Coaching Shuffle

[pbmax]

Some responsibilities are being changed and they'll need new business cards for their new titles. But James Campen and Jerry Fontenot are still on the OL case. There was a change in Special Teams assistants, and the new guy was a returner who might help the non-existent punt return game.

From the Green Bay Press Gazette Blog of Champions:

McCarthy Keeps Assistants But Changes Some Roles (http://www.packersnews.com/ic/blogs/insider/2010/01/mccarthy-keeps-assistants-but-changes.html)

Coach Mike McCarthy has altered the duties of several assistant coaches but did not make any changes in his coaching personnel.

The Packers’ coach finished his postseason evaluation of his coaching staff this week and said Thursday that Mark Lovat and Dave Redding will flip-flop jobs as strength and conditioning coaches, with Lovat becoming the coordinator and Redding his assistant.

Also, Curtis Fuller will move from special-teams assistant to a coaching and administrative position where he’ll primarily work with the defense, and Chad Morton will go from coaching administrator to assistant special-teams coach.

The Packers didn't announce any of the changes because all were in-house and didn't include any changes in personnel.

McCarthy said that when he hired the 57-year-old Redding as strength and conditioning coordinator last year, it was with the intention of promoting Lovat to that role this year. Redding probably will spend only one season as Lovat’s assistant.

“(Redding) is respected for being a pioneer, I wanted to give Mark an opportunity to work with Dave,” McCarthy said Thursday. “It worked out better than anybody could have anticipated. Mark’s my guy, he’s the guy of our future as far as the way we operate down there (in the weight room).”

Fuller had a four-year NFL career as a safety with the Seattle Seahawks and then Packers.

“He’ll still do some special teams,” McCarthy said, “but primarily he’ll be with the defense. That’s where his future is.”

Morton was primarily was a kickoff and punt returner in his seven-year career in the NFL, and went to the Pro Bowl twice as a return man. Both he and Fuller just finished their first season on the Packers’ coaching staff.

“I’m very impressed with what Chad has shown and I think he has a very bright future coaching special teams in the NFL,” McCarthy said. “He was a dynamic special teams player and he has a bright future as a special teams coach.”

McCarthy also said he’ll fill his open position as the third strength and conditioning assistant, which was vacated this week when Mondray Gee went to the Seattle Seahawks , in the next three or four weeks.

-- Pete Doughery, pdougher@greenbaypressgazette.com

[Lurker64]

So no replacement for Campen or Slocum? Alas.

Well, it's a long offseason, so there's still hope.

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Personally, I am holding on to my tenuous wrong body type for the coaches theory until another 51 sacks forces me to admit defeat to KYP and Patler.

[KYPack]

Personally, I am holding on to my tenuous wrong body type for the coaches theory until another 51 sacks forces me to admit defeat to KYP and Patler.

Refresh my memory, PB.

I was "right" about something I don't remember?

[pbmax]

Personally, I am holding on to my tenuous wrong body type for the coaches theory until another 51 sacks forces me to admit defeat to KYP and Patler.

Refresh my memory, PB.

I was "right" about something I don't remember?
No, your memory is just fine. I was just referencing the debate we were having last week about the O line in the Patler's thread about Colledge potentially being worse than Whitticker. The talent versus coaching debate trying to explain the developments (or lack thereof) along the O line.

When McCarthy all but announced they were trying to get bigger up front (after the 2007 season I think, maybe after the 2008 draft) it seemed that suddenly Thompson digs up Sitton and Lang. I tried at one point to relate this to the body type switch Thompson had to make for Capers new defense and his immediate success with Matthew, Raji and Jones. My theory is that Campen (and Fontenot) did not handle the players they were handed from Jags and Philbin well. Hence, Colledge suffers and Spitz does better when he moves to center. Given the chance to redefine the run game with his new, young coaches, they eventually stumble on the physical type they need. I think this fits the improvement in the run game and especially short yardage. But it doesn't completely explain the regression of pass blocking.

My theory is unlikely, and far more likely that he simply hit on Lang and Sitton and whiffed on Barbre and Moll. Who knows about Daryn. And we have seen precious little of Giacomini.

I asked Waldo at one point to post the combine/draft numbers for all the O line we drafted, to see if we really altered the approach, but I have not seen him around lately and did not get the whole set of numbers.

[Joemailman]

If they replace Colledge with Lang or Iupati at LG, will that be an admission that the idea of the barely 300 LB. Guards didn't work? Or will it just mean that Colledge wasn't consistent enough?

[MJZiggy]

If they replace Colledge with Lang or Iupati at LG, will that be an admission that the idea of the barely 300 LB. Guards didn't work? Or will it just mean that Colledge wasn't consistent enough?

Yes.

[pbmax]

If they replace Colledge with Lang or Iupati at LG, will that be an admission that the idea of the barely 300 LB. Guards didn't work? Or will it just mean that Colledge wasn't consistent enough?
That's a question that can't be answered by one player move. The eight pound difference between Colledge and Lang may not be sufficient to explain the differences in their playing success. Colledge doesn't seem to anchor well, but lots of heavy lineman have that same problem (Pork Chop Womack comes to mind).

But McCarthy has hinted that he wanted to be bigger, or at least more effective in short yardage, up front for a while now. So regardless of the reason for Colledge's inconsistency, he may be replaced by someone heavier just because that will be the only thing available.

Moving Spitz to his natural position despite have Wells and the insertion of Sitton is probably better evidence of the desire to be bigger. With Daryn, it would seem to be performance. I still remember Colledge moving Fat Pat Williams off the goal line in 2007 in Lambeau, but the longer he plays, the more infrequent success like that seems. Esp. pass blocking.