What Went Wrong in Packerland

[FlaPack]

If your going to run that type of locker room and be so regimented you should have known how each guy you drafted would react to that. It’s part of the interview process. Talent in your system is the most important but how players mesh in the locker room are critical

 

[FlaPack]

The culture in Green Bay is and will be great for winners. It is not for whiners who can't wear the team shoe color, want to show their freakin' underwear, or can't stand having a maid.

Not sure it is. I can tell you that for many players who look at fee agency Green Bay is not a desirable destination. Word travels fast between players and agents. Holmgren and Wolf changed the culture, brought in soul food and African American barbers to make the players feel at home. But that’s changed, it’s a tight wound team

 

[Budman]

Very interesting. Not sure where to start or how to even compose anything more relevant than what's already been discussed already. What I find intersting is that there is some irony here. When the Favre divorce happened, Rodgers was looked upon as the Anti Favre, in a good way. Favre was a diva, changed plays, locker by himself etc., and now AR seems to be going down the same road.

If MM supposedly reigned Favre in, then what's the problem doing the same with Rodgers? Why isn't that happening?

I'm not, nor have I really been, an MM fan but if Rodgers is trying to be coach and QB, and MMs plays are constantly being adjusted, then I'm not sure I can lay all the blame at MMs feet. Dysfunctional relationship is an understatement.

 

[Cheesedog]

Maid service? Talk a out a good way to turn your players into self entitled types.

Here's the downside to all this it removes each players personality. It takes away the ability of a team to take on the personality of it's players. It essentially turns them into robots who have to follow a strictly regimented plan.

And what have we seen on the field for awhile now? Robots with no passion or personality. A bunch of guys doing a single job. Not a team. Or ability to handle a situation if something is off. Look at those "controversial" penalties this year. The defense collapsed after them. This team can't handle diversity or if something doesn't go according to plan justvlike a robot can't fix itself if any part is off. This type of strict culture turns you into a robot. Goal achieved.

 

[Keg Man]

Do you really think the poor play is because they have to wear the same colored shoes, can't show their underwear, and have their lockers tidies up for them?

How do the Patriots ever win? They have a ton more rules. I can tell you how much they lose. Since the year after the Pack was defeated by the Broncos in the Superbowl, I have been throwing a golf tournament on the Saturday before the Superbowl called Superhole. Each player gets a tee shirt that has something to do with the teams playing in the Superbowl. The Patriots are depicted in nearly half.

 

[Cheesedog]

Do you really think the poor play is because they have to wear the same colored shoes, can't show their underwear, and have their lockers tidies up for them?

How do the Patriots ever win? They have a ton more rules. I can tell you how much they lose. Since the year after the Pack was defeated by the Broncos in the Superbowl, I have been throwing a golf tournament on the Saturday before the Superbowl called Superhole. Each player gets a tee shirt that has something to do with the teams playing in the Superbowl. The Patriots are depicted in nearly half.

Rules Patriots have are focused on football I'd wager. Wearing the same color shoes and tucking in your practice jersey does absolutely nothing to help you win football games. There is also a much higher level of accountability as well in NE which probably has more to do with it as well.

 

[TW]

When the wheels come off the bus, finger pointing starts. Even those who shouldn't be scrutinized are caught up in the politics of it all, and can't escape. Even when someone in the spotlight takes some blame for what's happening, it's done with the intent that they're confident they'll be given absolution by the loyal fans, because they're being so "open" with them as to what their role is, in what happened.

Where we're at today didn't happen over night. It started when McCarthy began turning a deaf ear to assistant coaches and players, deciding he'd be the sole decision maker on the sidelines. Eventually that destroys the continuity, and the way the team actually plays on the field, even though you can't physically see any specifics that indicate this is happening.

I was an assistant coach on a team that went from winning our first 5 games against top competition to losing our last 5, against bottom feeders, simply because the head coach decided that what we'd been using to win those 5 wasn't what he wanted to see from the team. He wanted things done a specific way, and we were not allowed to vary one iota from his agenda. He stated so in front of all the coaches and players.

