GREEN BAY, Wis. -- It will be November by the time Anthony Hargrove wears a Green Bay Packers uniform for the first time in a regular-season game, but the suspended defensive lineman -- penalized for his role in the Saints' bounty program -- did get to throw on his green and gold No. 95 jersey for two hours Tuesday.
With the Packers going through their first day of offseason training activities, Hargrove was on the practice field working with the rest of the defense as if nothing were amiss. Of course, the situation for Hargrove is far from normal, as he's suspended for the first eight games of the regular season.
Following practice, Hargrove met with the media for the first time since NFL commissioner Roger Goodell handed down the punishments to the Saints' current and former players who were involved with the bounty program. Hargrove, 28, spent 2009 and 2010 with the Saints before moving on to the Seahawks last season and to the Packers this offseason.
"In this business, you're always supposed to do what your coaches tell you to do," Hargrove said. "My coaches ask me to do something, I'll do it. It's the same way I'm going to be here. (Defensive coordinator) Dom (Capers) asks me to go out and get the quarterback, I'm going to go get the quarterback.
"That's just my responsibility as a player."
Hargrove issued a declaration to the NFL in early May that detailed his involvement. That declaration, which was obtained by Yahoo! Sports, also gave Goodell specifics about why he lied to NFL investigators when questioned about the Saints running a bounty program through then-defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.
"Williams said he was going to deny the existence of any bounty on any player to the NFL, and I should deny it, too," Hargrove wrote in the letter to the NFL. "Coach Williams said: ‘Those mother-f****** (the NFL) have been trying to get to me for years, (and if we all) stay on the same page, this will blow over.
"Coach (Joe) Vitt also told me that I should deny the existence of any bounty or bounty program, and he told me to remember that he was the person who ‘brought (me) into the League and brought (me) to the Saints. They (Williams and Vitt) told me that when the NFL asked me about any bounty or bounty program, I should ‘just play dumb.' "
Williams has been suspended indefinitely by the NFL, and Vitt will fill in for head coach Sean Payton – who is out for the entire season -- after serving his own six-game suspension. Hargrove received the second-longest suspension of any player involved, with linebacker Jonathan Vilma being banned for the entire season.
Asked on Tuesday if receiving eight games was a surprise, Hargrove replied, "It's just one of those things you've got to handle."
Hargrove signed a one-year contract with the Packers prior to the suspension being announced.
Given that Hargrove is appealing, he kept his words with the media very positive and relatively vague.
"I've been very joyous," Hargrove said. "I've been at peace throughout this entire process. It's a great opportunity to be a Green Bay Packer. You've got to understand, how many times do you get to come to play for a franchise and organization like this? Late in my career, I'm just excited to be on the field, compete for another Super Bowl."
Hargrove ducked a question about if he was confident he can win his appeal.
"I'm confident that I can win on third downs," he said. "All I want to talk about is the way I play the game. So you ask me if I can beat a guy one-on-one, yeah. You put two on me, we'll see what happens."
During Tuesday's 11-on-11 drills, Hargrove played primarily with the second and third team and did not line up at all with the first-string defensive line.
Follow Paul Imig on Twitter
