Quite the opposite, I freely admit I expected the Packers to be further along than they are, absolutely.
Hence the reason I believe this is a do or terminate year for Mike McCarthy , Ted or both of them combined.
I am disappointed in player development, most noteably along the lines and especially at linebacker. Hell I wish they would have dumped Moss, Campen and Fonteno right along with the rest in the Great 09 purge of assistant coaches.
I see little growth broadly along the offensive line, all these guys had decent potential coming in, none in three years have become absolute NFL starters. meaning, move them to another team the only one that might start a greater share is Spitz.. Colledge, Barbre, Moll.. I doubt any of them start on more teams than not.
Same along the defensive line and the players Ted drafted... very little growth. I won't go into the Linebackers because I will just be pissed the rest of the freaking day..
Now, where does that blame fall? Is it a failure of evaluation of the personnel staff or a failure in the coaching ranks to draw that potential out of these players.
A player like AJ will be very worth while in watching this year.. if he continues to fade then I point it toward scouting and personnel.. if he begins to fully realize his potential, then I will lay more of the blame on the coaching staff and say that the issue lie with the last scheme / coaches.
It is more complex than blaming Ted instantly or Mike McCarthy and crew for that matter..
"pack93z" wrote:
I agree that it's a make it or break it year for both Ted Thompson or MM. I'm hoping we make a deep run in the Playoffs and well, actually hoping for a SB win as I do every year. But 6-10 left such a bad taste in my mouth.
Last year, I saw too many games that reminded me of that 4th and 26 game. 4th and 26 should have never happened because we punted on 4th and 1 where we would have run out the clock had we gone for it and ended the game.
We lost too many games by 4 points or less because we got soft once we got into their red zones and took the easy 3 instead of getting the TDs. I put the blame on that squarely on MM, which is weird because I kept saying how I loved MM's aggression in '07. What the **** happened? I'm almost thinking MM died and is replaced by a doppleganger. This isn't the same MM we had in '07.
As for TT, what the **** happened to our lines? Yes, Ted Thompson inherited a team that was over cap with no depth and yes, Ted Thompson fixed it. Thank you Ted. But you've had four years now. 2009 = Year #5. I expect wins, wins, and more wins. Wins/Losses is how you judge success, like it or not, with SB wins the ultimate judge of success. That's why Gruden has hung on so long. He has a SB win on his resume. No one can take that from him.
As for player development, that ultimately falls on MM. Sure, his assistants left plenty to be desired, but when you're running a company, you're responsible for the people under you, like it or not. MM is the HC. He's responsible for his assistants.
Now as negative as this post seems, here's the positive...
I think we're going in the right direction. I'm loving the switch to 3-4. I like a fast D. The NFL game is getting faster and we have to adjust to it. I also like the offseason Coaching changes.
I'm looking forward to a solid season. I fully expect us to win the division and win at least one Playoff game. That said, if we finish the season below 8-8 again, heads will need to roll.
My man Donald Driver
(thanks to Pack93z for the pic)
2010 will be seen as the beginning of the new Packers dynasty. 🇹🇹 🇲🇲 🇦🇷