The bike brigade ferried the players one by one through a gauntlet of fans to Ray Nitschke Field this morning as the 2019 Green Bay Packers training camp officially began.
(DeShone Kizer finds his ride for the summer)
In his post Achilles surgery walking boot, Rookie Head Coach Matt LaFleur passed on the golf cart he needed during the mini-camp and stayed on his feet for nearly the entire 2:10 practice in 85 degree heat.
(Matt LaFleur chats with Adrian Amos before practice)
Because it was the first practice of camp, players only donned helmets and outside of a couple of new drills, looked an awful lot like a spring, off-season workout except for the thousands of fans that filled the Nitschke bleachers and ringed the field.
(Safety Mike Tyson jams a blocking sled)
Four players were withheld from practice, all with minor injuries. Mason Crosby has a sore calf, Josh Jackson had a foot injury, rookie Darnell Savage is still mending after having his wisdom teeth removed and fellow draft choice Dexter Williams started practice but dropped out coming down ill. LaFleur said none of the players will miss significant time.
With Crosby sidelined, Sam Ficken handled all of the kicks in a brief field goal drill but he was spotty, missing two of his first four finsihing four of six from various distances.
On defense, Raven Greene got reps with the starting unit at safety in place of Savage. Second year pro Oren Burks got first dibs at inside linebacker with Blake Martinez in base package work.
On the offensive side, Billy Turner continues to get first team reps at right guard. At wide receiver, Davante Adams worked with just about every combination of receivers during 11 on 11 drills with Aaron Rodgers throwing.
As for Rodgers, he held his first session with the media after practice, his 15th career training camp opener.
(Audio: Aaron Rodgers)
Rodgers, along with several other veterans, commented on the release of Mike Daniels Wednesday. Aaron had just passed Mike in the hall and then he heard he was asked to go "upstairs". Everyone knows what that means and Aaron said he was very surprised to hear the news.
(The defensive line group without Mike Daniels)
The best part of opening day came in the final five minutes. After a special teams periods, LaFleur huddled the team together and urged them to pick up their intensity. To make sure it happened, he unveiled what may become an end of practice fixture, a team competitive drill.
Today's scenario, it's third and goal from inside the 10 yard line. Do or die. 9 plays were called the everyone kept score. May the best unit win.
The first snap had Jimmy Graham get his legs tangled up striding for a Rodgers pass in the end zone. The Offense screamed pass interference, the defense argued no call. Both units were extremely animated. The next play, Rodgers tried to hit a slot receiver but Blake Martinez dropped in coverage and made a pretty interception at the goal line as the defensive players got really stirred up.
The offense converted a touchdown on a flare route to Jamaal Williams next and they partied.
That was followed by Kyler Fackell's interception of Tim Boyle on nearly the identical play Martinez made except on the other side of the formation.
Kizer then beat an unblocked middle blitz by hitting fullback Danny Vitale over the middle for a touchdown. Excellent defensive coverage forced throw aways and the final tally on day one of a spirited drill was Defense 5, Offense 4.
It's going to be worth staying to the end of each practice to see what comes next.