Milwaukee area: Seeking 2-4 writers

So for a little while now I’ve been kicking around the idea of starting a newspaper centered around original Milwaukee music.  A plan was formulated and I contacted everyone I knew who might be interested.  That wasn’t too long ago, but the idea is already fizzling a bit.  It’s understandable… some people want to be a part of it, but just don’t have the time.  Others might not have liked my approach.  Others still might have been weary of the size of the project.  Going to try and address all those problems, especially the last one.  In my typical fashion, I came up with some grand scheme of how to make it the best thing Milwaukee has ever seen.  Bad move on my part as that’s a good way to scare off volunteer staff.

New game plan.  I want to start waaaay small.  I’d like to get a staff of 3-5 people (including myself) and just see what we can do.  Everyone will contribute 1-2 articles per month and it we’ll do reviews, interviews, opinion, etc.  The whole paper will be like 4 pages (maybe more depending on how much we all write).  I will take care of the layout/printing/advertising stuff and figure out a very easy way to handle distribution.  We’ll start with a few hundred copies and they’ll be available at a small handful of places.  If it stays that size, great.  If it grows, great.  Have more ideas, but let’s just start there and see what we get.

I just need the 2-4 additional people.  I don’t want to assume that those who were interested in the original plan will be on board for the revised one, so I’m throwing this out to everyone I know.  If you want to do some writing, let me know.  We’ll see if we can get a 1st issue out the beginning of 2010 (January).

New favorite brewery

I’m currently finishing off a 6 pack of the Octoberfest from Central Waters Brewery.  It’s not my favorite Octoberfest (it’s kind of a foggy orange color, very light/thin with a toasty/nutty flavor – quite tasty but a departure from a typical Octoberfest beer), but I still rather like it.  I’ve had as many beers as I can find from Central Waters and I’ve decided they are one of my favorite breweries.  Yes, other breweries make fantastic beers, but to be a favorite brewery I want to be able to pick up nearly any of your products and enjoy it.  I think they bumped Dogfish Head out of my top 3 (I’d put it at 1. Bells, 2. Laguinitas 3. Central Waters).  Try their Glacial Trail IPA, it’s my favorite of what I’ve had from Central Waters so far.  Oh and they’re in Wisconsin too!

Turn the volume down

I know this has been written about to no end… but I’m going to briefly rant about it again as my right ear felt like it was going a little quieter on me yesterday.  See, when you’re in a rock band and you have a show, the best thing to do is crank all your amps to 10, ask the sound guy to jack the levels and have your drummer hit everything as hard as possible.  The physical energy from the sound waves translates into emotional energy for your audience.  My math may be off, but it’s usually on about a 2:1 scale.  So if your music is hitting the audience at 140db, it’s creating 280J of good times.

There are a few problems with this theory though… first there’s the whole problem of likely hearing loss and also severe pain (which usually happens somewhere north of 125-130db).  Thankfully there are nice ear plugs for that stuff which nobody uses.  The other part, when you crank your music up like this, you’re being a dick and it usually means your band is shit.  Not “the shit.”  “Shit.”  It’s a dead giveaway to seasoned audience members.  When they see a band that keeps cranking the volume up during sound check or the first few songs, it’s usually because the band stinks and they need the cacophony of loud to give the illusion of cohesive musicianship.  If you think your band is good, you’re doing yourself a great disservice as behind 130 or so db our ears cannot distinguish much.  Any of the nuances in your playing get lost in a giant whirlwind of noises.  Imagine a loud Harley, 737, jackhammer and circular saw all running in a small room at the same time.  It just becomes a blur.  You can’t distinguish one noise from the other.  Beyond that, unless you are playing a club that supports a few hundred people, chances are the PA system can’t support your volume.  In the usual 50-100 person venue, you’ll be lucky if the PA can support your vocals over the natural volume of a drumset and 30 Watt tube amp.  Once you mic the snare/kick and guitar amp and crank them all up, you are assuring yourself that the PA will start clipping/distorting and nobody will be able to understand the lyrics or maybe even know anyone is singing.

I’m not saying that your noise rock band needs to be playing at cafe poetry night volumes.  But actually listen to yourself more often.  When you’re doing sound check, rather than just making a really loud stage volume and assuming it’s great, have a band member or trusted friend go out into the audience.  Try playing a song with guitars, drums, vocals.  If you’re in a small venue (around Milwaukee that might be the Cactus Club), have the drummer play with no mics, then run the guitar/vocals through the PA.  Turn the volume up until everything sounds pretty level with the drummer.  Then you can mic some of the drums if a few things are getting lost.  If you don’t believe me, stick a camcorder in the back of a room and record one of your normal shows compared to one where you do sound like that.  Tell me which one sounds better.  If you think the absurdly loud one does, it probably means your band needs more practice.