The next practice, things started to deteriorate, and by the time we reached game day, no matter how hard we tried to keep things on a level keel, we were blown out on both sides of the ball by a team that had not won a game all year. In fact, it was the only game they won all season.

At the end of the year, all the decent assistant coaches quit, and those who were nothing but butt kissers stuck around. The following year, I had my own team, and we trounced them by over 40 points, even though we let up on the gas the entire second half.

Believe what you will on these issues, but those who have coached know that so much of the game is dictated by your intensity of play, and trust in the coaches and players next to you, to do their job efficiently.

 

[ChampionshipBelt]

Agreed, TW.

First of all, all great QB's are divas to a certain extent. They have egos. In fact all great players have egos. The key to coaching is to be able to control those egos, get the most of your players, and create a team environment. Bill Belichek has been able to do that with Brady among others for 18 years. MM has not been able to do it since the Seattle debacle.

Regardless of the rules and some of the things the organization is doing, (which I agree, needs to change) we need a new HC voice and team culture within the team. There is no team right now. No matter what the players say, you can see it on the field and you get it from AR. We also got it from Randall and Sitton before they were let go and traded.

If Murphy cannot see that their are major issues then he never will. And unfortunately we will have to watch as this organization goes down in flames. If we do not make this change now, this team will be set back for another 7 years with the possible lockout and AR retiring. We will see what happens.

 

[dannobanano]

Maid service? Talk a out a good way to turn your players into self entitled types.

Here's the downside to all this it removes each players personality. It takes away the ability of a team to take on the personality of it's players. It essentially turns them into robots who have to follow a strictly regimented plan.

And what have we seen on the field for awhile now? Robots with no passion or personality. A bunch of guys doing a single job. Not a team. Or ability to handle a situation if something is off. Look at those "controversial" penalties this year. The defense collapsed after them. This team can't handle diversity or if something doesn't go according to plan justvlike a robot can't fix itself if any part is off. This type of strict culture turns you into a robot. Goal achieved.

Sort of the “environment” in Green Bay.

 

[HowardK4]

When the wheels come off the bus, finger pointing starts. Even those who shouldn't be scrutinized are caught up in the politics of it all, and can't escape. Even when someone in the spotlight takes some blame for what's happening, it's done with the intent that they're confident they'll be given absolution by the loyal fans, because they're being so "open" with them as to what their role is, in what happened.

Where we're at today didn't happen over night. It started when McCarthy began turning a deaf ear to assistant coaches and players, deciding he'd be the sole decision maker on the sidelines. Eventually that destroys the continuity, and the way the team actually plays on the field, even though you can't physically see any specifics that indicate this is happening.

I was an assistant coach on a team that went from winning our first 5 games against top competition to losing our last 5, against bottom feeders, simply because the head coach decided that what we'd been using to win those 5 wasn't what he wanted to see from the team. He wanted things done a specific way, and we were not allowed to vary one iota from his agenda. He stated so in front of all the coaches and players.

The next practice, things started to deteriorate, and by the time we reached game day, no matter how hard we tried to keep things on a level keel, we were blown out on both sides of the ball by a team that had not won a game all year. In fact, it was the only game they won all season.

At the end of the year, all the decent assistant coaches quit, and those who were nothing but butt kissers stuck around. The following year, I had my own team, and we trounced them by over 40 points, even though we let up on the gas the entire second half.

Believe what you will on these issues, but those who have coached know that so much of the game is dictated by your intensity of play, and trust in the coaches and players next to you, to do their job efficiently.

None of this means that McCarthy is a bad coach, per se, but for Green Bay it's time for a change. Last off season, when MM got only a 1-year extension, it was obvious to me that a message was sent. Regardless of where to put blame, ultimately he's the head coach and on field play is managed by him. I'm not going to say the Packers are the most talented team in the league, but we're certainly not the worst team, and we've lost to a couple of teams with "lesser" talent. Simply put, this team has not produced on the field - and that is how he is measured. Yes, AR has not been himself this year . . . but his struggles are not unrelated to coach MM.