Feelings About Dom Capers Are Finally Seeping Out
It’s three and a half months since coach Mike McCarthy fired defensive coordinator Dom Capers after the disastrous 2017 season. Since the Capers departure happened along with a major purge of coaches, the news stayed a little under the radar in most places.
Not at Total Packers, however, where we’ve harangued about Capers’ shortcomings for years. It didn’t escape our notice that the Packers haven’t had a top 10 defense since 2010. TP readers, well informed, weren’t surprised and overwhelmingly greeted the news with joy.
It looked to me that Capers was respected and liked, but never loved by players, fans, and most of the media. Players were largely loyal to him, but recent criticisms indicated some of them weren’t on board with his defensive philosophy or with the way he went about his job. He’ll never do an Energizer Bunny commercial.
Blake Martinez, who is emerging as a team leader, recently spoke of the change from Capers to Mike Pettine. He did so diplomatically, but got his point across. After having an honest discussion with the new DC, Martinez indicated Pettine would demand accountability: mental errors and missed assignments weren’t going to be viewed as acceptable going forward.
Pettine told Martinez that whether you’re a Pro Bowler or a rookie, he’d hold all players to the same strict standard. Martinez was happy to hear it, saying: “(T)hat was one of the things that I wanted to voice my opinion on, just making sure everyone is on the right page at the right time and nothing is confused.”
Damarious Randall had also spoken up right after the final game of the season about the coaching staff failing to hold players accountable for mistakes. Those who wondered why McCarthy’s first player move after the season was trading Randall away need look no further for the answer.
McCarthy doesn’t abide by any criticism by the troops. Unfortunately, the head man’s thin-skinned nature has been costly to the team. Big Mike’s release of Josh Sitton was just one of the more notable examples.
Ha Ha Comes to Capers’ Defense
To be fair, when Capers was let go, an unlikely source came forward to defend Capers: Packers safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who emerged from the 2017 season with his own mob of critics. Clinton-Dix blamed the team’s defensive struggles more on the personnel department and locker room than on Capers.
“We’ve got to control what we can control and not worry about what’s going on upstairs or worry about whether a coach needs to be gone… We’ve had so much change come through here that I don’t think we ever had a chance to develop a team,” Clinton-Dix said. “It’s business, but at the same time, we’re trying to build a championship team and if you don’t have the chemistry within the team and you’ve got so many different individuals coming into the locker room that aren’t worth a shit, it’s kind of tough… (I)t’s hard to build a winning-caliber team when you’ve got so many different characteristics of players in here.”
Time to Retire
My prior thoughts following the Capers’ firing have by now become broadly accepted. Among others, there was “McCarthy Watched Idly As Dom Capers Aged” on January 22; and, “The Indictment of Dom Capers Is Handed Down” on February 20.
I expressed my belief that Capers’ career had run its course and he likely wouldn’t be offered another NFL job. It’s now mid-April, so that belief seems to have borne itself out.
In his nine years in Green Bay, Capers did have two seasons of memorable accomplishments. In 2009, his first year as Packers’ DC, the team’s defense went from 20th to second best (net yards given up). His defense followed that up with a fifth place rating in the 2010 Super Bowl season. He once had the gift.
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Capers was MM butt buddy. Defenses continually failed to perform, especially in big games. MM is to blame for tolerating this way to long. Pettine will improve them.
MM should have been released. You’ll see.
As i’ve said…I’m not upset with Capers. The worst thing he did was wanting to keep his job. The angst should be squarely on McCarthy for letting him and the defense go stale for years, and did absolutely nothing. Only now, when someone had to pay the price, did Fat Mike finally do something.
Fat Mike likes to talk the talk about always doing “what’s in the best interest of the team”. I call bullshit on that as this move was years too late. Same thing goes for Murphy concerning Ted. Years too late.
It took Rodgers getting hurt, and not making the playoffs, for change to finally happen. Proof positive that just making the playoffs was this team’s standard, under the leadership of this clown show.
