THE CURIOUS CASE OF GREG JENNINGS

Former Packers No. 1 receiver Greg Jennings is currently hitting the road trying to find a new team after the hated Minnesota Vikings (who take pride in signing Packer castoffs) cut him loose after just two years of a five-year $47.5 million contract he signed when the Packers elected to let him go after seven mostly stellar seasons.

Jennings is making the best of being rejected for the second time in three years and being fired does do something to your psyche as you search for reasons for being unwanted or worst gotten rid of. You go one of two ways. You could sink to the depths of despair and hide yourself in your room either drinking or drugging yourself to get rid of the pain or worse. Or you could lash out at the cretins you dumped you from being stupid (I know that's what cretin means, but it bears to be repeated) and not seeing how great you still are. Greg Jennings chose the latter when he left the Packers, but curiously he didn't when the Vikings dumped him for a faster, more firm young thing. I wonder why.

I was a big Greg Jennings fan. I thought he was great from the slot and looked forward to his 75-yard touchdown catches on his patented slant. However, his final season with the Packers that play never happened even before he was sidelined with various injuries. He seemed to have lost a step, but for whatever the reason he wasn't the dominate player he had been from 2007 to 2011 when he overtook Donald Driver as the No. 1 receiver.



Jennings on top

 His fall from dominance started at the end of 2011 when he suffered a knee injury and missed the final three games of the regular season. That was also the season that Jordy Nelson emerged as the go-to receiver for Aaron Rodgers. Jennings then began the 2012 season on the injured list with a groin injury that knocks him out of the games five through eight and then develops an abdomen injury that knocks him out of game nine followed by a hernia that kept out of game 11.

When Jennings was out and Randall Cobb was emerging as a true star Jennings sister Valyncia had things to say in December and it turned out her opinions were just a harbinger of things to come from the Jennings family.
　

"@Da_mrs_85 Eb, Cortney, and Jahlin. We are hot Mad! I've never seen a star receiver ever go through this smh! @GregJennings needs to bounce"

"It is so obvious that @GregJennings is being blatantly ignored by ARod. Maybe @ halftime GJ should put on #18 then ARod will force  to him!"

"Who can make a play @GregJennings can! He's the best freakin receiver these clowns got! Now take your talents to south beach & get paid!"

"@GregJennings ball out so you can leave this team! They will miss u when your gone! It's all good bye packers! Cheap team, can't afford him"

"@Da_mrs_85 I don't freakin care he should have more catches, if this idiot could see the coverage!! Then he holds on to the ball & fumbles!"

"ARod is the most overrated QB in the league! He is no where near Peyton or Brady.

It sickens me, Peyton would avg. 5 TD with this squad!!!"

In case you've forgotten Jennings had a stretch of five seasons from 2007 to 2011 when he was about as good as it gets. Playing with Brett Favre he missed a 1,000 yards in 2007 by just 80 yards while hauling down 53 passes for a whopping 17.36 yards a catch and 12 TDs. Then after teaming up with Aaron Rodgers he hit his stride (80-1,292-(16.2)-9TD; 69-1,120-(16.2)-4TD; 76-1,265-(16.5)-12TD; 67-949-(14.2)-9TD-while missing 3 games). So five seasons at or near a 1,000 yards while catching 46 TDs. That's nothing to sneeze at.

Better Days

Remember when he was at his best and a Super Bowl champion Jennings was the toast of the town and the media, including a spokesman for Old Spice.

Old Spice Man

We all know what happens when an older player starts to get injury after injury. Only with something like a knee injury or broken bone does an older player recover, but when it is nagging muscular injures it only gets worse usually and is a big red flag that he can't be depended upon to answer the bell on a regular basis.

But a lover scorned can lead to an ugly situation and like Favre, Jennings took his charms to the much hated Vikings. Usually the lover that was left behind has issues watching his or hers former lover sleeping with someone else. But in the case of Jennings (beyond booing him when he returned to Lambeau Field) the Packers, Rodgers and the fans felt the Vikings got sloppy seconds and moved on.

Of course, Jennings couldn't wait to move on and had these things to say about his new lover Christian Ponder and the Vikings in general. Remember the Vikings were coming off a season where Ponder beat the Packers in the season finale, but was injured and was replaced by Joe Webb in the lost in the playoffs.

 "He's always been in a position to where the stress and the pressure was on him and he really didn't have the help around him to take that load off outside of All Day (Adrian Peterson). That's it. When you see what they were able to do last year, with the guys they had on that team ... You saw a team that believed in one another, that felt like they could get it done, that were disappointed when they lost to us in that playoff game." He added that Vikings had the "hunger" and the Packers didn't. "That same hunger, I'm not saying [the Packers] weren't hungry but the year we won it, you couldn't walk into that locker room and not say these guys are going to do something special."
You then could think getting as far away from Aaron Rodgers as possible would lead to a resurgence of Jennings career and another 1,000 yard and plus 10 TD season with the emerging star Christian Ponder throwing the ball. Well, that didn't happen.