Packers draft picks – Ted Thompson Edition

Green Bay Packers Draft History

2009
Rnd	Name	College	Note
1	B.J. Raji	Boston College
1	Clay Matthews	Southern Cal
4	T.J. Lang	Eastern Michigan
5	Quinn Johnson	LSU
5	Jamon Meredith	South Carolina
6	Jarius Wynn	Georgia
6	Brandon Underwood	Cincinnati
7	Brad Jones	Colorado
2008
Rnd	Name	College	Note
2	Jordy Nelson	Kansas State
2	Brian Brohm	Louisville
2	Patrick Lee	Auburn
3	Jermichael Finley	Texas
4	Jeremy Thompson	Wake Forest
4	Josh Sitton	Central Florida
5	Breno Giacomini	Louisville
7	Matt Flynn	Louisiana State
7	Brett Swain
2007
Rnd	Name	College	Note
1	Justin Harrell	Tennessee
2	Brandon Jackson	Nebraska
3	James Jones	San Jose State
3	Aaron Rouse	Virginia Tech
4	Allen Barbre	Missouri Southern State
5	David Clowney	Virginia Tech
6	Korey Hall	Boise State
6	Desmond Bishop	California
6	Mason Crosby	Colorado
7	DeShawn Wynn	Florida
7	Clark Harris	Rutgers
2006
Rnd	Name	College	Note
1	A.J. Hawk	Ohio State
2	Daryn Colledge	Boise State
2	Greg Jennings	Western Michigan
3	Abdul Hodge	Iowa
3	Jason Spitz	Louisville
4	Cory Rodgers	Texas Christian
4	Will Blackmon	Boston College
5	Ingle Martin	Furman
5	Tony Moll	Nevada
6	Johnny Jolly	Texas A&M
6	Tyrone Culver	Fresno State
7	Dave Tollefson	Northwest Missouri State
2005
Rnd	Name	College	Note
1	Aaron Rodgers	California
2	Nick Collins	Bethune-Cookman
2	Terrence Murphy	Texas A&M
4	Marviel Underwood	San Diego State
4	Brady Poppinga	Brigham Young
5	Junius Coston	North Carolina A&T
5	Michael Hawkins	Oklahoma
6	Mike Montgomery	Texas A&M
6	Craig Bragg	UCLA
7	Kurt Campbell	Albany (NY)
7	William Whitticker	Michigan State

 

We had 34 draft picks in the first 3 years of Thompson as a GM.  The current starters from that pool are:

– Aaron Rodgers, QB
– Nick Collins, FS
– AJ Hawk, ILB (who might not be starting right now if not for injuries)
– Greg Jennings, WR
– Daryn Colledge, OG

Jason Spitz was our starting center this year, so he should count at #6, but unfortunately he went on IR this week.  Allen Babre was starting at RT, but he was so bad we had to re-sign Tauscher.

For a team that believes in building through the draft, we’ve done a miserable job of it.  Here’s a look at our Week 9 starters and where they come from:

Offense
QB: Aaron Rodgers – TT Draft Pick
HB: Ryan Gran – Trade
FB: John Kuhn – Waivers
WR: Greg Jennings – TT Draft Pick
WR: Donald Driver – Pre-TT
LT: Chad Clifton – Pre-TT
LG: Daryn Colledge – TT Draft Pick
C: Scott Wells – Pre-TT
RG: Josh Sitton – TT Draft Pick
RT: Mark Tauscher – Pre-TT

Defense
LE: Johnny Jolly – TT Draft Pick
DT: Ryan Pickett – Free Agent
RE: Cullen Jenkins – Pre-TT
LOLB: Aaron Kampman – Pre-TT
ILB: Nick Barnett – Pre-TT
ILB: AJ Hawk – TT Draft Pick
ROLB: Clay Matthews – TT Draft Pick
CB: Charles Woodson – Free Agent
CB: Al Harris – Pre-TT
FS: Nick Collins – TT Draft Pick
SS: Atari Bigby – Free Agent

By my count, that’s 8/22 starters that Thompson has drafted.  He’s drafted 51 total players in that time frame.  That makes his success rate for drafting starters just over 15%.  That doesn’t mean the other players that are starting are all bad.  We have a lot of talented players that were either here when Thompson arrived or that were acquired outside the draft.  The problem is, with so many poor draft picks (23 draft picks – 45% – are not on the team), we’re really lacking in depth and have clearly over-valued at numerous positions.  It’s bad.  Top it off with McCarthy stinking the joint up and we’re heading the wrong direction.

Let’s assume Brady comes to camp healthy…

His recovery is now reported to be going well, he didn’t hurt his back leg, so I guess that might be easier to deal with and he’s never been a mobile QB.  So let’s just pretend that everything goes great from here out and he is essentially Tom Brady from day one of this season.

