Rodgers Taking It To The Next Level

Off the field, at least. What's next but an SI swimsuit model! Her name is Julie Henderson, and she's a grapefruit heiress (insert melons joke here) and smokin hot. Take a look.

Just like Aaron's 2008 season, there's an problem. This situation (Julie) looks spectacular on the surface (2008 stats) - but there's an issue (final drives). Mrs Henderson was previously hooking up with....Russell Simmons?!? I know, I know...he's a heavy hitter with more money than God, but....I mean....just...click on this. Rodgers is rolling with the girl who was just banging a 51 year old, 5'8" (she's 5'-10"), African-American? Going from Simmons to Rodgers is just way too extreme for any normal person. It's like the driver of Big Foot driving a Toyota Prius in his spare time. She has to be crazy. Batshit crazy. Still hot, but crazy.

Rodgers Slightly Better Than Jay Fiedler?

Greg A. Bedard's (Don't forget the "A") Daily Packer Briefings are getting more and more ridiculous by the day. Today's nonsense includes this nugget:

The Packers are a team that lost seven of their last eight games (not counting the Lions, sorry). Aaron Rodgers still hasn't proven he's that much better than Jay Fiedler, Taylor's former teammate that went 35-17 with crappy receivers his first four seasons replacing Dan Marino.

I was always under the impression that Miami hasn't done a good job replacing Marino. Guess I was wrong. Actually, Fiedler is awesome! That 35-17 record computes to a better winning percentage than the career mark of (ready for this?): Brett Favre, Steve Young, Jim Kelly, John Elway, and Johnny Unitas - among many others. Jay Fiedler for HALL OF FAME!! For the record, Jay's career numbers are 69 TDs, 66 INTs, and a 77 QB rating.

I realize numbers don't necessarily make a good QB. But if Bedard suggests a QB's win/loss record is the most important measure of a QB...how about trading Rodgers (6-10 as a starter) for Kyle Orton (21-12), Tavaris Jackson (10-9), Brian Griese (45-38) or Rex Grossman (19-12)? You think he'd support that move? Please. Bedard would develop arthritis from typing his disgust and venom so fast.

Bears Fans Can Thank Aaron Rodgers

Rodgers' numbers in two games vs Chicago: 47-69 (%68), 4 TDs, 2 picks, 94 passer rating.

Excellent numbers. Not earth-shattering, but very good. You know damn well at some point Bears management had a conversation that went something like this:

"What the F? Favre killed us for 16 years, now we have to deal with this guy for the next decade? Couldn't they have replaced #4 with some Bubby Brister-type guy? Screw the Jim Millers, Rex Grossmans, and Kyle Ortons of the world...lets go get a real QB."

Sentiment from Chicagoland runs the gamete - from shocked to ecstatic to not buying it. Me? I don't like it one bit. Don't know who he'll throw it to, but WRs are much easier to find than QBs. The distinct quarterback advantage Green Bay had in the NFC North has just been nullified. I'd still rather have Rodgers (Cutler is rumored to be a lunk-headed drunkard who's dedication to football is questioned), but Cutler's ability is obvious.

Packers Management Was Right

Not much went right for Green Bay this year. The close games, injuries, and schedule just didn't go their way. However, the one thing that the Packers were correct on was the preseason change at quarterback. An old, tired topic, right? Well, now that all the dust has settled, it's time to look at the results.

I know, I know...the Favre zealots are already screaming: "Look at the results? 6-10 versus 9-7. Wins and losses are all that matter! End of discussion!" Really? Would you honestly take Kerry Collins over Phillip Rivers? Or how about Tavaris Frerotte instead of Drew Brees or Don McNabb?

Two things have been established by 99.9 percent of rational football fans:

1) Green Bay's defense (not QB play) is the root of it's 6-10 record. They gave up nearly 100 more points this year than in 2007. One. Hundred.
2) Brett Favre was not very good this year. 22 TDs, 22 INTs (led the league - shocking). Despite playing the 27th hardest schedule (how did they lose to the entire AFC West?), adding all sorts of high priced free agents, Brett bringing all that "leadership" and "quiet aura" to the table, starting out 8-3.......the Jets lost 4 of their last 5. Ole #4 had 2 TDs, 9 picks, a QB rating lower than Bogut's field goal percentage as the Jets missed the playoffs and Mangini gets fired. No, the "he didn't have time to mesh with his team" argument doesn't work when Chad Pennington had the same amount of time, with much worse receivers. Favre looked old, graying, past-his-prime, and out of shape because, well...he's old, graying, past-his-prime and out of shape (off season workout? Who needs that?).

Knowing points 1, and 2, it's pretty obvious the Packers record if they kept Favre this year would be...6-10. Maybe 8-8...I'll give you two games because I'm in a giving holiday mood and generally a pretty nice guy.