2 things bother me about this post…
The 1st is
Dix saying “you’ve got so many different individuals coming into the locker room that aren’t worth a shit”
2nd is Robs similar smarter than the rest attitude
Robs writing style where yet again, after time and time again, he pats his own head pointing to how he was once right on something he once said, putting himself on a pedestal and talking down to the readers.
“My prior thoughts following the Capers’ firing have by now become broadly accepted”
Sure Rob. You were once the only one who noticed. Thanks for stating the obvious back then, and now for overstating your ability.
When Jeff Janis makes the pro bowl, I’ll believe u actually saw something no one else did.
I’m guilty of the same thing….so are a few others. But i do it because i’m pissed, not to brag on myself. It’s a fucked up thing when some fans can see this stuff taking place, and nothing is done on the team to correct it.
So in the future, i’ll keep that in mind when i post and try to be more humble. Although in good conscience i can’t take all of the blame. Maybe if the rest of you readers openly acknowledged and praised my insight on a daily basis i wouldn’t have to remind everyone. So how about in the future you jokers appreciate all of my post and give it the respect and praise that all my post deserve.
That was awkward to write that, and i really don’t want to have to bring this up again so…..Try to do better people!!
It was a joke…..fuckers.
I love you man………
That’s why i wrote you into my will.
So Randall wasn’t wrong when he spoke about there being no accountability. Good, better get rid of him. If he can’t play out of position then we don’t want him.
Quittin-Dicks should just shut his damn mouth. What the hell does he know about building a championship caliber team? That’s right, nothing. He’s says there’s so many players in the locker room that aren’t worth a shit. Hmm, first off, sounds like great leadership. Second, call the kettle black much? It’s not hard to build a winning team with players who have different characteristics. Every team in the league has rosters filled with different personalities and talents. It’s called do your fucking job, which is something Mr.Haha hasn’t gotten through his Eddie Murphy looking mug.
Awesome comment
One could make the argument that if Dix made a play on that 2 point conversion against Seattle, Green Bay goes to the Super Bowl. But that’s picking on Dix, in light of the fact that you could say that for about 4 or 5 players in that comedy of errors in the last 5 1/2 minutes of the game.
True. You could say HHCD, Brandon Bostick, Brad Jones, Morgan Burnett, the refs for not knowing what offsides means, McCarthy for running the same predictable play three times in a row up the middle into a congested line with fat Lacey instead of trusting his MVP QB to get a single first down, or whoever blew the coverage on that overtime touchdown. Rodgers didn’t have a great game by all means but that first INT was a load of crap and he had a bum leg.
After looking at the game summary, most of the offensive plays were runs, short passes, or incompletions. If I recall, weren’t receivers dropping passes left and right or was that another playoff game? Run, run, pass, punt. They couldn’t punch it in the endzone and settled for field goals. But when it mattered at the end of the game GB had three straight plays of 15 yd pass, 15 yd pass, and a 12 yd run by peg leg Rodgers to tie the game. The defense had four turnovers. Then in overtime it was all over when they gave up two consecutive 35 yard pass plays like they were giving away free candy.
What. A. Mess.
Yep! That game still bothers me . . . It was like the fix was in . . .
We all saw Sherman and Thomas were injured. No one made an attempt to take advantage of the injuries. That was on MM. One of the things that a highly successful head coach would see and report to a play caller, except they are one and the same. Except the highly successful part.
It was so obvious many players had to see it. Coaches in the booth had to see it. Shit TT watching the TV in his booth had to see it. I would be surprised that most teams do not have a person or persons in the booth checking for other teams injuries and reporting to the field. Apparently not the Packers. You take advantage of other teams injured players. It is part of the game, or at least it should be. The game time structure was apparently not in place to relay that type of important info to the play caller, or the stubborn asshole ingnored the information. I won’t even get into the part that no head coach, coaches or players were reminding the other players that there was still a final 5+ mins of a game to play after the Burnett flop episode.