That being the case, let’s assume Brady avoids major injuries and is a very productive member of the Pats for another 3-6 years before retiring.  Keeping Cassel for that period may very well cost the Patriots Tony Romo money, which is way more than any team would invest in a backup.  It won’t happen.  So we’ll say that Cassel needs to go.

That all makes me wonder, what are the scenarios where it could happen this year?  Chances are teams will seriously consider Cassel based on how he played last year.  He didn’t finish the season with a wimper like Anderson did in Cleveland last year, he actually kept getting better.  So there is a chance he could be a viable option as a starting QB for a team in need.

With no other considerations, here are teams that may want a starting QB this year:
Tampa Bay
Carolina
Minnesota
Tennessee
St Louis
Detroit
Kansas City
New York Jets
San Francisco

Of that list, Tampa depends on what they do with Garcia, Carolina may not give up on Delhomme yet, Minnesota and Tennessee both have vets and irradic young guys that they may keep around, Kansas City has Thigpen who played decently last year, St Louis still has Bulger although he hasn’t looked too good, the Jets might have Favre, San Fran may stick with Hill.  Detroit is the only team that really has no worthwhile option.

However, if he plays almost as good as he did last year, I’d put Cassel as a more attractive option than any of those teams currently have (if you think long term, in the case of Tampa, Carolina, Minny, Tennessee).

So who is potentially going to make a move?

Tampa Bay: I think this team is too difficult to figure out at the moment.  I don’t know if they are going to blow up the current roster or just try and keep things going for a year or two and figure out what to do next.  It seems like they’ve tried to keep continuity at the coaching spots, so the latter might be true.

Carolina: They have talent on defense, a good offensive line and running game and a few good receivers.  They also have a QB who completely self-destructed in the playoffs (and no, it wasn’t just about opponent talent, watch the Raider game).  Delhomme has been all over the place his entire career and I think Carolina may consider a change.  However, to afford Cassel they’d definitely have to get out of Delhomme’s contract and I don’t see that happening.  Chances are they’ll go for a QB via the draft.

Minnesota: Brad Childress has stuck behind Tavaris Jackson like it’s his brother or something.  However, I think he might be starting to seriously doubt if Jackson will ever develop into a real starting QB.  Chances are, Childress will lose his job before that happens.  Minnesota has been very agressive in bringing in talent recently and it hasn’t paid off because they’ve had Jackson and Gus Frerotte at quarterback.  You’re not going to win with either player, because as we’ve all seen, even the best running games can get shut down and you’ll need to make plays via the air.  Neither guy can get it done.  Minnesota has the 22nd pick in the draft, which is immediately before the Patriots pick.  Kind of weird to pick back to back, but it’s a fairly desireable spot as you get a quality player without the massive financial burden.  I could see this deal happening.

Tennessee: Kerry Collins is 36 years old and Vince Young is getting top draft pick money.  As much as I believe neither QB will get you a championship, I don’t see the Titans going a different direction.

St Louis: Bulger has made big steps backwards recently, but the team around him has been horrible too.  So it’s hard to tell if he really has been declining or if the team around him has just been too bad.  Chances are, St Louis will work on building with their lines in the draft and keep Bulger until they have a decent team around him and evaluate from there.

Detroit: They need a QB, along with a LOT of other help.  We’ve all seen what happens when a bad team puts a rookie quarterback on the field and there’s no sure fire lock for the #1 pick at this point.  Detroit could keep their pick and get an offensive tackle, but I think they’d really like a franchise QB.  The problem with this trade though, is the #1 pick.  The Patriots have no desperate position of need except to slowly add youth to their linebackers.  Maybe one of the hybrid DE/OLB guys could shoot up the boards and justify a top pick… but while that would certainly benefit the Pats, I don’t know that they want to throw all that money at somebody.

Kansas City: Very interesting option here.  Kansas City has a ton of young players to develop and they need help at every position.  They also happen to have Scott Pioli running their show now.  He knows Cassel in and out.  He also wants a complete culture change with the Chiefs and a new offensive leader is a great way to do it.  Unlike the situation with Mangini going to the Jets, this isn’t some big rivalry.  Again, we’ve got the problem of a high draft spot not being very attractive, but the #3 spot is a little easier to live with than #1, so who knows… I would put this as a possibility.

New York Jets: Maybe Favre comes back, maybe he doesn’t.  Maybe the team still believes in Kellen Clemens, maybe not.  Either way, I can’t imagine the Patriots trade anybody of value within their division.  They saw what happened last year as the Jets let Pennington go to Miami, who knocked New York out of the playoffs at the end of the year.  New England is too smart of an organization to let that happen.

