BrewerFan

I don't want to get into the politics of all this, but I'm just thrilled that the Brewers are going to be here(most likely) through 2050. I think the idea that threats of moving were idle threats is...inaccurate. I think San Antonio would have loved to have had an MLB team, I think Nashville would have been the most likely being a larger market, a city that loves Baseball and one of the most affluent and fastest growing cities. I did not want to watch the Nashville Brewers AAA team in Milwaukee. I understand people who don't think this should be publicly funded, but I'm of the belief that this is important for the city and even more important to a city like Milwaukee than an area like Oakland where there are other entertainment options, another team in the Bay Area. I'm ALSO hoping that the rumor that the Brewers were withholding 30M a year from their revenue and investing that into potential upgrades for the stadium is true and that money can now go toward the payroll(I doubt that's the case, but who knows). The only way this could be better news is if you had someone with just stupid money like Elon Musk come in and buy the team and not worry about losing a measly 40-50M a year. Mr. Bezos...you want to give all your money away to charity? Well, I'm making a wish the Brewers can re-sign Burnes, Woody, Adames and then go out and add Ohtani and you wouldn't even notice a change in your bank account! Or Wisconsin's own Paul Menard! How cool would it be to have the new "Menard tax?" He's a baseball fan! I don't actually think Attanasio is going to sell because he invested in a Baseball team, but if he did? I mean, hell, I'd committed to only using Kohler toilets if they wanted to come in and spend as well! But the Brewers are safe it seems! Now...is it too much to tweak this so that the state will also be paying for Jackson Chourio's contract as well?

Got me as well. I had completely forgotten it was 15 days. Hopefully it's just a precautionary issue. Thank God Uribe and Megill have stepped up.

David Bakhtiari pushing back...pretty strongly on the "not playing due to turf," narrative. A couple thoughts; 1-Maybe DON'T get upset when your own Brother pushes the narrative. 2-Sounds like he's out this week, so clearly not about the turf. 3-It's becoming very clear that the Packers now just have to move on from Bakhtiari after this season. He was asked point blank if he planned on retiring and he said basically 'no, it's harder when you're still good. If he was playing poorly, that'd be one thing.' The 2022 draft appears to be a franchise altering draft with a starting LBer, DE, 2 WRers, guys like Enagbare who at the very least are exceptional #4 edge rushers, Toure, Walker who is likely starting. But 9 years after finding an All Pro LT, I think the Packers have found another one in Zach Tom. More than anything, decision to keep Bakhtiari next year or not is becoming easier and easier. I've seen way too many people say, "you can't keep him with a 40M dollar cap hit." The 40M isn't part of the equation when determining if you keep him or not. ~21M is already there...if he plays or not. So it's ~19M. Is he worth 19M next year. If he goes through camp, practices only on rare occasions, comes out, plays a game vs Chicago and looks great, but then can't play the following 2 weeks? There's your answer. Now maybe he plays the next 14 games, but I'm skeptical.

Well that's nice! You're SO bad at your job, you can't even be blamed for it😏 Life hacks! I've tried that with the wash...and then the Missus(not technically, but...basically) put a whole load of dry clean only shirts in the wash and she one upped me(problem is, I don't think she was trying to). Didn't even use delicate or the steam clean... Point to her!

