Packers Stock Report: Too Early to Know Much of Anything Edition
It’s been a healthy start to training camp for Packers OLB NIck Perry.
It’s way too early to know much of anything about the 2013 Packers, but I can’t help myself. It’s time for this season’s first Packers stock report.
Here is who I see rising, falling and remaining steady on the Packers after only a few practices:
Rising
Datone Jones
Jones added 20 pounds since his pro day and it appears as if it didn’t come from drinking beer and eating cheese curds. Most reports of Jones have been glowing, and the rookie from UCLA has Packers fans drooling at the possibility of finally having a versatile 3-4 defensive lineman to take the place of Cullen Jenkins.
Micah Hyde
Mike McCarthy singled Hyde out for praise after the first practice and it sounds like the rookie from Iowa has been solid in other practices as well. With a number of cornerbacks out with injuries or illness, Hyde has gotten an opportunity to show what he can do. So far, itsounds like he’s taking advantage.
Nick Perry
There hasn’t necessarily been a ton of ooohhhs and aaahhhs about Perry’s play so far in camp, but it sounds like the defensive end turned outside linebacker is healthy and ready to restart his career after a season-ending wrist injury knocked him out for most of his rookie campaign. If Jones is as advertised and Perry bounces back and provides pressure on the quarterback opposite of Clay Matthews, this defense could get better in a hurry.
Steady
Randall Cobb
It’s typically rookies who end up in the rising category this early in the season. Everyone is impressed with the Packers’ shiny new toys. A strong camp is now expected from a player like Cobb, who is entering his third season and is the leading candidate to become the team’s top receiver after Greg Jennings’ departure. We haven’t heard too much about Cobb thus far — a good thing because it probably means that he looks fine and there’s nothing much to report.
Sam Shields
Didn’t it seem like yesterday when Shields was a converted receiver just learning to play cornerback? Now he’s talked about as the Packers’ most talented corner and playing for a big payday. McCarthy said Shields looks a little rusty after missing OTAs because of a contract dispute, but it sounds like he’s continuing to play more physical and improving.
Jerron McMillian
Even though it appears that McMillian is the best safety in camp besides Morgan Burnett, I’m not yet ready to put him in the rising category. The Packers have Burnett and a bunch of unknowns at safety. Being second best in that group doesn’t mean much, at least not yet. It’s good to hear that McMillian looks good so far, but we’ll see how the competition plays out.
Falling
Tramon Williams
Williams was one of the best corners in football in 2010. He hasn’t been the same since a shoulder injury early in the 2011 season, and now he’ll probably miss a few weeks with a knee injury. Being a 30-year-old corner with a knee injury is a good way to land in the falling category.
DuJuan Harris
Eddie Lacy and Jonathan Franklin got all the pub among Packers running backs in the offseason, but a lot of people thought DuJuan Harris might still be the best of the bunch. Turns out he’s also going to miss a few weeks with a knee injury. Running back is a crowded position, and missing time isn’t good news for the former used car salesman’s chances of cracking the starting lineup — or making the team.
Mike McCarthy’s Health
Curly’s Pub will be offering a series of burgers created by Packers players and coaches. The first burger is the “Mac Attack” burger created by coach Mike McCarthy, which is a 1/2-pound beef patty, topped with pepperoni, pepper jack cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato, onion, jalapeno, mayo, spicy mustard and French fries. I think McCarthy is one of the best coaches in the NFL and I want him to coach the Packers for a very long time. If he eats too many Mac Attack burgers, though, he might not make it through the season. Hopefully the Packers medical staff has a working defibrillator nearby at all times.
39 Comments On “Packers Stock Report: Too Early to Know Much of Anything Edition”
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I’d love to hear some news on TE position. No one steady, climbing or falling? I know you have limited space. Just that I heard no news on J-Michael, and we need to see him in the climbing spot a lot this season.
I think the less you hear about Finley the better for now. If he’s leading the news this early in camp, it probably means he said something silly or is dropping passes.