Jennings first year with the Vikings he missed one game (game 11) to his credit while still having injury issues with his knee (game 9) and achilles tendon (games 10 and 11). He led the team with 68 passes for 804 yards and four touchdowns, but his yards per catch dropped to 11.8 (the second lowest of his career after his 2012 season with the Packers). It was his worse production (not counting 2012 when he was hurt and had his worse season ever 36 catches, 366 yards (10.2) and 4 TDs) since his rookie season (45 catches, 632 yards (14.0) , 3 TDs).

Last year Jennings was still relatively productive as the leading receiver with 59 catches, 742 yards, 6TDs, but his yards per catch didn't improve much (12.6) despite exchanging Ponder, Matt Cassel and Josh Freeman for a much better (how much better do you have to be to be better than Ponder and companions) Teddy "Little Hands" Bridgewater.

He didn't miss a game, but missed three starts the first half of the season (maybe for formation reasons, because he didn't show up on the injury report for those games) . By the end of the season he was replaced as the No. 1 receiver by Charles Johnson (ironically, a former Packers 2013 7th round draft pick, who was signed off the Packers practice squad by the Cleveland Browns before the Vikings signed him off the Browns practice squad).

So, when younger and firmer comes along old and saggy hit the bricks and that's what happened in the second half of the season and again for the final time when the Vikings acquired Mike Wallace from the Dolphins. Suddenly his $11 million cap hit was too much to pay for a No. 3 wide receiver.

One thing to remember is that the Packers declined to re-sign Jennings and the Viking cut him. Get that "cut" him with three years remaining on his contract. They told him "we don't want you anymore and don't let the door knob hit your ass on the way out the door".

I would think if I was to be mad at someone it would be the Vikings for an obvious slap in the face, but Jennings didn't see it that way and issued a great "I love you guys" parting speech. He also indicated he would still call Minneapolis his home and his foundation (who doesn't have a foundation these days) would still work in that area.

"I would like to thank the Minnesota Vikings organization. It was an honor to play for such a great franchise for the past two seasons. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the team and made some good friends. I would also like to thank the Vikings fans who warmly welcomed me and my family. Being a part of the Vikings and the Minnesota community has been a positive experience and a true blessing."

I was thinking I might add Minneapolis to be on my list of relocation places and avoid, at all costs, Green Bay, since it took only two short years for Jennings and his wonderful family to fall in love with the place, but even after seven successful years in Green Bay that included total admiration from the Packer faithful he couldn't wait to get out of town. Makes you think doesn't it?

Now back to his departure from the Packers. Jennings was allowed to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2012 season. He only visited with the Vikings and signed on March 15.

Happy to Move On

I don't know if anyone realized this, but Brett Favre had something to do with Jennings signing with the Vikings. Here's what Jennings had to say about that to KFAN-FM's Paul Allen on March 16, 2013.

 "Literally, as I got off the plane and (offensive coordinator Bill) Musgrave walked up to me, I’m on the phone with Brett. I spoke with Brett two or three times throughout this process. He shot me straight. I knew if there was one person that would shoot straight and tell me exactly what I wanted to hear and things I possibly didn’t want to hear, it would be Brett. He did that for me."
To his credit he waited a few months before he started to tell anyone who would listen how he felt about the Packer organization, Coach Mike McCarthy, Aaron Rodgers and the town of Green Bay.

Jennings Telling His Truth

It began in an interview with the Pioneer Press on June 5 when he offered his thoughts about Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers and his new main squeeze Christian Ponder.

 "When you talk about comparing quarterbacks, it’s hard to compare guys. I’ll take Brett. He did it for so long. I got there in a period of time where Brett already was there (as an elite quarterback). Then the guy they have now, he sat behind Brett and he learned so much."

"Christian didn’t really have that opportunity. He had to jump in. The way you compare them has to be a little different. The guy they have now was a veteran rookie. It’s a little different, but Christian has tremendous upside. I think what I see now is a quarterback who’s maturing and who’s growing and wanting to learn and grow, which is huge."
 He also had this to say about whether he had axes to grind about the Packers and on playing the Packers as the opposition.
"I move on. There's no love lost. It's a business. Obviously, it's one of those situations where I'm going to enjoy playing them. At the same time, I don't have them on my to-do list, like, "Oh, man, I can't wait to get to that game."
What did he say? He said the Packers are just another team before he said he would love to play them. It seemed he wanted people to think he has moved on and doesn't think about his time with the Packers and earning a Super Bowl ring, but as we know being unwanted by the Packers stuck in his craw and still does.

On July 16 in an interview on ESPN's "First Take" he explained that his departure was part of God's plan.
 

"You just know when it's time to move on. In the biblical sense, seven years is the year of completion. Eight years is new beginnings."

 

Sounds like Jennings leaving the Packers was pre-ordained and he was fine with it. He added this explanation of why it was good, so that guys like Randall Cobb, Jordy Nelson and James Jones could be the best they can be.

