Aaron Rodgers says he's seeing improvement by Green Bay Packers' young WRs

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Rodgers has noticed a difference already. In the week since the Green Bay Packers quarterback called out his young receivers, he said he's been encouraged by their progress.

There still have been miscues — rookie Romeo Doubs dropped two more passes in Friday's preseason game against the Saints. But there also have been big plays by Doubs, the fourth-round pick who caught a touchdown pass for the second straight preseason game, along with improvement from seventh-rounder Samori Toure and a fast start from second-round pick Christian Watson after missing the first half of training camp following knee surgery.

«I feel like the offense — especially in the last week or so — has been clicking closer to where I think we should be trending,» Rodgers said Monday.

None of the rookie receivers has experienced game action with Rodgers; he did not play in either of the first two preseason games, although coach Matt LaFleur said he will consider playing Rodgers in Thursday's preseason finale at Kansas City.

The new receivers had only two practices with Rodgers before training camp. Both were in the June mandatory minicamp; Rodgers skipped everything else in the offseason. He discounted the idea that they might be further along had Rodgers been a participant in OTAs.

«You know, not really,» Rodgers said when asked if participation in OTAs would have made a difference. «Training camp is a long experience. There's plenty of time for conversations, for practice, for a lot of the things that expect them to do in the regular season. I rely on the coaching staff to pass on the message as we're learning the offense, and then I'm kind of the 202 professor. They've got to get kind of the base concepts, and when I come