Inbox: Both are going on at the same time

Douglas from Johnson Creek, WI

In my mind, the phrase now and forever will be apples to orangutans.

It works better as a written phrase than a spoken one.

Matt from Fitchburg, WI

I just listened to a radio show yesterday where they were discussing comparisons of Matthew Golden to Davante Adams. The baloney has definitely not stopped with the beginning of training camp.

And the media at large constantly wonder why they've developed an untrustworthy reputation.

Jason from Hartselle, AL

Speaking of defensive substitutions, who is responsible for counting the offensive personnel to ensure we get the right package in? You would have to always remember what they had in on the previous play, make sure you add and subtract the right numbers of WR/TE/RB, convey that information, and then call your defensive package. Even then, you won't know if they come out in trips, single-wide, etc., until they break the huddle. That's a lot to process in 40 short seconds!

Yup, and that's the game. There are coaches in the upstairs box constantly monitoring personnel and relaying the info.

Kevin from San Francisco, CA

Tavon Austin (No. 8 overall, 2013) also had a stint with the Packers in 2020. He played a little bit, but did not catch any touchdown passes from Aaron Rodgers. Draft position is history and may be a proxy for athleticism, but it doesn't necessarily translate to stardom.

I knew I was forgetting another high first-round pick who had played here. I should've asked Wes. He would've remembered.

Mark from Amarillo, TX

In reference to the discussion of the defenders punching at the ball in camp. It would be awesome for the staff to roll some tape of Charles Woodson for the players. He was the quintessence of attacking the ball and the ball carrier with equal aggression. You would almost always see him swat aggressively at the ball as he engaged the runner.

He was as good at it as any player I've covered for an extended period. His 33 career forced fumbles rank tied for 20^th all-time, according to Pro Football Reference, just over a handful away from the top 10. Julius Peppers ranks second on the all-time list with 52, which I didn't know until I looked it up.

Keith from Dodgeville, WI

Guys, how serious is MarShawn Lloyd's injury? Will it keep him out indefinitely? When will he be back to practice?

It doesn't sound like it's anything serious, but Matt LaFleur pretty much ruled him out the rest of this week.

Jeff from Mequon, WI

Hi Mike and Wes, hope you are off to a good start to camp. Love following your updates on X on my lunch breaks. Sad news about MarShawn Lloyd. Do you feel he's made enough of an impact in the time he has been healthy or will he be behind the 8-ball a little bit in terms of catching up and battling for position on the depth chart?

He needs to get healthy and be out there for the joint practices and preseason games. That's where the RB2 competition will be decided in my opinion.

Richard from Iron Mountain, MI

Will Mason Crosby be on the Packers' ring of honor in Lambeau Field (most points in Packers history)?

First, the organization doesn't refer to it as a ring of honor. It's the stadium façade. Second, the only name on the façade who isn't in Canton is Ted Thompson.

Clint from Port Washington, WI

NFL analyst Warren Sharp posted a statistic that 32.7% of third-down incompletions were due to mistakes by the receivers. These include (by his measures) wrong routes, miscommunication, and drops. It was so frustrating to watch drives stall out last season. As someone who watched every game, do you think most of these errors were early in games, helping to put the Packers behind and having to play catch-up?

I'm genuinely curious how Sharp came up with that number. I'm not dismissing it, but I don't know how someone without direct communication to a coaching staff to understand play calls and assignments could determine wrong routes and miscommunications. I would say in the multiple losses to the Lions and Vikings, early-game execution was a major issue.

Tom from Celebration, FL

Mike, I watched your segment on takeaways. In the background over your right shoulder was a trophy – it looked like an Emmy trophy. Care to tell us more?

That's a Chicago/Midwest Sports Emmy that our video department was awarded for its 2022 Total Packers special on LeRoy Butler's Hall of Fame induction.

Craig from Twin Falls, ID

I just read an intriguing article about the performance of Gute's first-round draft choices. As I have great respect for your take on all things Packers, I hoped that I could run the writer's premise by you and get your thoughts. It seems that Gutekunst cherishes a great athlete over a proven great college football player in his first-round picks. Lukas Van Ness, Stokes, Rashan Gary, and Quay Walker were all athletic freaks but not statically "great" football players in college leading to mediocrity in his picks.

As an old friend of mine used to say, the draft is a crystal-ball business. They aren't being picked for what they've done, but for what they're projected to do. The Packers believe they can find plenty of proven college players who will become solid pros in the middle rounds, and their track record is pretty good there. The higher the pick, the higher the ceiling sought (barring off-field or other character issues). With the names you mentioned, the projection obviously didn't work out with Stokes, as injuries played a part. I'd argue it worked with Gary, and the jury is still out on Walker and LVN. Draft history indicates only about half of first-round picks become even solid pros, let alone the stars teams covet. There's no denying the crapshoot element to the whole exercise.

Dick from Sarasota, FL

Good morning. Perhaps I missed this, but usually every year NFL officials show up at training camp and among other things, they discuss what rules will receive greater emphasis this coming season. Any sign of the officials yet and what they are going to focus on?

Haven't seen them yet. If they aren't here for Family Night, my guess is they're coming for the joint practice vs. Seattle.

