Packers Stock Report: Meaningless Football Edition

Sam Barrington

Normally I don’t start doing the Packers Stock Report until the regular season begins. Why? I have no idea.

A Packers Stock Report after the second exhibition game seems to make sense to me, thous. So, let’s do this:

Rising

Jayrone Elliot
When you get three sacks in four plays like Elliot did against the Rams on Saturday, you end up in the rising category. I don’t care if Elliot’s outburst came against third-stringers and an obviously overmatched tackle. Three sacks in four plays makes you a riser. Period.

Sam Barrington
I hopped on Barrington’s bandwagon when the Packers drafted him. After looking good in the first two exhibition games, others are joining me for the ride. Barrington is aggressive, explosive and plays mean — characteristics we’re not used to seeing from Packers’ middle linebackers in the post-Desmond Bishop era. Hopefully the Packers keep turning Barrington loose and he continues making plays.

Casey Hayward
Not many people are talking about Hayward, but those who are say he looks great after missing most of last season. He looked great against the Rams, especially on an early deep route down the sideline that he knocked down. If Hayward returns to his rookie year form, this secondary will be fun to watch.

Steady

Aaron Rodgers
QB1 effortlessly moved the Packers down the field for two scoring drives on Saturday and had the first-team offense humming. In other words, Rodgers did exactly what we expected he would do.

Eddie Lacy
It’s probably unfair to stick Lacy in the steady category. He’s anything but steady when he runs the ball. He’s crazy. I was screaming at Lacy to go out of bounds when he approached the sideline on a run against the Rams, but instead he spun inside and plowed his way for a few more yards. Lacy knows no other way to play than all out.

Scott Tolzien/Matt Flynn
The battle for the Packers backup QB job is at a stalemate. Both Tolzien and Flynn have played well. Tolzien looked especially sharp on Saturday despite taking some shots behind a shaky backup offensive line. Whomever wins, I’ll feel much better about the Packers backup QB than in previous seasons.

Falling

Davante Adams the punt returner
Enough is enough. It’s time to end the Davante Adams as a punt returner experiment.

Derek Sherrod
As great as the Packers starting offensive line has looked, the depth players have looked just as inept. Sherrod was beat often on Saturday and took a step backward after a good showing against the Titans. He seems to have all the tools you need to be a good left tackle, but he needs to be more aggressive with hands before pass rushers get into him.

NFL preseason
Man, I hate the preseason, even if the Packers are playing. Sept. 4 can’t get here soon enough.

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Adam Czech is a a freelance sports reporter living in the Twin Cities and a proud supporter of American corn farmers. When not working, Adam is usually writing about, thinking about or worrying about the Packers. Follow Adam on Twitter. Twitter .

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8 thoughts on “Packers Stock Report: Meaningless Football Edition

  1. I thought Sherrod adjusted to the speed as the game wore on and played OK. It was a bad start for sure. And Adams had a good punt return near the end. He looked good doing it once he caught the ball and headed north-south. All in all a lot to like about this game for Packer fans. I thinks Demitri Goodson and Jeff Janis are keepers. Ditto Mike Pennel and maybe Jumbo Elliot too. What are they going to do with Bradford. Tough to cut a 4th rounder straight out of camp. Maybe they find a way to stash him away on some list.

    1. Archie , good comments! Thank you. I agree with your points. You are so much better like this than when you are critical and making all those Kool Aid comments. Go Pack! Thanks, Since ’61.

      1. This game had far more positives than negatives but I comment on positives and negatives as they occur to me. I’m a huge GBP fan but I’m not a homer. I have been a technical analyst all my life and I apply that mentality even to my beloved Packers. It’s been ages (I think) since I’ve said anything critical of the Packers’ offense – well, I was disgusted last Thanksgiving. Most of my criticism has focused on TT for the players he has been drafting for our front 7 on defense. Most (none?) don’t fit our 3-4 two gap scheme.

        What I noticed in last night’s game is no more 3 HIPPO/2 gap defense all night long. I also noticed that no one player was given a huge role except for CMIII and maybe Peppers. Everyone else came and went in a mix and match rotation. That alone kept the RAMS off balance. I’m still not sure about our defense being better this year but last night gave us real hope. ST coverage was much better too. So I’m encouraged and looking forward to the SEA game when we have our final 53 and show our new scheme. For now, I’m pleased that we are rushing at least 4 guys every down and the body types out there are more mobile. It seems that the best defenses are those that can get pressure with a 4 man rush and cover with 7.

    2. Did you notice that Bradford starting playing ILB at the end of the game? Hopefully he’s better there than he has been at OLB. He just doesn’t have the physical tools to deal with NFL caliber OTs.

  2. Tramon didn’t look great on the outside. I wonder if him and Hayward will flip roles in the middle of the season. Or it could’ve been a down game for Tramon due to having to babysit HaHa.

    1. Agree about Tramon. He looked like he didn’t get lined up correctly on motion by #11, started to follow hm across the formation, then when the receiver went back where he started from Tramon got too deep & gave him way too much room. Sherrod did not look good, but the backup QB’s didn’t help. Tolzien did not step up in the pocket on the first hit & Flynn should have gotten rid of the ball on the sack. I don’t think AR would have been hit on any of those plays.

  3. Jeff Janis belongs in the rising category. He has made a huge impact in a short amount of time. He has shown enough where he cannot be stashed on the practice squad – it’s either the Packers’ 53-man or an opponents 53-man. Also really like the way Pennel looks – he moves very well and is very aggressive in holding the point and getting off blocks.

    With Barclay out for the year, offensive tackle depth is a concern. Bakhtiari and Bulaga look great – but it is a large dropoff from there. Maybe trade a backup OLB or WR for a capable backup tackle if Sherrod doesn’t show more progress. Also, Harris has to be in the falling category. Will be very tough to cut R Neal – if Harris makes any more mistakes, will be easy to keep Neal on the roster.

    Overall, I love the depth on the roster. This could be a very special season for GB. Can hardly wait for the Seahawks game – I work right across the street from Century Link Field.

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