Week three of the Green Bay Packers pre-season is being treated like a regular game week. According to Coach Mike McCarthy, the first team will play the opening half against the Bengals.
B.J. Coleman of the Packers practices
AUDIO: Mike McCarthy on game plan for Cincinnati :22This week’s preparation seems familiar to many returning players, but is new to rookies and even some veterans. Packer center Jeff Saturday is in his 14th season and has over 185 NFL games started, but even he is experiencing the Packer’s game-week preparation for the first time.
Audio: Saturday describes “game week” as a Packer :15
This pre-season game is also the last major opportunity for players to impress coaches on the big stage before the first round of mandated cuts occurs. The NFL requires teams to cut their rosters down to 75 players by Monday afternoon. However, there are two full pad practices for bubble players to make sure they impress coaches before the deadline on Monday.
Rookie quarterback B.J. Coleman is one of those players to step up and impress coaches in practice on Tuesday, receiving praise from the head coach when running the 2 minute drill. When McCarthy was asked about Coleman getting more snaps in Thursday’s game, he stated the amount of snaps in the game was already set, and that a plan was in place.
Coleman does not know how many snaps he will play Thursday, saying, “…we’re going to see what happens…”
Whether Coleman gets time or not, he says his comfort level in the pocket is rising.
AUDIO: B.J. Coleman says he’s getting more comfortable in the pocket :16
Look for Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews, and the rest of the Packers to showcase what week one might look like this Thursday in Cincinnati, as they take on the Cincinnati Bengals.