Heroes and Zero's

[KYPack]

All the year in Review stuff before New Year's got me thinking about the Pack and some surprises and disappointments in players this season.

The heroes are guys that you had little expectations that came on to play well and the zero's are, well, guys that didn't do shit.

Hero

Letroy Guion I spent the off-season trying to figure out who this guy was. I don't remember a single play he made as a Viking. It looked like he'd be cut right before the opener. He has gone from that to a guy that is a solid presence in the center of the D Line. Strong and good with his hands, I hope they re-sign him.

Corey Linsley At the start of the season, we were covering up for the green rookie center. He made strides every week and is now the established snapper on a good OLine.

Zero

Brandon Bostick/Jarrett Boykin. What happened to these two jerk-offs? Had some high hopes and/or dreams for these guys and they both flamed out equally. Sloppy routes, dropped passes, lack of hustle, they both checked all the boxes and basically sucked.

Derrick Sherrod Ah, Sherry, we barely knew ye, too long I guess. He basically never recovered from the rookie injury. I thought he'd make more of a fight for a spot this season after the LOOONG rehab. Now I'm glad he's gone, but we should have gotten something out of the #1 flop.

There were other players with similar career arc's. Let me know your thoughts.

[woodbuck27]

All the year in Review stuff before New Year's got me thinking about the Pack and some surprises and disappointments in players this season.

The heroes are guys that you had little expectations that came on to play well and the zero's are, well, guys that didn't do shit.

Hero

Letroy Guion I spent the off-season trying to figure out who this guy was. I don't remember a single play he made as a Viking. It looked like he'd be cut right before the opener. He has gone from that to a guy that is a solid presence in the center of the D Line. Strong and good with his hands, I hope they re-sign him.

Corey Linsley At the start of the season, we were covering up for the green rookie center. He made strides every week and is now the established snapper on a good OLine.

Zero

Brandon Bostick/Jarrett Boykin. What happened to these two jerk-offs? Had some high hopes and/or dreams for these guys and they both flamed out equally. Sloppy routes, dropped passes, lack of hustle, they both checked all the boxes and basically sucked.

Derrick Sherrod Ah, Sherry, we barely knew ye, too long I guess. He basically never recovered from the rookie injury. I thought he'd make more of a fight for a spot this season after the LOOONG rehab. Now I'm glad he's gone, but we should have gotten something out of the #1 flop.

There were other players with similar career arc's. Let me know your thoughts.

Morgan Burnett may be comeback Player Of The Year.

[MadtownPacker]

Why you gotta quote that long ass text for no reason?

Hero - KY for always lubricating threads with his silky smooth post.

Zero - Woods for still not learning some Netiquette. :)

[KYPack]

Morgan Burnett may be comeback Player Of The Year.

HHCD made a great rookie contribution, also. Those two led the team in tackles (over 200 for the pair) and really sealed the back end. I remember Rex Ryan crowing that he got the better of the two rookie safeties by the Jets selecting Calvin Pyror from Louisville. That was before he had to bench the kid for being too green.

[pbmax]

HHCD made a great rookie contribution, also. Those two led the team in tackles (over 200 for the pair) and really sealed the back end. I remember Rex Ryan crowing that he got the better of the two rookie safeties by the Jets selecting Calvin Pyror from Louisville. That was before he had to bench the kid for being too green.

You couldn't ask for much more from a Rook with all that responsibility in the back end. He just needs to commit the lessons to muscle memory, make them instinctual, and bigger plays will happen. As it was, he got his mitts on a few balls.

[Maxie the Taxi]

You couldn't ask for much more from a Rook with all that responsibility in the back end. He just needs to commit the lessons to muscle memory, make them instinctual, and bigger plays will happen. As it was, he got his mitts on a few balls.

Harlan? Rand? Bueller?

[Guiness]

Why you gotta quote that long ass text for no reason?

Hero - KY for always lubricating threads with his silky smooth post.

Zero - Woods for still not learning some Netiquette. :)

I think I smell someone who went over their bandwidth cap for the month!

[Guiness]

You couldn't ask for much more from a Rook with all that responsibility in the back end. He just needs to commit the lessons to muscle memory, make them instinctual, and bigger plays will happen. As it was, he got his mitts on a few balls.

Yup, and though I'm loath to even compare them, I remember Nick Collins getting his hands on more than a few balls early in his career, and it wasn't until his fourth (!) season that he started holding on to them. 2007, no INTs, 2008, 7 of them!

