Josh Sitton.

[pbmax]

Yup. You'd have to be a fool to think employees don't talk or compare salaries. My question is: Why encourage the conversation? Keep it private and keep them each guessing and thinking that they are the highest priority. Hopefully, by the time they learn differently, it will be December and other playoff emotions will occupy their minds.

This depends greatly on the person in question, and those advising them. Some may respond well to the challenge and not be anxious (or suffer a drop in performance) when evidence of their status as a second or third tier option becomes known.

I generally believe that disseminating info produces reliability.

Giving the players and their agents a heads up removes uncertainty. The players would figure out the priority eventually. They might even harbor grudges if one player downplayed his progress.

But it also keeps the agents friendly, which also helps to keep the players steady. If you piss off the agent, then you give them a head start in finding their next contract.

[Maxie the Taxi]

This depends greatly on the person in question, and those advising them. Some may respond well to the challenge and not be anxious (or suffer a drop in performance) when evidence of their status as a second or third tier option becomes known.

I generally believe that disseminating info produces reliability.

Giving the players and their agents a heads up removes uncertainty. The players would figure out the priority eventually. They might even harbor grudges if one player downplayed his progress.

But it also keeps the agents friendly, which also helps to keep the players steady. If you piss off the agent, then you give them a head start in finding their next contract.

Good post. I generally agree.

However, when I negotiated EVERYTHING hinged on the "person [or persons] in question. I adjusted my conversation accordingly. In the NFL I think the person in question is usually a hard-boiled agent not the player, so I'm going to assume everything I say is going to be used against me, thus I'm going to volunteer next to nothing.

In reality, everybody has a price. Negotiation is seldom successful if one party goes into it with an inflexible position. You're always adjusting and in the right circumstances you might surprise yourself. As I said earlier, my impression is that something caused management to change course mid-stream, emotions took over and the shit-storm resulted.

[red]

Listening to a chicago reporter talk about it, they think he's looked great in practice. He also said three other spots on the line got better because of guys shuffling to their better positions because of it

[Joemailman]

Listening to a chicago reporter talk about it, they think he's looked great in practice. He also said three other spots on the line got better because of guys shuffling to their better positions because of it

Really? I figured they would say he's looked like shit and he's made the team worse.

[pbmax]

Whenever a young person questions how alcohol can be a depressant, given the behavior often seen, I suggest people show them red's post history.

[Maxie the Taxi]

Red drinks?

[Joemailman]

Red drinks?

Only after 5 o'clock.

[red]

Red drinks?

never

[Patler]

McGinn certainly did a bitch-slap of Pete Dougherty. Dougherty had portrayed the Packer brain trust as cold, calm and cunning, decisively trimming the fat with Vince Lombardi leadership and vision. Dougherty also promoted the "something must have happened" baseless rumor as bonus oral servicing of his bosses, Ted & Mike.

I have come to see that Dougherty was partially right. Probably TT saw Sitton as a declining vet who was near the end in GB. And both McGinn & Dougherty agree that MM might have feared future tension in the locker room.

I think TT miscalculated on all counts. He didn't need to unload Sitton now.

And Dougherty slaps back. Maybe there was something that broke the camels back. Maybe they felt they had to take action:

I talked with an NFL source over the weekend who doesn’t work for the Packers or Sitton but was familiar with the dynamic that led to the left guard’s departure.

The source said Sitton at times was a fun and engaging presence, but he also was brash and highly opinionated. He openly disparaged personnel moves, coaching decisions and his teammates’ abilities in any and every setting at the Packers’ facilities, regardless of who was in earshot. He also could be argumentative in meetings and refused to do some blocking techniques and drills on the practice field.

The source said that while Sitton was at the top of his game, the Packers acquiesced. But as the 30-year-old’s play began to slip in the last year or so, in part because of his chronic back condition, the team felt less compelled to accommodate him. And when the coaching staff saw some of that behavior filtering to the younger linemen, the team parted ways.

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/...tton/90187692/

This could be really entertiaining, dueling anonymous sources:
"My source said blah, blah."
"But MY source said this and that."

[Patler]

Giving the players and their agents a heads up removes uncertainty. The players would figure out the priority eventually. They might even harbor grudges if one player downplayed his progress.

But it also keeps the agents friendly, which also helps to keep the players steady. If you piss off the agent, then you give them a head start in finding their next contract.

Yup. I think it was N.F.P. that had an article from an agent a couple years ago discussing the characteristics of the teams agents like to deal with the most. He mentioned GB as a team, and Russ Ball specifically because you know where you are in the order. He said the reality is that on most teams one guy is responsible for all the significant contracts, basically anything other than minimum contracts, and they all have responsibilities in addition to contract negotiations. He said the agents, too, are quite busy representing a bunch of players on different teams. Half the battle in getting things done is getting the two working together at the same time. He said the Packers make that easy, you don't waste time when they aren't ready to deal with you yet, and when they are they focus on you. It's orderly.

Agents know that in fitting under a salary cap, they have to do things in certain orders. Players may think they should be the highest priority, but not everyone can be.

[pbmax]

And when the coaching staff saw some of that behavior filtering to the younger linemen, the team parted ways.

McCarthy has made that stand before.

[Patler]

McCarthy has made that stand before.

Just to be clear, the statement you quoted from my post was made by Dougherty, not me.

[pbmax]

Yes, bad editing from me.

And when the coaching staff saw some of that behavior filtering to the younger linemen, the team parted ways.

McCarthy has made that stand before.

[Patler]

Yes, bad editing from me.


McCarthy has made that stand before.

I had a vague recollection of something like that, and have been trying to remember who was involved. Was it DL?

[texaspackerbacker]

So you think replacing Josh Sitton with Lane Taylor should improve things?

Well, Taylor did at least marginally decent, and the Packers O Line in general was about the same as always. And I don't know how Sitton did for the Bears, but it wasn't enough to keep them from losing, as usual. I guess those are the two bottom lines - same ol' same ol'. Like McCarthy said and I repeated several times, O Line is not that big a priority in terms of difference-making and money-spending.