GREEN BAY – The Packers' offensive position coaches spoke with the media Tuesday. Here's a rundown of some of their key comments following the first open practice of organized team activities.
Offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett
On Ty Montgomery:
You have an opportunity to get in that room full-time, day in and day out, it certainly helps from an environment standpoint understanding his assignments and how to apply his fundamentals and techniques. Anytime you have an opportunity to have that experience, it only helps you as you grow and move forward.
On what he's done to help Montgomery develop:
Just talking about different experiences. Ben does an outstanding job of that with those guys. He'll continue to do that with the young guys. I love the level of competition in that room.
On TE Martellus Bennett:
Had a two-hour meeting with him when he came in just talking about football. Interesting young man. His football IQ is off the chart. He brings a unique perspective to a lot of different things. … I love the energy he brings.
Offensive line coach James Campen
On Jahri Evans:
Very professional. He has a presence to him. He fits right in and very knowledgeable. He's asking questions to fit into our system and the other players ask him things. He works extremely hard at his trade. … I knew him as a player a couple times as a player in the Pro Bowl. I got to coach him there. When he came here, we had him in on a visit. The biggest thing he wanted out of the coach is somebody to coach him. He's not a guy who has done all this stuff, this is my technique. He wants to be coached like the rest of the guys.
On Evans' approach:
Jahri seems like a guy who doesn't know who is back there throwing the football. He just knows the guy needs to be protected. I think that's important. You don't just turn it up because you have Aaron Rodgers or Drew Brees back there. No matter who's back there throwing the football, you have to protect him.
On the offensive line room:
Bryan is very reserved, but in our room he speaks a lot. He's a funny guy. He keeps things rolling. As far as the things we do in our room, the dynamics of it, it'll change from player to player. But when it changes, then other people evolve into things. An offensive line room is a unique place.
On T.J. Lang's departure:
I'm proud of T.J. I'm very happy with him. I have a tremendous relationship with him on a personal level. He'll always be a Packer in my mind and heart. He's a Lion now. He's now on the other side. I know myself and Coach McCarthy are very happy for him.
On offensive line depth:
We have good depth right now. There are good players. There are a lot of guys who are going to rise up. Somebody is going to full those requirements at each position. I'm confident in those guys in the room right now. Fortunately, we have eight more of these OTAs plus three minicamps to get through that and bang you go right into training camp. There's 15 guys in that room right now. Let's see what happens.
Quarterback coach Alex Van Pelt
On Brett Hundley missing time last preseason:
I think you do lose a little bit. You're getting used to drops and timing. Is it unfortunate? Yes. We have a chance to get him back to where he was going. It can set you back physically, but mentally no. He's a third-year player. He has knowledge of the system. Hopefully, we'll keep him healthy and everything will go well this offseason.
On Aaron Rodgers' passion for the game:
I think he's excited. He was very excited to get back here. QB school is very unique. It's a process. I think he enjoys part of the process for these younger guys. I've seen him take more of a coach approach in that regard. His love for the game will never change, but I think at times when you become an established, elite player, you have to find different ways to motivate yourself. As good as he is, he gets better.
Receivers coach Luke Getsy
On Jordy Nelson's comeback year:
As the year went on, I think you saw a guy who got better. It's exciting. It's fun to have him here. He's a guy who attacks everything the right way all the time. We're excited to see what he can do this year and I'm sure it's going to help us win a lot of football games.
On Randall Cobb:
He played really well for us when he was full-go. Even after that first playoff game, he wasn't healthy for that one and he played his butt off. A guy like that who's so dynamic with the football in his hand you have to get him the football. I don't think anybody on this football team is as dynamic as that guy with the football. We have to get him the football.
Tight ends coach Brian Angelichio
On Martellus Bennett:
Marty has a good personality that you like. Marty has been successful in this league. Anytime you get a chance to get a player like that, you're excited. … I certainly think he's good with the young guys. He's always willing to give his perspective on things that have worked and didn't work. From what I've seen, he's a good teammate. That's what's most important. Those things are important if you want to reach the goals we want to reach.
On Lance Kendricks:
Lance is versatile. You see him in the past when he was with St. Louis, you see him playing in backfield, inline and splitting out. He does everything and takes pride in that. He is kind of that guy. If you need something, he has the ability to fill those roles. Rich has also played some good football and had a nice start to the OTAs. It's what the spring program is for seeing what they do well.
Running backs coach Ben Sirmans
On Ty Montgomery:
You don't realize how many tackles he broke last year. As a receiver, you wouldn't imagine a guy being able to break that many arm tackles. He actually did a really good job as an instinctive runner all those things come into play.
On the three rookie draft picks:
Competition. With so many different guys, somebody is going to have to rise to the top and be ready to play. The room started to get filled up pretty good because it was pretty empty for a while.