Yeah...we're kinda in the weeds here. I like using the technique more than the position because...NT just means you're playing in the middle of an odd front whereas technique will tell you exactly where you played. When you play with 2 DL and he's lining up wide...or given the freedom to lineup wherever, he's now playing DE. That's why he's even when he was playing 50% snaps at NT, he was still playing so many at the 3 or DE. Because he stayed on the field so often on obvious passing downs. He did play much better. It was Bergeron's 2nd game, so it'll take a little while to figure out if he was the weak spot on that DL(I mean, he's bound to be the worst OL with Lindstrom, McGary and Matthews, but if he's a good OL or a poor one) but it was a situation where he had a pretty obvious advantage. I just think he had that playing against centers...or at least most of them. He's off the ball quicker as he's directly over the ball. The Center is a split second late coming up and it gave Clark a built in advantage and allowed him to use his versatility to kinda abuse them. Just the fact that you have a NT who can kick out and play DE on passing downs kinda tells you he's a unique DT. Clark's gonna have another change to match up vs the weaker OL in the Saints OL with Hurst and Ruiz both pretty poor OL(Penning also grades out very poorly). I expect him to have a big year. ANYWAY...I think the starters on the DL are pretty good and pretty much set up. My personal opinions aside on how they should move guys around, Clark, Slaton and Wyatt are 3 pretty damn solid. Brooks and Wooden....they are not gonna offer much vs the run at this point beyond effort. I love the way this team is built. With 3 picks in the first 2 rounds, I'd love to see another draft focused on OL/DL with their top 3 picks. Clark isn't going anywhere for the next 2 years and at that point he'll be in his 10th year. So this is the perfect year to look for a more typical DE. It's clear now Bakhtiari is done as the player we knew. He's still very much useful, but...that has to be addressed(their lucky they hit a grand slam on Tom which you seldom hear about when people complain about the Myers-Creed pick). But sticking with that, that UGA center looks like a great fit in this offensive scheme.

I mean...it's not like the NFL cares. They've already got that 115 Billion dollar TV deal over 10 years(maybe 11). Does seem stupid the networks would sign off on it. I HATE watching the Panthers this year. They are so trash and you just know both Chicago and AZ are going to be rewarded for kind punting on last years draft(though both did get elite OTs) and get multiple top 10 picks in one of the best drafts in a long time because Houston and Carolina are so awful.

I don't think this is like any team the Packers have had in recent history. They're so much bigger and more athletic...and younger, I don't really even see many similarities. Barry still makes some perplexing calls, but even at that, the only obvious one I can think of was having Savage about 15 yards off the ball on 3rd and 4 late when they had Robinson run a quick slant on Bijan. And even in that case, it was defensible as they had some pretty big mismatches on the perimeter. I do like that MLF is complaining and upset...misdirected as it may be as I have no doubt Barry will revert back to the Joe Barry we've always seen, but he played aggressively. But never since they've had Favre have the Packers had this type of youth, have they had this type of speed relative to the other team or have they had this type of size and physicality. Our best defensive team had Clay Matthews and Frank Zombo starting at OLBer in the 3-4. This team has Rashan Gary and Van Ness who are young and both ~6'5 275-285 compared to 6'2 245 and 6'3 250 for Matthews and Zombo. Then Preston Smith who's in the 270 range, Wyatt, Clark are more athletic and explosive. Quay and Campbell? I don't ever remember having two MLBers with that type of athletic ability. And then a secondary that's very young and has massive upside. That may be the most similar as you had Woodson and Collins. But this team is built differently than the last SB team and sooo much differently than the teams since 2011 when we had those two career ending injuries and we were just a physically slower and weaker team that relied upon Rodgers to win. I'm also excited about Love, but we have not seen nearly enough from him to say he's a high level QB. I think you can pretty safely say he can manage a game. We've seen him making some big time throws...but he hasn't been asked to do more than that. Even vs ATL, I don't think he struggled vs pressure so much there were just so few snaps he got. I mean, he had 10 plays in the 4th. 3 runs on one series. On another series, he threw two balls. One was a bad ball that could have been picked. The other Royce Newman just completely whiffed on a stunt. Just...completely left a good 4 yard area wide gap open that was his responsibility. But asking me to rank him after the Bears and Falcons fronts, I'd say he's proven he's in the Jimmy G type grouping(meaning you can win with him, but you're not winning BECAUSE of him at this point. And while I have a lot of confidence in him, he has NOT faced the types of defenses that you learn much from. Is he a Pro-Bowl QB? A top 10 QB? I genuinely don't know right now and I don't think we can until we get at least half way through the season and MLF loosens the reigns a bit(there may be a reason he's holding on so tight). Again, hope he is. I think he can be. But we're babying the hell out of him right now. Until that stops, we're not going to know. I desperately hope you two are right. Barry is just playing these guy straight up. There's so little for the QB to read. I'm thinking about that 5 wide on 3rd and 4 and Campbell was on Bijan and Savage is ~20 yards off the ball. You could not have made that an easier read. At least bring Savage up, play the robber and force them to make a read on the play. I also think our secondary is just going to get better as Stokes comes back, but more than that, when it dawns on him to give a few snaps to the guy actual members of the organization AND the media were saying was one of the best OVERALL players in camp, not just rookies in Valentine. I get he's a rookie, but we heard all about him...and then we saw him and he genuinely exceeded all expectations. I promise if he was a 1st or 2nd rd pick, he'd be getting Nixon's snaps or they'd be working on ways to get 4 CBs on the field with Savage. Ford or Valentine? Ford's a bigger hitter. He's no ta better tackler and he's certainty not better in coverage. My fear is this defense finished ranked ~7th or so and then the FO and MLF get to use that an excuse to keep him. Jim Leonhard would be one of the most creative DCs in the NFL right now, Quay walker would probably have 7-8 sacks this year and we'd be getting so much more pressure and free runners.