San Francisco: I’m never sure what to make of this organization.  They have a lot of turmoil in their division (Age/injuries/coaching problems in Seattle, rebuilding in St Louis, massive coaching staff turnover in Arizona) and they could be a solid move or two away from stealing that division.  They liked Shaun Hill last year, but let’s face it, he’s not the answer for any team interested in being a serious competitor.  They are going to take a decent hit when they likely cut former #1 pick, Alex Smith, but that’s better than keeping him on the roster.  Just based on numbers, the 49ers have an attractive pick at #10 overall.  I think based on where the team was at the end of last year and what the possibilities are in their division, they could go after Cassel.

Less than 1 day left – Boss PS-3 Pink Label (OMG RARE!!!)

Boss PS3 PS-3 Pitch Shifter – Delay

Worth a shot.

#$%& YOU NBC & WTMJ!!!!

Seriously, worst Super Bowl I’ve ever seen!!!  First, they forget to broadcast the first few moments in HD.  Big goof, minor impact as they fixed it immediately (not sure if this was just in Milwaukee or was the national broadcast).  Either way, this set the tone fora crappy night of TV watching.

I live 5.5 miles from the local NBC digital antenna according to antennaweb.com.  I have 99% signal on all digital frequencies.  Yet, because the idiots obviously didn’t switch to full power for the single largest TV event of the year, myself and countless others had artifacts throughout the game, total picture/sound loss and basically the kind of viewing experience that reassures you that nobody out there cares about people who watch OTA.

Beyond that, they put a 1 hour episode of the Office on right after the game.  That’s great if you watch everything live, but for the millions of us using a DVR, it creates a very high liklihood that you’re going to miss the last 18 minutes of the episode.  I know, you should look at your upcoming programs for conflicts, blah blah blah.  How about this, maybe you shouldn’t put a top rated TV show directly following a live event that ALWAYS runs late!

Now I feel compelled to go searching for 3D glasses to watch my favorite show, Chuck, in 3D Monday night.  I don’t want to watch it, but my boycotting the show will only hurt me in the loss of entertainment.  Instead, I’m going to look at every sponsor of Chuck tomorrow night and make every effort to boycott their products.  I won’t be watching that Monsters/Aliens movie.  I won’t be buying any Pepsi products.  The list will grow and I’ll try to post here if I have time.

WTF is wrong with the EC? Microsoft antitrust talk again

So the EC is laying antitrust charges on Microsoft for bundling IE and Windows.  They claim this is hurting competition in the web browser market.  Seriously?  Why do you suppose this is?  Is it because IE is a superior browser?  Is it because Microsoft denies people the ability to switch?  Is it because most people have little or no clue competition exists?  I think the last item is closest to the truth.  With that assumption in mind, if Microsoft packaged Windows with no web browser, what would people do?  Would they have to figure out how to download a browser without having an existing platform to work from?  My guess is that IE would be the easiest one to attain without having a browser at all.  As far as I know, you can’t just go to the store and buy a Firefox CD.  Maybe you can, but why would you when you can get it for free online?

If we ignore the complications of people finding and installing their own browser, what other option is there?  Should Microsoft be forced to sell Windows with 3rd party browsers installed?  If so, why should they be required to support the competion?

This is just another example of the EU trying to punish big business from outside their borders.  It’s also a case of policymakers not really understanding the problems they are trying to regulate.  I’m not a Microsoft fanboy, but I will definitely support them in this case.  This is just foolish use of government.  Businesses (including MSFT) are hurting enough, they don’t need big brother cracking the whip for needless regulation.

Packers Fire Bob Sanders?

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/01/breaking-news-packers-fire-sanders/

According to the National Football Post, the Green Bay Packers have fired their defensive coordinator.  Hopefully the rest of the defensive staff will follow.

NFL Feeling the Crunch?

It’s playoff time, but who can afford to go?  There are 4 games this weekend, and two of them were almost blacked out in the home TV markets.  Arizona and Minnesota had to get extensions to sell all their tickets.  Arizona eventually sold out, Minnesota is still trying.  Hmm, how could these games not sell out?  The Cardinals haven’t hosted a playoff game since way before I was born.  The Vikings aren’t exactly seeing the post season on a regular basis either.  Could it be that tickets are selling for $600 a seat and up?

2009 NFL Free Agents

3 fired, 2 others likely not back

The Lions, Jets and Browns all fired their head coaches.  The Raiders are looking to interview Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride.  The Rams have not made an announcement about their coach, but I’m guessing they’ll start popping up in interview news in the next few days.

Wade Phillips is safe, not sure why…

Week 17 almot done… who is getting fired?

So far Crennel/Savage are out.  Dallas might have a shakeup, same with the Jets.  Things don’t look for Herm in KC with a new boss coming in.  Rod Marinelli is bound to be gone after going 0-16 and having a new GM coming.  Haslett in St Louis may be a goner after not really doing much to improve the team.  I’m guessing the Cable guy will be out in Oakland.  Jack Del Rio may be out after his team quit on him.

