Tuesday Cheese Curds: Packers defense improving with the return of Rashan Gary

Since Joe Barry arrived in Green Bay, the Packers have had a pretty good defense on paper.

Unfortunately for Joe Barry and the Packers, games are not played on paper. Heck, given the demise of print media, they’re rarely even described on paper anymore.

Tortured and silly jokes aside, Barry’s defense has largely not lived up to its billing during his tenure, despite numerous highly paid free agents and high-end draft picks.

To make matters worse, Barry lost Rashan Gary, his best defensive player, near the midpoint of last season, and though the defense did rally down the stretch (partly because they played a series of pretty terrible quarterbacks), they were less than they were prior to Gary’s injury.

But Gary is back. Well, sort of. He’s off the Physically Unable to Perform list, which is big news if you’re a Packers fan and even bigger news if you’re a defensive coordinator hoping to move your unit from the theoretical world of paper into the actual world of grass and shoulder pads and helmets and cleats.

One step at a time, I suppose.

Next question for Packers and Rashan Gary: When will extension take place? | Packers Wire

Step one was getting back onto the field. Step two involves cutting a very large check to Mr. Gary at some point.

Packers offer glimpse into what ‘more aggressive’ means for their defense | ESPN

Rasul Douglas and Jaire Alexander want to crank up the aggression this year. Here’s a little bit of what that could look like.

Packers rookie kicker Anders Carlson makes adjustment to get his kicks back on line | Packers News

Camp has been a bit hit or miss for Carlson, if you’ll pardon the mild pun. Here’s how he’s trying to smooth out the ups and downs.

5 Things Learned at Packers Training Camp – Aug. 7 | Packers.com

The one open practice of the week is done. Here’s what there was to see.

2023 NFL Training Camp Debrief: Everything you need to know from the first two weeks of practice | NFL.com

There are a whopping 68 nuggets of varying quality contained herein.

Walrus calf rescued in Alaska, receiving ‘round-the-clock cuddling’ | UPI

The healing powers of unceasing cuddles are apparently saving this baby walrus.