to feed off of a guy like Mason," Jansen said. "He was talking to us about the tough competition last year with Dave. I'm just learning from him how to approach it and be professional with your work, but at the same time knowing the number one thing is that you're going for a spot."
Not only has Jansen leaned on Crosby for advice this offseason, but he stressed the importance of finding a comfort level with all of the specialists.
"Working with Jon (Ryan) and Kenny (DeBauche) and Mason has been great and it's been nice to build up that camaraderie and that trust in one another," Jansen said. "I think that's the biggest thing you can take away from the work in the offseason, aside from the personal, individual work, is building up that trust as a unit in the specialists group."
As he makes the adjustment from the college game, Jansen said preparation and short snapping on field goals have been the two areas he has focused on the most during his short time in the NFL.
"I think you can always improve in the mental side of the game, always being prepared and knowing what to expect on protections and rushes," Jansen said. "For me, it's the same old, same old where you've got to put the ball back there accurately.
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"On short snaps, that's something that I have worked on really hard and I feel like it is the biggest change. I've got to make the job easy on Mason and whoever is back there holding. I feel like I can always improve that and that's something I have really focused on so far and will continue to do."
Stock said he has been pleased with Jansen's snapping during the OTAs and mini-camp, but the true test will begin on July 28 at the first practice of training camp.
"He's been a pretty consistent snapper to this point with the accuracy and control of the ball," Stock said. "Beyond that it's hard to tell because we haven't had the pads on. That's what I'm anxious to see, when we come back to camp and put the pads on and go full contact. We'll see how he applies himself under pressure."
Jansen is well aware of the challenge and increased pressure that will begin in a little over a week, but the thought of finally getting on the field also brings excitement.
"Certainly you ratchet it up a little bit come training camp," Jansen said. "You know that any day a decision could be made. I tried to approach those last four or five weeks (wrapping up with mini-camp) with that mentality, but I think there is always a certain level of comfort and you know you're going to be around a little bit in the offseason. When you get to training camp you know that anything goes.
"I think the part that I am looking forward to the most is getting into the games, getting used to that speed and going against people you don't know. You can kind of anticipate just about anything that is going to happen in practice. During a game, 95 percent of the time you can prepare all you want but you never know exactly what is going to happen. I think that will be a fun challenge for me and I'm looking forward to it a lot." |
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