Packers’ Mark Murphy announces the start date for training camp.

Packers’ Mark Murphy announces the start date for training camp.

 

Mark Murphy, president and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, announced the opening date for training camp: July 22nd. According to Murphy, rookies and “selected players” will report to Green Bay on July 17th, with veterans reporting the day before camp begins, July 21st. Assume that the “chosen players” who will be asked to report to the Packers’ facilities early are the same ones that attended rookie minicamp.

Training camp will start for Green Bay about a month and a half after the team’s organized team activities conclude on June 6th, later this week. The Packers will also have a mandatory minicamp that stretches from June 11th to June 13th. Green Bay has only opened up one OTA practice a week to the media so far this offseason, but every single player on the 91-man roster (which current has a roster spot open) has shown up for at least one of the practices that the media has been available for. That differs from last season, when cornerbacks Jaire Alexander and Rasul Douglas notably missed voluntary practices.

 

When Murphy was asked about the NFLPA’s practice proposal, which has yet to be finalized and sent to the league for collective bargaining, here’s what Murphy had to say:

I’m glad you raised this issue, Jon. It is not a formal proposal, but the NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported recently that the NFLPA is working to finalize a proposal to change the offseason program, starting in 2025. Pelissero reports that the NFLPA has consulted medical and performance experts to create a solution for reducing injuries and maximizing players’ recovery time. Under the potential proposal, meetings would be permitted in the spring, but no practices could take place until training camp. The NFLPA would have training camp start in late June (rather than mid to late July). There would be a significant ramp-up period which could prove helpful to avoid the soft tissue injuries that plague some players during training camp.

Any changes to the offseason program or training camp would have to be collectively bargained by the NFLPA and the league. In terms of what I think of the proposal, I really need to know more of the details and would like to see the research that supports the proposed change. It is interesting to note that the NFL is really the outlier in terms of offseason programs when compared to other sports. No other sports have organized workouts in their offseasons. They have ramp-up periods leading into the season. Football is much more physical than baseball or basketball, though, and having five to six weeks off before the start of training camp is very beneficial to the players. This should be a topic that you hear quite a bit about in the next year.

If you read between the lines here, given the claims that the league intends to expand to an 18-game season, it appears that the NFLPA is attempting to capitalize on regulated time off in the spring. If the league adds a week, the NFL will either start the season on Labor Day weekend or play the Super Bowl on Presidents’ Day weekend. If the league adds a bye week to the extra week, as they may be willing to do for players and network broadcasters, the NFL will play on both weekends.

With the expanded schedule, the league will almost surely remove a third preseason game from teams’ schedules, something players will likely enjoy. From there, the only concern is how the new timetable would affect camp and OTA practices, which are the NFLPA’s current emphasis. For what it’s worth, the opening of training camp (July 22nd) will coincide with the Packers’ annual shareholder meeting. The first training camp practice will begin at 10:30 a.m., with the shareholders meeting following at 3:00 p.m.