Cheesehead
Well-known member
- Mar 19, 2019
- 2,854
- 0
Staying in tune with the players' physical conditioning will be paramount, because in a normal training camp, there are extended breaks built in for veteran players. Usually they hold just a light practice or walk-through the day before a preseason game, play only a few if any snaps in the game itself, and then get a weight workout in the day after the game.
Those pockets of time are natural rest-and-recovery spots through the grind of camp for veteran players prepping for a 16-game slate, but they won't exist once the practice regimen begins in a little over a week.
"You'd get these three-day breaks that right now we don't have," LaFleur said. "You can't really afford that time off, so we've got to be very strategic and mindful of how we plan out our practices."
In the meantime, conditioning, meetings and walk-throughs are continuing during this ramp-up period, and LaFleur added they'll shift to larger group meetings when there's practice film to review.
The team will have an additional week of practice after roster cut-downs on Sept. 5 to get ready for Week 1 at Minnesota, but the three-week window of camp is also needed to get a legitimate evaluation of all the young players fighting for roster spots.
The Packers currently have 22 rookies (nine draft picks, 13 undrafted) who have yet to practice in the NFL. Also, a handful of their 11 first-year players (non-rookies but without an accrued NFL season) are practically starting from scratch in terms of their Green Bay resumes as well. Receiver Reggie Begelton, signed from the CFL, and linebacker Jamal Davis II, a waiver claim, are examples there.