Packers Can’t Use Youth as an Excuse as They Aim for Longer Postseason Run

Over the last couple of seasons, the Green Bay Packers have produced the two youngest playoff teams of the past four-and-a-half decades.

They believe they’re now experienced enough to take the next step as they chase the franchise’s first Super Bowl berth since the 2010 championship season.

“We’re not a young team no more,” three-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Kenny Clark said Thursday after the Packers’ second training camp workout. “We can’t use that excuse. We’ve got to get after it.”

Clark’s point is debatable, because Green Bay still has plenty of youth. The only Packers in their 30s are 33-year-old kicker Brandon McManus and 30-year-old long snapper Matt Orzech, though Clark and offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins will both reach that milestone this season.

But it’s a more tested group than the Packers had the last couple of years.

The Packers went 11-7 and lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC wild-card round last season with a roster that had a weighted age of 25.72, according to Elias Sports Bureau, making it the second-youngest team to reach the postseason in the last 45 years. The only younger team to do it was the 2023 Packers squad that went 10-9 and reached the NFC divisional round with a weighted age of 25.58.

Weighted age is a statistic Elias uses that takes into consideration how much playing time each player receives.

When the Packers’ playoff run last season ended one round earlier than it had the previous year, general manager Brian Gutekunst discussed the need to “ramp up our sense of urgency,” a remark that garnered plenty of attention.

There’s a clear sense that the Packers are in the midst of a championship-contending window and need to capitalize.

“I know you guys made a lot about that comment, and really what that was about was I think, we had a lot of young players that have played a lot of football and they’re very experienced,” Gutekunst said. “But us old guys that have been in this league for a long time understand the opportunities that you have in this league … you don’t have a lot of them. So the understanding of that, I think, takes a little time, and there’s where I think the urgency for me is.

“You’ve got to understand what’s in front of us. We’ve got a really good football team, the capability of being there, and you’ve got to take advantage of that.”

The Packers have reason to feel good about their chances as they enter their seventh season under Matt LaFleur, whose 67-33 record gives him a winning percentage that ranks him behind only Philadelphia’s Nick Sirianni and the Los Angeles Chargers’ Jim Harbaugh among active coaches with at least 50 games.

Quarterback Jordan Love is a third-year starter entering his prime at 26. Josh Jacobs is coming off a Pro Bowl season in which he rushed for 1,329 yards. The Packers return six players who caught at least 29 passes, though Christian Watson figures to miss much of the season after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in the 2023 regular-season finale.

On defense, the Packers return their six leading tacklers from last season as well as Rashan Gary, who had a team-high 7.5 sacks, as they enter their second year under coordinator Jeff Hafley.

The key is playing better within the division.

Green Bay’s 1-5 record against NFC North opponents last year gave them their worst divisional record since 2005, when they also were 1-5 in those games. The Packers had gone 22-8 in NFC North games under LaFleur before last season.

“I feel like if we uphold the standard and play to how we know we should play, I feel like we’ve got a Super Bowl team,” offensive tackle Rasheed Walker said. “I know we’ve got a playoff team, but I feel like we’ve got the potential to go all the way to the Super Bowl.”

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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