I'm a little skeptical of this. Not that he didn't have some swelling. I'd buy that. But there was already talk about him not playing on turf before the year started. I wouldn't say that if I was a credentialed journalist, but...I'm just skeptical. But I'd say that definitively answers the question on Bakhtiari. He's got to be replaced. The most likely scenario to me is Tom kicking over to LT and then depending on where we pick, a guy like Latham(a 5 star recruit with incredible potential) or Kinsley Suamatia, the 6'6 325 pound former 5 star recruit who went to Oregon who's an incredible athlete already. This is the year to need an OT like last year was the year to need a TE. There will be OTs dropping to the 2nd rd who'd normally have a 1st round grade on one. I'd even double up on the OL with the 1st 2 picks and grab Van Pran with the 2nd. Get the Center that specifically fits your scheme this time.

I think Ohtani is going to be a Giant or Dodger, but I think they'll definitely be in the mix for him. They're looking for a face of their franchise. I don't think Yelich is that, but he could fit into their lineup I suppose. If they get Ohtani, maybe a starting pitcher like Snell and then trade for Yelich(I'll take Conforto+Maldonado the 19 year old who spent part of the year in LowA ball this year with uneven results, but a big arm).

I haven't watched as much MiLB as the rest, but so I'll just share my own opinion. 1-I think Black could be fine at 3B. He doesn't have that big arm, but he moves pretty well. I didn't think he ever looked stiff there and I think his glove is good enough. . 2-Devanney I watched more last year than this year, so I believe he struggled a bit, but I thought he was a fantastic defender. Scouting repots say he's a plus defender at SS and an even better defender at 3B. Devanney is a Monasterio type player in that I think he can be useful and be a surprising contributor next year, who plays better defense and hits for much more power in my opinion. His exit velo went up 3MPH and was in the top 10% in exit velocity. So I don't know if he's a starting SS or 3B(I think it's clear he won't start at SS, but I think it's clear he can serve as a backup and at least a utility player and very possibly as a starter moving forward. He had a fluke MiLB career, drafted in '19 at 21, played rookie ball. Covid year at 22, didn't play. HUGE jump in '21 to AA, struggled. Last year at AA/AAA hit well(short sample at AAA). And then this year after a very poor start, he put up a .290/.387/.477 with an OPS of ~.870. 3-I watch the games more passively and haven't really followed the nuances of catching to have an opinion on Henry as a big league receiver.