On McGinn’s podcast, he said that Quarless looks much better than he did in OTAs. It also sounds like Matthew Mulligan is essentially a replacement for Tom Crabtree and that DJ Williams has been DJ Williams so far — impressive in camp but needs to transfer it to actual games.
Bob McGinn is a smart guy.
#Quarless2013
So Perrys’ stock is rising based on….crickets….being heard about him and yet James Starks is ignored though he’s kicking arse in a camp where mostly every writer wants or thinks he should be cut…Way to be un-biased..wow!
Stupid Packers blogger nerds and their biases! They should all be fired!
I knew as I was typing my comment the responses that would be coming.
I get this is your opinion and your post and how ever early it may be in camp,you chose to offer this.Opinions,regardless of the amount of information being used to form them still need a tad of credibilty when offered…placing Perry as rising based on him walking on the field over one who has actually performed is showing no credibilty.There are those that will rise an defend such lacking as seen already but to opine without a shred of insight as to why in forming the opinion is a biased one.
Considering the source who was saying Perry was a bust cuz he wasn’t able to play much and had to learn a new position and was a reach by Thompson, I would say its kettle meet black kinda thing!
I do not believe I used the word ‘bust’ with Perry but felt it was a bad move to make him an OLB and should gain 20lbs and play the DL.However,to again stress my point,walking on the field doesn’t constitute ‘rising’ unless expectations were akin to that for Sherrod this camp.
nothing wrong with impressions. Coaches are making decisions everyday by what they see on the field. If a blogger forms some impressions, and sees more reps with first team, its fair to conclude the player is rising….especially if he came of injury plagued, rookie season.
I’m sure capers and greene scouted him very heavily to determine if he had the skill set and athletic ability to play OLB. He was already bulked up at 270 doubt he would have room for another 20+ lbs.
I distinctly remember you say he was a reach at 26.
Reach doesn’t equal bust.You’re
reaching now and busted.
And your busted for assuming that Perry can’t play OLB. Which I know you’ve stated as your opinion in the past. He’s now at a much more natural weight for him, so Perry should be even more able to play OLB than he was at 270.
I also said I hoped to be proven wrong and would gladly eat a dish of ‘crow’ but don’t serve it until proven…which is being attempted.
WARNING!!! DO NOT FEED THE TROLL!
There is a troll that haunts this site. Fittingly, it bears the name of a cheap, tasteless beer that originated in bankrupt Detroit. DANGER: Feeding it may be hazardous to your mental health.
The instructions on the bottle say every day Taryn… Every day.
Oh, no! Not another troll!
How dare you forget to mention James Starks! …..relax Tary, it’s called an opinion piece, therefore there is no bias/unbias, strictly one man’s opinion, although, if it were my piece, I too would have added james starks. He has been doing well. I am just afraid that it will all go down the tubes once he stubs his toe. GoPack!
My hope is that Starks will show so well in the preseason that they might parlay it into a camp trade. Too many horses in the stable, and someone’s going to have to go.
Datone gained 20 lbs? Seriously? Do you even know what he weighed at the combine? Officially it was 283 and he’s about 295 now allegedly, tho training camp has a way of shedding lbs by the time its done especially for big DLmen. If he starts the season at 290 I’ll be happy. But he certainly didn’t gain 20 lbs, 10 maybe, not 20! I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if he starts the season at 285.
On their podcast, McGinn and Dunne said he gained 20 pounds. The Journal Sentinel had 18.
maybe a new photo will come out showing him actually fat.
Like . . . Eddie Lacy?
Remember the +20 lb number is since Datone’s ‘pro day’ in mid March — a month *after* the combine in Feb.
+20 lbs in 4 1/2 months (and +30 in 5 1/2) is entirely believable, especially since he probably was under his natural weight for the combine (because 40 times, etc.)
You are right, of course, that he will lose a little during camp and a bit more during the season. If he goes into the season at 290 and ends it at 285 he will have shown a good ability to retain muscle mass and that is an important data point on his durability as a big man. But at this point it is really good news that he was able to a) gain the weight, b) it was mostly muscle, and c) apparently not lose any effective ‘football’ speed in doing so.
