Tucker Kraft’s triumphant return to 11-on-11 and more observations from Packers camp

GREEN BAY, Wis. — It looked like Tucker Kraft hadn’t missed a day of 11-on-11 work.

The Green Bay Packers standout tight end returned to team drills Sunday for the first time since tearing an ACL in Week 9 last season against the Carolina Panthers. He picked up right where he left off, catching all five targets from quarterback Jordan Love and scoring one touchdown. In typical Kraft fashion, that touchdown was followed by an emphatic spike and several jumping “starfish” chest bump celebrations with teammates.

“That tired me out,” Kraft said with a grin. “It was nice to get back to the starfish … It was bittersweet. That’s for sure. I mean, my first competitive 11-on-11 touchdown, so just excited.”

Kraft has said that he thought he was the NFL’s best all-around tight end when he got hurt last season. In Weeks 1-8, he ranked first among tight ends in yards after catch per reception, tied for second in touchdown catches, and third in receiving yards, while establishing himself as a formidable blocker.

The potentially scary thing for opponents? Kraft wants to surpass that level post-injury.

“I just wanna diversify my abilities,” Kraft said. “People think I’m s— at running routes vs. man. They think I’m just a zone-catching tight end — drop-step, get north after the catch. But I wanna continually prove people wrong about what they think my box of abilities are. I’ve been watching a lot of film this offseason, taking bits and pieces from other tight ends’ game(s) and just trying to add to my own repertoire and be a force on this offense.”

Kraft specifically mentioned watching future Hall of Famer George Kittle in the San Francisco 49ers offense, since it’s similar to the Packers’. Even as perhaps the NFL’s best tight end after the catch, Kraft said he has taken notes on Kittle’s abilities after the catch and his yards-per-route-run numbers to emulate the skills of a guy who’s entering Year 10 in the NFL.

Don’t be surprised if Kraft surpasses Kittle before the season starts to become the highest-paid tight end in the NFL (they share an agent). Kittle currently holds that mark with a $19.1 million average annual salary, and Kraft, a 2023 third-round pick, is entering a contract year. If you ever wondered why teammates voted him as a captain last season at just 24 years old, look no further than his answer to a question about why he’s going full speed in 11-on-11 drills coming off an ACL injury without a new deal.

“I’ll always put it back on the team,” Kraft said. “Every one of these guys comes in here — this is a violent sport, and we risk life and limb. Guys have to medically retire from this s—. They’re banging heads. They’ve got messed up necks, backs. How many times can you blow a knee out? Guys keep fighting and clawing to come back into this locker room, and that’s the reason I do it. … I want to leave a legacy on this sport as a whole. I want my children to see the lengths I would go to to fight for something I love, and I think I have it right here in the ‘G.’”

Kraft said it “never crossed my mind” to sit out portions of practice until he signed a new contract.

He also sounded like someone who won’t play in preseason games but plans to participate in next week’s joint practice against the Arizona Cardinals in Green Bay. He hopes to be off a snap count by Week 1 in Minnesota, but will he have a new deal by then, too?

“That’s the goal,” Kraft said, a sentiment general manager Brian Gutekunst echoed earlier in training camp. “I think we’re a different team when I’m out on the field, and I think that’s obvious. I think everyone in this organization, every fan, knows that — without sounding arrogant. I think there’s a different feel to the offense when I’m out there.

“I’ve kinda gone through life just taking things blow by blow, assuming things will always just work out in the end. So me, the preparation, the sacrifices I’ve made to be here right now, I’m just going to continue to assume that it’s all going to work out for me.”

Besides Kraft’s triumphant return, here are a handful of other notable observations from Sunday’s long, hot practice at Ray Nitschke Field:

1. Head coach Matt LaFleur laid into second-year edge rusher Barryn Sorrell after Sorrell bull-rushed left tackle Anthony Belton into quarterback Jordan Love, knocking Love to the ground. Sorrell was then taken off the field. LaFleur said earlier in camp that he wasn’t happy with how close pass rushers were getting to the quarterback, so his anger is understandable, even if you think Belton should just do a better job. Green Bay’s defensive line and other blitzers have caused havoc in the backfield this summer. Sorrell is in prime position for significant snaps, perhaps even when Micah Parsons returns, while Belton has been demoted from the starting lineup in favor of Jacob Monk at right guard.

2. The Packers’ incumbent No. 1 cornerback, Keisean Nixon, took reps with the backups last week. He’s back with the starters now, but secondary coach Bobby Babich said bluntly on Friday that there’s a competition at cornerback when asked about Nixon repping with the twos. Nixon responded Sunday.

