The lockers have been cleaned out, the players have been sent home (though Greg Jennings may still be sitting at his locker - can someone check on him?). It’s time for Mike Murphy, Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy to put together a “To Do” list for the Packers for ‘08. They might want to start with this list:
Valerian Root. Make McCarthy chew some before the really big games. If there’s such a thing as coaching yips, I think McCarthy may have them. How many Mondays after big games the Packers lost did you read an analysis that included the words “McCarthy” and “inexplicably?” You’ve gotta dance with the girl you brought. Chew that root and all will become clear.
“Special” shouldn’t mean “Footballicly Challenged.” Our special teams were a crapshoot this year - the return game fluctuated between bad and excellent, and kick coverage was adequate most times but faltered for games at a time. And Tramon Williams (or as I was calling him during the NFC Championship game - “C’mon Williams!”) . Eeks. You know how I said watching Woodson return kicks is like watching testicle surgery for a guy? Watching the way Williams fielded those kicks in the biggest game of the year felt like I was performing a testiclectomy on myself. With pliers. Blackmon has been the most electric of our kick returners this year, so let’s put him in a hyperbaric chamber for the next several months so heal can heal all his owies and be ready for ‘08.
Zippedeedoodah Bigby. Defensive player of the month for December. Gives opposing wideouts nightmares. And concussions. Was a big and unexpected upgrade to the safety position this year. Celebrates a tackle by skipping around the field, no matter if it was for a 3 yard loss or a 40 yard gain. Dude. When the other team gets a first down before you tackle them, switch off the post-tackle celebration servos. It makes you look like you don’t understand the game. If you did, you wouldn’t be celebrating the other team’s success.
Folded Corners. I was a skeptic when the Packers signed Charles Woodson. Then I apologized for that skepticism. Then I was worried again. Then I realized how much we miss Woodson when he was out with a toe injury late in the season. I’ve been all over the map, and I’ve had some of the same fears and/or confidence with Harris. They’ve often been described as one of the best corner tandems in football. But it seems to me that the best CB tandem in football wouldn’t allow Plaxico Burress to catch pass after pass after pass in the NFC championship game. Eli Mannning completed 11 passes to Burress in that game. You have to add the catch totals of the top 3 receivers for Green Bay that day to match that catch total. Manning through to Burress all day. And why not? Nobody could stop him. 
And that’s how it seems to go with Green Bay’s corners. If you have a top 15 receiver, you’re going to get your catches, and there’s little we can do about it. So maybe it’s time we think about getting Woodson or Harris some taller, faster help. Or maybe you should ask me next year and I’ll flip-flop again.
Push it. Aaron Kampman was a beast for the first three quarters of the season, collecting sacks the way Chmura collected underage nookie. But even he faded a bit toward the end of the year, and without any kinds of blitz packages installed, we really didn’t have a way to pressure young, fragile quarterbacks like Eli Manning into making bad decisions. So we didn’t. I’d like to see Atari Bigby come flying in from outside the tackles a few times a game next year. Every opposing QB will be wearing a flak jacket the week after they play the Packers.
Mike, Ted and Mike? Get crackin’.
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