Inbox: Everyone in this building wants to see MarShawn Lloyd succeed

Paul from Northglenn, CO

This league has a number for every imaginable measurable: How do you measure heart and instincts and what % does that correlate in player analysis?

That's the beautiful thing about this sport. Even during this information renaissance, there is an unquantifiable component to football that is impervious to analytics. Call it heart. Call it grit. Call it willpower. But it's often the difference between winning and losing in the NFL.

Ray from Phoenix, AZ

Jonathan Gannon says what others have said about what makes the Packers so unique and special: Stability of the organization! There is change every year but the consistency of how people do their assigned jobs helps explain why the Packers are successful every year. This coming from a guy who has seen things from the top of the mountain and the bottom of the valley. Astute observation – I like the guy already!

It is not easy to win in this league. It takes a strong organizational culture to keep the walls intact when the storm rages. The Packers and Matt LaFleur have done well to keep the focus on football and not distractions over the past seven years. The less you have to worry about the meaningless, the more you can focus on winning.

BJ from Elgin, IL

I fully agree with the friendly rebuttal to Jay's from Lutz, FL, question on RB2. MarShawn Lloyd is 100% the obvious choice to lose the RB2 spot. Here is a young man that has faced unfortunate adversity that has kept him off the field rather than on. I imagine he wants to validate for himself that he belongs in the NFL. He's being on himself to get another pay day! I was high on him when they drafted him, and I've waited intently to see what he can do...let him show us before quitting on this young man.

Everyone in this building wants to see MarShawn Lloyd succeed, both the player and person. This snake bite he is working to overcome is unlike anything I've ever seen. Yet, Lloyd has never gotten testy with the media. He has answered all the questions and done all the rehab in hopes of getting his NFL career off the ground. Ben Sirmans talked on Wednesday about all the work Lloyd has put in to prepare for this season. With fingers crossed, the young running back feels he has answers now. Hopefully, Lloyd does because the talent is undeniable.

Ben from Cripple Creek, CO

I like the idea of mixing and multiple on defense – my frustration with a strict 3-4 vs 4-3 is (and please correct me if I'm wrong) is that three down linemen (bigger bodies which is nice) but to just rush four, most likely an edge (or even a DL) drops back into coverage instead of rushing/attacking the QB/RB respectively. Some are good at it, but I'd rather have cover guys cover and pass rushers rush. But too simple a concept, huh?

I prefer a 3-4 base because I feel like it gives the defensive front better vision to the backfield and allows the linebackers a clearer path to the running back. That said, Gannon is going to figure out what the Packers do well and adjust accordingly just like Jeff Hafley did. How often did we see Lukas Van Ness, Kingsley Enagbare and Brenton Cox Jr. standing up the past two years already? If you're needing to pressure the QB out of a base front, though, you got in a disadvantageous look.

Sue from Three Lakes, WI

Do we know yet, will Gannon be coaching games from the sideline or box?

Sideline.

Bruce from Appleton, WI

What made the Packers go and get Tyrod Taylor for their backup quarterback?

The draft came and went without Green Bay selecting a quarterback. While the team is high on Kyron Drones, you must have a solid Plan B in this league. The past two years underscore that need. Taylor was a good pickup in this late wave of free agency. Like Spoff wrote Wednesday, Taylor has been there and done that as a starting quarterback and reliable backup. Taylor knows what it's like to swim in the deep NFL waters. That's why he's here.

Bob from Rome, NY

Gentlemen: Just a comment on the Packers signing high-quality people players. My daughter lived in Buffalo during and after college and worked at a restaurant called the Buffalo Chophouse and seated hundreds of professional football and hockey players. Tyrod Taylor was by far the most polite (and generous) player she had ever seated or taken care of on a takeout order. GPG!

I've heard nothing but great things about Taylor, who earned some team awards in New York for his leadership and demeanor. Jason Vrable even mentioned Taylor got up in front of the Packers' locker room on Wednesday and told the team that he's "here to help out anybody," not just the QBs. We saw the impact Marcedes Lewis had on the locker room from 2018-22. Adding a veteran like Taylor is a good thing for the NFL's youngest team the past three seasons.

Tim from Augusta, WI

I have to say I was very impressed with this comment from Coach Oghobaase: "Their failures are my failures, their wins are my wins, their success is my success." I learned this lesson a long time ago as a young Marine NCO. It's the mission and the troops, full stop. The mission is successful when each Marine succeeds. If my troops are successful, I am, by definition, successful. This is a concept lost on so many, where the focus is on self-aggrandization. I think I'm going to like this guy!

I enjoyed our conversation with Oghobaase, who has been here the past two years but wasn't available to the media because he was an assistant defensive line coach. Oghobaase has a big task in front of him this year with all the changeover the Packers have in the defensive front, but it's reinvigorating to add a veteran like Javon Hargrave and a top prospect like Chris McClellan to that room.

Josh from Seattle, WA

I think that TE would be a far more likely spot to sign a veteran Y body type than RB at this point in the offseason. We really just need that end-of-line blocking TE that is not Darian Kinnard while Tucker Kraft recovers. I am all for Messiah Swinson winning the spot, or really anybody besides Luke Musgrave because that is not what he does best, it's what he needs to improve on the most.