“I guess I’m being punished right now,” Nixon said. “I guess. I don’t know. I don’t really worry about what I’m running in camp, ones or twos. I just keep my process and just compete — for real.”

Nixon said “I don’t know” when asked what he’d be punished for. Babich added that Nixon has handled the competition “great.”

“Every day I find out a different thing, and I just attack it,” Nixon said. “I don’t care what it is, whether it’s me taking reps on special teams, whatever it is. I attack it, though. I’m here. Can’t really run me off.”

3. We saw the Packers’ first scuffle of camp Sunday, even if the dust-up wasn’t much to write home about. After linebacker Edgerrin Cooper stuffed a MarShawn Lloyd run near the line of scrimmage, linebacker Zaire Franklin ended up on top of running back Chris Brooks, pinning him down behind the play. Franklin definitely brings the juice to practice and isn’t afraid to chirp his teammates. Don’t be surprised if they vote him a captain in his first year with the team. Defensive tackle Nazir Stackhouse and offensive tackle Dalton Cooper also got into a post-play shoving match later in practice.

4. We might be at the stage of camp where it would be a surprise if rookie cornerback Brandon Cisse doesn’t start Week 1. However, he didn’t have a great day in 1-on-1s, allowing three catches on his three reps. He maintained tight coverage on a Savion Williams slant, but Williams made a contested catch. On his second rep, wide receiver Kisean Johnson bullied him off the snap with a push-off to create space for an easy catch. Wideout Isaiah Neyor then cooked Cisse by faking right at the top of his route before darting left and making a catch.

On the flip side, undrafted rookie wideout J. Michael Sturdivant continues making eye-popping catches. He had one in Thursday’s preseason opener and made two great catches in 1-on-1s Sunday, the first after an adjustment on an underthrown Love deep ball against cornerback Shemar Bartholomew, and the second a diving catch at the front right pylon for a touchdown against cornerback Benjamin St-Juste.

5. There were two new DNPs on Sunday, edge Lukas Van Ness (shoulder) and offensive lineman Darian Kinnard (ankle). Van Ness called his injury “nothing long term.” He had been having a strong camp. Defensive back Javon Bullard (foot) remained sidelined, though he jumped pretty high while celebrating a pass breakup with cornerback Kamal Hadden. Edge Dani Dennis-Sutton (illness) and running back Josh Jacobs (groin) remained sidelined, too. Left tackle Jordan Morgan was in and out of team drills after spending time inside with head trainer Bryan Engel, while left guard Aaron Banks remained sidelined from 11-on-11s with a knee injury. So, too, did defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, who returned to practice off the PUP list one week ago. In Banks’ place, rookie fifth-rounder Jager Burton again started at left guard. LaFleur said Friday that Burton’s play will make for an “extremely difficult” decision on who starts there.

Some quick-hitters from Sunday…

• Rookie kicker Trey Smack made all four field-goal attempts from 28, 33 (PAT), 38 and 43 yards. He’s now 7-for-7 in the preseason opener and Sunday’s practice after starting camp 20-for-28.
• Nixon batted down a pass at the line after blitzing. There was another play in which defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon sent nickel Kitan Oladapo and safety Xavier McKinney from the same side to force a Love throwaway.
• Wide receiver Bo Melton might’ve had the catch of practice, spinning around to grab an imperfect deep ball from Love that Cisse lost in the air.
• Wideout Matthew Golden beat Nixon deep and drew a defensive pass interference flag after Love launched the ball about 50 yards in the air.
• Players who got multiple scribbles in my notebook for notable (good) plays included Cooper at linebacker, defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, undrafted rookie edge Nyjalik Kelly, defensive tackle Anthony Campbell, Cisse, Oladapo and cornerback Jaylin Simpson. The latter three each had interceptions: Cisse of Love on a deep out for Golden, Oladapo of Love on what looked like an off-schedule play near the right sideline and Simpson of Tyrod Taylor on a lofted ball down the right sideline intended for wideout Kaden Prather (it looked like Simpson was the target based on his basket catch). Simpson also came free on a blitz that would’ve sent quarterback Kyle McCord into the infirmary in a real game.
• The Packers’ three top receivers each had some nice moments in practice, most notably Christian Watson’s corner route on safety Evan Williams before hauling in a beautiful touch pass from Love.
• We’re not allowed to directly quote what we hear on the field, but separate coaches weren’t happy with Cooper at right tackle (blew a block against edge Brenton Cox Jr.) and tight end Messiah Swinson (the coach’s frustration came after a Swinson catch, so not sure what he did wrong).
• The Packers welcomed the Menasha High School football team into the post-practice huddle, and a handful of Packers spent time with the kids after practice. A recent tornado in Wisconsin wrecked Menasha’s football stadium.