An example of how quickly things could turn around.....

[RashanGary]

- Brett retires, opening up 11 million dollars in cap space next off season
- Rodgers has a great off season, physically stronger than ever and just as motivated to learn as this year. McCarthy shows his worth.
- The Packers draft Calvin Johnson, immediately changing the way defenses approach the Greenbay Packers.
- Ted Thompson finially splurges on the FA market and signs RB Thomas Jones to a lucrative deal. *Jones is a beast*
- Barnett gets extended early, allowing Sanders to press him to the SLB position
- Hodge immediately wins the starting MLB position, hiding his coverage problems and amplifying his run strength
- Carroll takes yet another step, passing Woodson as the #2 CB and allowing Woodson to play Saftey.
- Colledge, Spitz, Moll all hit the weights hard in the off season. They come in looking like Wahle, Flanigan and Rivera in their primes. The running game takes off and Rodgers has more than enough time to pass the ball to his elite WR weapons. Thompson has what looks to be another stellar draft, landing a bunch of good future starters.

Some guys will probably get arrested, guys will show up fat and out of shape. Thompson won't get a RB this off season and we'll have a glaring hole again. Carroll will have a horrible off season, running into problems with the law and forcing Woodson to play CB where he is already 2 steps slow and not quick enough. KGB lose another step of explosion, taking away any advantage he ever had. Spitz, Moll and Coilledge will all prove to SUCK and we won't have any answer to the OL Favre will stick around and take away any chance we have to afford acctual players who will be here when we have a chance.

Well, it could go good and it could go incredibly bad. I tend to be a little optimistic and I expect most of the young gusy to step up and for Thompson to find one really good FA player worth spending on. *Not Charles Woodson*

[retailguy]

So, this past season, WHO should Thompson have spent money on?


LeCharles Bentley? Mmmm. NO
Mike Vanderjagt? Mmmm. NO
Terrell Owens? Mmmm. NO
Lavar Arrington? Mmmm. NO
One of the 6 other offensive linemen on the Cleveland DL? Mmmm NO.

I'm sure I forgot 3 guys who have been *stars* for their new team. Hutchinson has played well, for example, but at what cost? You can't wrap that salary into our offensive line. You've got no money for other areas.

The only trade/signing that Thompson passed up that I thought was both a good value, and a tremendous help to the weakest area of the team was Jeff Faine.

That, of course, presupposes that Wells would have made a decent guard. I thought so, but, apparently, TT and M3 disagreed with me.


You can always look in hindsight and say - "We shoulda got that guy"....

Life doesn't work that way. Either the players will develop, or they won't. But they have to play for us to know that. Wishing Favre would retire ends an era, be careful what you wish for, you might just get it.... and it might not look AT ALL like you forcasted.

Woodson is not a bad signing. He'll be at safety next season, most likely. Carroll needed a swift kick in the rear, and got one, he's, overall, played better so far. Too soon to make a judgement, however.

[Tony Oday]

Favre continues to play next year at a bargain

Jennings continues his development

Driver doesnt lose a step

Thomas Jones goes to his hated rival and crushes Urslacker on runs up the middle

Barnett gets his contract and hodge excels at MLB

Hawk is an all pro

O line gels nicely

Carrol is drug out in the street and shot and the fans rejoice

Woodson is moved to saftey

Two rookie CB are drafted

FA we get Thomas Jones as stated before, Freeney, and a CB to take over for Woodson.

[RashanGary]

Yeah Retailguy..

I didn't think Thompson did too bad considering all the FA's got way overpaid this off season. Woodson was a bargain compared to many of them. I just can't stand Charles Woodson. Maybe he'll be a good safty.

As far as Favre retiring, how much worse can it get? He lost 14 of his last 16 games, ooohhh. We gonna lose them all? Kitna won more games in cincy and we all know he's not fantastic. QB is the most important position, but you can get by with a decent one if you build the rest of your team. Rodgers might be just fine. I'm ready to find out. Favre will not be here when any meaningfull games are played. We might as well move forward now instead of delaying it.

[Rastak]

So, this past season, WHO should Thompson have spent money on?


LeCharles Bentley? Mmmm. NO
Mike Vanderjagt? Mmmm. NO
Terrell Owens? Mmmm. NO
Lavar Arrington? Mmmm. NO
One of the 6 other offensive linemen on the Cleveland DL? Mmmm NO.

I'm sure I forgot 3 guys who have been *stars* for their new team. Hutchinson has played well, for example, but at what cost? You can't wrap that salary into our offensive line. You've got no money for other areas.

The only trade/signing that Thompson passed up that I thought was both a good value, and a tremendous help to the weakest area of the team was Jeff Faine.

That, of course, presupposes that Wells would have made a decent guard. I thought so, but, apparently, TT and M3 disagreed with me.


You can always look in hindsight and say - "We shoulda got that guy"....

Life doesn't work that way. Either the players will develop, or they won't. But they have to play for us to know that. Wishing Favre would retire ends an era, be careful what you wish for, you might just get it.... and it might not look AT ALL like you forcasted.

Woodson is not a bad signing. He'll be at safety next season, most likely. Carroll needed a swift kick in the rear, and got one, he's, overall, played better so far. Too soon to make a judgement, however.

Why not Bentley? You have no idea if he gets hurt this year when playing for Green Bay. Plus, how goood would he look at gaurd? Then again, maybe he isn't good in the ZBS.


