Your 2019 Packers: Freed from McCarthy’s Shackles!

 

Yes, the difficult 2018 season is finally over. It’s time to contemplate better things to come. Don’t think of this post as a backwards look at many years of oppression. Instead, consider it as a look forward at a team under new, smarter, and more inspired leadership.

The Packers are freed from a coach who:

. . . would never elect to “receive” after winning a coin flip

. . . had no appreciation for, or concept of how to utilize, speedy players (which Thompson rarely supplied)

. . . would rarely even attempt to pick up a first down in third and long situations

. . . had no idea (or forgot since Finley/2013) how to effectively employ tight ends

. . . never prepared the backup quarterback to come in when Rodgers was injured – such as by giving him a few snaps in games when the outcome was no longer in doubt, or otherwise assuring his assistant coaches had the substitute ready to play

. . . virtually never ran a sweep, or a reverse

. . . commonly put players in his “dog house,” or released them outright, as a behavior modification method when players made mistakes

. . . had little use for serious misdirection, deception, or fakery, on either side of the ball

. . . never grasped, or used to his advantage, momentum changes that occurred during a game

. . . invariably became overly conservative, both defensively and offensively, when his team would get a lead of ten points or more – resulting in numerous comebacks by opponents

. . . never saw fit to instruct, correct, or properly supervise the coaches on his staff – as opposed to scapegoating by purging groups of them following unsatisfactory seasons

. . . was always on the defensive when questioned about choices he had made during a game – never admitting to his own mistakes

. . . didn’t appreciate, and paid little attention to, any aspects of special teams play

. . . almost never tried to get the most out of players by maximizing their talents and working around their faults – in other words, putting players in positions to be successful

. . . bowed out with the league-wide reputation of running the NFL’s most predictable offense

. . . always acted in his best interests, rather than the team’s, when it came to his own job security and dealings with the front office