The Green Bay Packers have allocated eight players to the NFL Europe League for its 2006 season. Ted Thompson, Executive Vice President, General Manager and Director of Football Operations, announced the list Tuesday.
Amsterdam: Atari Bigby
Amsterdam: Vince Butler
Rhein: Therrian Fontenot
Amsterdam: Tory Humphrey
Amsterdam: Chad Lucas
Frankfurt: Jerome Nichols
Rhein: Pete Traynor
Berlin: Brian Wrobel
Four players - Bigby, Fontenot, Humphrey and Lucas - spent time on Green Bay's 53-man roster during the 2005 regular season.
After spending much of the season on the practice squad, Lucas had a two-game stint on the 53-man roster, making his NFL debut at Atlanta (Nov. 13), and didn't catch a pass. Inactive for the following contest vs. Minnesota (Nov. 21), he returned to the practice squad later that week.
Bigby, signed to the practice squad Nov. 1, was promoted to the active roster for the team's final two games, playing on special teams against Chicago (Dec. 25) and listed as inactive vs. Seattle (Jan. 1).
Fontenot spent the first 16 weeks of the season on the practice squad, and Humphrey was signed to the squad in mid-November after spending most of training camp in Green Bay. Both players were promoted during the last week of the season and played in the regular-season finale against the Seahawks.
Butler participated in the Packers' 2005 preseason camp after signing as a nondrafted free agent in the spring. He had re-signed to the team's practice squad in November and spent the season's final eight weeks in Green Bay.
Nichols, Traynor and Wrobel all signed reserve/future contracts with Green Bay following the 2005 regular season.
The 2006 NFLEL training camp full-team practices began Feb. 15. The 10-week season opens on March 18 and continues through May 20. World Bowl XIV will be played May 27 at LTU Arena in Düsseldorf, Germany. The league's schedule starts earlier than in previous years to accommodate this summer's 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany schedule.