Nathan from Williamstown, MA

Which players' or positions' roster fates are likely to come down to special teams? Bo Melton is in a great spot now that he can play offense, defense, and special teams (maybe not in that order). Mecole Hardman, Isaiah Simmons, Kristian Welch, Zayne Anderson, and basically all the backup CBs might need to show they can contribute on special teams in order to keep their jobs, because there may not be room to keep all of those guys.

There won't be, and special-teams impact will definitely factor into the equation.

Steve from Bloomington, IL

I saw a report that Bo Melton and Carrington Valentine were working as the vise players on the punt return team. Can you explain what are the duties and responsibilities of the "vise players"? I've not heard that term before. Thanks.

It's another term for jammers, the guys who are trying to stop the flyers on the outside for the punting team.

Clipton from Pasadena, CA

What's the team going to do with the space occupied by the old locker room?

The new locker room was built in the same space as the old one, only expanded.

Yotam from Israel

Talking about locker rooms, how many lockers are there? I would think 90, but then during the season, many will be empty. Are there just enough for the 53 plus practice squad (e.g. 69, sorry math)? If so, then what do the extra players do during training camp?

I haven't counted them but the main locker room has around 80 lockers, which will be enough in the regular season for active roster, practice squad, and some IR players. There is an auxiliary locker room as well for overflow, like now.

Rick from Trempealeau, WI

Admittedly getting ahead of myself (is that really possible?), if/when we get past the second preseason game and have a stable full of young talented receivers knowing you can't keep them all, is Gutey on the phone searching for potential trades, or do you attempt to park a couple on the practice squad and cut the rest? Or some combination? What does your experience and knowledge of the process say?

Unless another team gets a rash of injuries at the position, a young, unproven (or only slightly proven) receiver doesn't normally elicit trade talks for a draft pick. Teams know they'll have their choice via the waiver wire. An established vet is a different story, but I don't see the Packers trading one.

Ian from Kirkwhelpington, UK

Mike, Warren Brinson was the Packers 6th round pick in the draft but I've not seen him mentioned in any reports from training camp. How's he doing?

He's made some plays with the reserve units. He was item No. 2 in yesterday’s 5 things from practice.

Ross from Hudson, WI

Is there or has there been a team that intentionally has a rotational offensive line? It is a testament to the front office and coaches to be able to field six or seven starting-caliber offensive linemen and it is amazing the Packers have not only the capability and capacity to do it at the level they do.

I'm not familiar enough with all the other teams to know their specifics, but O-line rotations are fairly rare. LaFleur has not been hesitant to use them, even going back to his first season in 2019 (as Wes pointed out on our latest "Unscripted") with Elgton Jenkins rotating with Lane Taylor at guard until Taylor got hurt. We'll see what happens this year, but it was notable offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich didn't rule it out, which is why I wrote about it. But long way to go in camp yet.

Matt from Keswick, VA

Hi Insiders! At what point in preseason do coaches switch from evaluating players as to making the cut vs. getting the likely starters coordinated and used to playing with each other?

Both are going on at the same time. Sure there are competitions for some starting spots, but the ones practice mostly with (and against) the ones in training camp, and their work is more about preparation than evaluation.

Mike from New Orleans, LA

Do coaches refer to it as the No. 1, 2, or 3 unit to the players? My freshman year our coaches broke us up into "blue" and "gold" squads in a sorry attempt to not create a hierarchy early in the season. It didn't work of course as me, a left guard on the blue squad had to crane my neck to meet eyes with my gold counterpart.

These guys know, too.

C from Arizona

I've been intrigued by Brenton Cox Jr. since his signing. I've always believed there was something more and was glad to hear of his continued growth. Can you go into further detail on the areas you have seen his greatest improvement?

He's always been a natural pass rusher, but you can see the strides he's made as a run defender this summer. He's setting the edge and holding his ground on run plays better than I've seen in the past.

Christian from Piscataway, NJ

Given Matt Golden's stellar performance so far in training camp, do you think he's poised to make a serious push for WR1, or will he have to bide his time behind guys like Jayden Reed and Romeo Doubs?

I doubt you're going to hear anyone around here talk about a WR1 label. From what I've seen, Golden is going to get his opportunities and be a significant part of this offense.

Al from Green Bay, WI

Tucker Kraft is fun to watch, and he's clearly ascending. With that said, Luke Musgrave seems to be the forgotten man. Not much hype and very little fanfare. What are you seeing from Luke thus far in camp, and what are your expectations for him this season, assuming he stays healthy?

I mentioned to Wes the other day I felt like it was coming soon with Musgrave, and sure enough, he had a really productive practice Thursday. Best we've seen from him so far this year. Hopefully it's just a start.

Jeffrey from High Point, NC

Hey Mike and Wes, will Family Night be live streamed on the website?

That's the plan, Stan. I mean, Jeffrey.

Bill from Wake Forest, NC

Hi Mike, Wes has thrown in a "half-clothed woman walking into the newsroom" response on Thursday and that made it to my Mount Rushmore of II responses. If you have something that good that you've been saving then now is the time ... please!

How can I top that? No use in trying. Happy Friday.

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