GREEN BAY, Wis. -- A week into training camp, Brett Hundley looked lost. A month later, the Green Bay Packers rookie quarterback finished the preseason as the NFL's highest-rated passer.
The fifth-round pick from UCLA put together one of the most impressive summer performances by a Packers' rookie quarterback in years. He capped it with a four-touchdown performance in Thursday's preseason finale against the New Orleans Saints.
Hundley's passer rating of 129.7 led all quarterbacks who had at least 14 passing attempts per game in the preseason.
"I think just seeing from where I was in OTAs, I mean everybody, I can attest to it, I was swimming out there; I was swimming," Hundley said after he completed 16-of-23 passes for 236 yards and four touchdowns (for a 142.4 rating) against the Saints. "But now, I feel a lot more comfortable with the offense. I'm able to make more reads, make my checks. The coaching staff has helped a lot with the play calls. It's just an awesome experience to be able to see the growth and have it come to fruition."
Hundley played the final three quarters in Thursday's game in relief of Scott Tolzien, who started in place of Aaron Rodgers. That came after he started last Saturday's game against the Eagles and threw for 315 yards.
The challenge now for Hundley will be to continue his development while getting little or no work with the Packers' offense. During the season, the No. 3 quarterback typically runs the scout team in practice.
"I just really like his approach, the way he's gone about it," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "He's picked it up quickly and done some things, you know [he needs] those reps as a young player so really the last two weeks have been huge for Brett just for the fact that he's been able to get out there and play, see some different things. He's performed very well. I think he's off to an excellent start."
Here's a look at the offensive snap counts from Thursday’s 38-10 win:
Total offensive plays: 68
Quarterbacks
Brett Hundley: 52
Scott Tolzien: 16
Notes: In three series, Tolzien completed 7-of-11 passes for 41 yards but had his only productive drive end with a red-zone interception. He finished the preseason 28-of-46 for 250 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
Offensive line
Jeremy Vujnovich: 68
Garth Gerhart: 52
Josh Walker: 51
Don Barclay: 50
Matt Rotheram: 35
Andy Phillips: 35
Lane Taylor: 34
JC Tretter: 16
Notes: Center Corey Linsley was the only starter who was in uniform, but even he didn't play. The starters, from left to right, were Vujnovich, Taylor, Tretter, Walker and Barclay. Gerhart replaced Tretter at center and Walker and Barclay flip-flopped in the second quarter. Gerhart also played left guard in the second half.
Receivers
Jared Abbrederis: 62
Myles White: 33
Jeff Janis: 32
Larry Pinkard: 21
Ed Williams: 12
Notes: It was clear the Packers wanted to get a long look at Abbrederis in his preseason debut, but did he show enough? He caught only one pass for 6 yards but flashed on a 17-yard punt return. White finished as the preseason receiving leader with 16 catches for 157 yards. Janis led with three touchdowns, giving him five in two preseasons. Pinkard had a 77-yard touchdown catch before departing with a shoulder injury. He looks like a good practice-squad candidate.
Running backs
John Crockett: 30
Alonzo Harris: 22
Aaron Ripkowski: 18
Rajion Neal: 16
John Kuhn: 4
Notes: The depth-chart order at halfback behind Eddie Lacy and James Starks was Neal, Harris and then Crockett. It's been that way most of the preseason.
Tight ends
Kennard Backman: 25
Mitchell Henry: 25
Justin Perillo: 20
Andrew Quarless: 19
Notes: It was a bit surprising to see Quarless play the entire first quarter given how close the competition is between the other three for the third (and maybe fourth) spot. Backman had the most impressive play, a 20-yard reception on a designed roll-out pass in the fourth quarter.