Here’s where we’re at in the last few days:
- Davante Adams: PAID
- Corey Linsley: PAID
- Dom Capers: Gone/Put to pasture/Fired
- Scott McCurley: Fired
- Mike Trgovac: Fired
- Edgar Bennett: Fired
- Alex Van Pelt: Fired
- Ted Thompson: reassigned a new position taking care of the roach problem
The theme song of the offseason so far has been Queen’s classic, “Another One Bites the Dust”. Dumping Dom Capers and an assistant or two comes as no surprise. The quick relinquishing of Ted Thompson’s duties is the big surprise. For a man who had no limit to his leash for a decade, his descent was abrupt, especially in Green Bay.
Someone on Twitter referenced the Butterfly Effect when referencing the Anthony Barr hit on Aaron Rodgers. The comment is for sure a compelling one. Think about it. The Barr Hit was like the needle that popped a balloon of noxious gases that had escaped captivity. The captivity was the brilliance of Aaron Rodgers. Sooner or later, the stink escapes. And escape it did.
With a new GM on the way, even Mike McCarthy’s job might not be safe. His old partner-in-crime (Thompson) extended his contract by another season earlier this season, but that could be moot. If Mark Murphy hauls in a GM from the outside, McCarthy could be as good as gone. What’s the point of being a General Manager? It’s to run operations your way. Your fingerprints are on everything. In college, a new athletic director brings in a new coach for the program. The same thing occurs in pro football. The GM is tasked to bring in their guys who buy into their philosophy. As a player, it’s easy to play for any GM as long as you’re good. As a coach, it’s often more about who you know than what you know.
The shakeup in town is real. Mark Murphy has been instructed by his board to blow things up. If this doesn’t pan out in a year or two, then he’s the next one out. The time was due. Several years past due, when you think about it. The Anthony Barr hit continues to resonate, and probably will for years to come. The short-term effects of the hit were devastating. In the long term, the hope is it propels the team back to the pinnacle that Ted Thompson and company once achieved. To his credit, he built a champion, and that can never be taken away. A champion once is a champion for life.
For now, but possibly not much longer, that’s all we have over the Vikings.
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John Piotrowski is a UW-Eau Claire alum, spending most of his life in western WI. He makes the trek east to Lambeau whenever possible. Follow him on twitter at @piosGBP.
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1 response to “And Another One Bites the Dust”
Looks like nothing will change for the Packers for a couple more years. Russ Ball will be named the new General Manager and will continue to run the organization in the same fashion that it has been during Ted’s time. Ted will be right there at his side making certain that all goes well. Mike McCarthy suspiciously got extended for another year, so we can look forward to two more years of his “very successful” coaching. A few assistant coaches have been thrown under the bus, but the only significant change is the dismissal of Dom Capers. We can compare this to politics where party members just keep on taking care of each other, for as long as possible. The other unfortunate result will be the departure of key members of the front office.