How about Capers up in his box, he couldn’t report that to the coaches? But then again, maybe he did and it was ignored.
I like that you put more value in the comment from the guy traded away then the one they continually support.
I can’t tell if you’re being serious or sarcastic. I see what you’re getting at though. Both players were complaining and I gave more credibility to Randall. That’s not because one was traded and the other is still here which makes it easier to bitch about the situation in hindsight. These two have both had their ups and downs, but Randall did so playing out of position. What’s Dix’s excuse? That, and Randall isn’t saying that guys in the locker room aren’t worth half a shit. There are now multiple players that the Packers have let go that could do Dix’s job better than him.
The fact MM hired Capers in the first place was a telling key as to why he was never fit to be a HC. Better candidates were around at the time. McCarthy has never been held accountable for his coaching choices…….
Um, Capers defenses were very good the first couple of years. Which is his pattern if you look at basically every one of his stops. What were the better candidates at the time? He was a two time head coach, that is a fairly decent resume to have as a defensive coordinator. Capers was good, but it became apparent, especially after the way the Seahawks NFCCG ended, that his time was up.
I disagree, one could argue they may not have won the Super Bowl without Capers. He turned that defense around before the 10 season, just as quick as he lost it, after 2010. Years fllowing that, it’s on McCarthy for keeping him on.
Gotta give the man his credit.
Thing that always bothered me about DC was that he holed up in the box during games….
I’m old school, thinking coaches need o be on the sidelines to be effective
Yea, i bitched about that too. It’s just that i’ve come around and placed more blame on McMuffin, his boss.
His boss let him continue to fail, year after year. Did nothing.
Now he fires Capers (fall guy) and talks big and tough and loud how the defense needs to be better. So my question to McMuffin is, why didn’t it have to be better the last 6, 7 years? 2017 wasn’t Capers worst season running the defense, but NOW, McMuffin has a problem with it?
Whatever keeps the attention off the main man….the head coach.
Since seeing Gutekunst 1st Chapter as GM, i wish Elliot Wolf would have gotten the job, and he should have had the power to hire and fire anyone under him, like a normal team. We need a GM who doesn’t need training wheels and a President who has a clue.
“2017 wasn’t Capers worst season running the defense, but NOW, McMuffin has a problem with it?”
No shit. The defense arguably played better than the offense, yet McCarthy is still here. Don’t give me that shit that he needs Rodgers to win (which is true), or try blaming everything on Hundley. A highly successful coach shouldn’t have to rely on one of the best QB’s in history just to beat the Browns in regulation. Or to not get shut out at home twice in a season. Or end the year at Detroit with the score being 3-27 in the 4th quarter. McCarthy has the ability to change his QB, or tailor the playcalling to his skillset instead of pretending he’s #12. Or how about utilizing the most effective runningback on the roster? Nah…
Amen brother.
In any sport it’s difficult to determine how bad a coach is if he’s asked to coach a pile of shit. If history has taught us anything Tom, anyone even Hyman Roth can get hit + Ted the cadaver put togrethwr this fucked up roster both McFlurry and Dr, Combover were charged with turning into a winner. Any Packer fan who knows dick, is aware this has been a one man show since the Favre days and now AR. Last year proved it and the deadeyed fruitcake has finally been released from the closet. Dig up Vince and see what he can do with this heap of garbage. Not defending either one of these guys, especially McRib, but the 53 has been on the mental patient for years now and it’s gonna take a lot of undoing!
All the problems start at the top. Mark Murphy has lost touch with what works on this team. He refuses to put the team first and personal relationships second. Im not surprised that McCarthy is still in Green Bay. He has been riding Rodgers success and getting alot of credit when he should have been fired after the Seattle Playoff meltdown and then the Falcons blow out. Mark Murphy is a man afraid of change. Still has Thompson around and still has McCarthy and his predictable ways.