"I'm not a selfish guy. It's not about me. It's more about giving guys an opportunity to do what they need to do. I had to remove myself from that situation to allow those guys to spread their wings."

 

Doesn't it sound like Jennings wanted to leave the Packers and didn't have any malice in his heart towards the organization that allowed him to become a millionaire and earn a Super Bowl ring? It seems all of that nice stuff was just a load of Bull Durham. His true feelings would soon come out just a week later.

He gave this interview on KFAN-FM on July 23 and had these choice comments about Mike McCarthy and his coaching style while talking about his first mini-camp with the Vikings.
 "It’s not a free-for-all. There’s structure. But there’s liberty. You can breathe. It’s like, ‘OK, I can do my thing.’ You know what you need to do, you get it done. Whereas [in Green Bay], everything was more cookie-cutter... It’s just different. In a good way. And not knocking what we did there. Because obviously it was successful. But here, no one’s walking on egg shells."
In an interview with the Minneapolis Star Tribune on July 25 he had this to say about "the guy they have now".
"For me, I'm such a team person, I'm going to defer to my teammates. I'm going to defer to the team, to the team, to the team. And I think when you reach a point where you're not deferring any longer, it's no longer really about the team."

"Don't get me wrong, `12' is a great person. But when you hear all positives, all positives, all positives all the time, it's hard for you to sit down when one of your teammates says, `Man, come on, you've got to hold yourself accountable for this.' It's hard for someone to see that now because all they've heard is I'm doing it the right way, I'm perfect. In actuality, we all have flaws."
 
Two weeks later on August 12 on KFAN-FM when asked if he thought the Vikings were championship worthy he evidently still had a burr up his butt because he decided to answer a different question:

 "And when I came over here...I was kind of brainwashed. There's no kind of to it. Being over in Green Bay you're brainwashed to think that anyone in the division is just tiers below."

"Everything that you know in Green Bay is like 'the best, the best, the best, the best, the best', and it's like total brainwashing. I think you don't open your eyes to see what other teams have to offer unless you are in that position, and I was afforded this position."

 Jennings' new head coach Leslie Frazier had evidently had enough of Jennings' hate parade and made this statement a short time later.
"We're the Vikings and we want to talk about us, what we're trying to get done. That's where our focus has to be. There's so much work to be done, and we don't want to be looking at what's happening with other teams, other teams' players. We've got to focus on us. He's (Jennings) good with that."
However, Jennings didn't entirely take that suggestion to heart. He decided to set things straight about his comments and in his "apology" he seemed to say it was all a media creation.
"I don't really recall saying anything negative about Aaron or anyone over there, but hey, I apologize."
At a 2014 conference call with various reporters the Tuesday before he was to return to Lambeau Field on Thursday Night Football Jennings was asked if he any part of him wishes that he had re-signed with Green Bay, he said this.
"Honestly, to be honest, no. It doesn't because -- and this is sincerity right here -- it really has nothing to do with football. From a football standpoint, I would have loved to have finished my career out in Green Bay, but from where I am spiritually and where I am with my family and the growth that we've had because of what we have around us educationally -- and there was some great educational systems there, as well -- but this is a step up for us."
He was then asked if it bothered him when the Packer fans boo him and he said.
"We're just embracing it. We're excited to be here, and not just because of what football affords and presents but because of everything else that comes with it."

"I can't concern myself with that. I was on that side when Brett [Favre] came back, so I understand the reaction he got. So I don't expect it to be anything better than that. I mean, it is what it is. I'm the opposition. I'm an opponent. I want to win."

 UPDATE:

After being released by the Vikings on March 14 Greg Jennings found out just what every one else thought about him, his mouth and his athletic ability.

He visited the Panthers on March 21 and left without a contract. The next day the Dolphins said they were interested, but didn't call to make it official. The next day the Jaguars said they had interest, but also didn't make it official.

So to make sure people remembered he was out there, ready, willing and able to play the part of No. 1, 2 or 3 receiver he tweeted on March 31 that he a big announcement to make the next day. But, of course, it turned out to be an April Fool joke. But who was the joke on?

Then on April 7 he finally meets with the Dolphins, but leaves town without a contract again. On April 13 he met with the Jaguars, but left town, once again, empty handed. Late reports on April 14 indicate Jennings will now visit the Saints either on the 14th or a day later. I hope he saved his money. His travel expenses alone can set him back a pretty penny.

Remember this is a receiver who has 552 catches, 8,083 yards and 63 TDs. In the annuals of NFL history he ranks 87th all-time and is 15th among active receivers in yards. In receptions he is ranked 91st all-time and 14th active and in TDs he is 61st all-time and 11th active.

However, at age 31 it seems his days of being a No. 1 receiver are over and maybe his days of being a No. 2 were short and not sweet. I think he will be signed, but it will be a one-year deal for maybe a veteran's minimum and he will retire either during or at the end of next season and sadly bitter with a team and a quarterback that made his salad days really glorious. I pity the poor fool.