ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur hankered for a fight-free joint practice as the Packers and Denver Broncos were warming up Friday.
He and Broncos coach Sean Payton agreed to no 1-on-1 drills pitting wide receivers and cornerbacks or linebackers against running backs and that even the pass-rush drills during 7-on-7s would be truncated and tame.
“We just want a good, competitive practice and we want to keep it safe,” LaFleur said. “We want to eliminate all fighting if possible.”
He knew that was a big ask.
“It’s football. There’s going to be competitiveness, there’s going to be chippiness,” LaFleur said. “But can you keep your composure? I think that’s part of the beauty of the game. When you’re in a real-life game situation, it does get chippy, it does get testy, guys start to talk (trash). But can you keep your composure?”
Not 30 minutes later, LaFleur was hopping mad, running onto the field and hollering at Broncos linebacker Nik Bonitto after quarterback Jordan Love, who signed a four-year, $220 million extension last month, was knocked to the ground and threw an interception.
Pleading his innocence, Bonitto looked back at LaFleur and the Packers’ hooting and hollering sideline with a shrug.
Love said afterward it was actually one of his own linemen who crashed into him just as he was about to release the ball.
“Zach Tom just got pushed and hit my shoulder,” Love said. “So I don’t think it was anything with the D-line or anything like that. I think just friendly fire.”
It sure got his coaches and teammates fired up.
“A lot of guys didn’t really see it and know what happened,” Love said. “We make a big point of staying away from the quarterback, so they might have thought the D-lineman hit my arm, which I don’t think happened. I was hit when I threw but I think it was from Zach Tom. I got hit from my own guy.”
There were also a couple of chippy moments during the special teams drills, but nothing like 2008, when Denver lineman Ryan Clady and Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware - known as two of the nicest guys ever to play in the NFL - got into a fistfight. Or 2014, when Broncos right tackle Chris Clark grew so tired of Texans star J.J. Watt pushing him around that he knocked Watt’s helmet off with a late swipe, which generated the memorable retort, “Don’t get mad when you get beat!”
The Broncos and Packers square off Sunday in Denver in what will be Denver rookie QB Bo Nix’s first preseason start. He led the Broncos to scores on four of five drives at Indianapolis last week when Jarrett Stidham got the start.
LaFleur will sit most of his starters this weekend, so Friday was seen as a better barometer for Nix, the former Oregon QB and 12th overall pick in the NFL draft. Nix had a mixed day, sprinkling in spectacular throws with plenty of safe passes, many of which didn’t even go past the sticks.
Love also had a good day and he appreciated facing Broncos star cornerback Patrick Surtain II.
“He’s the heart and soul of that defense, he’s a lockdown corner over there,” Love said.
NOTES: Payton said rookie WR DeVaughn Vele (leg) whom he held out of practice for a second straight day, was fine and might even play Sunday. Asked for details on Vele’s injury, Payton said, “Nothing specific.”
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