As far as the safeties, I agree that Burnett was a hero this year, but I don't think that he's a comeback player, or that last year was his fault, unless you can blame him for trying to do too much. Coaches must've thought so too, because they got rid of his backfield partner, and kept him around.

[pbmax]

Harlan? Rand? Bueller?

I think he prefers them younger, so Bueller's age. You would REALLY need lower pad level to find old man balls.

[mraynrand]

You couldn't ask for much more from a Rook with all that responsibility in the back end. He just needs to commit the lessons to muscle memory, make them instinctual, and bigger plays will happen. As it was, he got his mitts on a few balls.

Larry Bird doesn't do as much ball-handling in one night as you do in an hour!

[KYPack]

Another Hero is a guy who I had no idea how he would play this season. Peppers had been a real plus for the D, while playing a new position. We all remember the Kampman experiment, this could have been a similar situation. Pep can really turn a game around and seems to be a positive influence on his teammates. The only drawback to him is that he is older and tires out. They seem to be monitoring his snap count, I hope that works out for the play-offs.

A big zero has been ST. 7 blocked kicks, are you shittin' me?. 3 blocked fg's, 2 blocked punts, 2 blocked XP's. Well there is symmetry there, but that's about it.

[woodbuck27]

" Zero - Woods for still not learning some Netiquette " Mad

Mad: WTF is wrong with you? You give me shit for something as silly as this when you let a lot go on here that's absolute garbage. It's difficult to figure out what satisfies you sometimes Mad?

All the same and focusing on your complaint:

That's what you get when you click "Reply With Quote" . I didn't realize this was an issue with you.

Also....I missed the course on Packerrats proper etiquette requirements. Was that held recently?


" Morgan Burnett may be comeback Player Of The Year." woodbuck27

Is that satisfactory?

[woodbuck27]

Another Hero is a guy who I had no idea how he would play this season. Peppers had been a real plus for the D, while playing a new position. We all remember the Kampman experiment, this could have been a similar situation. Pep can really turn a game around and seems to be a positive influence on his teammates. The only drawback to him is that he is older and tires out. They seem to be monitoring his snap count, I hope that works out for the play-offs.

A big zero has been ST. 7 blocked kicks, are you shittin' me?. 3 blocked fg's, 2 blocked punts, 2 blocked XP's. Well there is symmetry there, but that's about it.

On that last blocked FG attempt by Crosby. Someone (was it Slocum?) remarked that the kick had a proper trajectory.

I looked at that and felt it came out too low. That kick had to be blocked.

[ThunderDan]

On that last blocked FG attempt by Crosby. Someone (was it Slocum?) remarked that the kick had a proper trajectory.

I looked at that and felt it came out too low. That kick had to be blocked.

On The last kick that was blocked the two players on the left side of the line didn't block a rusher on the inside. No kicker would have gotten that off.

[Patler]

On The last kick that was blocked the two players on the left side of the line didn't block a rusher on the inside. No kicker would have gotten that off.

One of the players or coaches said it was impossible to know if it was low or not; the kick never got far enough to be able to tell! That pretty much says it all.

[woodbuck27]

On The last kick that was blocked the two players on the left side of the line didn't block a rusher on the inside. No kicker would have gotten that off.

I'm not laying any blame here.

The angle I had showed a low trajectory and thus a blocked kick.

[Patler]

Peppers had been a real plus for the D, while playing a new position. We all remember the Kampman experiment, this could have been a similar situation.

Two differences:
1. Peppers is a much better athlete than Kampman was.
2. Peppers very much wanted to play linebacker. Said it was something he always felt suited him well.

I thought Kampman was starting to get a feel for the position a bit when he got hurt. As I recall, he was leading the team in QB pressures. But it was clear that he never wanted to play the position.

[KYPack]

Two differences:
1. Peppers is a much better athlete than Kampman was.
2. Peppers very much wanted to play linebacker. Said it was something he always felt suited him well.

I thought Kampman was starting to get a feel for the position a bit when he got hurt. As I recall, he was leading the team in QB pressures. But it was clear that he never wanted to play the position.

He probably should have gone to a 3-4 team to play OLB 5 years ago.

The guy just has a real feel for that spot.

He was wasted as a 4-3 DE, even tho he played well at that position.

[Patler]

He probably should have gone to a 3-4 team to play OLB 5 years ago.

The guy just has a real feel for that spot.

He was wasted as a 4-3 DE, even tho he played well at that position.

He should have come to GB rather than going to the Bears. Would the Packers have repeated in 2011? 2012? 2013? Five years of Matthews and a younger Peppers. Could have made a big difference on a team hamstrung by a poor defense.

