In a presser dated August 17th, the Green Bay Packers announced that they would be releasing the often-injured, seldom-spectacular Robert Ferguson. The always kind and polite Packer Hall of Famer Johnny Gray had many good things to say about him, which is I guess what you’re supposed to do after a team finally does what they should have with a sub-par performer.
Gray had mentioned that Ferguson was able to bench press 400 pounds. I guess that’s great if you’re the host of How Much Ya Bench?, but it may not be all that important for a wideout (unless you’re always having to force guys to get up off you).
I remember the clothesline hit in ‘04 put on him by cheap-shotter Donovin Darius - I even sent an email to Tagliabue about it, but like the other text messages, letters and email I sent, all it got me was a visit from the local authorities.
It seemed he was never quite the same after that, using his big pecs to pull in his empty hands instead of the ball when running routes across the middle. Hey, not that I knock him for that. I’d probably want some kevlar and a 9mm if I was running a route through the middle (Oh - I’d also want some speed).
But the job Ferguson was being paid for was to run routes and catch balls despite knowing that he was going to have a beat-down put on his ass as soon as he touched the ball. And he couldn’t do it. Not consistently, anyway.
And so we say farewell to one wide receiver to make room for another. We seem to have a couple nice prospects to fill that roster spot, including Carlyle Holiday and James Jones. If they can be fast, healthy and courageous, they’ll have jobs here.
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