GREEN BAY, Wis. — With the Brett Favre standoff still simmering, Aaron Rodgers took his place Monday as the Packers’ new starting quarterback.
Rodgers is trying to ignore what has become a daily soap opera involving the three-time MVP. Favre is considering filing for reinstatement with the NFL and reporting to camp this week, a move likely intended to pressure Green Bay to grant him his release or trade him. The NFL had not received reinstatement paperwork from Favre as of Monday evening.
“I feel like this is really between Brett and the organization, and I’m just trying to stay focused on the things I can control,” Rodgers said.
Monday’s practice attracted more national coverage than usual, but it wasn’t exactly a media circus.
“I was expecting elephants and different things to kind of be out there,” offensive tackle Mark Tauscher said. “There’s a lot of media and stuff, but it wasn’t a case where there were trapeze artists.”
Also, running back Ryan Grant skipped Monday’s first practice in a contract dispute.
Elam back home again
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Jason Elam is still getting used to the uniform. The red jersey. The black helmet with the Falcons logo.
“I’m feeling pretty weird,” he said jokingly, strolling off the field after practice on a hot Georgia morning.
The kicker signed with the Falcons during the offseason after a brilliant 15-year run in Denver.
While perfectly content during all those years with the Broncos, Elam never lost sight of where he grew up, a child of Atlanta’s sprawling suburbs.
“I really enjoyed the organization out there,” Elam said. “But I always said if I didn’t play with Denver, the one place I would want to play is Atlanta. And it just happened to completely fall into place.
“It’s really been a blessing just to come back home.”
Footnotes.
Pro Bowl receiver Chad Johnson didn’t participate in the Bengals’ first practice of training camp because his right ankle hasn’t fully recovered from surgery. He is expected to be ready for the start of the regular season.
• Steelers safety Troy Polamalu pulled his left hamstring while running and couldn’t take part in Pittsburgh’s first two camp practices.
• Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman missed practice because of a strained groin.
• Recently signed Giants offensive tackle Shane Olivea said he was addicted to painkillers while playing for the Chargers last season.
• Jaguars center Brad Meester could miss the start of the season because of a strained right biceps.
• Rams defensive end Victor Adeyanju will be sidelined two to four weeks after breaking his right middle finger in practice Sunday.
The Associated Press
