Packers’ Rookie Draws Major Criticism After Preseason Week 2

One of the most egregious penalties of Saturday night’s victory was committed by rookie offensive guard Anthony Belton.

Belton’s performance against the Colts offered few bright spots to be optimistic about, either. NFL Media’s Chad Reuter listed the second-round pick as one of the worst-performing rookies of the week across the league.

“Belton drew the ire of his coaches on Saturday for committing five penalties,” Reuter writes, giving Belton a “D” Grade. “Including an unnecessary roughness for shoving a player out of bounds, as well as two illegal-formation flags on the same series that negated a 20-yard score and a 17-yard gain. He looked powerful as a run blocker at right tackle, though, shooting out of his stance, moving his man off the line, crashing down on a tackle or reaching a target downfield. In pass protection, the second-round pick was strong early but bent too much at the waist and failed to land his hands on later snaps, giving up the edge on a late second-quarter sack.”

If Belton is going to have any chance of fighting his way into the conversation about playing meaningful snaps during the regular season, he’s going to need to play significantly better in the preseason finale.