The Final Act:
The Green Bay Packers season will mercifully be coming to an end this Sunday in Detroit. The team has been constantly hexed with bad, Packer luck, from the beginning of the season until now. Injuries, poor chemistry on offense and defense, and poor play have all been contributing factors to the downfall of the Packers season.
To the untrained eye, this season got away from the Packers when Aaron Rodgers injured his collarbone after a 4-1 start to their season. In reality, this season got away from the Packers three seasons ago in Seattle, after the Packers historically squandered a trip to the Super Bowl. From the time of the collapse in Seattle onward, the Packers have done very little to improve their team and make the appropriate changes within the organization that are necessary to move on from such a catastrophic loss such as that one.
Instead of making wholesale changes after the collapse in Seattle, the Packers decided to stay the course with the same nucleus of players and coaches, which is an understandable and rational move to make. However, the problem that remains is, in the time that has passed from the collapse in Seattle until week 17 in the 2017 season, the Green Bay Packers have not improved their team. (We complain about the same Packer Problems every week) This offseason, the Packers tried to improve their team, but they ended up striking out on their most notable addition, Martellus Bennett, and have not yet found a long-term replacement for TJ Lang. (Jahri Evans is an older player on a 1 year deal)
With each passing year, the Packers move farther and farther away from being a Super Bowl contender. Year after year we see Ted Thompson spend money like it is coming out of his own pocket, letting player after player walk away in free agency only to see them have success with other organizations (Julius Peppers, Micah Hyde, Casey Heyward, TJ Lang and others).
Unfortunately, it took Aaron Rodgers broken collarbone to expose all of the weaknesses on the Packers roster, as well as in the Packers coaching staff and management. It is clear that last season’s magical ride to the NFC Championship game along with most of the other successes the Packers have seen in recent years, is solely because of Aaron Rodgers.
When these deficiencies have continually mounted throughout the three years since the NFC Championship game collapse in Seattle and yearly improvements are almost nonexistent it is fair to say that a reconstruction of the roster, and an overhaul of the coaching staff and front office is in order.
Reasons for Changing the Culture in Green Bay:
It is truly hard for me to call for Mike McCarthy’s job because he has had such a successful tenure in Green Bay but I feel that his message along with the organizational message to the players is just getting old, stale, and has become ineffective.
Ted Thompson has also seen a largely successful tenure in a small market, where it is imperative to build a Superbowl winning team through the draft. However, his last few seasons have seen him spend his limited resources on free agents that have not worked out and has seen him produce only a limited amount of successful home-grown Packers.
The Packers defense has talented players on the roster but is NOT a talented unit. This shows that there is an apparent disconnect between the players and the philosophy, approach, instruction, and communication. There are too many inconsistencies with the pass rush and the secondary, and as a result, the defensive scheme is always compromised.
Prevailing Questions:
How many more seasons will it take of losing playoff games in January or seeing incomplete and deficient 53 man rosters to call for a change to be made in Green Bay
Is a Call for Change in Green Bay in Order? Yes, it is time to overhaul the roster, coaching staff, and management.
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David Michalski is a recent college graduate from Princeton New Jersey who has been a life long Green Bay Packers fan. Like the great Vince Lombardi, he values God, family, and the Green Bay Packers in that order. You can follow him on twitter at @kilbas27dave
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13 responses to “Is a Call for Change in Green Bay in Order?”
Could not have stated it any better. Go Pack Go for change
Well said David. Let’s get some new blood to run the show. Move out the dinosaurs.
It is time!
Yes starting With the coaching staff!
A change in philosophy has been in order for a few years and many have denied such because the Packers made the playoffs eight years straight and that seemed to be the mark of success.
This streak also had the ‘ In Ted We Trust ‘ moniker embedded on the foreheads of any who disagreed as a sign of not being a real fan. Much as was done in ‘Inglorious Bastards’ use of the Swastika on the fore heads of Nazis to keep them in plain sight for all to see and mock.
I never accepted a playoff spot as success since 5 other teams enjoy the same feat. Yes, I know the arguments and couldn’t care less. Success is winning in the NFL and that’s signified by the Lombardi Trophy. Anything less gets a golf clap for participation and being sent home to make change to why it…failed…..not the uncrowned success.
Most fans have no right to be upset about the status of this team, it’s coaching staff or it’s front office, as you have always found excuses ( ways ) to defend the actions on every level via the blind denial of each facet and now must pay the piper….emotional breakdowns that may not end as soon as many hope, regardless of any change or not being made.
Make the change, but as usual, many won’t know or recognize the real issues for failure, as blind homer-ism,kool-aid drinking will still run amok in Packerland among the believers that whoever calls the shots,whoever is offered a playing spot will automatically be deemed great…..until their not at seasons end.
Let’s all continue to chant…GO PACK GO…but let’s have open eyes and leave the kool-aid alone until we actually make appearance in the final game once again.
You’re exactly correct. I’ve said the same things and have been called out as not bring a loyal fan. I am a loyal fan, but as you said, if we are complacent with the playoffs only as success you are greatly kidding yourself. Honest, eye test, loyal fan since 58.
I’m a huge Packer fan and season ticket holder and this is a very good analysis of the situation. However, there is a much larger issue that has to be addressed. It’s the injury situation. If there was a trophy for the amount of injuries on one team, the packers would be in line for that year after year. The injury situation across the league is detracting from the game. When people are paying sizable amounts of money for a ticket to see an NFL game, they are coming to see the Aaron Rodgers caliber players, not players from the practice squad (nothing against them). The league needs to figure this out NOW. If the Collective Bargaining Agreement is the problem, as coach McCarthy has stated before…fix it now. Specifically, if the Packers don’t figure this out, you can expect to see more of the same.
I don’t buy your thoughts. Injuries every year for us and other teams. Next man up? Not. Coaching helps adjust to injuries to protect weaknesses with a help system. We don’t have that or put players in the best position to win when someone goes down.
Good point!!
This all assumes Mark Murphy really ultimately cares about winning football games and can hire better personnel. Eliot Wolf is a given.
No changes to GM and coaching staff endorses mediocrity.
How many Packers are on the pro bowl roster? To many marginal players that could not make other teams. Packer draft to many from the west coast and to many that had major injuries in college, Teams like Alabama & LSU, and UCF their linemen have not missed any playing time, need for a different conditioning coach, and have the players wear pads now most of them look like girls with no pads and pants that look like shorts. The whole coaching staff has to go along with TT, as any other new coach will do the same or a lot better, what a stale team.
ABSOLUTELY!
Right on!! The Seattle collapse with defense playing so soft, and McMikes total offensive lack of play to win have hampered this team until this day. TT, MM, DC, and scouting team must all go. Failure to do so will be a repeat or worse next year, even with Rodgers. I hope your article reaches every Packer personnel and especially Murphy! !