What's the point? There couldn't have been a BETTER time to make the QB transition??

Just look at the scenarios.

Packers Keep Favre:
1) They end up with the same/similar record.
2) You still don't know exactly what they have in Rodgers, with a good chance he comes to next training camp demanding a new contract. Sound crazy? Well, he wouldn't come into the season with 1 year left on his deal with holding all the cards: Brett would be retired (you would think) and Chuck knows young, budding, franchise QBs are hard to come by. He could also say "F-it. I want out" and demand a trade.
3) They have to put up with another upcoming "summer of Brett"
4) With Rodgers possibly gone, I guess they could bring Brett back in '09, at age 40. Good luck with that.

Packers Trade Favre, Insert Rodgers:
1) Finish 6-10
2) You finally know what you have in Rodgers - a good, mobile, strong arm, accurate QB, who's a good decision maker. Your QB for the present, short and long-term future. We have the best QB in the NFC North (and one of the best in the NFL) for the next decade! Not only is he really good now, how many QB's would you rather have 6 years from now? Peyton, Brady, and Brees will be sort of long in the tooth by then. Matty Ryan. Maybe Flacco, Cutler, Eli, or Rivers. Sam Bradford, perhaps. That's about it.
3) Chuck and his young teammates take some lumps together this season, rather than next.
4) Get a gift 3rd rounder from the Jets.

Was there a BETTER season to make the QB switch and push God#4 out the door? No chance.

Week 17 Crazyness

• Dallas-Philly, winner gets in, loser goes home. 44-6!! Holy Crap! That REALLY speaks for the character of your team if you lose by 38 in a must-win. Wow.
• Speaking of must-wins...God#4 and the Jets? Bwwwhahahahaha!!! More on them in another post.
• Back to Dallas. Huge in-season trade with Detroit for WR Roy Williams. In a Cowboy's uniform: 10 games, 19 catches, 198 yards, 1 TD. You think they'd rather have their 1st, 3rd, and 6th rounders for this guy? Probably.
• Another must win...for Tampa. I think they had an outside chance to get in the playoffs. Instead, they lost to the Raiders?? At home!!
• Indy, the most dangerous non-division winner ever?
• Minnesota won the NFC North. Perfect. This insures Brad Chilress will be back next year, and maybe the year after that. A win-win for NFC North teams. Nice win squeaking it out vs David Carr and the rest of the Giants 2nd stringers. No, really. Congrats.
• Anybody watch the game in Buffalo? Good Lord!! 60 MPH wind. Short field goals were slicing worse than my drives off the 1st tee. The f_cking goalpost got knocked out of place, for God's sake!
• Scanning the box scores shows this line for Browns QB Bruce Gradkowski: 5-16, 18 yards. Ugh.
• I disagreed with McCarthy's play calling and decisions this year, but I have to give him one thing: They played hard at the end of they year when they had no reason to. Last week, the Bears had everything to play for - the Packers nothing. Yet, Green Bay totally out played them...until F-ing it up in the end. Same this week. Sure, they didn't want to be "that team" to lose to Detroit, but I'm guessing the Lions had more to play for than the Packers. Now they're in the history books. Probably for a really long time.
• Great block by Daryn College on Wynn's big run. Took out 2 guys. He's been crushed the last couple years (deservedly so) but was probably their best, most consistent/versatile O-Lineman this year.
• Will Blackman defines "Boom or bust." Boy does he suck when it's not "boom."
• The past few games, Rodgers does not seem bothered at all with cold weather. Weird for a California-kid.
• Those poor Lions. Calvin Johnson, Ernie Sims, Jeff Backus, and Kevin Smith are the only guys worth a damn on that entire roster.
• How about my Super Bowl pick: Jacksonville over Dallas. Oops. Shut up, how about yours?
• Packers, 9th pick. Don't bother with draft research, I'll do it for you. I promise.

Why The Packers Stink: Reason #3 - Close, But No Cigar

Third in a series of posts chronicling the mess that is the 2008 Green Bay Packers

A blocked field goal...sweet. That's the season in a nutshell - Close, But No Cigar.

One opinion (from someone I respect) says its because: "the roster is a greasefire." While others simply say "the Packers suck, blow up the entire roster and front office." Of course, I have to disagree. The scoreboard tells me so. A ten second recap of every game: They got blown out by the Cowboys and Saints. They blew out Seattle, Chicago, Indy, and Detroit. Every other game wasn't decided until well into the 4th quarter, most in the final minutes or overtime.

