Tuesday Cheese Curds: Senior Bowl & Shrine Bowl get started; big talk coming out of Chicago

Maybe all the bluster out of the Windy City will turn out to be right. But for now, it’s all just that: bluster.

With the Green Bay Packers taking an early exit from the postseason this year, that means that the scouting staff in Brian Gutekunst’s personnel department are fully focused on preparing for the 2022 NFL Draft. Last week’s NFLPA Bowl got that process underway, but this week sees both the East-West Shrine Bowl and the Senior Bowl taking place, marking the unofficial start of scouting season.

That part of the offseason will come to a head during the first week of March, with the NFL Scouting Combine set for February 28 through March 7, but this week’s practices should give teams a good look at a few groups of intriguing prospects under the tutelage of NFL coaching staffs.

While the Packers’ scouts are hard at work on their draft preparations, a few notable members of the Chicago Bears organization — one former player and the new general manager — are hard at work talking trash about the Packers. The former took a friendly shot at a family member on the Packers coaching staff, while the new GM makes a lofty promise that will be a major challenge for him and his staff to execute.

Check out these items and a few Packers-specific news bits as well in this morning’s curds.

East-West Shrine Bowl practice standouts: Could UCLA’s Kyle Philips be the next Hunter Renfrow? | NFL.com
Former Wisconsin QB Jack Coan and Philips, a slot receiver, are on this list of early standouts in one of the first practices of Shrine Bowl week. Look for more reports coming out of Las Vegas with the Shrine Bowl on Thursday and from Mobile, where Senior Bowl practices begin today.

5 things to know about new Packers offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich | Packers.com
The Packers’ website digs into Stenavich’s background, noting that he’s just the second Wisconsin native to hold the title of offensive coordinator.

All 3 Packers Pro Bowlers replaced by alternates due to injury | Packers Wire
Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams and Kenny Clark have all dropped out of the Pro Bowl, being replaced by Kirk Cousins, Mike Evans, and Javon Hargrave, respectively.

New Chicago GM Ryan Poles says Bears are going to ‘take the North and never give it back.’ Twitter responds. | Packersnews.com
This comment from the new Ryan in town is simply reflective of the Packers’ dominance in the division over the last three decades and the sad state of the franchise he is now charged with turning around.

Bears Legend Dick Butkus Says Nephew Coaches ‘Expansion’ Packers – Sports Illustrated
Luke Butkus has been with the Packers for a few years now, but his uncle felt the need to give him a backhanded congratulations after he earned a promotion to offensive line coach to replace Stenavich.

Mega Millions winner got numbers from a fortune cookie : NPR
Every once in a while, those numbers DO turn out to be lucky!