That would put us at 3 coaches fired during the season and possibly 8 after the season.  11 head coaches on the streets in one year?  Looks really bad for Oakland and St Louis who may fire two coaches each in one year.

Somewhat negative view of Ted Thompson’s draft history

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2008 – Green Bay Packers

Rd Sel # Player              Position School

2 36 Jordy Nelson WR Kansas State – Playing well for a rookie

2 56 Brian Brohm QB Louisville – Horrible performance in pre-season, 3rd string QB.

2 60 Patrick Lee CB Auburn – On IR

3 91 Jermichael Finley TE Texas – Has been the #3 tight end and cannot get on the field.

4 102 Jeremy Thompson DE Wake Forest – Shown some energy but has been hurt

4 135 Josh Sitton T Central Florida – Gotten some playing time as fill-in, project

5 150 Breno Giacomini T Louisville – Project player

7 209 Matt Flynn QB Louisiana State – Played decently in pre-season

7 217 Brett Swain WR San Diego State – Practice squad

2007 – Green Bay Packers

Rd Sel # Player              Position School

1 16 Justin Harrell DT Tennessee – No surprise, has been injured a lot

2 63 Brandon Jackson RB Nebraska – Has played well in spurts, fumble liability

3 78 James Jones WR San Jose State – Played well early as a rookie, has slumped this year

3 89 Aaron Rouse SAF Virginia Tech – Has filled in for injuries, often out of position

4 119 Allen Barbre G Missouri Southern State – Still a project

5 157 David Clowney WR Virginia Tech – Gone

6 191 Korey Hall FB Boise State – Has played well enough

6 192 Desmond Bishop LB California – Made some big plays vs Houston, doesn’t look like a starter

6 193 Mason Crosby K Colorado – Has been very solid

7 228 DeShawn Wynn RB Florida – Was cut, but re-signed because of injuries

7 243 Clark Harris TE Rutgers – Gone

2006 – Green Bay Packers

Rd Sel # Player Position School

1 5 A.J. Hawk OLB Ohio State – Hasn’t been the impact player expected, but a solid linebacker

2 47 Daryn Colledge G Boise State – Cannot sustain blocks, gets beat by power and speed

2 52 Greg Jennings WR Western Michigan – Looks like a star, gets lost in some games

3 67 Abdul Hodge LB Iowa – Gone

3 75 Jason Spitz G Louisville – Plays okay in fill-in roles, not a starter

4 104 Cory Rodgers WR Texas Christian – Gone

4 115 Will Blackmon CB Boston College – Pick play ability on special teams, goes sideways too often

5 148 Ingle Martin QB Furman – Gone

5 165 Tony Moll G Nevada-Reno – Backup player

6 183 Johnny Jolly DT Texas A&M – Good enough, especially considering where he was picked

6 185 Tyrone Culver DB Fresno State – Gone

7 253 Dave Tollefson DE Northwest Missouri State – Gone

2005 – Green Bay Packers

Rd Sel # Player                           Position School

1 24 Aaron Rodgers QB California – Looks like a solid QB

2 51 Nick Collins FS Bethune-Cookman – Out of position way too often

2 58 Terrence Murphy WR Texas A&M – Out of NFL: Injury

4 115 Marviel Underwood DB San Diego State – Gone

4 125 Brady Poppinga LB Brigham Young – Decent vs run, can’t cover

5 143 Junius Coston C North Carolina A&T – Gone

5 167 Mike Hawkins DB Oklahoma – Gone

6 180 Mike Montgomery DT Texas A&M – Playing okay as a fill-in

6 195 Craig Bragg WR UCLA – Gone

7 245 Kurt Campbell CB Albany State (NY) – Gone

7 246 Will Whitticker G Michigan State – Gone

What I’ve come to realize…

After watching the Packers lose 4 of their last 5 games due primarily to an inability to win games in the 4th quarter (aside from the New Orleans game), I’ve realized a few things about the team that have really been tough.

1. The Packers are a very average team without Favre.  Forget the schedule, forget it being Rodgers’ first year, forget the injuries.  The Packers did not have a better defense last year and their run game wasn’t great either.  But whatever magic they had going with Favre gave them leads and let the aggressive corners stop teams.  They didn’t have to worry about stopping the run as much, and the passing game set up big runs as secondaries were playing deep.  The Packers haven’t been able to establish that passing game this year… they’ve become predictable and they don’t have enough talent and good coaching to overcome that.  Some teams are predictable but can still force their will (to borrow an overused expression), but not everyone can.  Last year the Packers were able to ride the Favre magic carpet ride.  This year, the Jets are (see their record last year and their inevitible horrible record when he retires).

