As training camp nears its end, the Green Bay Packers got some work against different opponents as they hosted the Arizona Cardinals for a joint practice.
This comes ahead of the final preseason showdown for both sides, which will be played at Lambeau Field tomorrow (August 28th).
The first look the two sides had at each other was getting kickoff return reps, where Packers speedster Sky Moore took one to the house.
The Packers offense then set the tone, coming out hot with Jordan Love connecting with wide receiver Christian Watson for a long gain down the field.
Another bright spot for the Packers was the return of tight end Tucker Kraft to 11 on 11 drills.
Kraft told SeehaferNews.com how he’s feeling being back out there.
“It felt great. That was something that I definitely needed from an individual standpoint,” Kraft said. “Getting out there, competing, taking on some contacts, getting my feet kind of like in the scrum of things, being comfortable.”
As most joint NFL practices do, tempers flared a bit on multiple occasions, but no fights or ejections took place.
One of those instances came after Kraft caught a ball deep down the right sideline before getting his bell rung.
He continued to say that a hit like that was welcome after missing a significant portion of last season.
“That was just competition. I needed some contact like that to wake up the nervous system to get me ready for week one,” Kraft said with a smile.
But as practice rolled on, the Cardinals found their rhythm and gave Green Bay some headaches on both sides of the ball, something Jayden Reed feels is a teaching moment.
“I think we put up a dominant performance. We made a lot of plays early on, but I do think we could finish better. I know that last two-minute drive we put up a lot of penalties and just, you know, not great execution,” Reed told us.
Defensively, it was some younger players for Green Bay who made the difference, with rookie Brandon Cisse and third-year man Kitan Oladapo each picking off Cardinals QB Jacobey Brissett.
This was the third straight day Oladapo recorded an interception.
For a guy like Oladapo who is fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster, days like that can prove to be huge.
Oladapo said bluntly, “I think I’m positioning myself pretty well, being versatile, playing nickel and safety, but just trying to go out there Friday and put more good stuff on tape, you know, play fast, play physical and show them that I deserve a spot on the 53.”
For Oladapo and others looking to prove themselves, they have one final chance to do so when Green Bay closes out the preseason against Arizona tomorrow.
After that, the Packers, and all 31 other NFL teams, will be forced to make the tough decision of cutting the roster down to 53 players on Sunday (August 30th) at 5:00 p.m.
