WOW. With all the grubbers out there, the 1000th post on this thread sat here available and waiting for over a week.
Guess no one reads this thread.
Oh well.
GO PACK GO!
-Scott
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Green Bay Update
by Jeff Ash, jeffash@netnet.net
Friday, October 13, 2000
"Green Bay update, Friday 10/13"
Greetings from Green Bay on a mild fall morning on which Evan and I walked
to school shortly after a light rain shower:
-- The Packers (2-4) play the 49ers (2-4) at 3:15 p.m. Sunday at Lambeau
Field. It'll be televised regionally on Fox, with Pat Summerall and John
Madden on the call. It'll also be on the Packer Radio Network, with Wayne
Larrivee and Larry McCarren on the call. Radio coverage is available for
free on the Internet, with the game broadcasts offered via the Packers' web
site (http://www.packers.com) and 3 hours each of pregame and postgame
programming offered via WTMJ radio in Milwaukee (http://www.wtmj.com or
620wtmj.com).
-- The early weather forecast from Keith, our longtime Update meteorologist
in Norman, Okla.: Mostly cloudy and mild, with a chance of showers,
especially in the morning. High in the upper 50s. Winds northeast, 10 mph.
Chance of rain during the game, 30 percent. For updates, check Keith's web
site (http://www.galstar.com/~kbrews/packwx).
And, of course, here is Keith's take on the game:
Their line, sub-Maginot o'the French,
Sometime calls for help off the bench,
So their first-half busts,
Lead to second-half thrusts,
Insufficient for the initial trench.
-- Last week, the Packers lost to the Lions 31-24 at the Silverdome in
Pontiac, Mich. I didn't see or hear the game, so I have little to offer in
the way of analysis. Suffice it to say the game was not as close as the
score suggests, given that the Lions led 24-3. While they played on Sunday
afternoon, we were wandering through rural western Indiana, checking out
covered bridges. I had to camp out in the hotel lobby to get the score from
ESPN2, then wait for the sparse highlights on ESPN after the Sunday night
game. Our hotel in Tuscola, Ill., had 12 TV channels in the rooms, but 36
in the lobby. Go figure.
The week's news and notes
-- RB Dorsey Levens practiced Thursday for the 1st time in 2 weeks. He
insists he'll play Sunday against the 49ers. He sat out last week's game
after being unable to practice all week. He's been bothered by a badly
sprained left ankle and by lingering pain in his left knee, on which he had
arthroscopic surgery in August. A quote from RB coach Kippy Brown: "Will he
be back at 100 percent? Probably not. But there's a chance he could be by
the week after the bye if he doesn't reinjure it."
-- Rookie Chad Clifton likely will start at LT against the 49ers. He filled
in nicely last week when Mike Wahle went out late in the 3rd quarter with a
strained left calf muscle. The Lions were teeing off on Wahle, but Clifton
put an end to that. Wahle seems to have lost some confidence during his
rough start, and the Packers want to work with him to get it back.
-- CBs Mike McKenzie and Antuan Edwards likely will return Sunday, but will
see limited action. Tod McBride will continue to start, having played so
well that the Packers see no need to rush McKenzie until he's fully ready
to go. McKenzie has been out since the opener, Edwards since the 2nd week,
both with knee injuries.
-- Injury update: DE David Bowens may not play Sunday because of a badly
sprained right ankle. ... DE Vonnie Holliday (hamstring), S Gary Berry
(neck) and RT Earl Dotson (back) remain out. Holliday and Berry are
expected back after next week's bye, for the Dolphins game on Oct. 29.
Dotson continues rehab with the hope of returning in December. ... WR Bill
Schroeder left the Lions game with a hip pointer and sat out practice on
Wednesday and Thursday, but likely will be back for the 49ers game. ... WR
Antonio Freeman has a sore neck and sustained a minor concussion against
the Lions, and TE Tyrone Davis has a sore shoulder, but both will play
Sunday as usual.
-- Return man Allen Rossum isn't listed on the injury report, so his
bruised ribs may be OK. After he went out in the 1st quarter against the
Lions, rookie RB Herbert Goodman took over on kickoff returns and rookie WR
Charles Lee took over on punt returns. Both did nice jobs and will be back
Sunday if Rossum can't go. Special teams coach Frank Novak was delighted
with their play, but relieved that the game was inside, with no wind or
weather to deal with. A quote from him: "That was an ideal situation. It's
more difficult outside. Now it gets a little touchy."
-- WR Corey Bradford returned to practice this week for the 1st time since
breaking his left leg in mid-August. He was sore on the 2nd day of practice
and probably won't be back until after the bye.
-- RB De'Mond Parker also is back at practice, but needs to get back into
playing shape. He blew out a knee last December, then had surgery. Parker
has been fine thus far, running and cutting nicely. The Packers have 3
weeks to activate him, cut him or put him on injured reserve. He probably
won't be activated until after the bye, unless Levens can't play.
-- Even though the Packers will have rookies at both tackle positions, they
probably won't go to the shotgun to ease the pressure on QB Brett Favre.
Coach Mike Sherman, like former coach Mike Holmgren, doesn't care much for
the shotgun. A quote from Sherman: "It changes your offense a little bit.