2. The team is soft.  The top 5 rushing offenses in the NFL are (in order): New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins, Baltimore Ravens, Tennesee Titans.  The top 5 rushing defenses in the NFL are: Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, New York Jets, Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bears.  What do these teams have in common?  They are all potential playoff teams.  It’s said every year, especially when it gets cold… but the running game is a crucial focus in the NFL.  You need to be able to run and stop the run.  If you can’t, you better be able to put up so many points that teams have to pass on you.

The Packers are 20th in rushing.  They are 26th in stopping the run.  They are 15th in total offense.  They are not moving the ball enough and not getting stops.  They are scoring, but teams don’t have to change their game plan and can keep running all day if they want.

3. The Packers pass too much.  This ties in with #2, but I thought I’d give it more focus.  Here are the top 10 teams from last year, in terms of most pass attempts:

1. New Orleans Saints – 652
2. Arizona Cardinals – 590
3. Seattle Seahawks – 590
4. Detroit Lions – 587
5. New England – 586
6. Green Bay – 578
7. Philadelphia Eagles – 577
8. Cincinnati Bengals – 575
9. St. Louis Rams – 574
10. Chicago Bears – 569

See a trend here?  Of the list, 3 playoff teams.  In fact, to find the next most pass-happy playoff team from 2007, you’d have to go to #15, Indianapolis (551).  The list looks to shape out in a similar fashion this year, with bad teams with bad defenses attempting a lot of passes.  The Packers have a good shot at being on that top 10 list.  The big difference is we might see more playoff teams out of the top 10 due to some worse than expected division races (*cough* west coast teams *cough*).

4. Someone in the Tompson/McCarthy staff might very well be gone.  Anything short of a playoff appearance will be a total failure in the eyes of a LOT of people.  I think that group might include team president Mark Murphy.  The Packers will be down by 2 games in the division race after tonight.  They have no hope of a wild card at this point (they are currently 6th in the Wild Card race and will essentially need a division win to make the playoffs).  Chances are getting slimmer by the day.  So if the season doesn’t end well, who gets the blame?  Do you start at the top with Thompson for his handling of the Favre scenario and not getting the right players?  Do you blame McCarthy for having a sloppy team (ie – one of the most penalized teams in the league two years running) and not giving the team a solid identity?  Or do you go for a smaller sacrifice like defensive coordinator Bob Sanders for not putting together a stout defensive scheme?

If it were me, I’d start with McCarthy.  The team is inconsistant in both their play and style of play.  Like I said, they seem to have no identity.  They aren’t really a running team, a defensive team or a top offense.  They are just average all around.  Plus, he seems to be doing something wrong with his training/conditioning program.  Including injured reserve, the Packers had 24 players on the injury report this week.  Especially being a young team, they need to find ways to keep guys healthy.

Say you get rid of McCarthy, what next?  I think the only options are one of the hot coordinators out there.  Seems Steve Spagnuolo of the Giants or Josh McDaniels of the Patriots.  Either guy could be considered an upgrade given the success they’ve had with their respective teams.

However, I don’t think it will play out that way.  McCarthy will keep his job because of his contract and the Packers will need to find ways to improve next year.  They’ll have a lot of money to play with, but will need serious help on the offensive and defensive lines.  They’ll need to address the age at cornerback as well.  Those are all generally areas that cannot be quickly handled via the draft, which is the Packers’ style.  With the number of talented players on the roster, nobody can afford to let players develop to fill gaps at this point.  That means we’ll either need to see a lot of improvement from the existing roster in the offeseason or there will have to be patchwork fixes along the way.

No time to write, but…

…the Packers should have won today.  They had too many turnovers and the defense ran out of steam late, but the Packers were right there.  I guess the Titans are a little better than we thought (but definitely can be beaten) and the Packers still aren’t there.

Harrell off PUP – ‘KGB’ on the street

As many expected, the Packers decided to activate defensive tackle Justin Harrell.  The 2nd year player has been on the PUP list with a back injury but the need for depth and big bodies on the line has pushed the team to take a chance on the 2nd year player.  To make space for him on the active roster, the Packers released DE Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila.  ‘KGB’ has been less and less effective in recent years as age, injuries and one-dimensional play has slowed him down.  The 31 year old Gbaja-Biamila has seen limited playing time, despite the loss of starting end Cullen Jenkins for the season.  So far he has 9 tackles and 1/2 sack.  Harrell on the other hand, has been a disapointment since being drafted in the first round before last season.  The young man has tons of physical talent, but was hurt through most of his college career and has carried that tradition into the NFL.  Harrell missed a great part of his rookie season and was ineffective late with minimal playing time.  He is looking at his first serious shot to make an impact on the team going into week 9.  He will likely not see the field much tomorrow, but could help a struggling defensive line rotation stay fresh and attempt to stop the rushing attack of the Titans.

