The Time for Talk is Over:
The time for talk and predictions is over, now the time for players to prove themselves on the field has arrived. We have all dissected the 2017 season as well as this offseason at great length, and know that there is both great optimism and great questions to be answered in the next few months. We have discussed what needs to happen on offense, defense, and special teams so that the Packers have a successful season and do not repeat their 7-9 debacle from last year.
In an age when information is at our fingertips and every facet of life has a never-ending news cycle, there are some facts that simply no longer need to be discussed. For example, we already know that Aaron Rodgers will sign a record extension in the near future.
We already know that Mike McCarthy is on the hot seat. We already know that the biggest question mark heading into the season, like always, is the ability of the defense to make stops. We also already know that the Packers will not be acquiring Julio Jones, Adrian Peterson, Dez Bryant, or Terrell Owens. Yes, believe it or not, I have seen media outlets report that the hall of fame receiver said he was interested in playing in Green Bay because he wanted to catch passes from Aaron Rodgers. (Can’t make this stuff up).
With this in mind, I think that it is time to take a deep breath and eliminate all of the noise from this offseason news cycle and refocus our attention on the football field.
As always, the success and failure of the Packers starts on the practice field and ends in the trenches on Sunday afternoons. This season will boil down to which players are going to make the jump from their first year to their second year, which rookies will rise to the challenge of making an immediate impact on the field, and which players will have a comeback and breakout seasons.
The organization has undergone a major facelift and has a sea of new faces on the roster, coaching staff, and within the organization. First-year General manager Brian Gutekunst has gone through his first draft and first free agent signing period and everyone is anxious to see how the new members of the Green Bay roster will shape the organization in 2018.
Changes Had to be Made, Now All That Remains is Getting Back to the Grind.
Mike McCarthy and his new look coaching staff have significantly altered the playbook and offseason schedule to have more practice reps leading into this seasons training camp. Thus far, in McCarthy’s eyes, the offseason program looks to be one of the teams best during his tenure in Green Bay.
The new players are immersing themselves within the culture of the organization and community and have worked hard to learn their specific roles in the playbook and roster. This has given the coaching staff hope that this will be a cohesive group that is eager to put the failures of last season behind them and write a new chapter in Green Bay’s rich and storied history. Ultimately the successes and failures of the Green Bay Packers will come down to whether or not they outwork and out-execute the other thirty-one teams week in and week out.
This season will be about proving that they can execute under pressure, proving that they can make a defensive stand late in the fourth quarter, proving that they can pin a team back deep in their own territory, and yes, proving once again that they can win consistently on Sundays this fall. As I said earlier, the time for talk and predictions is over and the time for the Packers to prove themselves on the field has arrived.
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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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2 responses to “The Time for Talk is Over”
I’d be very interested in how you said MM has altered the playbook. Have you seen the so called altered playbook? I have my doubts based on his backing of Hundley and when he said he wasn’t ready to play. Then why didn’t he play Flynn? He prepared Hundley three years and the result? So altered the playbook? We’ll find out by our eye test! And not preseason.
I think it is important that the defense get stops, and I believe they will, but the single most important factor in the success of our season is keeping Aaron Rodgers upright and healthy for the entire season, including playoffs.
If Rodgers is upright and healthy, I think we have more than enough weaponry and we’ll be one of the top offenses in the league. If Rodgers is upright and healthy, I think we can outscore most teams in the league even if we have a bad defense, like we did in 2016 and reached the NFC Championship game.
So…..keeping Rodgers upright and healthy. Rely more on the run game and play action. Put better blockers on the roster as backups for when injuries strike. Other things.
Hot seat? I think if we win the division….and I do think we’ll win the division……then you keep McCarthy unless the relationships(s) with Gutekunst and Murphy aren’t working.
If we’d miss the playoffs again, I think McCarthy should be in trouble.