[vince]

$God$ called him to Chicago.

[vince]

Zero - Sam Shields I think has been disappointing this year, particularly after becoming one of the highest paid corners in the league.

[Guiness]

" Zero - Woods for still not learning some Netiquette " Mad

Mad: WTF is wrong with you? You give me shit for something as silly as this when you let a lot go on here that's absolute garbage. It's difficult to figure out what satisfies you sometimes Mad?

All the same and focusing on your complaint:

That's what you get when you click "Reply With Quote" . I didn't realize this was an issue with you.

Also....I missed the course on Packerrats proper etiquette requirements. Was that held recently?


" Morgan Burnett may be comeback Player Of The Year." woodbuck27

Is that satisfactory?

Woody - pretty sure Mad was just yanking your chain, roll with it!:duel:

[denverYooper]

Zero - Sam Shields I think has been disappointing this year, particularly after becoming one of the highest paid corners in the league.

He's been playing better after getting benched in the Falcons game. I thought he played pretty well last week and expect he'll show up in the playoffs. He's always been one of their better players in the postseason.

It makes me wonder if he just dogs it a bit when the stakes are lower.

[denverYooper]

The other thing about Sam and Tramon -- they actually have reliable safety help this year. It probably took both of them a while to trust that it was real.

[Carolina_Packer]

It makes me wonder if he just dogs it a bit when the stakes are lower.

If you're a highly competitive athlete, I don't know how you could ever dog it. You know someone is going to make a good play against your best effort, but to know you've dogged it, I don't know.

[Bossman641]

Barrington and Linsley have been the biggest surprises
Boykin/Bostick/Masthay have been my biggest disappointments

[pittstang5]

Zero - Dujuan Harris

Prior to his injury last year, McCarthy was excited about his potential. McCarthy sounded like he lost his best friend when he went down.

Recently, Harris was benched for a 3rd string QB in the last game. I get that someone has to sit, but you think he could at least do something on SP teams, other than return KOs.

He hasn't seen the field much, even in the blowout games. I'm starting to think, like Bostick, something is going on behind the scenes that we don't know about.

[mraynrand]

Zero - Dujuan Harris... I get that someone has to sit, but you think he could at least do something on SP teams, other than return KOs.

He hasn't seen the field much, even in the blowout games. I'm starting to think, like Bostick, something is going on behind the scenes that we don't know about.

Nothing behind the scenes at all. Stubby has two three-down backs in Lacy and Starks and just doesn't need Harris unless/in case of injury.

[pbmax]

Nothing behind the scenes at all. Stubby has two three-down backs in Lacy and Starks and just doesn't need Harris unless/in case of injury.

I know a guy who knows a guy who sees the Packers in Weyauwega, usually every Tuesday. He said the story is that he punched a coach.

[woodbuck27]

I know a guy who knows a guy who sees the Packers in Weyauwega, usually every Tuesday. He said the story is that he punched a coach.

Gossiper. :whaa:

[Fritz]

Does Bryan Bulaga staying healthy count as a surprise?

Linsey probably the pleasantest surprise.

Bostick and Boykin get the "WTF" award this year.

[woodbuck27]

Does Bryan Bulaga staying healthy count as a surprise?

Linsey probably the pleasantest surprise.

Bostick and Boykin get the "WTF" award this year.

Bostick and Boykin Co-Winners of ' the Blowing It ' Award.

[mraynrand]

Bostick and Boykin Co-Winners of ' the Blowing It ' Award.

ulp!

[woodbuck27]

Someone's getting buried and too dumb to realize it.

[KYPack]

Does Bryan Bulaga staying healthy count as a surprise?

Linsey probably the pleasantest surprise.

Bostick and Boykin get the "WTF" award this year.

Bulaga? Hell yeah!

Especially when they took him off in a body bag and he came back to play the next week.

He also deserves an Oak Leaf Cluster on his Hero award after being called Beluga by the goofy announcer in the Buffalo game.

[hoosier]

Hero: Micah Hyde for freeing Cobb to play WR while also injecting some excitement into the return game.

Byronic heroes (come with some flaws): Nick Perry for staying off IR all season while showing signs that he might not be a complete bust. Sam Barrington for helping to reduce AJ Hawk's playing time.

Zero: Datone Jones, for continuing to look like yet another disappointing first-day pick at DL.

[denverYooper]

Hero: Micah Hyde for freeing Cobb to play WR while also injecting some excitement into the return game.
Zero: Datone Jones, for continuing to look like yet another disappointing first-day pick at DL.

Good call on Hyde's emergence at PR being a double blessing.