Oh c'mon. What part of that was condescending? The feigned outrage here is...wild. These are the two comments; What the last paragraph was addressing; What I actually said; This is what you're outraged about? That was "unnecessarily condescending" PLUS passive aggressive and also sarcastic? First of all, you seemed to be asking a question. One that I didn't understand as it's OBVIOUSLY about being a fan of a particular team. The site we're on isn't "Baseballfanatics," it's Brewersfanatics." Is this site collectively more concerned with the development of Desmond Ridder or Jordan Love? So no, it wasn't condescending, passive aggressive and sarcastic. I guess you could say I was "befuddled." Which frankly seems more "passive aggressive, unnecessarily condescending and sarcastic," then me asking how a forum about the PACKERS in a thread that's literally...labeled PACKERS Game thread isn't about any one team? It was a rhetorical question to make a point. Yours...I'm still not sure if you're asking a question or what point you're making. Well, let me explain then. They were playing maybe the best pure rushing team in the NFL(excluding the QB). The best Guard, and two elite run blocking tackles. Bijan Robinson is a "generational," type talent at back...insofar as that term gets thrown around, but a back that comes around every 5-10 years. And yet the Packers had allowed 12 points and had stopped them when they needed to. 1st and Goal on the 1, the Packers held them out. So they faced an elite back who did over half his damage rushing on 4 carries and because I watched the game, I can say it was VERY different than years past. It wasn't massive holes, they were moving the Packers off the point, it was just a great running back...and then a QB who really kept them in the game with his feet. The 4th down rushing TD, the several 3rd/4th down runs where Ridder scrambled. You can be befuddled because I have a different view of what happened? Bottom line, the Packers got stops when they needed to. Particularly in short yardage situations like the sequence in which they Ridder rushes, gets pushed out at the one, they run a play, can't get in, they run 3 more plays, the Packers stop them. 4 players from the 1 yard line vs a team that was "gashing" us all day long and they had to settle for a FG? You can't just read a box score and come away with a feel for how the game went. As when you pointed out the difference in yards and I mentioned the Vikings outgained us when they got the doors blown off by the Packers? The two big PIs. That's two plays the Packers got single coverage, Love put the ball where it needed to be and very easily could have been 75 and 78 yard TDs. But it doesn't go in the box score. There's a flow and a feel to the game, and I don't believe the Packers were getting dominated defensively by the Falcons for the reasons I mentioned above, among a litany of other reasons. They faced a team that...in my first post, I pointed out was an elite running team. The most run heavy team in the NFL and they'd given up, again, 12 points and come up with big stops when they needed them. So I hope this clears up any befuddlement on your behalf as to why I don't think the defense was just getting gashed by the run UNTIL the Packers went to an ultra conservative approach and ran 6 plays from the last part of the 3Q through the 4Q until they got the ball back down 1.

Yeah, I don't think there's a big difference in their responsibilities. I don't think they have a strong side or a weak. It's definitely not like a 3-4. I think they're pretty interchangeable, but I may be wrong. It does feel like when that're playing that cover 2 and they want their MLBers to get those deep drops, Walker is the guy doing it and Campbell is on the back or playing underneath more. That's as much as I can tell, but I don't know. Maybe they do have a strong side backer and Campbell is getting caught in the wash more because he doesn't have as much freedom. I also don't think that Campbell is playing as poorly as Quay did last year(I don't actually know how poorly he's playing as to my eyes, he's struggling, but PFF still gives him pretty good grades the last two years). The gap in athletic ability between the two may make the gap look bigger than it is. In any event, Quay looks incredible and Campbell is not playing on the level he did 2 years ago. I didn't publicly complain about the selection of Walker at 22, but I've never been a fan of using a pick that high on a MLBer because so few are special and you can generally get good production if you have a great line in front of them, but the depth he's getting on his drops, the sideline to sideline plays, the violence at the point, he's taking one of the biggest Year 2 jumps I've seen in a while from a Packer. I'd long held the belief that if you have a great DL, you'll have really good MLBers. Philly has shown this as TJ Edwards, a 4.9 40 guy was outstanding for him. But Walker has been a great pick and makes the Adams trade look that much better now. In fact, looking forward, there's a LBer at UGA who looks like a 3/4 rd pick in Smael Mondon Jr. He took over for Walker. He's 6'3 220. He's not as physical though he's faster and can fill out. But he plays with an edge, he plays the slot, he may be even more fluid. It's way off topic, but Re the draft; I'd still say addressing the OL(Bakh, maybe Myers, even RG, even JRJ who's a FA) and a DL if there's one available early, especially before it becomes a significant need(so you have Clark for 1 more year, someone to take someone who can take the load off there and then replace him). But I'm a convert. Now that I've seen what freak athlete like Walker can do, I'd love to add another athlete who again, can develop a year under Campbell. The size and speed of the defense is so clear. And we're still playing Gary about 1/3rd the snaps and we're without a 1st rd pick in Eric Stokes who's shown he can be a really good boundry CB. Plus, we're weighed down with Barry and I believe Valentine is one of the 5 best DBs and as such, he should be on the field.