Aaron Rodgers gets PAID

The Packers have seen all they need to see from their new starting quarterback.  And going into the weekend, they decided to pull the trigger and make a deal that will keep Rodgers in Green Bay for the better part of his career.  Rodgers signed the deal Friday morning that makes him among the highest paid quarterbacks in the league.  The new contract will put Rodger’s yearly salary above all quarterbacks but Peyton Manning, Carson Palmer, Matt Ryan and Tony Romo.  Romo’s deal beats Rodgers’ by about $5m total.

According to NFL.com, the deal is worth $65 million over 6 years and comes with $20 million in guarantees.  The good part about the deal is the Packers got Aaron sigend in time to count the deal against the ’08 cap (they had just a hair under $20 million to spare).

The deal is of course getting some criticism from fans and the media, mostly due to the struggles of Ryan Grant after getting his big payday.  While there is some merit to the failures of Grant this season, one can only wonder what his performance would be like had he attended training camp and if he didn’t regularly have offensive linemen thrown into him in the backfield.  In the end, you can’t compare this to Grant’s deal.  I think Grant was somewhat of a desperation move after the Packers thought of the possibility of not only being without one of their best offensive players of ’07 in the post-Favre era, but also the idea of having Brandon Jackson fumbling his way through the starting job is not very appealing.

Congrats to Rodgers and the Packers.  So far, at least in some sense, you could say Rodgers has earned it by being a good teammate, being patient while Favre was doing his thing and performing well when given the chance.  Now it’s time for Rodgers to start paying the Packers back with some wins.

Can the Packers beat the Titans?

The Titans do two things really well; they run the ball and play lights out defense.  That seems like trouble for the Packers as the offense is somewhat limited and they absolutely cannot stop the run.

So what can the Packers do to go after the Titans?  Here’s some thoughts:

On Offense: The Titans play the ever popular cover 2 defense.  The biggest challenge when facing their defense is fighting off the defensive line.  The linemen have a single gap assignment and can really get up field fast.  Whatever openings are left by the linemen, the linebackers quickly fill up.  Because of this, running against the Titans is not easy.  However, because they are so agressive going upfield, they can miss on some delays and draws.  That’s assuming, of course, that Haynesworth doesn’t meet the running back at the handoff.  While they aren’t an overly fast line, they can be suseptible to some of the same attacks used on fast linemen.  You’ll see teams running against Tennesee being patient and looking for a defensive lineman to push far into the backfield and use the space they occupied as a running lane.  That’s a risky proposition, but can work if you have a quick and decisive back (which Grant has not been this year).  Regardless, this isn’t a team that is going to sit back and watch what you’re doing.  They are very aggressive and if you’re going to run, you have to try and take advantage of that.

Through the air, if you can get a pass off there is hope.  As with other cover 2 teams, there are holes deep over the middle and behind the corners by the sideline.  There’s no exception with the Titans.  They will also play man coverage, which would hopefully favor the Packers as they face it all week in practice.  The biggest problem for the Packers will be protecting Rodgers from the inside pass rush, as the Titans can really push people around in the middle.  Watching them play the Colts, the only time Manning was able to get any sort of advantage was on play action (or by simply throwing on running downs).  The Titans’ linebackers look very aggressive to stop the run.  On numerous plays (including the first Dallas Clark TD), the linebackers, all of them, froze or took a good couple steps toward the line to play the run.  Once they recovered and realized the play was a pass, enough time had gone by that Manning had open receivers over the middle behind the linebackers.  I’m not sure the Packers can do the same, especially without a great receiving weapon at tight end, but they will need to try.

On Defense:
The Packers really need to figure out how to stop the run.  Tennessee has a very good offensive line and Green Bay will not beat them rushing four linemen.  They’ll need to stack the box, maybe take after Indy and play four linebackers.  That tactic could work, as the Titans wide receivers are definitely overmatched by Green Bay’s secondary.  The tight end spot for the Titans is going to be key.  Both tight ends (Cumpler and Scaife) can get downfield and they both catch a lot of passes.  Green Bay will probably have to play Chillar on one guy and bring Collins up to cover another.  Any of the other linebackers will likely get abused in the passing game.  It’s definitely a good time to get some healthly defensive linemen back, as the Titans will abuse Green Bay at the line of scrimmage.  This could easily be another game like the one against Dallas, where at the line the Packers just looked undersized and overmatched.

Brewers to make a “serious” offer for CC Sabathia

I know, I know, more Brewers talk.  However, this is a big deal.  I figured the Brewers could make a competitive offer, but still lose out by a good $10m, but this gives a bit of hope.

Brewers plan to ma ‘serious’ offer to Sabathia

Here Come the Colts!

