Sunday, May 16, 2021

Packers adding another arm with signing of quarterback tryout Kurt Benkert

From JSOnline:




GREEN BAY – After signing six-year veteran quarterback Blake Bortles to a one-year deal earlier this past week, the Green Bay Packers apparently added quarterback Kurt Benkert to the room Saturday.

Benkert, 25, tweeted a photo of him signing a contract in Packers gear.

“The best advice I can give anyone is to believe in yourself. @packers,” Benkert wrote. “I’m so thankful.”

The Packers will now have four quarterbacks under contract in Aaron Rodgers, Jordan Love, Bortles and Benkert. The recent signings come in the wake of reports surrounding Rodgers’ discontent with the team. However, head coach Matt LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst said at the NFL draft that the team planned on adding one to two more arms for training camp regardless of their situation with Rodgers.

Quarterback Kurt Benkert loosens up during the first day of Green Bay Packers rookie minicamp Friday.

Benkert and Chad Kelly were the lone quarterback tryouts at this weekend’s rookie minicamp. After signing Bortles on Wednesday, the Packers had one open spot left on their roster for the tryout players to earn.

Kelly, the nephew of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly, spent less than a season on the Denver Broncos before his arrest on suspicion of first-degree criminal trespassing and subsequent release from the team. He signed with the Indianapolis Colts on May 20, 2019, and was later cut on Sept. 30, 2020.

Benkert appears to have beaten out both Kelly and linebacker tryout Alvin Jones, Jr., twin brother of running back Aaron Jones, for the last spot.

“I thought both of those guys did a nice job,” LaFleur said of Benkert and Kelly after the first day of rookie minicamp Friday. “Kurt had some experience in this league and Chad, he's ... I'm sure you're all familiar with his past, but I think he's overcome that. It was just great. He's a talented thrower. You can see it's very effortless and natural.”

Read more: https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2021/05/15/green-bay-packers-adding-another-arm-signing-qb-kirk-benkert/5064340001/

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