As far as dumping a large portion of cap into your offensive line, I found this in an article in a Chicago paper today.....

"The Bears are one of 15 teams spending more than $20 million on the offensive line, and they rank second behind the Vikings with an offensive-line payroll just over $25 million. The Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers are next with about a million less than the Bears"

I think it's a good place to spend money. Green Bay was a helluva team when they had a dominant OL. I know Seattle was dumping good money into their OL.

[MJZiggy]

If you had a choice between dumping money into your o-line or your d-line, which would you do?

[Rastak]

If you had a choice between dumping money into your o-line or your d-line, which would you do?

Good question....it's a tie. Seriously, I'm not sure, and that's why I don't GM a team in the NFL. They are both pretty important. No DL means secondary gets torched and no OL means no offense.

[GoPack06]

- sign Thomas Jones. a 28 year old running back who has had one good season and i don't mean great just good. 1335 yards is not that special.

- Draft Calvin Johnson the next great WR aka the next head case. The future T.O

Or

you can draft Adrian Peterson and sign Michael "burner" Turner, who would come much cheaper and younger.

Sign Nate Clements

[RashanGary]

All positions are important. Good teams seem to be tough on front 7 defense, one safty, a good OL and a QB.

I guess that would be the most common winning combo. Great WR's and great CB's, RB's, WR's havn't been as critical lately. I don't know, mabe it's just by chance, just seems like the great teams lately have had a few things in common.

Our OL seems to be pass protecting OK wich is a big step up from last season. They just need to start cutting down backside pursuit and some big gains will open up in the run game. I saw a couple plays where if the LG or LT would have taken his guy down, Green would have had room to run on a cutback. We might just be OK on the OL by the end of the year.

I'm starting to see the beauty of the Zone game. They have 2 or 3 plays. Run right and run left are the only ones I see. Anyway, when they start going right, the whole DL starts pushing right. All the LG needs to do is dive at the NT's knees and a big cluster of fat asses is lying on the backside of the run game. Now the LT is open to seal off a LB and Green has room to run. Anyway, it's not working because we havn't done our job sealing off teh backside and Green runs right into a DT who should be lying on the ground holding his damn knee

[Fritz]

Well, I can at least say that I now too see how it's supposed to work. It ain't working that way - yet - but I now get the idea. It would work well for Ahman Green, too.

[mmmdk]

Ask yourself; how many thrifty teams have made it to the SB? Before you hammer your respond onto your keyboard, know this, I believe TT did the right thing - cleaning the house. But eventually you gotta spend some $$ and I'd rather millions spent on a premium OL than some no good/half good WR like Randle El. TT better start spending next season. For now all is OK, TT can still build through the draft but you need stars/good vets too and the vets Packers have are hardly stellar (e.g. KGB, Clifton, Henderson, Franks). You better not be known as THRIFTY TT, you hear TT!?

[RashanGary]

NE, Pittsburgh, Seattle, PHilly just to name a few.

Just about every team has to be thrifty. Shit, the Packers were thrifty too. The got Rison Dotson, Jones and Robinson for peanuts. White was a bargain considering he was the best defender in teh game still.

Every team taht wins, gets mroe production than they do pay. The problem is, GB doesn't have anyone left to pay. Thompson better draft well or he'll be forced to blwo it in teh overpriced FA market.

[Partial]

NE, Pittsburgh, Seattle, PHilly just to name a few.

Just about every team has to be thrifty. Shit, the Packers were thrifty too. The got Rison Dotson, Jones and Robinson for peanuts. White was a bargain considering he was the best defender in teh game still.

Every team taht wins, gets mroe production than they do pay. The problem is, GB doesn't have anyone left to pay. Thompson better draft well or he'll be forced to blwo it in teh overpriced FA market.

no offense, but do you actually know what you are talking about in this stuff? There are a slew of inaccuracies within this thread.

[BlueBrewer]

So, this past season, WHO should Thompson have spent money on?


LeCharles Bentley? Mmmm. NO Hurt
Mike Vanderjagt? Mmmm. NO Hurt and Bad
Terrell Owens? Mmmm. NO Headcase and Hurt
Lavar Arrington? Mmmm. NO Hurt, lingering
One of the 6 other offensive linemen on the Cleveland DL? Mmmm NO.

I'm sure I forgot 3 guys who have been *stars* for their new team. Hutchinson has played well, for example, but at what cost? You can't wrap that salary into our offensive line. You've got no money for other areas.

The only trade/signing that Thompson passed up that I thought was both a good value, and a tremendous help to the weakest area of the team was Jeff Faine.

That, of course, presupposes that Wells would have made a decent guard. I thought so, but, apparently, TT and M3 disagreed with me.


You can always look in hindsight and say - "We shoulda got that guy"....

Life doesn't work that way. Either the players will develop, or they won't. But they have to play for us to know that. Wishing Favre would retire ends an era, be careful what you wish for, you might just get it.... and it might not look AT ALL like you forcasted.

Woodson is not a bad signing. He'll be at safety next season, most likely. Carroll needed a swift kick in the rear, and got one, he's, overall, played better so far. Too soon to make a judgement, however.

[MJZiggy]

Why are Thomas jones, Michael Turner and Nate Clements not being resigned by their current teams?