Packers fans dumbfounded by Matt LaFleur’s bizarre training camp experiments

For any Green Bay Packers fans expecting to dial in for training camp and not see anything unexpected, head coach Matt LaFleur had other plans. Sure, Jordan Love is at quarterback, Josh Jacobs is at running back, and so on for many of the big names. That, however, can't be said for wide receiver Bo Melton, fighting to make the roster, and tight end Tucker Kraft, pretty secure in his roster spot, as LaFleur had them doing some, well, experimental work. Specifically, he had them working at new positions, ones that seem a bit wild.

Melton, for his part, was lining up at cornerback during Wednesday's training camp practice. That's certainly not normal for a lifelong wide receiver to make a position, especially for an organization he's been a part of since 2022. However, that might not have been the weirdest part as Kraft was seen taking reps as a kick returner. Yes, a tight end returning kicks.

Granted, we're early in training camp, but perhaps that makes this even stranger and more bizarre. It's just not every day that you see one player seemingly trying to make a position switch without any real warning leading into camp and then have another player doing something like a tight end returning kicks that just seems completely senseless.

And Packers fans appeared to agree with their reaction to the news.

Packers fans baffled by Matt LaFleur's senseless camp position switches

Some Packers fans couldn't help themselves when it came to Kraft returning kicks, especially considering that former tight end Brandon Bostic being unable to cleanly field a kick in the 2014 NFC Championship Game proved to be a death knell for Green Bay in that particular postseason.

Others looked at Melton playing cornerback and could only joke about the idea that the Jacksonville Jaguars traded a king's ransom to move up and draft two-way Heisman winner Travis Hunter while Melton is just doing it for the Packers on the fly.

Meanwhile, there was also the reaction from parts of the fan base who are already primed to throw in the towel on the Packers' 2025 season over all of this.

Packers fans should lower their blood pressure over Matt LaFleur's antics

In reality, though, this is probably something we'll look back on and laugh, especially if you're a Packers fan. That's particularly true when it comes to Kraft. While uber athletic and versatile, Green Bay not only has return specialist Keisean Nixon, but they signed veteran Mecole Hardman as well. It's more than likely that LaFleur and Kraft were simply having some fun during an early training camp practice.

With Melton, it's certainly a little more deserving of being taken seriously, but it's also for a good reason. There has been talk throughout the offseason about the glut of wide receivers on the Packers roster, especially after drafting both Matthew Golden and Savion Williams. Melton was likely getting pushed off the roster and looking at a practice squad spot at best after camp and the preseason. Trying to transition to cornerback, especially in the wake of Jaire Alexander's release, could be his best shot at earning a roster spot.

Training camp is obviously when fans are going to overreact. It's been months since there's been legitimate football and the season is getting close. That's a recipe for high emotions. At the same time, everything this time of year needs to be given context and/or taken with a grain of salt. That certainly applies to the Packers on Wednesday, regardless of how entertaining the optics are.

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