Sources: Packers Sign Three Tryout Players After Rookie Camp
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GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers have signed at least three tryout players from their rookie camp, including the son of former Packers receiver Walter Stanley.
As sources told Packer Central, the Packers have signed Iowa State receiver Dimitri Stanley, Albany receiver Julian Hicks and former Arizona Cardinals draft pick Lecitus Smith, an offensive lineman from Virginia Tech.
“We had some discussions out on the field today. They’ve already started,” coach Matt LaFleur said after Friday’s practice. “You’ve got to go back and watch the tape to really get a better vantage point of how they performed, but some guys flashed out there on certain plays and it sparks your interest. As long as they’re out there on the field, they have an opportunity.”
What does a player have to do to catch the attention of a team with a talented roster that just added 11 players in the draft?
“We had one guy who had a one-handed grab out there that was pretty impressive,” LaFleur said. “It could be a runner making a nice cut. It could be just watching the athleticism of some of the players; maybe it’s somebody up front, quick off the ball or just seeing guys re-direct. I think Rich (Bisaccia) does a great job in his drills of doing some full-cover drills that you can really see some of the guys’ athleticism and their change-of-direction skills. There’s a lot of things that could cause a guy to flash.”
The player with that one-handed catch was Stanley.
Stanley started his career at Colorado; that’s where his dad found stardom en route to being a fourth-round pick by the Packers in 1985. Dimitri Stanley spent four seasons at Colorado before transferring to Iowa State for his final two years. His six-year totals were 118 receptions for 1,379 yards and five touchdowns.
In 2023, he caught 15 passes for 139 yards in 12 games.
At pro day, he measured 5-foot-10 7/8 and 188 pounds, with a 4.52 in the 40 and a 34-inch vertical.
Hicks is a great story, too.
He spent the 2018 season at Central Michigan before transferring following a coaching change. He spent 2019 and 2020 at Akron – that second season was shortened due to COVID. His 2021 season at Albany lasted just a few plays; he missed the start of the season with an injured thumb and then suffered a season-ending ankle surgery.
“I really didn’t know how to feel at the time,” Hicks told The Times Union. “I wanted to stop playing football. I told Coach G (Greg Gattuso) the following day I might have been done with it, but he told me to give it some time to think on it. So, I did, and I kept praying and now I’m here. So (I’m) just blessed.”
In 2022, he scored a touchdown against Baylor. In 2023, Hicks caught 50 passes for 820 yards (16.4 average) and 11 touchdowns to help the team reach the FCS semifinals.
At pro day, he measured 6-foot-1 7/8 and 201 pounds, with a 4.53 in the 40 and a 36 1/2-inch vertical.
Smith was a sixth-round pick by the Cardinals in 2022. He started two games as a rookie but failed to make their roster in 2023. He spent the second half of the season on the Eagles’ practice squad but did not see any action.
At Virginia Tech, he transitioned from tight end to three-year starting left guard. In 2022, almost all of his snaps came at right guard. In 2023, he focused on center during the preseason.