Oh Say It Ain’t So

I don’t know if it was as easy for you as it was for me, but the firing of Mike McCarthy was easy as pie (by the way where did that saying come from? I have made pies and cakes and it is a lot easier to make a cake than a pie) for me. I was so ready to NOT see that chubby fellow hidden behind his play sheet on the sidelines calling plays I predicted he would call, which predictably failed most of the time, especially after a timeout. I didn’t miss him at all. Not at all. I wonder how many others felt that way. Joe Philbin has revitalized Aaron Rodgers in particular and the offense in general. I also don’t miss Dom Capers up in his perch but for an entirely different reason. Mike Pettine sits in Capers seat and the Packers defense fails just as often as Capers’ defense did. It’s as if Dom just had a makeover.

But now word has come out that the Packers have interviewed two coaches. Before I mention their sorry names I want to make a comparison. When Ted Thompson was promoted and put in charge of tutoring his bastard son Brian Gutekunst the Packers didn’t miss a beat – the Thompson Beat I mean.

I’m Back and I’m Still Not a Happy Packer Backer

It’s been many, many weeks since I’ve weighed in on the sinking ship that is the 2018 Packers, but, at least, for today, I’m to give my 6 cents on what’s happened and is happening and what will happen.

Mike McCarthy has coached the Packers longer than anyone else since Curly Lambeau. The immortal Curly Lambeau won 6 titles in 31 years and the extremely mortal Mike McCarthy has won 1 in his 13 years as head coach. Vince Lombardi and Bart Starr were coach for 9 years and Mike Holmgren for 7 years and Mike Sherman 6.

One of the reasons I haven’t commented on the terrible play in general, the yearly rash of injuries and the terrible play calling of Mike McCarthy is because what I had to say was something I’ve been saying for years now and again after the “new beginning” during the offseason.

I wanted McCarthy fired years ago for not firing Dom Capers. Remember McCarthy kept Dom Capers on WAY TOO LONG after he became a liability. I was calling for Capers to be fired since the 2011 season and it took him 7 years to do so. The hallmark of a Capers defense is that in a crunch it will fail and it seems Mike Pettine’s defense isn’t much better.

Ted Gutekunst And His Disrespect For Guards

Glancing at the Packers depth chart (however, I had to go to Ourlads.com because the new and improved Packers.com no longer posts a depth chart), I noticed (although I already knew) Lane Taylor and Justin McCray are listed as the starting guards. This got me thinking about how much disrespect former (and maybe current by proxy) General Manager Ted Thompson (BG: “He’s one of the best evaluators that has ever done this,”) had and has for the guard position and the offensive line in general.

Now You Tell Me Ted Thompson Isn’t Still Running The Packers

It’s been almost 7 months since Head Honcho, Chief Cook and Bottle Washer, Executive Vice President, General Manager and Director of Football Operations Ted Thompson, who ran the operation like President Donald J. Trump runs the country by being accountable to no one, transitioned to Senior Advisor to Football Operations and Director of Player Personnel Brian Gutekunst was promoted to General Manager, but not as Executive Vice President and/or Director of Football Operations. Instead Vice President of Football Administration/Player Finance Russ Ball was promoted to Executive Vice President/Director of Football Operations.

So January 7th the 3-headed Ted Thompson monster had been cut in two and one more important thing happened when President and Chief Executive Officer Mark Murphy’s small balls only grew 2 sizes that day instead of the 3 The Grinch’s heart grew when he finally saw the light.

The President of the “In Ted We Trust” cult and Ted Thompson’s chief ass kisser wanted his power back after 12 years of having his subordinate ignore him daily by having Gutekunst, Ball and Head Coach Mike McCarthy report directly to him instead of the previous arrangement of those men reporting to Thompson alone. However, in a sign Murphy hasn’t dealt with his Thompson man-crush issues evidently Thompson still reports to no one.

So with this new structure in place and a new man in charge of personnel decisions I was hoping the Packers, who had gone extremely stale and chaep under the Ted Thompson II Regime, were going to go a different direction after the front office shakeup. But it seems it was just cosmetic because the leadership of Gutekunst and Ball looks a whole like the leadership of King Ted the Terrible.

Post Draft Analysis

2018 was supposed to be a new beginning with Executive Vice President/General Manager/Director of Football Operations Ted Thompson pushed out after 13 seasons at the helm and a brand new younger General Manager taking over in hopes of revitalizing the Packers after seven years of atrophy following the team’s fifth Super Bowl appearance and fourth Super Bowl title falling from Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers to the “Just Good Enough” Packers where the front office was “just” happy to make the playoffs each year before having the playoff streak of 8 snapped last year when the loss of Aaron Rodgers showed the talent level of the next 52 plus 10 was not even average in the NFL. Sorry for the long sentence.

However, the “Big” change was only cosmetic. Ted Thompson wasn’t fired or retired he was just bumped upstairs as a senior advisor The “New” General Manager Brian Gutekunst was not new he was actually Thompson’s assistant and Russ Ball, another Thompson assistant, was also promoted to Director of Football Operations as CEO Mark Murphy restructured the front office to take Thompson’s 3 jobs and move the power into the himself, Gutekunst and Ball.

Pre-Draft Analysis

The roster former General Manager Ted Thompson left the new guy left a lot to be desired if the Green Bay Packers are to return to the Super Bowl while Aaron Rodgers is the quarterback.

The “Tedders”, who worshipped Ted Thompson and the local kiss ass media who are just as delusional still can’t see the forest for the trees and for some delusional reason think the return of Aaron Rodgers is the only thing that needs to be done this season to return to Super Bowl contention.

