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As pissed as I am about the current situation and at Rodgers, I will say that he absolutely carried this organization on his back from 2012-2018.   A lot of guys had cushy jobs and got nice contracts thanks to Rodgers covering up a lot of incompetence and mediocrity around him.  And make no mistake, if you want proof of the awfulness around him, just go back and start re-watching the stretches of games in 2013 and 2017 when he wasn't there to cover everything up.

Now, maybe the most disappointing timing of all this, is that 2020 showed us that LaFleur clearly has a system that Rodgers can flourish in and that he actually does have SOME help around him, more than he did from 2012-2019.  This was the best overall Packers' team I've seen since 2011 and for Rodgers to bail on what they built really really sucks.  The 2020 team wasn't perfect, certainly the special teams were horrendous, but the defense was at least competitive and the running game was probably the best we've seen since Ahman Green was in his prime. 

I think Rodgers doing so much to carry this team for many years, and then being just gut wrenchingly close to winning that Tampa game just sort of put him on edge to "snap".  Unfortunately, I think the Pack's upper management underestimated just how on edge Rodgers was after another killer loss and somehow they really alienated him to the point of almost no return.

I hope that somehow cooler heads will prevail and they can figure this out by July, but from everything you hear over the past 48 hours, it looks like it's better than a 50% chance that Rodgers will never play for the Packers again.  Truth be told, I think the odds are more like 90% that he never suits up for the Pack knowing his competitive personality and how strong he can hold a grudge towards others. 

@Goalline posted:

Gute has lost his damn mind on this. Murphy will step in if he tries to get rid of Arod. Too much money involved with future advertising and promotional deals.

One of ARod's "beefs" was that the Packers never told him they were drafting a QB and they were moving up, in the 1st Round, to do it. Murphy had to approve of Gute moving forward with the Love pick, so Murphy probably won't step in on anything to do with the Rodgers' debacle.

@Tschmack posted:

Do you think for a second Rodgers ego will allow him to walk away?  This isn’t like Megatron or Andrew Luck.  This is the MVP of the league.  He won’t be viewed as a hero.  He’ll be branded a quitter and in the end he will piss off a lot more people than win them over in the court of public opinion.

The NFL isn’t some charity organization and it’s about as cutthroat as it gets.  Players are commodities.  The players Union is practically in collusion with the owners to extract as much money as humanly possible out of the game despite not addressing or fixing simple issues that would benefit players and teams collectively.   How does that impact Rodgers?  Other than making a shit ton for money, he’s very limited in terms of options that actually benefit him other than money.

The Packers know this, and they will say all the right things but in the end they hold most of the cards.  Rodgers will either have to make peace and be the good soldier again or escalate things and basically force the Packers to trade him.   

I think this is an untenable situation and expect GB to deal him to the highest bidder after June 1.  That should help GB free up enough cap space to extend Davante and Jaire.

Completely agree with the take above regarding how the NFL is run and how players are nothing more than commodities.

That said, and while I also concur and seriously doubt that Rodgers will retire, the notion that the only or even primary outcomes should he retire and not return to GB in 2021 are that "He'll be branded a quitter" and "piss off a lot more people than win them over" is a delusion that not even Murph or Gutey cling to at this point -- hence their repeated public pronouncements about not being idiots and that they are not trading Aaron Rodgers.

Solely blaming Rodgers' "diva" persona and "passive aggressive" nature for the entire kerfuffle is undoubtedly a popular take among the more "loyal" portions of the fan base.

However, for many (less knowledgeable, less insular, whatever adjective one wants to ascribe here) Packer fans and certainly for much of the NFL community at large the Packers decision to use 1st and 4th round 2020 picks on Jordan Love after coming off an NFC Championship game defeat followed by Rodgers winning the MVP and now the team and Rodgers being in open conflict reflects poorly not just on Aaron Rodgers but also on the Green Bay Packers.

To take but one example, Gutey just announced that he could have handled "communications" with Rodgers better over the Love selection. What a silly and pathetically tone deaf statement.

How exactly would that communication have gone? Hey Aaron, this is Gute, I know we never talk about anything and especially roster decisions but I just wanted to give you a heads up I am not going to get any help for the team next season in rounds 1 & 4 so I can take your successor?

Only Gutey's mom, his pre-adolescent children, or the lapdog wing of fan base would believe such drivel.

