The Green Bay Packers opened the 2024 preseason with a convincing win over the Cleveland Browns. Jordan Love played only three snaps, but the brief appearance was all he needed — on the third play from scrimmage, the Packers quarterback hit Dontayvion Wicks for a 65-yard touchdown and the standout play of the afternoon. Up 7-0 early, the Packers never looked back, cruising to a 23-10 win.
In terms of a preseason performance, the Packers checked a lot of boxes. They didn’t turn the ball over, allowed just one sack for zero lost yards, decisively won the rushing battle and didn’t suffer a major injury. Matt LaFleur’s team led 17-3 at halftime and at one point held a 23-3 advantage in the second half.
Love played only three snaps, so he won’t be found in this edition of Stars, Studs and Duds. He did complete both of his pass attempts, and his deep ball to Wicks was perfectly thrown. His passer rating was literally perfect at 158.3.
Here are the stars, studs and duds from the Packers’ preseason opener:
Stars
WR Grant DuBose: His first target was a forced throw under pressure by Sean Clifford. From there, DuBose was just about perfect. He caught his final five targets. Among his five catches were a tumbling catch on a low throw near the sideline converting a fourth down, a first-down catch off a nifty slant route and a toe-dragging sideline catch for 23 yards in the two-minute drill. DuBose also had effort and execution in a number of different blocking assignments.
Studs
DL Lukas Van Ness: Facing mostly backup offensive linemen, the 2023 first-round pick dominated. He cleaned up a sack created by interior pressure from Devonte Wyatt on the first drive. He teamed with Eric Stokes to stuff a perimeter run. He beautifully played a read-option as the conflict defender, crashing down on the running back to make a quick stop. Later, his stunt inside produced the pressure that created an easy sack for Colby Wooden.
S Evan Williams: The rookie put on an impressive tackling display. Three different times in the first half, he made a confident and aggressive tackle in the open field, including one short of the sticks on third down. He played fast downhill on short passes to the flat. His highlight play came on the first drive of the second half when his crunching tackle from a single-high alignment created a fumble and turnover.
RB Emanuel Wilson: Last year’s preseason rushing champ was impressive again. Wilson averaged 5.2 yards per carry, forced three missed tackles, scored a 5-yard touchdown and created a highlight play with a juke move on a 23-yard run.
CB Robert Rochell: He disrupted two pass attempts into his coverage, including one breakup on fourth down in the red zone, while allowing only a single catch. His most impressive snap might have been as a gunner on special teams, when he beat a double team block and made a perfect tackle while covering a punt.
DL Devonte Wyatt: He played only nine snaps, but he was disruptive on almost all of his pass-rushing snaps. His first pressure helped create a sack. Twice, Wyatt’s interior push forced a quick throw. Unleashed as an up-field attacker, Wyatt looks ready for a monster year.
WR Julian Hicks: The rookie receiver made an impressive spinning catch on a back-shoulder throw from Michael Pratt for 23 yards, and he showed off some speed on a 14-yard run off a jet sweep.
S Anthony Johnson Jr.: He won’t be happy about missing a tackle in the flat on a tight end, but Johnson had a nice afternoon overall. He blew up one play by taking on the pulling guard with force. The second-year safety also made two tackles covering kicks, showcasing his potential value on special teams.
K Greg Joseph: Anders Carlson made all three of his kicks, but Joseph’s two makes were far less stressful. While Carlson had to curl in two kicks inside the upright, Joseph’s two attempts — an extra point and a 35-yarder — both split the uprights.
QB Michael Pratt: Impressive start for the rookie quarterback. His back-shoulder throw to Hicks was a big-time throw, and his 5-of-7 finish passing could have looked even better had Bo Melton held on to a perfectly thrown ball in the red zone.
TE Joel Wilson: He caught all three of his targets, creating 30 yards and two first downs. More importantly, Wilson looked terrific as a blocker, both inline and on the move. He’s an easy mover in space and more physical than expected.
Duds
WR Bo Melton: His hands didn’t make the trip to Cleveland. Melton had two bad drops and some — including PFF — credited him with three total drops on four targets. One drop stalled a drive on third down. Another nearly created an interception in the red zone. Melton also mishandled a jet sweep handoff, and he was fortunate to recover the fumble on a bounce and gain positive yardage. To his credit, Melton fought like crazy as a perimeter blocker.
RT Kadeem Telfort: He struggled to get off the ball and finish blocks, especially in the run game. He also got beat with speed around the corner on one pressure. The Packers played him for 38 snaps at right tackle, but he didn’t help himself in a swing tackle competition.
OL Royce Newman: The Newman Experience was on full display. He missed a few blocks in the run game and committed a penalty. While there were good moments in pass protection, Newman — now in Year 4 — still appears to lack the consistency needed to take a step forward.