Datone Jones has flashed in pass rush several times this year. Unfortunately he's been a washout against the run to this point.

[Pugger]

HHCD made a great rookie contribution, also. Those two led the team in tackles (over 200 for the pair) and really sealed the back end. I remember Rex Ryan crowing that he got the better of the two rookie safeties by the Jets selecting Calvin Pyror from Louisville. That was before he had to bench the kid for being too green.

HHCD also allowed Burnett to just play and not have to worry about covering for MD Jennings like he did last year.

[Pugger]

Another Hero is a guy who I had no idea how he would play this season. Peppers had been a real plus for the D, while playing a new position. We all remember the Kampman experiment, this could have been a similar situation. Pep can really turn a game around and seems to be a positive influence on his teammates. The only drawback to him is that he is older and tires out. They seem to be monitoring his snap count, I hope that works out for the play-offs.

A big zero has been ST. 7 blocked kicks, are you shittin' me?. 3 blocked fg's, 2 blocked punts, 2 blocked XP's. Well there is symmetry there, but that's about it.

Yes, the blocking in our kicking game has sucked this year.

[Pugger]

Zero - Sam Shields I think has been disappointing this year, particularly after becoming one of the highest paid corners in the league.

I wonder if he's been 100% for a while now...

[Pugger]

Hero: Micah Hyde for freeing Cobb to play WR while also injecting some excitement into the return game.

Byronic heroes (come with some flaws): Nick Perry for staying off IR all season while showing signs that he might not be a complete bust. Sam Barrington for helping to reduce AJ Hawk's playing time.

Zero: Datone Jones, for continuing to look like yet another disappointing first-day pick at DL.

I've seen some pass rush spark in D Jones this year tho. I suspect a lot of his development has been hampered by injury. Don't they say it takes D linemen a couple of years before they figure it all out?

[Tyrion Lannister]

AJ Hawk is a zero.

[Pugger]

AJ Hawk is a zero.

We all knew that before the season began.

[woodbuck27]

AJ Hawk is a zero.

He has plenty $ ? Zeros $ in the bank.

[Tyrion Lannister]

We all knew that before the season began.

I knew that before Hawk was even drafted.

I wanted Vernon Davis. The guy woulda looked good in green n mustard, especially with Favre and Rodgers throwing him the rock. ;-)

[Tyrion Lannister]

He has plenty $ ? Zeros $ in the bank.

Yep. Rookie contract was pre-rookie minimum wage. Signed extension at slightly above market rate. Not bad for an average player.

I'll give Hawk credit for not being an egomaniac and taking a paycut. :D

[woodbuck27]

I've seen some pass rush spark in D Jones this year tho. I suspect a lot of his development has been hampered by injury. Don't they say it takes D linemen a couple of years before they figure it all out?

In 13 games (3 Starts):

Datone Jones has a combined 22 tackles (17 solo); 1.5 SACKS and 2 PDEF.

[Pugger]

I knew that before Hawk was even drafted.

I wanted Vernon Davis. The guy woulda looked good in green n mustard, especially with Favre and Rodgers throwing him the rock. ;-)

Didn't Davis balk at being drafted by GB?

[Tyrion Lannister]

I know a guy who knows a guy who sees the Packers in Weyauwega, usually every Tuesday. He said the story is that he punched a coach.

Probably Gash.

Harris looked good in the 2nd Chicago game when "they" fed him the rock.

"They" (McCarthy/Gash) should've played Harris in the redzone. The guy can score from anywhere in the redzone.

[Tyrion Lannister]

Didn't Davis balk at being drafted by GB?

The great Sterling Sharpe balked the balk and talked the talk, but nothing stopped the Packers from drafting him. Nowadays, Sharpe can't go a day without referring to the Packers as "My Packers" on the NFL Network.

Point is, Davis woulda had little choice but be a Packer had Thompson drafted him.

[mraynrand]

I knew that before Hawk was even drafted.

I wanted Vernon Davis. The guy woulda looked good in green n mustard, especially with Favre and Rodgers throwing him the rock. ;-)

This is one of those cases where, in retrospect, many want VD. I wanted him too. In retrospect they should have listened to "Scoops" McGinn, traded down and drafted Ngata.

[ThunderDan]

We all knew that before the season began.

Really???? Hawk had an excellent 2013 season.

[Tyrion Lannister]

This is one of those cases where, in retrospect, many want VD. I wanted him too. In retrospect they should have listened to "Scoops" McGinn, traded down and drafted Ngata.

In truth, I wanted Mike Huff, but that's irrelevant.

