has our window already closed?

[red]

2 years ago after our super bowl win, most people said that we were a dynasty in the making. great qb, great offense, lots of young talented players

we haven't been back in two years.

i'm wondering if we've now starting the down tread already.

we're already looking straight in the face of more cap issues. we're gonna have to let our top WR walk because we just can't fit him in cap wise. the leader and heart and sole of the offense (driver) will probably retire. finley may or may not be gone.

on the other side of the ball. we lost a great player in collins last season, and now we might lose the heart and sole of our defense (woodson). on top of that we have a lot of young guys that just haven't advanced the way we thought they wood. raji is not the world beater, neal hasn't been there, tramon is a shadow of his former self, and burnett is no collins. other then mathews and bishop the lb's have been a joke

now to the cap hell part. we're already losing jennings. in another year or two we're gonna have to pay cobb big money too. also in another year jordy and jones are gonna need to get paid better if they keep their play up. bulaga is gonna need a big raise after next season. raji needs a raise, mathews needs an extension. i think sitton and a-rod both need more money soon

so has our superbowl winning window already closing? have we now turned into the favre packers of the late 90's and early 00's where we make the playoffs every year but don't win the big one again?

[Cheesehead Craig]

My window's closed. It's friggin' cold outside.

[sharpe1027]

The next 2-3 years will define whether TT can make maintain what he started. The decision to keep Driver this year was a popular move with fans, but it does worry about being able to make the hard decisions.

I think the need to sort out the O-line or the offense will remain inconsistent.

[Pugger]

As long as we have #12 and #52 we have a chance. All we have to do is accumulate a few more blue chip players and some speed and we should be alright.

[mraynrand]

The decision to keep Driver this year was a popular move with fans, but it does worry about being able to make the hard decisions.

seriously? The Driver decision was a sign of TT losing it? DD just had to be better than #53 on the roster, and even then, they probably kept him around for locker room cohesion. I've got an idea: How about we discuss this in a new thread titled: "Donald Driver"

TT drafted for a new defense last year. The question is whether they can get to Superbowl caliber and uptick the offense from a sluggish year. Be nice to have a the same RB behind the same line and a QB throwing to the same receivers the whole year.

[red]

As long as we have #12 and #52 we have a chance. All we have to do is accumulate a few more blue chip players and some speed and we should be alright.

i was worried about that

for about 15 years we said "as long as we have #4 we can win it". well we only won that one with him too. i can see some similarities between that team and this team. both went on a slow decline after the super bowl win

[mraynrand]

I feel confident that TT will not be drafting to "Win now" like the Packers did for close to five years with Favre under Sherman. TT seems to build the whole team. A superbowl win will depend on getting a healthy team together and having a few guys go blue chip - like Cobb, Perry and Hayward, and getting a bunch of other guys to go solid - like Burnett, Jennings, House, Sherrod/Bulaga/Barclay, EDS, Worthy, Neal, God's Gift, and a couple this year's draft picks, including a WR. Maybe need a FA winner, like Woodson or Pickett. And stay healthy for shit's sake.

[Smeefers]

If Driver had one last year in him, we would have been applauding TT for keeping him. He looked fine in training camp, he just slowed down way to much and stopped getting separation. Not to mention every other reciever on our team playing out of their minds. 3 receivers with +60 catches. 3 receivers with +700 yards. There's not a lot of teams that can say that and I don't think TT saw that coming. Who would of thought JJ would lead our team with 14 Touchdowns? Anyone? Sure as shit not me and I like the guy.

As for the window closing, I don't think it closes until you can't get into the playoffs. Teams show it year in and year out that all you need to do is get in and be playing your best ball at that time and you can go to the big dance. Yes, life is going to get difficult for the team in coming years. We're going to have to let major star power go. That's why the draft is so important. Every time I hear people say "win now," all i hear is "loose later." You see teams that beef up for their super bowl rush and sacrifice their future. I'd rather be in the playoffs every year, then blow our load to have a slightly better shot at getting to the super bowl. The patriots are a perfect example of this. Every year they're playoff teams and every year teams are scared of them. Just because they haven't won in a long time doesn't mean they won't win this year, or next year, or the year after that because you know what? I know they're going to be in the playoffs and that they're going to have a shot at the title.

[mraynrand]

Oh, and can we get a Cushing/Willis type ILB to beat the shit out of people?

[Bossman641]

i was worried about that

for about 15 years we said "as long as we have #4 we can win it". well we only won that one with him too. i can see some similarities between that team and this team. both went on a slow decline after the super bowl win

One thing TT has shown is that he will keep the weapons stockpiled for Rodgers. I'm the first to admit that the WR depth behind Nelson, Jones, Cobb will be nowhere near where it was this year, but I'm confident TT will pick up another decent WR.

[mraynrand]

One thing TT has shown is that he will keep the weapons stockpiled for Rodgers. I'm the first to admit that the WR depth behind Nelson, Jones, Cobb will be nowhere near where it was this year, but I'm confident TT will pick up another decent WR.

Ross actually looks like a physical stud. I don't know if he can catch the ball, but he blocked well, and was becoming a beast on special teams (not counting punt returns). TT can draft players; just need enough of them to gel all at once and it's Superbowl, baby!

[Bossman641]

Ross actually looks like a physical stud. I don't know if he can catch the ball, but he blocked well, and was becoming a beast on special teams (not counting punt returns). TT can draft players; just need enough of them to gel all at once and it's Superbowl, baby!

I agree that physically he looks the part. The fact that he only had 764 receiving yards in his college career has me skeptical though.

[mmmdk]

i was worried about that

for about 15 years we said "as long as we have #4 we can win it". well we only won that one with him too. i can see some similarities between that team and this team. both went on a slow decline after the super bowl win

I understand Pugger but I'm with red; it'll be difficult to even reach a second SB let alone win one more!

[sharpe1027]

seriously? The Driver decision was a sign of TT losing it? DD just had to be better than #53 on the roster, and even then, they probably kept him around for locker room cohesion.

I didn't say anything about TT losing it, but I hope he doesn't make a habit of keep aging Vets that do not contribute on the field. I am not sure that keeping DD made the team any better. He contributed virtually nothing on the field all year. This despite injuries to both Jennings and Nelson. By the end of the year he was not better than the #53 on the roster, he was inactive for 2 of the last three games when it counted the most.

I'm not sure how many wins this year are the result of DD locker room cohesion, so you may have a good point.

I've got an idea: How about we discuss this in a new thread titled: "Donald Driver"

TT drafted for a new defense last year. The question is whether they can get to Superbowl caliber and uptick the offense from a sluggish year. Be nice to have a the same RB behind the same line and a QB throwing to the same receivers the whole year.

Did I broke the forum rules by mentioning a specific example that supports a minor concern? Driver is one of my all-time favorite players and I think TT has done an outstanding job to this point. But I like the Packers organization more than I like Driver and I don't think he earned his spot this past year. That is ultimately TT's decision.

[woodbuck27]

My window's closed. It's friggin' cold outside.