No, we really weren't. Of the final 40 plays, the Falcons ran 30 of them, the Packers ran 10...and that includes the 4 in the final 57 seconds. It was so clear the defense got worn down in the 4th quarter. The Packers were coming up with stops when they needed them, the offense became overly conservative, had possession for I think ~3 minutes the 4th quarter and the end of the 3rd. So 6 plays and more like 2:30 until they got the ball back. I'm not putting this loss on the defense facing that rushing attack, I'm putting it on the offense. They had the Falcons on the rope and they stopped swinging. I DON'T think this was the same old defense, I think this was growing pains with Love and...then just the absence of the left side of their OL, Jones. But they've got a 1000 yard back, a running QB and the 6th overall pick in the draft and one of the top RB prospects in years PLUS one of the elite run blocking OLs. And they were still managing to get off the field(save for the 3 4th down plays) until the offense just couldn't get a single 1st down. The Falcons made some nice play calls as well. That naked boot by Ridder...great play. That play was going absolutely nowhere if he gives the ball up on that outsize zone, but on 4th down, the naked boot led to a score. There is a FUNDAMENTAL difference between how this team played, even yesterday and how this team has played in the past, giving up 200 yards before contact or just allowing the OL to re-set the LOS. The worst players on the field on the team defense were probably Nixon, Campbell and probably Ford. But Quay played great, Clark better, Wyatt, Slaton, Savage again. But again, if you're getting regular snaps from Hollins, Brooks, Wooden and Enagbare(and that was one personnel grouping on a 3rd down play)...that's a problem. Hollins is your 6th best Edge. I said before the game, they should activate Ford for this game...but they didn't. An I don't know if that changes much, but there's ZERO doubt Clark, Slaton and Wyatt wore down...maybe a couple 1st downs could have prevented that. And I don't know if the first sentence was a question, but how is it not about being a fan of a team? Do you follow the Falcons all year? Anyway...you can both sides this all you want. I'm gonna look at it from the Packers vantage point.

Dillon definitely ran better. Ran harder. A couple times where he actually could have bounced it outside and he didn't, but given how often he's tried when the hole was there, I'll take that. He was physical. I agree with not banging on the DL for getting gashed. They played well enough most of the game, just wore down because the offense couldn't hold up. Campbell is good at diagnosing, but the gap between he and Quay is now enormous. I think most of that is Quay just getting better, but some of it is certainly Campbell not playing as well. Love has really been protected schematically and by the OL. Even with the Walker/Nijman rotation(Which I also don't get, Walker appears to be the better OT at this point) he had time to throw. Maybe with Jenkins, Bakh, Jones and Watson out, you're limited in the playcalling? And the only nit picking I'd do with Whelen is he's not good at dropping the ball inside the 10-15, but he's also a rookie. Savage looked really good. Along with Jaire and Quay, he had a ball he could have picked. Had two hands on it, but he looks like a different man. Zach Tom is also proving he's an elite OT and probably the future at LT(which means RT should be a priority in the draft, but that's for another day).

