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GREEN BAY, Wis. -- After more than five weeks of having an extended training camp that wound up robbing the team of an extra fifth preseason game because of the unplayable field for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, the Packers are more than ready to start the season. Green Bay kicks off the games that matter Sept. 11 at the Jacksonville Jaguars.
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Even 12th-year quarterback Aaron Rodgers was antsy to get going early in camp, declaring he felt ready to play the season. That was long before he made his one and only appearance of exhibition play in the second-to-last game, Aug. 26 at San Francisco.
After a while, Rodgers was taking repeated questions about how ready the Packers would be for the likelihood of late-summer heat in Jacksonville for the Week 1 matchup.
No sweat, Rodgers insinuated.
"We played in Miami a couple years ago in some heat," he said. "There's no excuses when it comes to that -- any time of the year, whether it's hot weather or cold weather. We'll be ready to go -- 100 degrees or minus-30."
And, on the readiness front, the best forecast of all from a Packers perspective is No. 1 wide receiver Jordy Nelson has a strong chance of playing for the first time in more than a year in the season opener.
Nelson missed the 2015 season because of a torn ACL in his right knee. His anticipated comeback at the start of training camp was pushed back a few weeks because of an injury to his left knee.
That meant no preseason game action for Nelson. Neither Rodgers nor head coach Mike McCarthy is the least bit concerned about the absence of game passes from Rodgers to Nelson since August 2015 because of their stellar longevity as a duo.
"That's the beauty of us playing together for a long time," Rodgers said.
Besides the return of Nelson, the Packers exited the preseason considerably healthy with their key players.
The biggest question mark will be with veteran strong safety Morgan Burnett, who was held out of all preseason games after a back injury flared up in early August. Versatile defensive back Micah Hyde has the chops to fill the starting role if Burnett isn't deemed quite ready for the opener.
Meanwhile, the offense is mostly intact from last season, except for the promotion of JC Tretter to the starting spot at center after incumbent Corey Linsley missed the preseason because of an aggravated hamstring injury. In addition, longtime starting guard Josh Sitton was released in the cutdown to 53 players. Lane Taylor or Don Barclay could be the starter, but there might be other shuffling that occurs this week.
"The expectation of the offensive line, I think we clearly could have one of the best lines that we've had here," McCarthy said. "I think I've said that the last two years, and, frankly, health is always important. I think that when you look at the success of a football team, if you look at the health of the starting offensive line, there's a lot that correlates to the success of the football team."
In the aftermath of the Minnesota Vikings losing quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to a season-ending knee injury, the Packers are firmly cemented as the favorites in the NFC North. Green Bay abdicated the perch atop the division after four years to the upstart Vikings last season, in great part because Rodgers didn't have his deep-ball security blanket with Nelson from start to finish.
A favorable schedule, which includes a Week 2 prime-time matchup against the Vikings as they open their new stadium in Minneapolis, should mean another season of double-digit wins for Green Bay.
What's more, utterances of Super Bowl or bust were being made in the locker room during camp as the Packers pursue getting back to the big game for the first time since they won the league title in the 2010 season.
Buoyed by the elimination of any possible distraction going into the season with the NFL's investigation of Matthews and Peppers now done, Green Bay's defense could determine just how dominant the Packers could be.
The unit's biggest weakness is up front. Veteran nose tackle B.J. Raji essentially retired early in the offseason. His heir apparent, Kenny Clark, who was taken in the first round of the draft, is iffy for the start of play because of a back injury. And, Green Bay will be without young lineman Mike Pennel for the first four games because of a league suspension.
Longtime defensive coordinator Dom Capers hinted late in the preseason that he would be leaning on the Packers' plethora of hybrid linebackers, including Peppers and Datone Jones, who can slide down and put their hands in the ground.
"That is one of the advantages of having a lot of big elephants," said Capers, referring to the elephant end that has been in vogue in Green Bay the last few years. "We've got guys there that we feel are fairly physical guys, we've got guys there that have had experience of playing inside. It does give you flexibility within your scheme, and you've got to work a number of different things."
--Three-time Pro Bowl guard Josh Sitton was a victim in the Packers' initial cut to 53, signaling the team is going with a youth movement along their offensive line, and saving a whole lot of money in the process.
Sitton would have been among four starting linemen entering the final year of their contracts. The left guard's salary-cap number of $6.85 million would have been eighth highest on the club this year and just ahead of right guard T.J. Lang ($6.2 million).
