Nick Barnett won't have to miss the Sept. 8 regular-season opener, although the Packers starting middle linebacker will be essentially "volunteering" when the Packers play Minnesota on Monday Night Football.

Of course, given how close he was to not playing and not getting paid, well, he isn't complaining.

Barnett said Wednesday that the NFL initially suspended him for the Packers' first game after reviewing his involvement in a June 2007 altercation at an Appleton nightclub.

In the incident, Barnett was initially charged with two counts of criminal disorderly conduct but completed a deferred prosecution program as part of a guilty plea that resulted in a conviction on a single civil count of disorderly conduct. That left Barnett with fines and court costs of $753 to pay but no criminal record.

By agreeing to the plea, Barnett subjected himself to the NFL's personal conduct policy, and in early July, the league decided on a one-game suspension as punishment.

Barnett went to the league office in New York to appeal about two weeks before camp opened, and the league reduced the penalty to a fine of one game check -- 1/17th of his $2 million base salary, or $117,647.

"I didn't expect (a suspension). I expected a fine," Barnett said after practice Wednesday. "I was just looking at the past history of things that have happened (with other players) and what the disciplinary actions were. There's been a lot more violent situations. But they have to do what they have to do."

"I get to play Monday night. Pockets are a little lighter, but I still get to play."

Barnett said he would advise teammate Johnny Jolly, who could be subject to a fine or suspension in the wake of his July arrest for felony drug possession in Houston, to clarify with the NFL what any plea agreement might mean before agreeing to one.

"(Jolly) hasn't been proven guilty or hasn't been to court yet, (so) I don't know what he's facing," Barnett said. "But I would tell him this: Speak with the NFL (before entering a plea agreement).

"If I would have fought it, and it came back not guilty, I'm sure it would've been a different disciplinary action (from the NFL). I'm sure it wouldn't have been that steep. I'm not going to say my total actions were innocent on the night, but there are certain situations they said happened (that didn't). But bottom line, it's all over."

Approached in the locker room, Jolly refused to discuss his case or what advice Barnett gave him.

Brohm's brotherly advice: As Brian Brohm's older brother, his former position coach at the University of Louisville and an ex-NFL quarterback himself, Jeff Brohm knows exactly what his kid brother is going through as he struggles with his first NFL training camp.

"I've coached him for a while, and I've tried not to put my nose in there too much and give my opinion," Jeff said in a phone interview Wednesday. "But the last couple weeks as he started to struggle, I told him, `If you need to talk, I'm here.' And when he's calling me for help, he knows he's struggling a little bit. But he's listened to everything I've said, and he agrees: It's kind of a head game with him right now."

Entering the Packers' third exhibition game Friday night at Denver, Brian has completed 12 of 26 passes (46.2 percent) for 103 yards, with no touchdowns, one interception and one lost fumble for a passer rating of 41.0. Third-stringer Matt Flynn has better numbers -- 17 of 27 (63.0 percent) for 130 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions for an 87.0 rating -- than his fellow rookie, and McCarthy acknowledged recently that Flynn, a seventh-round pick, has closed the gap for the No. 2 job behind Aaron Rodgers.

"There's been times out there where I feel in a good rhythm and I'm doing well, and there's times where maybe I'm a step slow getting to the right person," Brian said. "If I can just get into a nice rhythm and get things going, I'll feel a lot better out there. You just have to keep grinding, keep working hard, keep pushing yourself and just know that all the hard work will eventually pay off."

Jeff watched the Packers' exhibition opener on ESPN's "Monday Night Football," then found a sports bar in Louisville that could get Saturday night's game in San Francisco via satellite. And he doesn't like what he's seeing from Brian, a second-round pick who's 15 years younger than his big bro.

"I think obviously he's very frustrated right now. Things aren't going as smoothly as he had hoped," Jeff said. "I think he had one of those bumps in the road where everything was going pretty well. Now he's struggled and he's letting it affect his head and losing confidence and playing tentative. I just told him, `You need to simplify -- just drop back, look for the open guy and cut loose.'

"He gets in the first game, and the very first pass he throws is an interception, so the rest of that game I saw him playing very cautious, very unsure in his decision-making. The second game, I think he still had that in his head a little bit. He's just thinking about things too much -- 'Am I making the right read? Am I going to the right guy?' When you get to the game, you have to let your mind relax. I don't see him doing that right now."

Jeff, who entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent and played for six teams during his seven-year NFL career and even played in the ill-fated XFL, went back into the archives and watched tape of Brian at Louisville, going so far as sending Brian a copy of one tape to remind him of how he's capable of playing. Jeff said he also told his brother that things have come easily up until now.

"I kind of had to work my way in there the hard way -- bust my butt in the off-season and during the season, put in extra work to get an extra edge," Jeff said. "With him, so far to this point, everything has gone smooth -- he played great in college, had a great career. And now he's playing against the best of the best and he's hit some bumps in the road.

"It's never easy as a rookie quarterback. The things I've seen him do (at Louisville), he hasn't done those things (with the Packers). Because he's been cautious, been tentative, been unsure. And you can't play the quarterback position like that at all. He knows he's struggling. Once he does get into a rhythm, he'll be back to throwing the ball the way he knows how to."
In turn, Brian said he's been trying to put his brother's advice to good use.
"I knew it would be a challenge. It's been nice to have a brother who's been through it," Brian said. "I feel like I'm right on the verge of really having some breakthroughs. If I can get into a nice rhythm in these upcoming games and get into the flow of the game, I'll start playing with a little more confidence and start feeling a lot better out there.

"That's the thing -- you have to be confident in your throws, confident out in the field, and eventually things will get going the right way."

Wynn's re-run: This is going to sound familiar. Second-year halfback DeShawn Wynn finds himself in the same situation as he did as a rookie: He'll need a huge performance in the Aug. 28 preseason finale against Tennessee to make the roster.

Wynn, who missed most of camp last year with a thigh injury, ran 21 times for 54 yards against the Titans in last year's finale to make the team as the fourth halfback. This year, a mild concussion forced him to miss practice early, and a sprained ankle suffered in the preseason opener against Cincinnati will keep him out of Friday night's third preseason game at Denver, just as he missed last Saturday night's game at San Francisco.

"I'm pretty much in the same predicament," said Wynn, who missed the second half of last season with a shoulder injury that landed him on injured reserve. "There's only one preseason game left. There's not much (opportunity) to show the coaches what you've got in a game situation. So I have a hard week of practice coming up to get prepared for the last one. That's how I approach it.

"People just have more questions about my injuries more than others. It seems like more of a big deal. It is what it is. Last year, I just went out there and played and did all I could do and I did make it. It may not be the same case this year."

Like Wynn, halfbacks Ryan Grant (hamstring), center Scott Wells (trunk), linebacker A.J. Hawk (chest) and safety Charlie Peprah (knee) have been ruled out, coach Mike McCarthy said.

The end zone: With Wells out and left tackle Chad Clifton back in action, the first unit offensive line consisted of, from left to right, Clifton, Daryn Colledge, Jason Spitz, Josh Sitton and Mark Tauscher. That figures to be the starting unit Friday night. ... Quarterback Aaron Rodgers' training-camp ritual -- strange facial hair -- continues. He's gone from scraggly, unkempt beard to something he found on beards.org called "friendly mutton chops," with a cheesy mustache up next. "This is a tribute to the Civil War generals from the mid-to-late 19th century," Rodgers said of the current look. "In training camp, you've got to do anything you can to make yourself laugh." ... Offensive coordinator Joe Philbin was back at work following the death of his father-in-law. Cornerback Joe Porter returned to practice as well.