Yeah...so what though? It's kinda like we're Wisconsin fans and talking about it from the Packers perspective. I'm not a Falcons fan wondering how the Falcons could get better. I'm a Packers fan who wants to break down how the Packers played, not every other team in the league. And sure a LARGE part of the self inflicted wounds were the constantly short possessions in the 2nd half and specifically the 4th quarter that led to the defense getting "gashed." Do we do this with any other sport? If the Brewers come up with the bases loaded and no outs and we have 3 terrible at bats, do we "both sides," that and say," well, remember, the Cubs had a bad at bat in the 1st and then in the 3rd...

Yes, sub packages would be packages we employ for pass rush situations. That's what I'm saying here; Odd front=Odd numbered front. So the 4 man fronts with 2 DL and 2 OLBers where we often have our DEs playing 3-4 techniques or where the DL would line up. So when I say they're not going to line up as a 2 in an odd front, I'm saying they're not going to play a 2 when we're got 3 DL and our 2 edges. Those would be snaps in which we'd have no NT. Of course there's not going to be a NT playing 100% of the snaps. Nickel comes in, DL comes out, that DL is ALMOST always the NT, he kicks over to DE. They rush 4 unless they bring pressure. The exception being when Za'Darius Smith would come in, rush over the guard and Clark would stay at NT or be allowed to hunt out the matchup he wanted inside. You put Clark/Smith/Gary and line them up over the Center, Guard and OT, now you're getting one on ones or they're forced to slide their protection to help you, and But just last year when you were talking about Slaton playing so little at NT early, he still got more snaps than Clark at NT week 1 and 4 of the first 8 weeks...and then the last month of the season he was the primary NT. Anyway, there's a pretty strong correlation you can see when you line up his best years with his time spent at NT(I did get it backwards, it was 21% last year 16% the year before). But his PFF Grades; 2023-69.2(not sure he's played NT at all this year...he did play better vs Atl. He was lining up over, probably their weakest OL, their rookie from Syracuse). The WHOLE point of moving Clark was the belief that he'd get less double teams, but that's not what has happened. He's gotten just as many, but now since you have a NT playing DE, that first step over the Center is no longer and advantage. 2022-66.4 2021-74.9 2020-73.8 2019-79.9 2018-90.2 2017-87.3 Primarily played NT in '19, '18 and '17. I think the production and the grades line up pretty well with the eye test. The whole point of moving Clark to DE was to get him more one on ones, but that's not happening. https://www.acmepackingcompany.com/2022/11/30/2346773/kenny-clarks-usage-has-been-unusual-in-2022

And 70% of the time the team that wins the turnover battle wins the team. So what? Pretty sure the Vikings out-gained the Packers by quite a bit last year when we were up 40-3 on them before winning 40-17. We had 18 more yards against the Bears last week in a game that was 38-14. What's more...I don't really care. This is a Packers board and we're talking about how the Packers played. We got worn down and played conservatively. One score or series in the 4th quarter and the Falcons have to abandon the run game. That pick 6 right in Jaire's lap, the very same ball that Quay took to the house last week, the ball that hit Douglas in his hands. Yeah, I think we were the better team, we took our foot off the gas in the 4th quarter and the Falcons completed their comeback. I think @Fear The Chorizowas right. There were half a dozen plays where if we just make the play, we win.

As maybe Dillon's biggest critic, I thought he played well. I ALSO thought that Kenny Clark had a really nice game. I don't agree(at all) that the Packers were outplayed all game. Yardage totals don't mean much to me. But, again, you nailed it when you compared this to Rodgers 1st year as a starter. 8 games they were tied(2) or leading(6) in the 4Q. And I still feel like they're holding Love back. I want to see some more plays off script, and eventually connecting on big plays. But so far, Love has looked like a competent QB, but for those of us who've watched him closely, he's also been one who's been very....protected. And that's fine, but we're going to find out exactly how good he is in some of the games vs better defenses.