Plus, the Packers may need Kinnard as a true swing tackle this year. Swinson is one of the biggest tight ends I've covered, but it takes more than a 6-foot-7, 259-pound frame to be a solid blocking "Y" tight end. You gotta work on your technique and drive edge rushers off the ball. Swinson, now on his third stint in Green Bay, has traits if he can develop them.

Dan from Waupun, WI

Mike, Wes, is there a new feeling with Cam Achord in the house? Every coach puts it down that it's "the little things." What makes Achord different? Is he more detailed? Bisaccia was a players' coach. Is Achord? After a few weeks with Achord around Lambeau, will he give us fans a better-than-average special teams unit? Will the punter be the face of special teams, again, this year? After sleeping on it, I think we have hope.

Well, Bisaccia supported his players but put them through the fire, too. Achord referenced a point that I have been driving home all offseason – Green Bay's special teams are in a better place today than when Bisaccia took over in 2022. The personnel is better. The structure is better. If the Packers can get the kicking game sorted out, the potential is there for this to be a very good unit.

George from Netherlands

I binged the pressers and especially loved Cam Achord. Mike may need a bit more time as he said on "Unscripted," but personally, I fell for him instantly. Motivated, sense of humor and seems to have a good coaching philosophy. Discovering that he coached at Southern Miss early on (much later of course than Brett Favre played there) made me smile because I recognize a similar type of energy. What should be his focal points that will help ST to be a unit to be reckoned with?

Eliminating penalties and not starting inside your own 30-yard line after kickoffs, emphases Achord also discussed this week. Special teams are equal parts, simple and complex. Touchdowns and 65-yard field goals are fun, but the primary goal must be to protect the football and gain positive yards. The Packers didn't do enough of those two things last year on special teams. Consistency starts there.

Margo from Solvang, CA

Hi guys! In reading about our new ST coordinator, I saw our punt return average last year was a not very robust 5.6 yard per return – pretty underwhelming. I know injuries played a part, but wondered how fair catches were factored in? Do they just get listed separately (e.g., we had X number of fair catches out of so many punts)? If so, how did we rank in that category?

Like a touchback on kickoffs, fair catches on punts aren't factored in. I'm not sure where the Packers ranked leaguewide, but they had 26 returns and 10 fair catches last year.

Jeff from Ely, MN

Wow, I think Spoff nailed it in his response to John from Sussex. In this business, the only constant is change. As a fan, I think of the Packers as a constant; the team I've always pulled for. We get attached to players, fan favorites. Jordy Nelson and Aaron Jones come to mind. But in reality, their time is short. Same with coaches; 12 HCs since Lombardi. We hate to see players go but it's inevitable. Few retire w/us. Spoff mentioned some detachment is necessary. Wes, same strategy for you?

It's not show friends. It's show business. Listen, I actively campaigned in this column for the Packers to bring back Marcedes Lewis for years, but it's Brian Gutekunst's job to make those tough calls and keep this train moving. There are 171 individuals in the Packers Hall of Fame and eventually each one clocked out for a final time.

Justin from Thousand Oaks, CA

I'd forgotten Daniel Whelan came from the XFL, and I'm now trying to recall if there are other recent Packers who made that journey. Are there any other significant contributors in the last few decades who came from "other" leagues like the UFL or XFL? Big Whelan fan, by the way, and sure glad they scouted him.

Not really. The USFL's Micah Abernathy made the initial 53-man roster in 2022 but quickly wound up in Atlanta after the Packers signed Rudy Ford. The spring leagues have helped the NFL identify specialists, though. In addition to Whelan, Brandon Aubrey and Jake Bates got their starts there.

George from North Mankato, MN

With the two Luke Combs concerts in just a few short days, have you heard any worries about potential field condition issues at the start of the season? Sounds like the shows will go on "rain or shine." What preparations and challenges does the grounds crew face with this kind of endeavor?

This isn't Lambeau's first rodeo. The Packers have put on their fair share of concerts at this point. Plus, there's only one preseason game. So, there will be nearly four full months for the field to recover.

Keith from Lincoln, IL

I am an inveterate listener to "Packers Unscripted." During this lull in the schedule, do you think it might be possible to find some new bumper music for the podcast for the 2026 season? The symphonic strings are soothing, but perhaps a few bars of rock, metal, or hip-hop might fire up the listeners for the illumination to come.

That's what we originally had, and you guys got mad at us.

Richard from Janesville, WI

Please may I answer Gary about where to attend a road game? Go to NOLA. Great city, people are friendly, and best food not in Wisconsin. My parents went to a game in Tampa 30 years ago. The fans there were rude and abusive to my mother for the crime of wearing Packer gear. My mother! I renew my curse on the place every time I see it.

New Orleans is a top five NFL city for me and the Superdome is a 20-minute walk from Bourbon Street.

Aaron from Tucson, AZ

Honestly, could there be a better name for an NFL place kicker than Trey Smack?

Realistically? No. But "Kick Isgood" has a nice ring to it.

HAVE A QUESTION?