Reps weren't in short supply this offseason. Injuries to Matthews (knee surgery) and Nick Perry (foot) opened up first-team snaps to Biegel and several other pass-rushers competing for spots in the Packers' rotation at outside linebacker.

Green Bay returns four players - Biegel, Kyler Fackrell, Chris Odom and Reggie Gilbert - with NFL experience in addition to adding rookie Kendall Donnerson in the seventh round of this year's NFL Draft.

With a locker located feet away from Matthews, Biegel hasn't been shy about picking the brain of his offseason training partner, who also was in attendance for a majority of the offseason program.

While there's no making up for lost time, Biegel feels the extra reps in new coordinator Mike Pettine's defense will make a difference for him entering his first on-field training camp.

"To come in here, get all the reps, and be able to get into the action, and obviously getting into Coach Pettine's new scheme has been huge for me," Biegel said. "It's built a lot of confidence and I know it's going to pay off as we approach training camp and the rest of the season."

Biegel is thankful for the 259 combined snaps he received in nine games split between defense and special teams during his rookie season. His six coverage tackles were second-most on special teams to only safety Marwin Evans, who had 14 in 16 contests.

That experience helped Biegel build a foundation to make the transition from the Big Ten to the NFC North. While he was once again able to train his body this offseason, Biegel has been right where he needs to be mentally since he got to Green Bay.

"Biegel comes prepared every single day, to play hard every single day," associate head coach/linebackers coach Winston Moss said. "That's Vince Biegel."

Biegel didn't have any grandiose plans for the month between the end of minicamp and the start of training camp on July 26 other than popping down to Madison to work out at his alma mater for a week. The rest of his time has been spent training - and welcoming a new dog to his family - in the Green Bay area.

Before being dismissed for the summer, Biegel feels one exercise that crystalized everything for him was sitting down with Pettine and Moss to chart out his goals for the upcoming season.

While Biegel is keeping those aspirations to himself, the 6-foot-3, 246-pound linebacker is energized about how he fits into Pettine's defense and eager to show what he can do when healthy.