GREEN BAY, Wis. -- For nearly eight years, no one gave it a second thought when the Green Bay Packers lined up for a punt, field goal or extra point. If nothing else, Brett Goode was going to put the snap right on the money.
But last year in Week 16, the Packers played their first game since 2008 with someone else as their long-snapper after Goode sustained a knee injury Dec. 20 against the Raiders.
There were no disasters with Rick Lovato, a rookie who was working in a New Jersey sandwich shop when the Packers called to sign him, and at this point the Packers are prepared to go into training camp with Lovato as their guy.