Jordan Love didn’t have to search long for the rough patch from Green Bay’s joint practice with Arizona.
The Packers quarterback pointed straight to the finish, where a session that had started well for the offense ended on a sour note. Green Bay got down to the five-yard line later in practice and couldn’t cash in, with the sequence closing on a dropped pass by Matthew Golden and a sack on consecutive snaps.
“That was the kind of lowest point of the day was just (the) finish,” Love said, according to Wes Hodkiewicz of Packers.com.
Love said the whole setting had the feel of a joint practice, where the temperature can rise fast.
“And I think in training camp, the joint practices, I think it gets a little chippy, things happen, emotions start running a little higher,” he added. So, we got to find ways to be able to just dial back in, focus back in and be able to finish a practice.”
The chippiness showed up elsewhere, too. Tight end Tucker Kraft and Cardinals safety Andrew Wingard exchanged words after the two collided in the end zone.
Kraft then absorbed a late hit from an Arizona defender that brought a flag, but he didn’t sound bothered by it afterward.
“I was smiling. That was a good hit,” Kraft said.
“I haven't had a hit like that since Nov. 2 (vs. the Panthers). That was an opportunity for me right there to wake up, season's here.”
For Kraft, who is working his way back from a torn ACL, the bigger takeaway was how he feels physically. He said he no longer thinks about his knee and is now playing “free out there.”
With the joint practice now wrapped up, Green Bay shifts to the preseason finale against Arizona on Friday night.
In Other News...
Packers Have A New Camp Battle Fans Need To Watch
The Packers got a useful look at their roster in the joint practice with the Cardinals, and a few of the camp developments were hard to miss. Matthew Golden continued to show why he has been one of the more watched young players in camp, even with a late drop, while Brandon Cisse flashed with an interception and Bo Melton turned in a strong showing in one-on-one work.
Donovan Jennings may have been the most consequential name on the field, though, because the first-team reps he picked up looked like the kind of practice usage that can tilt a roster decision. Jager Burton, by contrast, seemed to see his role shrink, which only adds another layer to a position battle that could become one of the more interesting things to track as camp moves forward. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Backfield Suddenly Has A Bigger Pierre Strong Jr. Question
The Packers backfield has taken on a different kind of uncertainty in training camp, with Josh Jacobs still working through a groin issue while the league weighs whether to suspend him after misdemeanor charges tied to an alleged domestic violence incident. For now, Jacobs remains on the depth chart and around the team, but the situation has already shifted the conversation in Green Bay from simple camp reps to contingency planning.
Brian Gutekunst said the Packers believe they can handle whatever comes next, and that is where MarShawn Lloyd and Pierre Strong Jr. become more than depth pieces. If Jacobs is unavailable, the workload has to go somewhere, and the attention on Strong has grown because Green Bay needs dependable answers behind its starter, not just bodies for practice snaps. [Read more 🡒]
Packers May Be Waiting Longer Than Expected For Micah Parsons
Micah Parsons offered a clearer picture of his rehab timeline on a recent podcast, and it sounds like the Packers may need a little more patience before they get him back on the field. Parsons said a Week 6 return is the optimistic end of the range, but the bigger point was his insistence on coming back only when he feels fully ready after surgery.
His practice window is expected to open in early October, but the more realistic target appears to be later than that, with a return before Week 8 or beyond looking more in line with the caution both sides seem to prefer. For Green Bay, it is the kind of update that keeps the long view intact: better to wait a little longer now than rush a key player back before his body is ready. [Read more 🡒]