Saturday, February 25, 2006

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.

2 comments:

pau1ke11y said...

I wouldn't worry about getting another quarterback. I think Thompson is just blowing smoke. Packer fans should pray that Cutler becomes too juicy for the Jets to pass up, thus leaving D'Brickashaw Ferguson available. Mario Williams looks like a pretty dang good player, so that's not a bad fallback, but Ferguson looks like one of those great left tackles you only find once in a while.

Brandon said...

Since the NFL combine was over, it looked like Ted Thompson has no intention of drafting a quarterback. However, now it looks like Mario Williams would have no place in Green Bay because the Packers resigned Kampman and still have KGB. Ferguson is going to be a stud left tackle in the NFL for the next 10 seasons, but the Packers are switching to a zone blocking scheme next season that uses smaller offensive lineman, so Ferguson would have no place in Green Bay either. Right now, it looks like the Packers will draft another quarterback, if they don't draft A.J. Hawk or draft one of the elite running backs after Reggie Bush.