Moreover, if the Packers do as the many of the most ardent management backers are demanding and go ahead and trade the disloyal Rodgers, the Murphy "we aren't idiots" and Gutey "we aren't trading Rodgers" clips and quotes will be shown and seen over and over again -- not among the "loyalists" of course but certainly by everyone else.

The reality is that Gutey concluded that Rodgers was in decline, decided it was time to move on from him after the 2019 season, and thus selected Jordan Love to be the heir apparent after the 2021 season. Gutey and the Packers must now live with the ramifications of that decision -- just like Rodgers must live with realities of his contract and the power dynamics between NFL teams and players.

While Rodgers has little "hard" power, he can and has used his "soft' power to back Gutey & Murph into making some uncomfortable choices, such as: (i) giving him guaranteed $ beyond 2021 in order to create salary cap space -- thus pushing the beginning of the Love era back or rendering it over before it began (and making Gutey look like a fool for wasting picks on him) (ii) trading him thus making all the contract accelerations, retaining of Aaron Jones, etc. look like foolish management decisions because the team will not be SB contenders for the next couple of years, or (iii) having an obviously disgruntled reigning MVP become the entire topic of discussion for Rodgers' final season in GB.   

Sadly, like keeping McCarthy and Dom around well past their usefulness, forcing MLF to keep Pettine on as DC, and allowing Ted Thompson to continue as GM when he was medically unfit to carry out his duties, the end of the Rodgers' era has become yet another Packer front office shit show.

None of the above would matter if the Packers were getting to and winning Super Bowls. Alas, it has been over a decade since the last appearance.

We all know things move a bit slower in the Green Bay, but perhaps, just maybe, it is time for Mark Murphy to get his gold watch and for someone else to take charge of the organization.

Last edited by SteveLuke

Great post! Only thing I disagree with is that Gutey saw AR in decline. Heard Mike Lombardi say that AR "fought" LaFleur's offense initially because he did not want to turn his back to the defense (had always faced the defense on fakes to see everything) .... McGinn reported  when Love was drafted that the organization thought AR would continue to"fight against the offense turning more run-oriented". Again it was a power struggle between the 2.... the only problem is that AR fooled them and embraced and elevated the offense last year, making the Packers look foolish for drafting Love.

All indications are the organization views Love as having Mahomes-like potential.  Rodgers MVP play last year hardly renders the pick a mistake.

Management certainly could have done a better job coddling their superstar and massaging his fragile ego but the team has to make decisions it views as best for the future. Really surprised AR has handled this as poorly as he has given how smart he is and his experience of seeing his predecessor go through the same thing.

I know it is the organization that thinks this but;

1) Even though Mahones sat his first year every indication out of KC camp was that he turned heads in practice from day 1

2) Did anyone else in the NFL view Love as a First round talent?

3) You heard nothing positive come out of camp / practice regarding Love.

4) When was the last time that a First Round draft choice was not active for any games in their first season?

If you think the Love selection had any impact on this situation then you’re buying into the narrative that Rodgers camp has been feeding the media over the last year. The Love selection just gave them a very obvious lever to pull with the media. It reduced his bargaining power with the team but increased his public narrative control. This issue would have popped up regardless of the Love selection…if they had picked Patrick Queen the narrative would be SO MANY DEFENSIVE PLAYERS AND NO OFFENSE! RODGERS JUST WANTS ANOTHER WR!

It boils down to “all I want is just a commitment, is that too much to ask” he says acting like a long suffering housewife stuck in a bad marriage who’s husband just cheated on her with younger woman. I’m cool with Rodgers squeezing every cent out of the NFL, players get screwed a million ways during and after their careers, but he’s not a victim. He’s already squeezed $240M out of GB and stands to squeeze another $70M when it’s all said and done. The idea that I should feel sorry for Rodgers when he’s been fairly compensated for his work is absurd. Russell Wilson is playing the same game in Seattle, Tom Brady played it in NE. They’re manipulating the media to make them look like the victim so that they can dictate their own fate. Not a bad thing necessarily, but I take issue with the narrative that GB is doing anything wrong. Certainly they’ve handled the media pressure poorly, but real football guys don’t handle the media well (Belichick) and polished media guys don’t handle the football well.

