GREEN BAY – The Packers practiced in shells on Thursday at Nitschke Field, their final public tune-up before Saturday’s preseason opener against the New York Jets.
Here are five things we learned:
- Josh Jacobs is ready to thump (if called on to thump).
Head Coach Matt LaFleur’s message to his team this week has been to be ready to play against the Jets, and it’s a mentality Jacobs is carrying with him into Saturday night.
The Pro Bowl running back played in last year’s preseason opener against Cleveland, though it was a brief engagement. He had one carry for seven yards prior to Jordan Love hitting Dontayvion Wicks for a 65-yard touchdown on what turned out to be a three-snap afternoon for the Packers’ starting offense.
Jacobs is on board with whatever direction LaFleur and the coaches decide to go but said wouldn’t mind getting “a couple series” to reacclimate to tackling.
“We’ll see how it’ll play out,” Jacobs said. “(LaFleur) hasn’t really told us what we’re gonna do. But I think I’ll get a couple hits, get a little feel of it and be cool.”
The Packers are a bit banged-up at running back, with both Emanuel Wilson (knee) and MarShawn Lloyd (groin) sitting out of practice this week.
Their absence has freed some snaps for third-year running backs Chris Brooks and Israel Abanikanda as well as rookies Amar Johnson and Jalen White.
Brooks, who signed to the practice squad last September, quickly turned into a versatile, hidden gem for the offense. In 15 appearances, the former BYU running back gained 252 total yards while also proving stout in pass protection.
“Chris, since he’s been here, he’s been like a Swiss Army knife,” Jacobs said. “He can really do it all – pass protect, run block, run the ball, catch, whatever really we ask him to do he can do.”
- Abanikanda is eager to play his former team.
Saturday night’s matchup with the Jets pits Abanikanda against the team that drafted him in the fifth round (No. 143 overall) two years ago.
The 5-foot-10, 217-pound running back played six games for New York as a rookie in 2023, gaining 113 total yards on 29 touches, before being released last December.
“I can’t wait to play my old teammates,” said Abanikanda, who said he’s excited to see Breece Hall and Braelon Allen. “I can’t wait. It’s gonna be fun.”
After spending the offseason in San Francisco, Abanikanda was claimed off waivers by the Packers on July 26 and flashed one-cut ability between the tackles on the practice field.
The transition has been fairly seamless, though, since the offense Green Bay employs is similar to what former Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett ran in the same position with the Jets.
“It’s a lot of similar things, just a couple tweaks in the language,” Abanikanda said. “I caught up really quick – it probably took me about four or five days just to remember a few plays I did with the Jets.”
- Xavier McKinney is dealing with a calf injury.
The All-Pro safety was among the dozen or so Packers players who didn’t practice on Thursday, as he’s currently dealing with a calf injury.
McKinney didn’t go into specifics other than to say the injury is something that’s been “lingering a little bit over time.”
The 26-year-old safety fully expects to be ready for Week 1 but doesn’t know whether he’ll play in any preseason games.
“Obviously glad that we caught it when we caught it, so just kind of trying to take it slow and then the buildup obviously,” McKinney said. “But I’ll be ready when it’s time to go, for sure.”
Javon Bullard and Zayne Anderson took turns joining Evan Williams on the back end with the No. 1 defense Thursday while Bullard also continued to play the nickel cornerback spot.
Watching from the sideline is an unfamiliar spot for McKinney, who started all 17 regular-season games for Green Bay last year while leading the defense with 1,067 snaps.
“It’s always tough when I’m not able to be out there,” McKinney said. “For me, it helps me at the same time because I get a lot of the mental reps in. I pretty much locked in the whole way at practice, getting all the calls and just making the check in the back end and then trying to help the guys that’s out there.”
Center/guard Elgton Jenkins (back), tackle Rasheed Walker (groin) and receiver Jayden Reed (foot) also sat out of Thursday’s practice.
- Bo Melton can’t wait to try out his new position in preseason games.
The Packers’ receiver-turned-cornerback took a sizeable number of reps with the No. 1 defense, as Keisean Nixon rested during team 11-on-11.
It’s another valuable opportunity for Melton to grow into his new position and the third-year veteran anticipates seeing plenty of action there against the Jets.
“I’m hyped now. I ain’t gonna lie,” Melton said. “I’m ready to go against somebody else. We’ve been going against the same people every week, so I’m just excited to go out there and compete with somebody else.”
- Lloyd is thankful his groin injury wasn’t something more significant.
The 2024 third-round pick appeared to take another step in his return to play, as Lloyd was seen wearing a helmet again and cutting off to the side during early individuals.
Lloyd has been out since dropping out of practice on July 28 but is keeping a positive mindset. Helping matters is the fact the start of the regular season is still one month away.
“I feel pretty good,” Lloyd said. “It wasn’t a big thing that set me back too far, just something that I’ve got to take in and just do as much as possible throughout the week.”
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