How close have the game been? The Packers (5-10) have actually outscored their opponents by 29 (and +6 turnover margin)! Has a 5-10 team ever been +29 before? Maybe, I guess. Compare with teams of similar records:

San Fran (6-9) -45
Jacksonville (5-10) -45
Cleveland (4-11) - 87
Oakland (4-11) - 132
Seattle (4-11) -85

I realize close only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades, and when that guy in the office crop dusts 6 cubicles at a time and you desperately hope yours wasn't one of them. Why don't the Packers win these close games? Maybe it's luck, maybe they just aren't getting the bounces this year, maybe the Football Gods are punishing Green Bay for trading God#4. Nope, none of the above. Great teams usually create their own luck.

1) Lack of playmakers in the front 7. See volume 1. They CANNOT get a quick 3 and out, or a big sack when needed. Teams have sliced through the D at will under 2:00. It's almost expected. No, it IS expected. This is on Ted to make it better.

2) Rodgers has not had the "signature drive" a la Peyton Manning. He has had a few to tie or take the lead late in games, only to see the defense/special teams give it right back. A quick 3-out and Rodgers looks like the hero. Would God#4 rallied and pulled one of these games out? Perhaps. Would he have thrown a crushing INT in week 1 (when Rodgers went 18-22, 0 INTs) and lost? Perhaps.

I know, 5-10 is 5-10. But as I mentioned in volume 2, is there really any difference than the Packers, Bears and Vikings? No way, no how, no chance.

While some people are ready and willing to destroy/rebuild the entire organization from the top down, the scoreboard says otherwise. If they were losing bunches of games 27-6 then sure, the roster is dreadful and it's time to clean house. They're not, and it's not, so put away those sledgehammers, relax, put on those sheepskin slippers, and savor the refreshing tastes of an ice cold Miller High Life. Mmmmm..."if you're livin it, you might as well drink it!"

More JS Commenting Fun!

For some idiotic reason, I thought it was a good idea to read a few comments from this JS Blog post. Yeah, not so much. The post listed the Top 25 best selling NFL jerseys under "The Business of Sports" heading. Mainly, I wanted to see if anybody else thought Chris Cooley was an odd name on the list. Harmless enough, right? It started out fine and got a good chuckle from this one:

"How many did TT have to buy just to get Rodgers on the list?"

Ha, that's pretty good. It got worse....as, of course, a list of jerseys turned into a Favre-Rodgers argument. Eventually, I came to this guy with the clever screen name "pk1fn":

"I don't think 25 is anything to be proud of. The Packer's pro shop revenue is way down since Favre was forced out. I'm sick of this paper and the media touting Rodgers. He had an interception, fumble and couldn't get the team in from the 1 yard line on Sunday and everyone is blaming special teams and the defense. Favre would have been crucified for the interception."

Whoa....let's break this down, super-slow-mo instant replay-style

"I don't think 25 is anything to be proud of." This article wasn't intended to praise Rodgers for cracking the top 25, rather just give the list.

"The Packer's pro shop revenue is way down since Favre was forced out." I have no idea if this is true or not. Searching the interweb says the team stopped reporting Pro Shop income last year. If this guy has inside knowledge (highly doubtful) and this is true, fine. Teams sell more stuff when they are winning. See: the abundance of fresh Brewers hats, shirts, and flags all across Wisconsin this summer. You couldn't go to the grocery store without seeing at least 3 brand-spanking new Brewer lids.

"I'm sick of this paper and the media touting Rodgers." Um, I know you don't want to believe this, but Rodgers is actually pretty good. And I could post dozens and dozens of article ripping Rodgers - it's not all positive.

"He had an interception..." Yes, he did have an interception.

"...a fumble..." Well, if a shotgun snap sailing 6 feet over his head from a concussed center is considered "a fumble," I guess he had one of those too. Ralph Sampson would have struggled to haul that one in.

"...and couldn't get the team in from the 1 yard line on Sunday..." Wow. Maybe if Rodgers handed the ball off better, we would have scored.

"...and everyone is blaming special teams and the defense." At this point, it's clear our friend was watching a different game. San Fran-Buffalo, perhaps?

"Favre would have been crucified for the interception." Chuck got plenty of heat from the media I read/heard. And when did Favre ever get "crucified" for anything? The guy was the best QB in the history of football in the eyes of %99.9 of Packer fans (poll taken last year).


Alas, somebody did mention Cooley: "Anyone else surprised to see Chris Cooley on this list?" I guess these comments were worth reading after all...

Aaron Rodgers is no Ryan Braun

I received the following email and picture from loyal female Hacker MD (Hat Tip dear lady).

Not sure if any of your other loyal blog readers attended the Packers meet and greet at Mayfair today so I thought I'd give you some pics. Aaron seemed annoyed that people were there to take pictures of him. Wasn't too impressed with the cocky attitude and eye roll when I asked him to look at the camera. The big spenders mostly just wanted to get to Aaron. I must say I was kind of disappointed because he was actually starting to grow on me. I didn't expect him to be such a diva. When I asked for a picture he said "What...." refusing to look up, and his handler said "Aaron has to work". What is the point of doing a public appearance if you aren't going to embrace your fans? He was wearing a really douchey hat too. He is nowhere as near as hot as you Woz.