Today, we’re going to get a battle of two teams we just don’t know what to make of.  The Colts have struggled out of the gate, thanks to a bad run defense, patchwork offensive line and an injured Peyton Manning.  Last week, the Colts blew out the regular pretenders in the Baltimore Ravens and everyone is convinced they are ready to take over the AFC.  I’m not so sure, but I still think they could win today.

The one good thing the Packers could have going for them today is their run defense may get a rest.  Joseph Addai is out and the Colts will probably have to be careful with Rhodes as they can’t risk another running back injury.  The Packers also have one of the better pass defenses in the league (not necessarily due to their terrible run defense).  They are 2nd best in the league in allowing only a 52.1% completion rate.  They are also 7th in the league with only allowing 178.8 passing yards per game.  I’m not willing to put that completely on the run defense either, as the Packers have allowed the 12th most pass attempts in the league.  The only thing working against these stats is that the Packers haven’t faced much in the way of passing offenses.  Obviously the Cowboys are top notch, but the Vikings, Lions, Bucs, Falcons and Seahawks don’t have much to offer in the passing attack.  They will definitely be tested today, especially the #2 and 3 corners who will have to take on Harrison or Wayne (whoever Woodson isn’t covering) and Anthony Gonzalez.

This could be a great week to get Ryan Grant going, as the Colts have a terrible run defense themselves.  However, if the Colts put up early points (I could see them throwing 10 on us in the blink of an eye), it could force Aaron Rodgers to take over the bulk of the offense.  That could be bad, as Rodgers hasn’t shown he can handle times when the team has to pass.  If the Packers can score first or at least stop the Colts from getting early touchdowns, this could be a competitive game.  I’m still not sold on the Colts being an elite team after beating the Ravens, barely getting by the Vikings and being handed the miracle win over the Texans.  I think the Colts are more beatable this year than they have been in the last 5 seasons.  Hopefully the Packers will come in believing that.

Sveum Out – Melvin Back

Brewer’s interim manager Dale Sveum is officially out of the running for the Brewer’s 2009 manager position.  Seems Jim Skaalen, the hitting coach, is also out.  I guess his method of “swing as hard as you can every pitch” wasn’t working.  Meanwhile, GM Doug Melvin has signed a 3-year extension.

Now Melvin has to find an experienced manager who can get this team playing up to full potential and find ways to win games on defense and base hits; something that cost a lot of wins this year.  Right now all signs are pointing to former Arizona manager Bob Brenly as the front-runner.

Favre tells Romo to play, and he listens

So after breaking his hand, things did not look good for Tony Romo and the Cowboys.  Suddenly, news comes out that Brett Favre called Romo up and suggested he tried playing with the fracture.  Seemed like a silly story to fill the news wire, but maybe it had an impact afterall.  Now the word is that Romo is telling the coaches he wants to play.  No word on if he’ll be allowed to start or play at all, as he is obviously risking a lot further damage to the hand.

As with many things, there is really two ways this could go.  The likely result is that Romo will attempt to play, struggle and be in horrible pain.  Brad Johnson will have to relieve the QB, people will criticize Romo and the coaches for not letting the hand rest.  Romo will still end up missing 4 weeks and the Cowboys will have to fight for a wild card spot.  The other scenario is that Romo plays, struggles but stays in the game.  The Cowboys keep winning, the receivers step up, they actually run the ball.  The toughness of the QB changes the entire attitude of the team and they go on to actually win a playoff game (maybe several).

No deadline deals – no surprise

As expected, the trading deadline came and went with no moves for the Packers.  In fact, the Roy Williams trade is really the only one in the NFL worth noting.

Somehow, the Packers got thrown in with the Tony Gonzales rumors… I don’t understand how that could possibly make sense.  The Packers could certainly benefit from an upgrade at tight end, but with Finley hopefully developing and Lee being a good enough starter, why give up a 2nd round pick (or multiple picks) for a guy now?  Plus, the offensive line and the entire defense have so many holes that it seems tight end is probably about the least of their problems (along with receiver and QB).

In other news, with week 6 coming and going, Justin Harrell is off the PUP list.  It sounds like the team is going to bring Harrell in for practices right away, so the team will have 3 weeks to decide whether to active the injury-prone tackle.  While the defensive line could really use some help, I just can’t get excited about Harrell.  He hasn’t shown he can stay healthy his entire college and pro career, so forgive me for not being too hopeful.

Despite win, Packers still need help

Yes, Aaron Rodgers looked great… but the team still showed no sign of improvement other than the ability to stick with the run.  The Packers actually surprised me, running 39 times (for only 113 yards, 2.9 avg).  So even though they finally kept running the ball, they really didn’t go anywhere.  They also did no better stopping the run, giving up 4.9 per carry.  They also have Ryan Pickett getting an MRI today on his tricept… we’ll hopefully get news on that shortly.