The Green Bay Packers are allowing former CFL receiver Reggie Begelton time to acclimate in the NFL.
Begelton is learning a new offence and what Aaron Rodgers likes out of his pass catchers, which could be the key to making the roster and increasing playing time. Receivers coach Jason Vrable knows Rodgers has to trust anyone he’s targeting.
“Just do what you’ve done your whole life, just at a fast level. Just go out there and just trust yourself and not overthink things. And I think that’ll come with just reps and just playing throughout the training camp,” Vrable told Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Tom Silverstein.
The 26-year-old Begelton was a CFL all-star in 2019 after becoming just the fifth player in Calgary Stampeders franchise history to record at least 100 catches. He finished the regular season second in the three-down league with 102 receptions and third in both receiving yards (1,444) and receiving touchdowns (10).
“They have three guys in motion, so there’s some unique things when me and (coach) Matt (LaFleur) watched the tape in the off-season. It almost makes your head spin,” Vrable said of the CFL film.
After being productive at Lamar University, Begelton ended his NCAA career with 227 2,435 yards and 20 touchdowns, the Beaumont, Texas native went unselected in the 2016 NFL draft. He proved himself as a pro in the CFL and worked out for seven NFL teams in December, signing with the Packers in January.
“It’s just about building his confidence in the NFL, that he can go against a No. 1 corner like ‘Jar’ (Jaire Alexander) or Kevin King and just trust himself to win his one-on-ones with the details that we coach. And not try to go out and do something that we don’t really coach to do and try to do too much,” Vrable said.
The six-foot-two, 205-pound pass catcher doesn’t have pre-season games to be able to show what he can do when the bright lights come on, but it appears he’s taking advantage of training camp practices.
“Every rep that we get, and the numbers are kind of getting smaller as we get closer to the game, we’ve got to just win our one-on-ones and take advantage of every second we got on the grass to just feel comfortable when we go in the game,” Vrable said.
Begelton is trying to standout and earn a roster spot while competing with a bevy of athletes behind entrenched Packers’ No. 1 target Davante Adams.