Last edited by Grave Digger

So what?  This isn't real life.  Sports business.  Quit equating us peasant's reality with sports Hollywood.

I don't give a shit about Rodger's peccadilloes, I care about his talent to get to a Super Bowl.  It's not the Rodgers Bowl.

Last edited by Henry
@FLPACKER posted:

I know it is the organization that thinks this but;

2) Did anyone else in the NFL view Love as a First round talent?

3) You heard nothing positive come out of camp / practice regarding Love.

4) When was the last time that a First Round draft choice was not active for any games in their first season?

I read that he would have been rated equal to or higher than all QB’s this year except Lawrence,

perhaps we heard nothing about him precisely because the FO was aware of Rodgers displeasure and didn’t want to create more.

A QB playing behind the best in the game and needing to develop - I didn’t expect him to surpass Boyle as #2. Certainly QB is different than other positions.

@Henry posted:

So what?  This isn't real life.  Sports business.  Quit equating us peasant's reality with sports Hollywood.

I don't give a shit about Rodger's peccadilloes, I care about his talent to get to a Super Bowl.

If you want to be manipulated by the Rodgers victim narrative that’s fine. I don’t know what Rodgers demands are, but GB isn’t wrong for protecting the team by negotiating. Rodgers doesn’t want what’s best for the organization, he wants fair market value for his skill level. GB also isn’t wrong for procuring players to make their roster viable long term whether that suits Rodgers or not.

His physical talents are off the charts.  He was knocked for his decision making.  So you have numbers vs. reality as far as his draft status.  Pretty sure it depends on the GM.

The guy is Kellen Mond, who was drafted in the 3rd round and played against better talent.  I'm sure Love wouldn't make it out of the beginning of second round at worst.

Last edited by Henry
@FLPACKER posted:

I know it is the organization that thinks this but;

1) Even though Mahones sat his first year every indication out of KC camp was that he turned heads in practice from day 1

Regarding 1 above, and then KC confirmed that "indication" by trading a QB who led the team to the playoffs in Alex Smith to Washington right after Mahomes' rookie year.

If as some Packer fans are apparently contending, the Packer truly believe Love has "Mahomes-like" potential, one would think Gutey would be actively working the phones to get the best deal possible for Rodgers so he could unleash his own "Mahomes-like" QB on the rest of the NFL ASAP just like KC did with Smith.

Then again, maybe Love will just need some more time as a backup to develop his "Mahomes-like" ability.

Last edited by SteveLuke

I read that he would have been rated equal to or higher than all QB’s this year except Lawrence,



If that were true then the Jets should have been willing to trade the #2 pick to the Packers for Love? If that were the case the Packers would have been foolish not to do it, told AR they were doing it & thus give him the long-term commitment that he wanted.

@Henry posted:

His physical talents are off the charts.  He was knocked for his decision making.  So you have numbers vs. reality as far as his draft status.  Pretty sure it depends on the GM.

The guy is Kellen Mond, who was drafted in the 3rd round and played against better talent.  I'm sure Love wouldn't make it out of the beginning of second round at worst.

Disagree. Colts were poised to take him in first round before us.

If you want to be manipulated by the Rodgers victim narrative that’s fine. I don’t know what Rodgers demands are, but GB isn’t wrong for protecting the team by negotiating. Rodgers doesn’t want what’s best for the organization, he wants fair market value for his skill level. GB also isn’t wrong for procuring players to make their roster viable long term whether that suits Rodgers or not.

Yes, manipulated like the homer villain narrative being created.  It isn't even as much about Rodgers as it is the stupidity of the FO, which Brandt delicately acknowledged.

Everybody trusts Brandt right?  When he says that's just the way it has to be that sounds pretty legit to me.

Considering the absolute full destruction of this situation the FO clowns "kinda maybe" fucked it up big time.  So that cavalcade of inexperienced stupid clowns needs to own their share.   

Leave the "lunchpail" bullshit mentality at the door.  This is what sports are now.  These are a bunch of arrogant, pampered shits from cradle to grave and this culture celebrates them more than common people doing everything they can to better society.

Suck it up. 

Last edited by Henry

THE PACKERS ARE NEVER EVER IN THIS UNIVERSE OR OTHER TRADE JORDAN LOVE WITHOUT HIM TAKING ONE SNAP IN PRACTICE, PRESEASON, OR REGULAR SEASON.  RIDICULOUS.  WHY WOULD ANYBODY EVEN INQUIRE - THEY TRADED UP TO GET HIM.  He is the future, whether he is better than a sack of potatoes is a different discussion.

