Head coach Mike McCarthy told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Collins' wife, Andrea, gave birth to the couple's third child April 10 at their offseason home in Gainesville, Fla.

"He has some things with his family that he's attending to right now. Our conversations have been about that," McCarthy said. "He's got a lot going on right now with his personal situation. He's tending to family business down there in Florida."

Collins' absence from the first four weeks of the voluntary offseason program also is believed to be stemming from his unhappiness that the Packers aren't in a hurry to sign him to a long-term contract. Collins is in the final year of his rookie deal and is coming off a breakout season that ended with his first appearance in the Pro Bowl.

--General manager Ted Thompson and his personnel staff have gone outside the scouting box this month, giving long looks at a couple former college basketball players who could have a professional future as football players.

The Packers were among 12 teams represented at a campus workout for Cleveland State's J'Nathan Bullock. The 6-foot-5, 245-pound Bullock was a load as a power forward on the basketball court for the Vikings, who played in the NCAA Tournament this year.

He was a football standout in high school in Flint, Mich., and could make an intriguing NFL prospect as a tight end.

A few days after checking out Bullock, the Packers worked out former Duke point guard Greg Paulus in Durham, N.C.

The 6-1, 180-pound Paulus was a four-time all-state quarterback in high school in Syracuse, N.Y., and has an itch to return to football after his college basketball career ended this year. He has a year of eligibility to play college football and has been in contact with Michigan -- and, reportedly, Syracuse -- about potentially transferring there.

--The Packers made a rare offseason trade April 13, when they dealt long snapper J.J. Jansen to the Carolina Panthers for what reportedly is a conditional seventh-round draft pick in 2011.

Green Bay had two long snappers on the roster and decided to stick with Brett Goode, who joined the team right before last season started after Jansen suffered a season-ending knee injury in the final preseason game.

The Packers had been high on Jansen, whom they signed as an undrafted player out of Notre Dame last year.

--Green Bay also made another roster move with the signing of nose tackle Brian Soi, a free agent.

The 6-3, 334-pound Soi, who hasn't played in a regular-season game, was an undrafted signee by the Miami Dolphins in 2007. He spent time with the New York Giants last year.

--On paper, the Packers will have a golden opportunity from the start next season to make amends for their dismal 6-10 campaign in 2008.

The 2009 season schedule released April 14 sets up well for Green Bay to get out of the gates fast before it gets to a treacherous final stretch of the 16-game slate.

The combined 2008 record of the first eight opponents was 48-79-1, and the only playoff team the Packers will see in that first half of the season is the NFC North rival Minnesota Vikings, who will meet Green Bay twice before midseason.

The second half of the schedule, in sharp contrast, starts with a Nov. 15 home game against the Dallas Cowboys. Following a Thanksgiving Day game at the Detroit Lions, the Packers will be confronted with three straight games against the Baltimore Ravens on a Monday night, at the Chicago Bears and at the Super Bowl-champion Pittsburgh Steelers.

Green Bay, which will play three of its final four games on the road, will end the regular season at the NFC-champion Arizona Cardinals.

"Playing on Monday night after Thanksgiving will give us a chance for another break before the final month," said McCarthy, whose team has its bye week earlier than usual in Week 5. "Historically, we've been strong in December, and we'll look to rise to that challenge."

QUOTE TO NOTE: "To have three of those division games in the first five weeks and with the bye there (in Week 5), too, I think it's something that we can use to get off to a good start. But, obviously, we have to play and perform well." -- Team president Mark Murphy on how the start of the 2009 season schedule sets up for the Packers.