It doesn't allow your QB to work on the rhythm of his throws. I believe the
ball in Brett Favre's hands immediately is better than the ball in Brett
Favre's hands a second or two later. ... (In the shotgun), I think you tip
your hand a little bit."
-- Driven by all the injuries, the Packers' revolving door continues to
spin at a dizzying pace. DT Chuck Osborne, who contributed nothing in his 2
weeks here, was cut. Rookie DE Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila moved up from the
practice squad to take his place. ... LB Chris Gizzi, dropped from the
roster and put on the practice squad last week, was put back on the roster
this week. ... DB Jason Moore, who'd twice gone from the practice squad to
the roster, was waived and picked up by the 49ers. ... C-G Tom Schau was
re-signed for the practice squad after having spent a week on it last
month. ... Finally, the Packers added WR Mike Horacek to the practice
squad. He's 27, 6-1, 205, out of Iowa State. He played for the Arena
League's Iowa Barnstormers for the last 3 years, catching 216 passes for
3,023 yards and 60 TDs. He was on the Lions' practice squad in 1996.
-- It's becoming increasingly clear the Packers need to rebuild an aging
team and find a way to deal with being $10 million over next year's
projected salary cap, It's clear to QB Matt Hasselbeck, who figures he'll
be trade bait for some high draft picks during the offseason, much as QB
Mark Brunell was in 1995. An insighful quote from Hasselbeck: "This team is
going to look very different next year, I'm sure, because of the salary-cap
concerns. It's nice to have a good backup, I guess, but if you're not going
to use him, you might as well get some value for him. Let me say this: I'm
prepared for both scenarios. I'm prepared to stay, and I'm prepared to go."
Speaking of trades, the NFL trade deadline passed quietly on Tuesday. The
Eagles, needing an RB to replace the injured Duce Staley, asked the Packers
about Ahman Green, but found the price to be too high. The Seahawks were
shopping for a QB, but no word on whether they inquired about Hasselbeck.
-- With Levens out against the Lions, Green did all the work. He had all 22
of the Packers' carries, gaining 69 yards. It was the 1st time in Packers
history that 1 player had all of the team's carries.
-- The Packers haven't scored on their opening drive in the last 18 games
and are 7-11 in that stretch. Since 1970, they've had only 1 worse stretch.
They went 21 games without doing so in 1979 and 1980 and were 6-14-1 in
those games.
-- The Packers are last in the NFL with 18 turnovers. They also are the
only team in the NFL without a fumble recovery. Their 8 interceptions give
them a turnover margin of minus-10, also worst in the league. Sherman
doesn't believe in fining players for turnovers, but he concedes he may do
so if the Packers don't improve.
-- The last time the Packers started 2-4 was 1992, in Holmgren's 1st
season. That year, they fell to 2-5 before finishing 9-7.
Now, the viewer mail:
-- Shawn is moving to Modesto, Calif., in the next couple of weeks and is
seeking suggestions on places to watch the Packers. Shawn is at
MEANYS@saraleebakery.com
-- The Packers say in their e-mail newsletter that they're providing free
Packers news and information via PDAs or "handheld, wireless computers that
support PalmOS or Windows CE platforms, and can hotsync and download data
from a personal computer." For more information, check out the Packers' web
site at packers.com
Though it understandably is used to hype the team, the Packers' e-mail
newsletter is a handy, though not terribly timely, way to keep track of
player moves. It also has information on Packer Pro Shop sales and other
events of interest to fans. It's always just a quick note, but it always
offers links to more detailed information on the Packers' web site. I find
it useful from time to time. To learn how to subscribe to it, go to
packers.com
As always, your questions and comments are welcome at jeffash@netnet.net
Adventures with Evan: I hope to dash through this Update in the hopes of
getting to the Y before heading off to help chaperone Evan's class trip to
the Allouez fire station this afternoon. Webster School is a block from the
fire station, so we'll just herd 'em down there. Evan loves the fire
station, and he knows all the terms from his books. When Mrs. Fay was
telling the class about firefighters earlier this week, she said they use a
crowbar to break through walls and ceilings. Evan piped up and said, "No,
they use a pike pole." Saturday also will be a big day, with our visit to
the open house at the De Pere fire station. ... Some days, I have to blast
Evan out of bed in the morning, and today was one such day. No surprise,
for on Thursday he was up watching cartoons in the living room when I went
to bed at 2 a.m. So I put him back to bed. By the time Janet got up at 4:30
a.m., he was up again, this time watching cartoons with a picnic lunch.
He'd made himself a bologna sandwich, poured a bowl of chocolate syrup to
dip his fingers into and topped it off with a cup of lemonade. I tried to
put him back to bed, but he was in my bed at 5 a.m., wanting to read his
workbook. He never did get back to sleep after that, and he didn't wear
down until that evening.
This week's sources: Green Bay Press-Gazette (http://www.packersnews.com or
greenbaypressgazette.com), Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
(http://www.jsonline.com/packer/news/) and Packers (http://www.packers.com)
web pages. Check the Packers' current roster at
packers.com
-- If you wish to show your appreciation for these Packers updates,
volunteer or make a donation to the charity of your choice. Thanks as
always to Janet for saving the papers and to Scott for providing the mail
service and the web space on South End Zone.
Thanks, Jeff
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