Yup. I think this is pretty much as accurate of a description as you can give. Just ONE play in any facet of the game and it's a W, especially one earlier that forces them to go to their passing game. Atlanta has Ridder at QB. They have great weapons, but they're one dimensional. You have a chance to force them to play to their weakness, but left them enough room to be able to stick to their strengths. BTW, easy to see how that Roschon Johnson went under the radar last year when he was playing in the same offense as Bijan. My god that dude is electric. I think it was old snapper that said this was similar to Rodgers 1st year as a starter(6 games lost with a 4Q lead, 2 when tied in the 4th). I guess it's just part of growing, but it doesn't make it any less annoying.

What do you think needs to be rebuilt? Uribe-6 years of team control Payamps-3 more years Peguero-6 years Milner-2 years Megill-5 years(maybe 4) Vieira-6 years Wilson-3 years So if you just play it out, you've got Milner and Devin Williams who ONLY have 2 more years of team control left. And the Brewers find elite relievers like my dog finds things to smell. Just open the door and there are 5 relievers falling into their lap(obviously they have to go out and find them, but they're just fine). He will not sign 'them.' He MIGHT could sign Woodruff and that's a stretch IMO. Burnes is gone. Unless Paul Mendard buys the team and Burnes continues to throw well, he'll pitch elsewhere come '25 and I'd guess by '24. Appreciate watching him in a Brewers uniform. IF he'll trade him, that's gonna be an interesting debate. If you could get a pitcher like 2023 Aaron Ashby for him. Someone who has elite stuff, but some warts. But when they're on, they're throwing 99MPH sinkers and they've got secondary pitches that give them the upside of an ace, but of course there's always the risk they could become 2024 Aaron Ashby's. Would you take that or a couple of them or just go through the season? I doubt the Front Office has an answer and I'd bet Attanasio wants to keep both of them. And another really good point that was made by someone else, but if the Brewers make 3 Qualifying offers in 2024, in the 2025 draft, they'd have their own pick, they'd also have a competitive balance pick after the 1st round. That'd be 5 picks in the top ~40 that also give them a huge bonus pool. So MAYBE in retrospect, all the "the Brewers can't afford to let players like that go for a draft pick," is an idea we should be re-thinking. Assuming that they keep Woodruff and Burnes, you're REALLY unlikely to add much offense. The offense will most likely come from within. A full year of Frelick, Turang, Mitchell, Wiemer, then Black, Chourio maybe Quero, Wilken is in AA already, but that's a lot of potential upgrades from within. In a perfect world, Burnes/Woody would have been about 2 years younger so there was more of a crossover, but there's not. That's why I'd like to see them trade them. See how the season plays out. If Philly has a bad post-season, they'd be an obvious team and they have 3 big time power arms in AA. I'd want Painter and I've already said I'd even include Devin Williams in a trade to pry away a pitcher like him, even considering the fact he's coming off TJ(better right before they hit the big leagues than during service time IMO). So I can see both sides. And it'll also depend on how the Brewers post-season goes, but generally, I'd prefer to make a trade in which we get back an elite pitching prospect and then maybe 2-3 lower rated prospects. Guys who are in LowA or whatever, but have one or two nice tools. It's going to be really hard for Arnold to distinguish himself. I know I personally view it as David Stearns ear even now. This is a team Stearns built. The farm system, Stearns. The pitching, Stearns built the infrastructure, the player development, analytics, all Stearns. The draft was just objectively a huge success just a few months later. Our 1st rd pick in AA hitting well. 2nd rd pick has hit well. A high upside prep arm in AZ working, and then just so much young talent in Knoth, Letson, Chambers on the mount and Bitonti and Pratt who could have both went in Rd2 of an extremely deep draft and it wouldn't have been a surprise to anyone. So I'm certainly not anointing him. He has done an outstanding job of building off what he was given. Wade Miley, Contreras, Payamps, Peguero, Canha, Santana, Wilson, Rea, Teheran, Monasterio, trading Urias seems like it was a good decision, but hese are moves around the peripheral. Not the changes to the core he'll have to face one way or another. The real test will come when we see what he does with one of the top farm systems in Baseball and how he transitions from Burnes/Woodruff period to the Chourio, Quero, Frelick, Quero, Gasser, Wilken periods. Even then, until we see any aggressive moves, trading away or trading for talent, it'll still be viewed as Stearns team.

