GREEN BAY, Wis. — Tuesday was an action-packed day full of newsy tidbits at Lambeau Field.
Let’s dive into the most notable things we learned, aside from what general manager Brian Gutekunst said about running back Josh Jacobs.
1. Micah Parsons might be on the field sooner than we thought.
Gutekunst said the Packers have a “pretty good idea” that Parsons will be “pretty close” to playing once his mandated four games on the physically unable to perform list are up. The Packers’ top edge rusher and best player overall tore his ACL last Dec. 14 and also suffered a meniscus injury that required surgery on Dec. 29.
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“I’m going to be pretty cautious with that. We’ve got a big investment there,” Gutekunst said. “It’s really important to what we’re trying to do. To accomplish the goals we want to late in the year, he’s going to need to be at his best. So I want to make sure that that happens. But he’s eager. There’s a new rule this year where we can open their window to practice after the second game. I imagine when that time comes, there’s going to be some conversations about things … because he’s going to be really eager to get out there.”
The Packers typically have a nine-month, no-football rule for players rehabbing torn ACLs. Tight end Tucker Kraft returned to practice this summer around eight and a half months after his surgery. Parsons’ nine-month mark post-surgery is the Tuesday before Green Bay’s Week 4 visit to Tampa Bay, so practicing in Week 3 would also beat that timeline.
2. Jonnu Smith is a wise man at 31 years old, and he thinks he has plenty left in the tank.
The Packers signed the veteran tight end in part because Luke Musgrave (neck) is starting the season on the PUP list. Smith’s nine years in the league make him wise on the field, but he showed his smarts off it when he sat next to quarterback Jordan Love in his first team meeting.
“That’s a vet move,” said head coach Matt LaFleur, who was the Tennessee Titans’ offensive coordinator in 2018 when Smith was a second-year player for the Titans.
Smith may be on the wrong side of 30, but just two years ago, he caught 88 passes for 884 yards and eight touchdowns for the Miami Dolphins. LaFleur said Smith still runs well and at 6 feet, 3 inches and 248 pounds, Smith said his size advantages and catch-and-run ability benefit him out of the slot.
“He’s really versatile,” Gutekunst said. “He can kind of do everything you ask of a tight end. He can line up on the line of scrimmage. He can move. He can be one of the move guys in the backfield. Been a tremendous receiver in this league for a long time from the tight end position.”
After playing for the likes of former Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith in Pittsburgh and former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel in Miami, Smith estimated he’s played in an iteration of the Shanahan/LaFleur/etc. offense seven out of his 10 years in the league and that will help him acclimate with less than two weeks until the season opener.
“I’ve got a lot of football left in me, man, a lot of football left in me,” Smith said. “I’m grateful for every snap because I know how dangerous this game can be. I’ve got a lot of ball left in me and I’m excited to show it, for sure.”
3. MarShawn Lloyd is eager for his turn in the spotlight.
The Packers’ new starting running back didn’t miss a practice this summer after playing in just one game over his first two years in the league. Finally equipped with a clean bill of health, Lloyd is primed to show off the explosiveness, speed and shiftiness that made the Packers keep faith in him.
“I’m ready to play as much as they want me to play,” Lloyd said. “I’m excited. It’s a dream come true playing for the Packers, so however much carries I get, however much they put me in the game, I’m ready to go.”
Lloyd averaged fewer than 10 carries per game and barely more than 10 in his final year at USC. He has only seven touches in the NFL since Green Bay drafted him in the third round two years ago. Lloyd said he hasn’t shouldered a significant load since high school, but he might have to now with Jacobs on the commissioner exempt list.
“You never in 100 years think something like this will happen,” Lloyd said. “You gotta be ready and the coaches have been able to help me to be ready.”
Despite the disturbing allegations against Jacobs, Lloyd threw his full support behind him.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but that’s my brother, so I just gotta stay on that forever,” Lloyd said. “He’s helped me when I was in the worst part of my life really, those last two years.”
4. Two other new guys will play important roles for the Packers’ offense.
The Packers traded for running back Kaleb Johnson from the Pittsburgh Steelers and tight end Mark Redman from the Los Angeles Rams.
Similar to Smith, Johnson is familiar with the Packers’ offense because he played for Arthur Smith in Pittsburgh last season as a rookie. Johnson also said there are similarities between Green Bay’s outside zone running game and what he ran at Iowa under Hawkeyes OC Tim Lester. LaFleur, who called Johnson “really good at the outside zone stuff,” said he’s talked to Lester about Johnson since Lester was a senior analyst for the Packers in 2023.
Lloyd said Johnson’s size — 6 feet, 1 inch and 224 pounds — impressed him. That frame might lend itself well to pass protection, a trait vital for backup running backs that Johnson touted when asked about his skill set.
Redman stands 6 feet, 5 inches and 258 pounds. He knows exactly what his role is, and it’s not to catch passes. Gutekunst said the Packers have been looking for a Y tight end who can move people in the run game and protect the quarterback.
“I’m an in-line tight end that’s going to block at the point of attack,” Redman said. “And that’s what I’m coming here to do. So just kind of embracing that role, just get dirty, and finish some blocks and stuff like that. I think I put it on tape in the preseason and that’s what I like to do. Hopefully that’s what they’ll use me for.”
Mark Redman bolsters the Packers’ tight end room. (Gary A. Vasquez / Imagn Images)
Redman is also familiar with this system because he spent his rookie year last season on the Rams’ practice squad. Mike LaFleur was also the Rams’ offensive coordinator under Sean McVay.
“Got here and J.D. (tight ends coach John Dunn) started talking about the offense and I was like, ‘Wait, I know that play (and) I know that play,’” Redman said. “Obviously there’s going to be some new stuff … a lot of it’s carryover, so it’s pretty nice to be able to go out there and play Day 1.”
5. Defensive tackle Warren Brinson has a “good chance” to play in Week 1, Gutekunst said.
Brinson had a fantastic first couple weeks of camp before injuring his calf while warming up for the Packers’ second preseason game in Denver. He’s been out since and was the only player on the active roster not practicing on Tuesday.
The Packers used their two cutdown-day injured reserve spots on wide receiver Savion Williams and edge Collin Oliver. Williams has a high-ankle sprain and Gutekunst said he should be ready once his four-game window is up. Oliver was listed with a calf injury — Gutekunst said it’s an Achilles tendon issue — and the GM said Oliver should be ready even before his four games are up (he still has to wait until Week 5 to play).
Gutekunst also said that he expects Musgrave to play this season. The fourth-year tight end suffered a neck injury this offseason and missed all of camp.
Long snapper Matt Orzech practiced Tuesday for the first time this summer. He spent all of camp on the PUP list with a calf injury.