OTA Thoughts

The Green Bay Packers wrapped up the 2008 Organized Team Activities today and to me the most amazing thing of all was the almost complete participation of cornerback Charles Woodson. Not just his presence, either, but his attitude. Where this new found leadership has come from I don’t know, but my guess is the city of Green Bay might must have grabbed another player. That and the fact that Woodson and head coach Mike McCarthy have a special relationship that developed over time after butting heads in the beginning. While I’m not going to predict that Woodson becomes one of the many former Packers that have made their home in Green Bay, I do think he will thank the Packers and the fans for taking his career to a new level.

The quote that made me a believer is this one: “This year I kind of felt like I needed to be around the team. You try to be an example as much as possible. Whatever they can learn from me, then that will be a plus for the team”. Are you kidding me? This is no knock on Woodson because I’m happier than heck to have him on the Packers, but had he had that type of attitude as a young player in Oakland, he would be finishing off a Hall of Fame career right now in California. At 31 years old, he certainly has a few good years left in him. Let us hope that he doesn’t return punts any more and maybe gets a new contract to close out his career in Green Bay. Sorry to sound like I’m gushing, but this is a guy you would never have thought would have bought in to the Green Bay way. It makes me feel real good about not only Woodson but McCarthy as well.

ODDS AND ENDS:

Not sure if any of you caught the latest articles about former Packers’ receiver Javon Walker and his newfound hatred for the Denver Broncos. Funny stuff. Now it seems, Walker has been screwed by two teams, as the Packers were the first team to mistreat him horribly. Now the Broncos are the villain for not using him right when he came back from injury last year. So sad, so sad. I’m no expert, but my guess is Walker will be lucky to play eight games next year. He is damaged goods and Packers’ general manager Ted Thompson should get a pass to the Hall of Fame for getting a second-round pick for him. That trade has to rank right up there with the Fred Vinson for Ahman Green trade Ron Wolf pulled off. Walker in his prime would have a hard time starting on the Packers this year. What a baby if you ask me.

Other than the emergence of Brandon Jackson and the continued ridiculous holdout of Ryan Grant, the Packers’ OTAs were uneventful. At least after the Brett Favre retirement questions subsided. I really think Grant is being a total idiot by at not least signing the tender and participating in the activities. Get in camp and prove you are worth the money, the Packers have shown over the last few years in deals with Donald Driver and Al Harris that they take care of their own. The longer Grant plays the fool, the closer Jackson gets to getting his starting job back. I think I might like that. If all Grant wants is money than the hell with him. The Packers don’t play that.

This might be a little off base, and pardon the pun, but why does Milwaukee Brewers’ manager Ned Yost remind me so much of former Packers’ head coach Mike Sherman? The post-game comments are so similar and the game results are the same. Both took over crappy teams and made them contenders and then fell flat on their faces. When I see and hear Yost all I can think of is fourth-and-26. Good luck Brewers.

More to come…

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 12th, 2008 at 8:34 pm and is filed under Al Davis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

  • Zach

    Ryan Grant is a young punk that has someone whispering in his ear about riches and fame. Too bad he is not Barry Sanders or Walter Peyton. Seriously, who is he kidding? Walker is a good example of how the Packers handle hold-outs. Jackson is going to be the new kid.

  • Jeff

    Walker vs Grant is not a good comparison – Walker was spot in middle of a contract. Grant is sitting on a tender – and let’s be honest – a terribly low offer. I really hope this doesn’t turn into ego-maniacal BS. Grant fits what we do. When the o-line gels, he’s gonna look great and AR is gonna make people pay for stacking the box on him.

    Jackson looked good at the end of last year, but he doesn’t seem to have the burst that Grant does. That and as little as Grant has shown us, Jackson has showed us much less.

    Get the guy in with a reasonable offer and a promise to take care of him if he over-performs. We have the track record to back that kinda promise up. He’s our starting RB fer cat’s sake.

  • TRIP

    Gosh, I wish Grant wasn’t so stupid. You don’t start half a season and demand big bucks. This time last year, Grant was crapping his pants praying for a roster spot. Funny how quickly players get greedy! This hold-out only demonstrates how scared he is of being the next Samkon Gado, one-hit wonder. He’s praying for that signing bonus before the Packers cut him.

    Javon Walker…. HAHAHAHA. That’s all I can say. I have a feeling Walker and Grant will be starting a fraternity. Even Mike McKenzie left his best days when he left Green Bay.

  • Ben Dover

    Loved the 411 on Woodson. I must admit I have been lacking in my efforts to keep up with all my Packers, the fishing has been just way to good. Who ever thought Walker would turn out to be such a douche ?

    Grant should realize that the Packers had no problem moving on without Brett Favre so they surely won’t have any qualms about setting him free after his half a season of play.

    Keep up the good work men. I love the updates.

  • Scott S

    What hold out are you people talking about? Last time I checked OTA’s were voluntary. Ryan Grant is not holding the Packers hostage. He knows they can and will move on without him. He also knows that there is no reason to accept their first offer because he is smart enough to know that in negotiations each party works from their initial offers until they reach a compromise. This is not the time to rush to judgment. Give them until training camp to work out a deal. Remember, there are two sides to a negotiation. I have confidence that a reasonable agreement will be reached.

  • JeffN

    Let’s be fair Ryan Grant is not under contract so don’t jump the gun yet people. This is a tricky contract but TT will work it out with Grant. Just be patient. Grant is not a punk he is just trying to get a fair deal.

    Now Javon Walker that is a different story. He is a proven punk. Whether he is finding trouble or trouble is finding him it doesn’t matter. The bottom line is he always ends up in trouble. Oakland is going to come up on the bad end of that huge contract.

  • snyz

    thank god someone is not afraid to talk about how crap mike sherman was. we had amazing teams that should have at least made it to a couple of NFC title games. instead, under the (lack of) leadership of sherman, we stumbled in the playoffs year after year.

    i mean, his nickname was “sugar bear.” that’s about all you need to know.

  • ron preston

    Did we not sign V. Morency to 927K? Are we not offering Grant the leauge min.? I think if I was him I would be paid more than the # 3 rb on the depth chart.

  • Yoop

    Grant a punk? That is funny. He is the STARTING RB for the team. Far from STUPID for not signing $324,000 or there about that would be his tender. Since he is the STARTING RB on the team he SHOULD be the highest paid PLAIN AND SIMPLE!

  • Jake

    He may not be a punk, but he shouldn’t get too cocky. At this point, I feel he hasn’t proven he’s anything more than a flash in the pan. Samkon Gado anyone? I feel comfortable with Jackson starting, maybe Herron as third down back to help with blitz pickup. In my opinion right now they are both vying for the starting job and this little tiff isn’t helping Grant’s cause.