In preparation for their match-up with the Atlanta Falcons, the Green Bay Packers took practice inside Lambeau Field for a brief walk-through before leaving for Atlanta, Ga., Friday.
The Packers will meet Atlanta for the first time Saturday night, since dropping the 27-7 Wild Card Playoff game to the Falcons last January.
"It's hard to swallow that, but we have to look to this year," safety Marques Anderson said. "We have to get better and grow from the mistakes we made last year. This will be a good test. We're excited to get back out there and face them."
Also excited to return to real game action are the newest members of the green and gold. Several rookies and first year players saw their playing time cut short - or never made it in to the game at all - Monday night when lightning and torrential rainfall forced officials to end the game in the third quarter.
But with one game behind them, and only four more to go, it's now or never if they hope to make the Packers' 53-man roster.
"(Saturday's) just another opportunity for me and the other guys that are fighting for a job on this team to get out there and try to make some plays and make a good impression on the coach," wide receiver Carl Ford said. "Hopefully, we can play the whole game this time.
"When I got out there Monday, I was a little bit nervous, a little bit anxious when I was running the routes. But all I need to do is just calm down and relax. It's just a game."
The Packers vs. Falcons game will be televised locally to fans throughout Wisconsin and the upper Midwest. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. (CDT).
The next public practice, weather and field conditions permitting, will be Monday (Aug. 11) when the Packers return to Clarke Hinkle Field for two workouts: 8:45-11:15 a.m. (pads) and 2:45-4:10 p.m. (shells).