Ok...99% of that is true. Here's the picture.



Hmmm...this douchey hat issue isn't new...is this an ongoing theme? I hope not.

Anyway, Chuck Rodgers acting like an arrogant tool doesn't surprise me. He's got that "look" to him. Mr. 3rd place in MVP voting Ryan Braun is arrogant, but by no means is he a tool. He's the man. Every man is WI wants to be Ryan Braun. He's cocky and arrogant, yet he pulls it off because he doesn't do stunts like Chuck did here. So Chuck, if you're going to continue wearing those sorts of hats, at least take a lesson or two from Ryan Braun and know how to work the crowd. Ok.

Jermichael Finley will be running extra laps this week

Ummm...no offense to Jermichael Finley, but it took me some time to even realize who he was until I read about these comments he made yesterday in today's paper.

"I'm ready to execute," Finley said. "I'm ready to play now. You know what I'm saying? And I think I should get used more."

Yeah dog...we know what you saying!

Offensive coordinator Joe Philbin kinda/sorta knew what he was saying:

"Interesting comment," Philbin said. "I think that's interesting. I'll withhold comment."

But here's the kicker folks...here's what a guy who made his first catch EVER in the NFL had to say after the game with regards to one of the throws made by his QB to him:
"I've made plays like that in practice - several," Finley said. "I think he should have led me a little more. Well, a lot more. Really he didn't throw it good at all, to be honest. I just think. . . . He knows my game, coaches know my game. I'm more like a run and jump. I'm really not no back shoulder or whatever he had going on back there. They just have to know what kind of player I am and use me in that aspect of the game."

Oh man...this is just rich stuff. Stay tuned for more sound bites from this dope in the future.

Chuck Gets Extended

Aaron Rodgers gets extended through 2014. This is a great move - He's one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL. I know what Packer/TT haters (Matt) are thinking: "Extend the guy after 7 games?" Well, he's not a rookie. They've seen what he's all about for the last 3 years. Hmmm, I guess cap flexibility isn't a bad thing. Especially with Jennings in line for some big time cash pretty soon.

Congrats, Chuck.

NUMBERS UPDATE:
Per ProFootballNews.com, the Rodgers contract is 6 years - $65 million with $20m guaranteed. By comparison, Tony Romo got 6 years, $67 mil with $30m guaranteed last year. Link.

FLATTEN THE TITANS!!

We've got ourselves a potential bandwagon game here. Lose and fall to 4-4, its "eh, good thing the NFC North is weak." Win, and it's "Hey, we're 5-3 and just beat the undefeated Titans!" while the highlights lead on ESPN, there are more Aaron Rodgers stories written to count, and the secretaries in your office start talking Packers again - for better or worse.

I really think this could be a springboard game. One that, if victorious, could show that the sky's the limit for Green Bay. Why? Not just because the Titans are 8-0, rather because they are 8-0 and their strengths are perfectly matched up with the Packers weaknesses.

In the trenches, Tennessee is as tough, big, and physical as they come. One Packer weakness: pass rush. They protect the QB (Cocktail Kerry Collins has been sacked once all year. Once!), and run the ball like the Super Tecmo Bowl Kansas City Chiefs (Christian Okoye, Barry Word). Ouch. The Packer D-line does get a boost simply by having more available bodies. Mike Montgomery, Jason Hunter, and - gasp - Justin Harrell should all play. How well, that remains to be seen.

Look for Green Bay to play a quasi 4-4 defense with a safety (Rouse/Bigbie) up in the box, or even a 4th linebacker (Chillar) most of the time. We'll take our chances with Collins trying to beat us throwing to dueling Justin's - Gage and McCariens. Actually, one of the most important match up's in the game will be Chillar covering TE Bo Scafie. Now there's a marquee match up! Scafie is the Titans best receiver.

On offense, the Packers much maligned running game faces a very strong Titans D-Line. I've seen a few different sources this week describing Al Haynesworth as "unblockable." Uh oh. Like the defense, the Pack's offense is finally healthy. James Jones is back, finally getting this thing %100 so James Jones can go out there and be James Jones. I smell a big game from Driver - don't know why. Keeping Rodgers upright is crucial, as always, but especially this Sunday. By the way, it's come to my attention that Rodger's nickname in high school was "Chuck." I like it. From this point forward, Aaron Rodgers will now be referred to as "Chuck."

Like I said, if Green Bay can win this one, the sky's the limit. Tennessee's coming off a short week, the Packers a bye. Call me crazy, but I see McCarthy's boys coming out on the "Pawsitive" side - the Titans are due for a loss, right?

Green Bay 20, Tennessee 19