1 Player to Watch at Each Position Group vs. the Jets

The Green Bay Packers will face the New York Jets at Lambeau Field on Saturday for their second preseason game. As always, there are plenty of players to keep our eyes on as some battle for playing time and others just a spot on the 53-man roster. 

 

So in an attempt to keep this list from getting out of hand while also making it somewhat easy to follow as we all watch the game, I’ve picked one player from each position group — minus the special teams unit — to focus on as the game unfolds. 

Unfortunately, Jordan Love has already been ruled out for Saturday’s game, which means Kurt Benkert gets the start. I have my doubts that the Green Bay Packers are going to keep three quarterbacks on the active roster, but the team will need a practice squad quarterback for the season, and that job is Benkert’s for the taking.

 

Last Saturday, Benkert came out slinging the football, completing his first few passes, and looking really good while doing so–especially when you consider that he doesn’t take a lot of 11-on-11 reps during practice. Unfortunately, an interception and a fumble would follow, but overall, he finished 8/12 for 88 yards, and quarterbacks coach Luke Getsy liked what he saw:

 

“I thought Kurt did a nice job,” said Getsy via Sports Illustrated. “The limited number of reps he gets on a daily (basis), I thought he handled going in there in the second half and having a big menu in front of him, I thought he handled it pretty well. He came out in that second half, that first drive, and did a really nice job on the keeper. Then we had the dropback, and then he had the play-action throw down the field, throwing the in-breaker to Malik (Taylor), he handled it really well. There’s some things he’s got to clean up. His pocket presence wasn’t the greatest as that game went on, kind of got himself hit a little bit. So, we’ve got to clean that stuff up, but I thought he did a nice job.”

The Green Bay Packers’ coaching staff isn’t going to call Kylin Hill RB3 at this point, but running backs coach Ben Sirmans told reporters that he’s in a “great position” and that Hill has “put himself in good standing.” I think that speaks for itself.

 

So for that reason, as fun as Hill is to watch — and he’s a lot of fun — my real question at the running back position is, will the Packers keep three or four? For reference, they did keep four in 2020.

 

At this point, we still need to see more from Patrick Taylor, who missed all of 2020 recovering from foot surgery and began this year’s training camp on the NFI list. However, with two preseason games remaining, there still is time. Not to mention that with his ability as a pass-catcher and a blocker, he’s a good fit for Matt LaFleur’s offense.

 

“He’s extremely intelligent,” Head Coach Matt LaFleur said via Packers.com. “You should see his notebook, it’s as good as some of our quarterbacks’. He does such a great job and he’s really in tuned to what we’re trying to get accomplished and the why’s behind it.”

I’m going to cheat here and list the two receivers who had the best showing during the first preseason game. Devin Funchess caught six of his eight targets for 70 yards, while Malik Taylor caught all five of his passes for 50 yards, and he was also the gunner on special teams and made two key blocks on receiver screens–an important aspect for receivers in the LaFleur offense.

 

Based on last week’s performance, if the Green Bay Packers are going to keep six receivers, my guess is that these two are the front-runners for that roster spot. We will see this week if either player can duplicate last week’s performance.

 

It’s also important to note that Funchess left Wednesday’s practice, and he did not participate on Thursday. His status for Saturday is unknown at this time.

Jace Sternberger came up with one of the big plays from Saturday’s game, hauling in a 34-yard completion from Love down the middle of the field. However, it’s been a very up and down camp for the third-year tight end, and if he’s going to earn more playing time — and some would even say a roster spot — he’s going to have to be much more consistent moving forward.

 

“That one play doesn’t really describe the player,” Outten said via Sports Illustrated. “It’s more consistently what you’re putting in day in and day out. With his consistency, it’s kind of been sporadic. Whether it’s still getting used to the playbook or feeling around the line of scrimmage, he’s still having some up-and-down days. With the extra reps that he’s getting, he’s got a handle it a little bit better in a sense of more video and doing the extra things outside. But that’s all fixable. Those things can come along. This is a huge preseason for him with these three games and being the guy and getting as much reps as possible in these live settings. He can grow from some lessons that he learned last night and then moving forward.”

