It's Packers 2014 preseason football time: Pack vs. Titans!

Oh, baby...at long, long last...Green Bay Packers football is about to get underway. The road to the Super Bowl, fellow Packer fans, begins this evening in Tennessee. Our Pack take on the Titans in the first of four preseason games. Expect not to see much of any of the projected starters. Particularly those named Aaron Rodgers.

Tonight, we'll get our first glimpse of the 2014 edition of the Packers. On display will be the work of the two fellows competing to be the primary backup to Rodgers: Matt Flynn and Scott Tolzein. The Packers know what Flynn can do: provide a knowledge of the system and even win games now and then. But we suspect they are more interested in seeing what Tolzein can do now with a bit more experience. They know he has a stronger arm than Flynn. The question is can he be a consistent leader on the field and win. Flynn's steady, Tolzein has a better chance to make a big play. What will shake out by the time the final roster decisions need to be made? This game starts to make that picture come into focus.

The same, of course, can be said for many other players and positions. Safety has been one getting a lot of attention in training camp. Given the lack of production from that unit last season, expectations are much higher this season. Morgan Burnett missed most of this week's camp with a strained oblique and will be held out tonight. As a result, second-year player Micah Hyde and first-round draft pick Ha Ha Clinton-Dix are expected to start, and much focus will of course be placed upon how Clinton-Dix adapts to the pro game.

But don't be surprised if you see third-year player Sean Richardson in the mix with the starters. During his Thursday press conference, head coach Mike McCarthy had this to say about Richardson: "I'll tell you what, Sean Richardson is having a hell of a training camp." Any number of pundits and reporters have noted that Richardson has been very impressive in camp. The coaching staff has taken notice. Richardson was an undrafted free agent who made the team in 2012, but that rookie season was cut short with injuries and he played in only five games. In 2013, he played in just six games. The Packers are anxious to see what a healthy Richardson can do. At 6'2" and 216 lbs., he is an imposing presence in the defensive backfield. I'm one of those rooting for him to stay on the field and make many contributions this season. He's an intriguing player.

Other young players will also be getting a close look tonight. Second-year player J.C. Tretter is slated to be the starting center if all goes according to script. McCarthy says he likes what he has seen from Tretter in practice, so we'll see what happens in live game action. Rookie Corey Linsley will also get a good look at center.

On offense, tight end is a position of interest with the apparent final departure of Jermichael Finley. Jake Stoneburner looks to take a step up in his play, while rookie Richard Rodgers has also received a lot of positive reviews in camp. In the wide receiver corps, expectations are high for rookie Davante Adams who has apparently been nothing but spectacular in camp.

But don't count out rookie Jeff Janis. Janis missed the first week of camp with an illness and practiced for the first time on Wednesday. During that first practice, Janis made a one-handed touchdown catch in the back-left corner of the end zone of a pass from Tolzein. Not to be outdone, Adams followed Janis’ catch with a one-handed touchdown grab of a Matt Flynn pass.

These are just a few of the players to keep an eye on, of course.

A big part of these preseason games for fans is just getting used to new players and new numbers. "Who is that?" will be a common statement tonight, whether on a good or poor play.

For coaches, they want to see what the new young guys may be able to contribute to make this team better. It's a fun and exciting time of the year. Hopes from fans and coaches alike are that no one gets seriously injured. The Pack has already lost wide receiver and returner Jared Abbrederis and offensive lineman Don Barclay to torn ACL's. The Packers have seemed a bit snake-bitten in recent seasons with injuries. Let's hope this early trend doesn't continue.

Packers get to 75-man roster through injury listings

With the exception of the release of couple-day signee kicker, Zach Ramirez, the Green Bay Packers got down to the required 75-man roster limit yesterday primarily through placing players on various injury-related lists.

Ramirez was brought in to provide some late camp competition for Mason Crosby, who reportedly responded with his best showing of camp, locking up the kicking position. (Let us pray...)

Other than that move, OT Derek Sherrod, S Sean Richardson, T J.C. Tretter and DE Jerel Worthy were all placed on the reserve/physically unable to perform list. The Packers placed OT Bryan Bulaga, RB DuJuan Harris, WR Kevin Dorsey, and LB Jarvis Reed on injured reserve, meaning they are done for the season. Both Bulaga and Harris have knee injuries that require surgery. The others will either be waived when healthy or, more likely, will sign injury settlements and move on as free agents.

Next up for Packers General Manager Ted Thompson? Cutting 22 players by 5 p.m. Saturday to get down to the 53-man regular season roster. If you want to see an insightful analysis of how that might shake out, check out this article from a few days ago.

Sherrod? Who?? How long???
Derek Sherrod
(Photo by Gabriel Cervantes. This image is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.)
The Packers first round draft pick in 2011, Derek Sherrod is still...a work in progress?

That might even be stretching it. Since breaking both the tibia and fibula in his right leg in a game in Kansas City late during his first season in what some have said was one of the worst leg injuries they'd ever seen, Sherrod has been a missing man. Even though he had surgery shortly after his injury, his recovery has been slow. Very slow. Complications -- in his ankle -- arose out of the initial surgery which required additional surgery. Some who have seen him at the practice field have said the muscle mass of his injured leg appears about 20 percent smaller than his healthy leg.

By virtue of being on the reserve/PUP list -- basically the same route the Packers took with him last season -- Sherrod will not be allowed to practice for the first six weeks of the season. After that, he is eligible for a 21-day period in which to practice with the team without him counting against the roster. The team has a five-week window after Week six of the season in which to initiate this designated practice period. However, by Week 11, the Packers will have to make a decision: activate him to roster, put him on season-ending injured reserve, or cut him outright.

There are many, including this pundit, who have a sense that Sherrod will never see the playing field again or, if he does, will not be able to perform at the level needed. A freak injury. We wish nothing but the best for the young man, but it might be best for both parties if the Packers just cut him and moved on. The team has done all it can do to allow him a recovery. If the injury had not occurred there is little doubt that Sherrod would be a key piece in the Pack's offensive line, protecting QB Aaron Rodgers' blind side for many years to come. But if "ifs, ands and buts were candy and nuts we'd all have a really good time." (I dunno either...was just the first time it seemed even close to making sense in a post...sorry!) It's time for the Packers to move on. But we'll be waiting at least another couple months for that move to take place.

You can read more about Sherrod's family's take on the injury and his recovery here.