[The Shadow]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB5-yJM3vJc

[ThunderDan]

Vernon Davis 2014 stats:
26 receptions. 245 yards, 2 TDs

That's worse than Q on the Pack.

[mraynrand]

Vernon Davis 2014 stats:
26 receptions. 245 yards, 2 TDs

That's worse than Q on the Pack.

It looks like Hawk and Davis are both finished

[hoosier]

Good call on Hyde's emergence at PR being a double blessing.

Datone Jones has flashed in pass rush several times this year. Unfortunately he's been a washout against the run to this point.

If there was a metric for pass rushers analogous to baseball's Wins Above Replacement, I wonder if Jones's would be above zero. I know he got a sack against Tampa and I think I remember seeing him get some pressures in recent games, but should that production be attributed to him or to the opportunities that having Matthews and Peppers together creates for others? If you put R Cal Truluck in that situation and he would have gotten that sack....

[pittstang5]

This is one of those cases where, in retrospect, many want VD. I wanted him too. In retrospect they should have listened to "Scoops" McGinn, traded down and drafted Ngata.

Didn't Ngata have an injury concern at the time? I remember some kind of red flag with Ngata.

[woodbuck27]

Didn't Ngata have an injury concern at the time? I remember some kind of red flag with Ngata.

It doesn't look that way:

" As a consensus All-American in 2005 and Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year ..."

http://www.baltimorebeatdown.com/2014/9/18/6409337/tbt-haloti-ngata-and-the-2006-draft

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haloti_Ngata

I'd have loved it (in hindsight) if Haloti Ngata had been TT's pick in 2006.

[mraynrand]

TT saw Hawk as the next Urlacher and people who wanted Davis saw him as the next Keith Jackson. The final outcome was pretty meh across the board.

[KYPack]

In truth, I wanted Mike Huff, but that's irrelevant.

Try telling the truth.

You spammed for years for Huff, who didn't make it.

[George Cumby]

Heroes:

The Strength and Conditioning Staff/Big-Boned Mike for unfuckking the injury situation.

[KYPack]

Didn't Ngata have an injury concern at the time? I remember some kind of red flag with Ngata.

There were concerns over a knee injury he sustained as a soph. He was the best player in the 2006 draft. He was a bad ass rugby player in high school, his team won the US high school championship.

For several seasons, Haloti (IMHO) was the best player in the NFL. He has had 5 sacks from that interior position multiple times, when he is on his game, you must double team him. He still is an effective player and has had an NFL HOF level career.

[oldbutnotdeadyet]

Zero - The weather. What the fuck do you folks do here during the winter? Drink? Too cold to do anything else. -23 here this morning. I am ready for the game now, and it is only Monday.

[hoosier]

Zero - The weather. What the fuck do you folks do here during the winter? Drink? Too cold to do anything else. -23 here this morning. I am ready for the game now, and it is only Monday.

Toughen up, Wisconsin winters are not what they used to be. You sound like you have been spending too much time in Florida. Or like a 39 year old QB who cannot stand the cold any longer and just wants to get it over with. :-)

[denverYooper]

Toughen up, Wisconsin winters are not what they used to be. You sound like you have been spending too much time in Florida. Or like a 39 year old QB who cannot stand the cold any longer and just wants to get it over with. :-)

I think he's from Colorado Springs. It's pretty mild there, though it got pretty cold last week for a few days.

[mraynrand]

Zero - The weather. What the fuck do you folks do here during the winter? Drink? Too cold to do anything else. -23 here this morning. I am ready for the game now, and it is only Monday.

Location: I am not sure

I thought you didn't even know where you are

[woodbuck27]

Zero - The weather. What the fuck do you folks do here during the winter? Drink? Too cold to do anything else. -23 here this morning. I am ready for the game now, and it is only Monday.

- 23 Degrees ! That's very frigid. It's going to be very cold for the next week.

It's not as cold yet quite frosty here on SE Georgian Bay, Ontario, Canada and -9 Degrees Celcius = approx. 16 Degrees F.

[hoosier]

I think he's from Colorado Springs. It's pretty mild there....

Unless you are on top of Pikes Peak.

[oldbutnotdeadyet]

Unless you are on top of Pikes Peak.

Northern WI right now, high of -6 tomorrow. -40 wind chill, but I grew up here and remember -40 no wind chill bullshit. Pussies now a days. Hiking to top of pikes peak on my bucket list but difficult this time of year.

Heroes - Packers and packer fans when they smoke the cowboys this weekend. Not sure if I should start drinking now as preparation or wait another day.