AllGreenBayPackers.Com

Erik Walden

1) Introduction:  Packers outside linebacker Erik Walden came into the 2012 training camp with slim odds of staying on the roster.  The team had just drafted Nick Perry with their first round pick and Perry would surely get every opportunity to start opposite Clay Matthews.  The team also saw undrafted rookie Dezman Moses emerge durin camp and it looked lik Walden was all but out the door.  When it became apparent that the Packers would need some depth as Perry developed, they decided to hang onto Walden.  When Perry went down early in the season and Moses wasn’t quite ready to be an every-down player, Walden became the starter at LOLB as he had been in 2011.

2) Profile:

Erik Lashawn Walden

• Age: 27
• Born: 8/21/1985 in Dublin, GA
• Height: 6’02″
• Weight: 250
• College: Middle Tennessee State
• Rookie Year: 2008
• NFL Experience: 5 years

Career Stats and more

3) Expectations coming into the season:  Walden’s initial expectations were low as his ability to stay on the roster was in question from day one of the Packers offseason program.  When he was kept after training camp, Walden was there to serve as a veteran backup.  With Frank Zombo on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, the Packers needed the depth at this vital position in its defense.  When Perry went down early in the season, Walden became the starter and was expected to solidify the left side of the pass rush/run defense and improve over his 2011 performance.  Walden moved to the left side when Matthews moved back to the right side.  Read more... (712 words + 3 images, estimated 2:51 mins reading time)

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Packers S M.D. Jennings is one of the new characters in the Packers secondary.

We’ve all sat through a terrible movie before. I’m not talking about a movie where it’s so bad, it’s good. I’m talking about a movie that is just plain bad, even painful.

Watching the Green Bay Packers allow almost 5,000 passing yards last season was like watching a bad movie, for a whopping 17 weeks.

If a director makes a terrible movies, he’ll probably try and make some serious changes so his next movie isn’t as bad. Maybe he’ll bring on actors with more experience or a production staff that has a several good movies under their resume.

Not if the director is Ted Thompson.

The Packers GM looked at his flop of a defense and said, “I’m going to get some guys that have even less experience and are more unproven than they players we had last season.”

Nowhere is that more evident than in the secondary.

Who are these guys?

The Packers first regular season game is only a few days away, but we have little idea what the secondary will look like. We know Tramon Williams will be at corner and Charles Woodson will be at safety in base and slot corner in sub packages. We also know Morgan Burnett will be at safety.

But that’s about all we know. We don’t know who the No. 2 corner will be in base and we have little clue what the sub packages will look like.  Read more... (1569 words + 1 image, estimated 6:17 mins reading time)

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Packers LB Terrell Manning

Packers rookie linebacker Terrell Manning had a mysteriously quiet training camp.

Although Manning was just a fifth-round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, many draft experts had drafted rated much higher than where he ultimately came off the board–ESPN tabbed Manning the tenth-best outside linebacker of the 2012 draft class.

Fast forward to the summer, Manning was buried behind D.J. Smith and Robert Francois on the depth chart and starving for an opportunity to showcase his abilities. When starting linebacker Desmond Bishop suffered a season-ending injury in the team’s first preseason game in San Diego, the door opened for Manning to step into the spotlight.

But the former North Carolina State standout continued to hide in the shadows.

And as Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay-Press Gazette points out–Manning was battling more than just his fellow linebackers this summer:

His problems began the first week of training camp, and the Packers’ medical staff quickly realized this was no ordinary stomach flu or food poisoning. The 6-foot-2, 237-pound Manning was tested for everything from Crohn’s disease to cancer before he was diagnosed with a parasite that caused colitis, an inflammation of the large intestine.

Manning says at one point during training camp, he weight as little as 220 pounds–which is less than the average weight of the Packers’ top four running backs. However, the rookie linebacker refused to use his health as an excuse to sit out of practice, as he was on the field for all 21 training camp practices and all four preseason games.  Read more... (400 words + 1 image, estimated 1:36 mins reading time)

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One measure of the strength of a team’s roster is how many of their waived players are claimed by other teams. Here’s a list of cut Packers players that have found themselves a spot on other teams’ 53-man rosters.

… There were no signings.

none, nil, naught, zero, zilch, nada, bupkus.

I guess there’s an exception to every rule…

Go Pack!

P.S. Tori Gurley reportedly has joined the Vikings practice squad. He’ll certainly have a much better chance of getting called up there, but having to were a blonde wig with braids? Don’t know if that works for him…

Dale Moss tweeted Sunday morning that he’s headed to the Tampa Bay Practice Squad.

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Jersey Al Bracco is the founder and editor of AllGreenBayPackers.com, and the co-founder of Packers Talk Radio Network. He can be heard as one of the Co-Hosts on Cheesehead Radio and is the Green Bay Packers Draft Analyst for Drafttek.com.

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The Green Bay Packers have made their first Practice Squad signings.

The following players have been signed so far according to various reports and sources.  Any reported signings will not be listed here, however, if not reported by a verified member of the media following the Green Bay Packers:

Green Bay Press Gazette

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

2012 Packers Practice Squad:

OG Greg Van Roten

TE Brandon Bostick

QB BJ Coleman  (Operation Conceal Coleman was a success!)

DE Lawrence Guy

WR Diondre Borel

RB Marc Tyler

OT Andrew Datko

G/T Chris Scott (2010 Steelers 5th rd draft pick)

Follow Jersey Al:

          Follow @JerseyAlGBP           Add to Circleson

Jersey Al Bracco is the founder and editor of AllGreenBayPackers.com, and the co-founder of Packers Talk Radio Network. He can be heard as one of the Co-Hosts on Cheesehead Radio and is the Green Bay Packers Draft Analyst for Drafttek.com.

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The Green Bay Packers have made their first moves to cut down their roster to the 53 man mark to open the regular season.

The following players have been released so far according to various reports and sources.  Any reported cuts will not show up here, however, if not reported by a verified member of the media following the Green Bay Packers:

S Anthony Levine

C Sampson Genus

WR Tori Gurley

WR Diondre Borel

TE Brandon Bostick

FB Nic Cooper

C/G Tommie Draheim

G Reggie Wells

WR Curenski Gilleylen

T Andrew Datko

OL Shea Allard

WR Dale Moss

WR Shaky Smithson (injury settlement)

DE Lawrence Guy

CB Otis Merrill

OL Greg Van Roten

RB Marc Tyler

DE Daniel Muir

QB BJ Coleman

OT Derek Sherrod (PUP)

LB Vic So ‘oto (IR)

Currently these represent 18 of the 22 cuts Ted Thompson and the Green Bay Packers have to make by 9PM EST today to trim their roster down to 53. As soon as the other cuts are knowm you can be sure we’ll have them here. So be sure to stay on AllGreenBayPackers.com to keep updated as the Packers make their final roster moves before the regular season begins.

Kris Burke is a freelance sports writer currently residing in Wisconsin. His work has been linked to by sites such as National Football Post and CBSSports.com. Follow @KrisLBurke

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The full running list of Packers Roster Cuts can be found here:

http://jerseyal.com/GBP/2012/08/31/a-running-list-of-green-bay-packers-final-cuts/

Follow Jersey Al:

          Follow @JerseyAlGBP           Add to Circleson

Jersey Al Bracco is the founder and editor of AllGreenBayPackers.com, and the co-founder of Packers Talk Radio Network. He can be heard as one of the Co-Hosts on Cheesehead Radio and is the Green Bay Packers Draft Analyst for Drafttek.com.

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