 

Every practice and every game for Sternberger is incredibly important. 

As Nathaniel Hackett told reporters last Sunday, the offensive line’s performance — particularly against the run — was “very bad,” as the Packer running backs averaged just 2.3 yards per rush. When offensive line coach Adam Stenavich was asked about the battle for the two guard openings, he would go on to say that “nobody has really stepped up and risen above the rest.”

 

So at Monday’s practice and for the rest of the week, rookie Royce Newman was added to the starting guard rotation with Lucas Patrick, Ben Braden, and Jon Runyan. During Thursday’s press conference, LaFleur would mention that Newman was going to get the start on Saturday after a good week of practices.

 

As we all know, LaFleur always preaches putting the best five offensive linemen on the field, and Newman will now have the opportunity to show that he is one of those five. 

One under-the-radar name that we’ve been hearing and seeing a lot more of over the last week or so of practices is that of Willington Previlon–a 2020 UDFA who spent last season on the practice squad.

 

He was on the field for 59 snaps last week — which shows that the coaching staff wants to take a good look at him — and he forced one pressure and made three tackles against Houston, according to PFF. In practice, he is starting to flash with more consistency, and he is making plays on special teams as well. 

 

Previlon is an intriguing player to watch in this week’s game against the Jets. Is he someone who could compete with Tyler Lancaster for a roster spot?

Let’s stick with the under-the-radar name for this position as well. While many are focused on Jonathan Garvin and Tip Galeai for the fourth edge rusher role — and understandably so — Chauncey Rivers has seemingly made a play or two every practice since he arrived in Green Bay after being claimed off waivers.

 

Against Houston, Rivers played 41 snaps, logging two pressures, four tackles, and two stops, per PFF. He was also on the field for nine special teams snaps. Like Previlon, is Rivers someone who could push for a roster spot? These final preseason games will be telling. 

Oren Burks is coming off a highly impressive performance against Houston, registering seven tackles, with an additional tackle on special teams, two pressures, a sack, and Joe Barry sent him on countless blitzes–a role that uses his speed, and he looks well suited for. 

 

According to Burks, this early success comes down to two things: confidence and trusting what he sees–both of which allows him to play fast.

 

“(I’m) feeling extremely confident in this camp,” Burks said via Packers.com. “Focus for me this offseason has been trusting my training and believing what I see and playing fast. I felt like that came to fruition in this game.”

 

However, the key for Burks at this stage of his career is proving that the preseason opener wasn’t a fluke. As someone that I’d still consider on the roster bubble, he needs to continue putting together strong performances in both practices and games. 

We didn’t see much of Eric Stokes last Saturday as he was on the field for only 13 snaps and was targeted only once for a four-yard gain. He also came away with two tackles. 

 

As the Green Bay Packers’ first-round pick and someone who is likely going to play a big role for the team this season, I just simply want to see him in action more. While Stokes has taken his lumps going up against Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams in practice — and who wouldn’t? — he has certainly improved over the last few weeks as well and received a very high compliment from Adams on Thursday:

 

“He’s the closest thing to Jaire as far as mentality and ability from what I’ve seen so far. The kid is fast as hell. He can get beat and recover, kind of like how Sam Shields would do.” 

When I made my pre-training camp roster prediction, I did have Henry Black as one of the final 53. But after last week’s game against Houston, he not only looks like someone deserving of a roster spot but someone who could see some decent playing time this season as well. 

 

Black was on the field for 41 snaps and was flying around, making plays all over, including at the line of scrimmage while tallying five tackles. He spent most of his night lined up at free safety or down in the box, but he also saw some snaps in the slot. Black was targeted twice, allowing one reception for -1 yard.

 

Black was also a special teams standout, coming away with two tackles and the highest special teams grade on the team by PFF’s metrics. To put it simply, it was an impressive evening for the second-year UDFA. With that said, as a young and inexperienced player, I’d like to see him string together a couple of solid in-game performances along with the practice reps he’s put together this summer as the team’s third safety along with Vernon Scott.