It's all about Jedi mindtricking the Bears until after the '24 draft. "This is not the QB you're looking for...you're looking for the QB from North Carolina...you do not want this QB." Except I actually think Maye is pretty good, so...think of someone else maybe.

Did he? I was of the impression he suffered it in the Hudson Center, but...that'd be even sillier. I don't want to play the "you get paid ___millions of dollars, we don't care how you feel about it, go out there and play card," but...he got paid 92M dollars and I don't care how he feels about turf field, so go out there and play! Seriously, it's a worthwhile discussion to have. I'd bet it's even worse for concussions. Whatever. But does he feel NO obligation without Rodgers here to just...suck it up and play? Just this week he's gushing about the potential of this team and how he's taken Love under his wing. Anyway...Zach Tom was once again just outstanding. I'd still be happy with the Packers going OL/DL with their first 3 picks. And if they're going to make a trade, trade for a Center. Josh Myers is not good. But I'm sure he's better than Royce Newman.

Just...ONE more year please Chicago! If they get Caleb Williams...which is really possible for that team with Carolina's 1st as well, now they're the team with the MVP QB. And while I still think we'd own them because they're just fundamentally inferior people to us, it's already annoying as hell to see a Justin Fields highlight where he completes a 10 yard out to Darrell Mooney spammed all over Twitter. Watching a modern day Archie Manning making awesome looking plays, even on a losing team is more than they deserve. They deserve Mitch Trubisky, Caleb Williams and then...Graham Mertz. Lets hope he has a huge year in the SEC and convinces a team he's a 1st Rd QB. Trubisky did it, no reason Mertz can't(aside from talent, but that's seldom been a priority for Chicago when picking QBs).

There are different types though. There's the Andrew Luck, Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts types and there are the Lamar, Russell Wilson...and I think Fields is in this second group. The first group just lowers their shoulder trying to gain extra yards and the 2nd group seems to be so smooth and avoid those big hits. That is what I'd look at. Caleb Williams is a smooth runner who gets down. Kyler does a good job of getting down. I haven't seen Richardson play much yet, but it sounds like he's lowering a shoulder and trying to run dude's over. Probably because at 6'4 245 and with that just freakish athletic ability, he's been able to do so his whole life. But I definitely agree. Especially now with QBs making 55M a year(effectively fully GTD for injury and play) and by the time Herbert signs and whoever else and then Mahomes gets his extension, it'll be 60M, if you're going to run...GET DOUWN!

I think we lost 6 games in which we led in the 4th quarter and 2 games we were tied in the 4th quarter Rodgers 1st year as a starter. That team reminds me of this one sooo much. I think ATL will prove to be one of the best rushing teams in the NFL this year, but if you put together one drive, if Love makes one or two throws(or is given a couple more opportunities on 1st/2nd down to make another throw or two) this game is the Packers and we don't even get into the Falcons wearing the Packers down. I'm still really excited about this team, but I want to see more put on Love's shoulders. I want to see more than a competent game manager who doesn't turn the ball over and has pretty stats. I wanna see LaFleur keeping his foot on the gas when it's a 2 score game. Not sure that happens in Week 1 without the Walker Pick6. Also not sure if that's fair to ask of Love without Jones, Watson and Jenkins, but until we see that we still don't really KNOW what Love's really capable of.