Punches Thrown At Packers Training Camp Fight

There’s no NFL tradition more dependable than the practice fight in the week before preseason play begins. The Packers did their part this morning with not one, not two, but three separate scuffles on the same drill—the last and biggest culminating with Jermichael Finley exchanging right crosses with Jarvis Reed.

Fox 11 captured video of the extracurriculars, starting with the big one:

All three fights came on a running drill, which makes sense. These guys have been in camp for weeks. They’ve been running, they’ve been watching tape, they’ve been hitting but not hitting, and the aggression tends to boil over. That’s why no coach takes these scuffles seriously.

Just yesterday, Panthers practice broke out in a “melee,” as Ron Rivera called it.

LaFell, 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, and Norman, 6-0 and 200, go jaw to jaw and facemask to facemask, Norman refusing to back down. While the welterweight battle ensues near the right sideline, the heavyweights tangle in the middle of the line.

Hardy, 6-4 and 290 pounds, and tackle Byron Bell, 6-5 and 340, become entangled. It’s tough to tell who starts the altercation. Lots of large people block sightlines.

Somebody throws a punch. It appears to be Bell. Hardy appears to end up on top of Bell. The offense comes to rescue Bell and the defense comes to protect Hardy.

Receiver Steve Smith drags Hardy off.

Defensive end Charles Johnson pulls Smith off Hardy.

At some point, 5-8, 195-pound cornerback Captain Munnerlyn rushes in as if he’s angry he was not invited.

All in good fun. Is it time for football yet?