GREEN BAY, Wis. -- A daily review of the hot topics coming out of Green Bay Packers training camp:
Rookie tight end Colt Lyerla on Friday had his best showing since he was signed following a tryout during rookie orientation camp in May. He caught two touchdown passes during team drills, although both of them were on the shaky side. On the first one, Matt Flynn's throw during a red zone period appeared to catch Lyerla by surprise when it hit him in the hands, but he hung on. The second, also in a red zone drill, he juggled while falling down but managed to secure the pass. Out of football since leaving the University of Oregon team last October, perhaps it was to be expected that Lyerla might start slow. "The ball skills and the timing, the hand-eye coordination, all those things, who's throwing you the ball, the timing of the route and so forth, he's been away from it for a while," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "But he's done a great job physically getting himself ready for this. I think he's in excellent shape. He's a young guy that needs reps, like a lot of rookies. I'm sure the time off didn't help him."It was an up-and-down day for another tight end, Brandon Bostick, who has had a strong start to camp. He caught a pair of touchdowns -- an 8-yard fade from Scott Tolzien over Jarrett Bush and 3-yarder from Aaron Rodgers -- but in between he fumbled during a drill in which the offense was charged with running out the final four minutes of the game. Bush caused the fumble, which was recovered by rookie safety Charles Clay.
Kicking for the first time since Day 1, Mason Crosby once again made 7 of 8 attempts. His only miss was wide right from 40 yards. He made a pair of extra points that were 33-yard kicks (where PATs will be attempted from in the first two preseason games) and also was good from 36, 43, 45, 50 and 53 yards. He is 14-of-16 so far in camp.
In other odds and ends: Despite cutting his weight to a career-low 263 pounds to play outside linebacker, Mike Neal played several snaps at defensive end out of a three-point stance. When Neal played strictly end his first three seasons, he weighed around 300 pounds. … Receiver Gerrard Sheppard, claimed off waivers from the Baltimore Ravens on Wednesday, had two noteworthy plays. He nearly blocked a punt and later caught a deep pass against rookie cornerback Ryan White. … In a practice that lasted only two hours and 11 minutes, there were no one-on-one pass blocking/pass rushing drills.
In the medical report, there's finally some clarity on rookie receiver Jeff Janis' illness. He said he experienced severe abdominal pain on the eve of training camp and was taken to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with shingles. He said he expects to be cleared to start practicing next week. Others who missed practice were safety Tanner Miller (ankle), center Corey Linsley (shoulder), receiver Jared Abbrederis (knee), defensive tackle Letroy Guion (hamstring) and defensive end Jerel Worthy (back). Safety Morgan Burnett (ankle) returned after missing Thursday's practice.
The Packers will host their annual Family Night event at Lambeau Field on Saturday. Instead of a scrimmage, this year is just a regular practice. Activities in the stadium begin at 5:30 p.m. local time, followed by warmups at 6:30, player introductions at 7:30 and the actual practice to follow.