The Green Bay Packers close out the preseason in Kansas City against the Chiefs
Vince Young
tonight. The starters will likely get a little time, but there’s no guarantee Aaron Rodgers will play at all.
The quarterback position tonight belongs to Vince Young and B.J. Coleman. Mike McCarthy said last week that the battle for the number-2 job is still on, but this job is Young’s to lose. Coleman still has practice squad eligibility and that’s his likely destination this weekend. Young is still trying to get a handle on the Packers complicated play book and will likely still be doing that well into the regular season. If the Packers go with Young as Aaron Rodgers backup, they’ll be crossing their fingers that nothing happens to Rodgers early on.
Things have changed at running back after the loss of DuJuan Harris for the season. The Packers were banking on Harris forming a 1-2 punch with rookie running back Eddie Lacy. Now that Harris is gone, Mike McCarthy must settle on either James Starks or Alex Green to take some of the load off of Lacy. Fourth round pick Johnathan Franklin will make the team, but isn’t ready to provide much of a change of pace to the Packers offensively.
Will the Packers keep five or six wide receivers? Jordy Nelson, James Jones, Randall Cobb and Jarrett Boykin are locks. Jeremy Ross might not be the next best option at the position, but his ability to return punts could land him a spot on the roster. Tyrone Walker has had a solid training camp and is worth of a spot. Myles White has also been solid for the Packers to consider. Rookie Charles Johnson would appear to be a solid candidate for the practice squad.
On the defensive line, has Johnny Jolly done enough to win a spot on the Packers 53? He’s one of the feel good stories in this training camp and has performed well, after missing three seasons. BJ Raji, Ryan Pickett and Datone Jones are locks. Mike Daniels is close to a lock and CJ Wilson has performed well. Jordan Miller and Josh Boyd are also battling for a spot. It’s not certain where the Packers will classify veteran Mike Neal. At this point, it’s thought they’ll group him with the linebackers, but that is only a guess.
The tight end position is another interesting call here. The Packers have 7 of them going into this game tonight. After Jermichael Finley, Matt Mulligan and Ryan Taylor would appear to have spots. DJ Williams, Andrew Quarless, Brandon Bostic and Jake Stoneburner are all fighting for what could be one final spot.
Tonight is also a big night for Mason Crosby. He appears to have won the kicking job, but can’t afford to lay an egg tonight in Kansas City.