Everything else is, as the post’s title says, way too soon.
Not really… We’re talking athletes that are already highly trained and near max development. Gaining 20+ lbs is a lot more difficult than you think. At least 20 good pounds. Sure might be able to gain 20 w/ 10 or so of it fat, but that’s not what we’re talking about. If this were a somewhat untrained or moderately trained athlete and he did EVERYTHING right for 4 months he might gain 20 lbs. But this is an already highly trained athlete, that’s been in a good S and C program for the better part of 4 years. My guess is he might have gained the 10-12 lbs, but a good amount of that if fat weight, that he’ll shed during camp, which will drop his weight back under 290. You simply have no way of knowing that is was good muscle weight. More likely 1/2 of it was not good muscle weight, that he’ll lose.
Think about a freshman coming into a college weight lifting program. Gaining over 40 lbs during a 4 year career is hard enough to do, much less gain 20 lbs w/in a matter of a 4 months.
Since his listed weight in College was in the 280’s I think you are discounting the ‘lose for the combine’ and ‘add it back when I know I will play DE’ phenomenon. JMO.
If he played in the 280’s at UCLA and was 283 at the combine, he wasn’t dropping any weight just for the combine. Just sayin…
All reports have him having gained close to 20lbs. they’re probably talking about from his college playing weight, not the combine. he had surely already put on some weight by the combine.
He was 283 at the combine which is what was mentioned. And Ed said he played in the 280’s in college. Even if he was at the 283 same as the combine that’s only 12 lbs. You don’t round 12 up to 20, more likely down to 10. Especially after you factor in that to gain a lot of weight that quickly necessitates there being a good amt of fat. They can report what they want, but its window dressing to get fans excited nothing more. He’ll likely play at 290 or less this season and might be able to gain a few lbs gradually thru the years. I don’t he ever reaches or stays at 300 or more.
He weighed 277 at his pro day because he was taking a shot that a 4-3 team would draft him and he could get edge rusher $. When a 3-4 team drafted him he gained the weight back. End of story.
Having lived in Pittsburgh for a number of years, I want to give a shoutout to McCarthy for showing pride in his roots by putting the french fries *on* the burger.
If you are ever in Pittsburgh, get a sandwich for lunch at Primanti’s.
A dislike already? Wow! And here I was proud of having gotten all those Steeler fans to cheer for the Packers (when we weren’t playing each other, of course.)
Primanti’s sandwiches are like eating a slab of heaven… Maybe I’ll go there for dinner tonight. 😉
Where about in Pittsburgh did you live, Ed?
I had an apartment in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood in the mid-90’s. And it was somewhat heavenly, especially considering that I was sentenced to live in Minneapolis for the 5 years before and agin for 5 years after. Back in Milwaukee now and likely for life, so that is a good thing.
Put Jolly in the falling category. As in I’ve fallen and I can’t get up. Too fat and out of shape. Nice story while it lasted though.
Check out today’s Packers.com and Vic k.’s comments on how “surprisingly light on his feet and quick” Jolly is as well as reader comments about Coach McCarthy using Jolly’s footwork as examples of “how to do it” to other linemen!
Too many “Mac Attacks” for Jolly, Lacy and Datone Jones. That, or they fly-in Primanti’s take-out.
I think it’s a little early to say “Nice while it lasted”. 30 is not old and since he’s played football for a number of years, i doubt he forgot. Jolly will make this team and make it a better defense while on the field.
The sandwich sounded really good to me. Now I want to go to Primanti’s and try an original. I wouldn’t take anything too seriously in this article – it is just based upon opinion, and something has to be written so that all of us will have articles to read while we get psyched up for the season to start. No mention of any of the receivers vying for the 4/5 jobs, no mention of OLBs, no mention of TEs or OTs – it’s just stuff to read while waiting.
Can’t talk about everything in just one post…