I hate to break your bubble (actually I love to break your bubble) the Packers haven’t been in the Super Bowl for the last seven years when Rodgers was the best quarterback in football and Jordy Nelson was one of the best wide receivers, Eddie Lacy was one of the best backs, Clay Matthews was the best pass rusher, Tramon Williams and Sam Shields were the cornerbacks, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix was an up-and-comer and Josh Sitton and T. J. Lang were the Pro Bowl guards.

None of that except for Rodgers is still happening, but what is is that Ted Thompson and his cheap-ass ways turned a budding Super Bowl dynasty into the “Just Good Enough” Packers built around failed top draft picks and undrafted free agents. Ted Thompson and his enablers have wasted the prime years of the best quarterback in the game and will never see another Super Bowl unless the current management cuts the ties to Thompson and takes some chances.

What Murphy and the LOCAL KISS ASS MEDIA Has Wrought

Ding, Dong, The Ted is Dead. Ding, Dong, The Dom is Dead. Those two refrains should be enough for any Packer Backer to be dancing in the streets and for most of us we are, if for no other reason that Dom Capers’ wide open in the middle, laid back pass coverage and “No Tackle” zone defensive is really gone.

However, in the infinite wisdom of the Packers Brain Trust (I have my doubts about the brain part) Ted Thompson wasn’t fired or retired, but given a promotion where he could and probably will be influencing the moves “new” general manager Brian Gutekunst will be making this offseason, including the upcoming draft. I have acid indigestion over the thought that the man who gave us a team that needed overtime to beat the 0-16 Browns is still wielding influence.

Why Are These Men Still In The Building?

I have been sitting here (well, some of the time) watching the Green Bay Packers shuffle the deck chairs on their Titanic and wondering why the buffoons who used to call themselves the “I Trust in Ted” crowds or “Tedders” as I call them cheer the moves the Board of Directors made (I know President Mark Murphy said he made those decisions all by his little lonesome, but we all know that is just the latest from the Ted Thompson Fake News Division) concerning the front office and coaching staff. But I want to make clear to all of you that basically the same mind set that gave the Packers 1 Super Bowl appearance in 13 years with arguably the best 2 quarterbacks in NFL history is alive and well at 1265 Lombardi Avenue.

Tyrant Ted’s Legacy

The 13-year reign of Ted Thompson is finally over or is it? The irony of Thompson’s business style was he was hired to break up exactly what he eventually ended up becoming – one man rule.

Let’s look back to what brought Tyrant Ted back to Green Bay in the 1st place. Mike Sherman was the last of the General Manager/Head Coaches that had started with Curly Lambeau and ended the 1st time with Gene Rozani in 1953 when Vern Lewellen became General Manager. It started again when Vince Lombardi was hired in 1959 and ended the second time in 1980 when Bart Starr had his power over personnel removed when Dick Corrick was hired as Director of Football Operations. Tom Braatz replaced Corrick in 1987 and remained as defacto General Manager until 1991 when Ron Wolf was hired as General Manager. When Wolf retired in 2001 Mike Sherman was hired as the 1st General Manager/Head Coach since 1980 and it was his time in both offices that brought us Ted Thompson I. A combination of the disastrous signing of Joe Johnson in 2002 and the lack of playoff success (2-4), including the 1st playoff loss at Lambeau Field in 2002 (ironically Mike McCarthy has lost at Lambeau Field a total of 3 times in the playoffs - 2007, 2011,2013 and he didn’t get fired) brought Green Bay to a crisis moment and it was Tyrant Ted to the rescue in 2005 when Sherman was stripped of his General Managership. Sherman was fired the next season and Mundane Mike McCarthy was hired and the front office was set for the next 12 years.

The 1st 6 years of Tyrant Ted’s reign was magical. It started with the firing of Brett Favre after the 2007 season and a loss to Giants at Lambeau Field to the hiring of Mark Murphy as CEO and President in 2008 and ended in 2010 with Aaron Rodgers and Clay Matthews bringing the Lombardi Trophy back to Green Bay for the 1st time since 1996.

Happy Days were here again and the promise of a new Packers Dynasty was on the horizon with the best quarterback in football at the helm, but something went terribly wrong and the best way it came be described is by the phrase, “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely”.

I’ve Been To The Mountain Top…..At Least For A Day And A Half

It’s been an emotional nine days. The Packers savior – I’m not the savior – Aaron Rodgers couldn’t pull off another miracle and Brett Hundley, who is not a NFL starting quarterback who couldn’t beat anyone, but the da’ Bears, the 0-16 Browns (needed overtime) and the still disappointing Bucs even without Vinny Testaverde, even though both former General Manager (I love that) Ted Thompson and current (I hate that) head coach Mike McCarthy think otherwise., drove a nail into the season with two losses to the Vikings (ouch) by his second shutout (OUCH) and the Lions (ouch).

The season ended with a rout and then within hours word began to leak out of Thompson’s FAKE NEWS operation that Dom Capers was actually being fired. Could it be? Or were they just screwing with the Packers Backers who have been hoping for this moment since 2011? Mike McCarthy loves the man. He didn’t care if the defense sucked or gave up a chance to go to the Super Bowl three years ago because McCarthy had Rodgers to bail the team out. He didn’t care that the same problems kept popping up game after game, year after year, because he had Rodgers to bail the team out. He didn’t care…..

So I was trying not to get too excited, but it seems there is another force acting here since the Packers just had their eight-year playoff streak broken and even the “Tedders” had to have a scapegoat since they couldn’t blame their demigod Ted Thompson for putting together a lousy roster. However by the time I went to bed Sunday night Dom Capers was still officially the defensive coordinator of the Green Bay Packers.