Green Bay Packers take to field for final day of mini camp

GREEN BAY -- Thursday, June 14th was the final of three days of Green Bay Packers mandatory mini camp.

There were lots of new faces on the defensive side of things as the Packers went through their final day on the field for mini camp -- including linebackers that could contribute once the season starts.

Number-one draft pick Nick Perry is one of them.

"In Nick's particular case, it's really given him a chance to really focus in on the playbook. It is a vast playbook with multiple skematic defense," Coach Mike McCarthy said.

An undrafted player, Desmond Moses, opened some eyes on the practice field as well, along with D.J. Smith - a sixth-round draft choice last year.

"He's probably one of our most instinctive defensive players that shows up both on special teams, and particularly, the sub packages, so I look for him to be one of those second-year players that makes a big contribution this year," McCarthy said.

The Packers tried a lot of different guys in their linebacking corps last season with so-so results. They're trying to play the percentages and try more different guys as they get ready for this season.

During mini camp on Wednesday, June 13th, the players weren't actually out on the field, because they were out in the woods, participating in a team-building, shooting-at-clay-pigeons exercise that was a hit!

"James Jones was horrible. At first, I think in the first round, we got four shots each and I missed all four of my shots. This was my first time really doing it and I missed all four, so we were making excuses like 'you know, we're from the city. We don't go out in the woods and shoot at stuff!' I thought I kinda picked up on it, but (Jones) never quite picked up on it. It's like 'I know you're from the city but...could you hit something?!" Packers Center/Guard Evan Dietrich-Smith said.

"Will the hand-eye coordination and fine-motor focus of shooting help us win football games? I don't think so, but the fact that we had the opportunity for those guys to be out there in a different environment and continue to build relationships I think, is vital," McCarthy said.

The Green Bay Packers are off for six weeks -- they start training camp during the last week in July.

CLICK HERE for additional photos from Green Bay mini camp via Packers.com.