WR Javon Walker wants a new contract? This didn't work for Walker last season when he was healthy and coming off a career 2004 season. Now he is coming off a major knee injury and he hasn't played much football in the last 12 months. Until Walker, Minnesota QB Daunte Culpepper, and even NT Grady Jackson last summer, I can't remember a player ever publicly seeking a new contract while they were hurt or rehabbing from a major injury. Walker might as well try for a new contract/ask for a trade although GM Ted Thompson has been very tight with long term contracts up to this point. The odds of Thompson trading Walker would have to be remote.

Ted Thompson is Matt Millen 2.0. Millen drafted a 1st round WR in 3 consecutive drafts. Thompson is going to call and raise that by drafting a 1st round QB in 3 consecutive drafts. USC QB Matt Leinart won't be available at no. 5 so Thompson is talking about Texas QB Vince Young or Vandy QB Jay Cutler. This is such a bad idea. It seems more likely that the Young vs. Cutler debate is more similar to the 1999 QB Akili Smith vs. QB Cade McNown debate than the 1983 QB John Elway vs. QB Dan Marino debate. This would mean the Packers have spent another 1st round pick in one area where there hasn't been any need yet (assuming QB Brett Favre wouldn't have retired yet if Thompson hadn't destroyed the team) while neglecting other positions of actual need (linebacker, defensive line, offensive line). The strain of carrying two 1st round QBs on the roster might be more than the Packers salary cap can handle. Finally, new coach Mike McCarthy has "mentored" two young quarterbacks so far in his NFL career; QB Aaron Brooks and QB Alex Smith. Brooks has become a below average QB and Smith's rookie season was arguably the worst season ever by a QB. Now McCarthy has two young QBs to develop? This is a bad idea, but there is nothing to indicate that this trainwreck will improve until the Packers fire Thompson and McCarthy in a couple of seasons and there is nothing the fans can do in the meantime.

The Packers assigned eight players to NFL Europe. It is probably good experience for the players, but all of them are only candidates for the practice squad.

Down in Arkansas, CB Ahmad Carroll was arrested. It is an assault charge and he is probably looking at some community service time. It sounds like he was being a jerk.

Mike Sherman will be the next offensive coordinator in Houston. There are things to like and dislike about this from Sherman's perspective. He will work with Gary Kubiak who was probably the best new head coaching hire this offseason and he will coach RB Reggie Bush. Unfortunately the offensive line is a mess, QB David Carr will probably be learning his fifth new offense in his fifth NFL season, and Kubiak and Bush may get all the credit for the improved offense. If Houston is a playoff contender by 2007, Sherman may be a head coach by 2008 which should be right around the time the Packers will probably be looking for their next head coach.

There isn't much going on at this point in the offseason, but I had missed this gem from last week. Mike McCarthy hired Kurt Schottenheimer to coach the defensive backs and he is the second coach hired by McCarthy that Mike Sherman had fired. Since McCarthy was not resigned after Sherman was originally hired in 2000, maybe he has some special sympathy for coaches fired by Sherman.

Jeff Jagodzinski was fired along with Ed Donatell after the 4th and 26 debacle in the 2004 playoffs. It was never reported why Jagodzinski was fired and it wasn't really obvious that he should have been fired. On the other hand, Schottenheimer's hiring in 2004 was a disaster from the beginning. That Schottenheimer was hired and assistant Lionel Washington was passed over for defensive backs coach was one of the reasons given by CB Mike McKenzie for his trade demand. A new contract was McKenzie's first concern, but Schottenheimer's hiring played a part in the trade. Then in 2004, the secondary played awful under Schottenheimer's coaching. There were a lot of factors beyond Schottenheimer's control (McKenzie never really played again for the Packers, they were forced to play a number of rookies, FS Darren Sharper had a down season) but it was very understandable why he was fired after an awful season for the defense. The rehiring of Schottenheimer is much worse than the rehiring of Jagodzinski, and his rehiring is still very questionable (see my previous posts about it).

The Packers quest to put together the worst coaching staff in the NFL continues to roll on.