@Henry posted:

Yes, manipulated like the homer villain narrative being created.  It isn't even as much about Rodgers as it is the stupidity of the FO, which Brandt delicately acknowledged.

Everybody trusts Brandt right?  When he says that's just the way it has to be that sounds pretty legit to me.

Considering the absolute full destruction of this situation the FO clowns "kinda maybe" fucked it up big time.  So that cavalcade of inexperienced stupid clowns needs to own their share.   

Leave the "lunchpail" bullshit mentality at the door.  This is what sports are now.  These are a bunch of arrogant, pampered shits from cradle to grave and this culture celebrates them more than common people doing everything they can to better society.

Suck it up.

Yeah I agree with Brandt, they haven’t stroked Rodgers ego correctly or managed the relationship like they should. That’s not a giant fuck up though or indication of overall incompetence, money talks and bullshit walks. They could drafted him a receiver, trade for Julio Jones, and moved training camp to Chico, CA just to make him happy and he would STILL be pissed about his contract. Brandt also said he doesn’t buy into the narrative that the FO “hasn’t done enough to get him help”.

Heres the reality: if Rodgers final 2 years were fully guaranteed when he signed the contract there would be no issue right now. You would be sucking off the FO as brilliant for picking the next great GBP QB because there would be no narrative being fed to the media from Rodgers side that the Love pick was insulting or that he was a bad pick.

Last edited by Grave Digger

Yeah I agree with Brandt, they haven’t stroked Rodgers ego correctly or managed the relationship like they should. That’s not a giant fuck up though or indication of overall incompetence, money talks and bullshit walks. They could drafted him a receiver, trade for Julio Jones, and moved training camp to Chico, CA just to make him happy and he would STILL be pissed about his contract. Brandt also said he doesn’t buy into the narrative that the FO “hasn’t done enough to get him help”.

Except nobody really knows what all the sticking points are.  Rodgers pissing on the Packers offer likely has more to do with perceived or otherwise slight.  That is on the FO whether we like it or not.

I, personally, wish they would trade Rodgers asap because nothing good will come of all of this and it's another year pissed away.  Just move on to the next chapter and cross your fingers for all that "potential" to be realized.

Last edited by Henry

Heres the reality: if Rodgers final 2 years were fully guaranteed when he signed the contract there would be no issue right now. You would be sucking off the FO as brilliant for picking the next great GBP QB because there would be no narrative being fed to the media from Rodgers side that the Love pick was insulting or that he was a bad pick.

That isn't the reality.  You Sallys sure are touchy.

I guess reality pissing in your corn flakes will do that.

Last edited by Henry

This is where the lack of independent (or at least not sycophantic to team management) local media would be helpful. It's a problem for important things in the world too that there is a decline in local beat reporters that can reveal corruption or bad behavior. Football doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, but it's the same problem.

I know the pandemic complicated things, but surely some local reporters have talked to other team members about how Love has looked in practice. The guy couldn't beat out Tim Boyle to be the backup at the end of the year. Why was that? Corey Linsley, Tim Boyle, Lane Taylor, Jamaal Williams, Tavon Austin, etc. all played for the team last year and have departed. How about talking to them and getting at least some background information? All we see are pictures of Jordan Love talking 3 or 5 step drops on an empty field and throwing to a target.

The thing that concerns me is that there have been no leaks or discussion of anyone approaching Green Bay about a trade for Love. Zero. I have read somewhere that they'd be lucky to get a third-round pick for him. Who knows what's true ?

The difference for me when they moved onto Rodgers from Favre (besides Favre's retirement, obviously) is that I knew Rodgers was going to be at least competent when he came into that Dallas game in 2007 on national TV when Favre got hurt and looked BETTER than Favre did. You couldn't have predicted he'd be a future superstar, but he looked really good. I would bet that the first time Mahomes lead a series in practice for the Chiefs, the other players knew he was going to be good. I've heard nothing like that about Love. That's not a good sign regardless of whose side you are on in this dispute. It's in everyone's selfish interests that he's good (even AR since they'd get more for Love in a trade or be more likely to agree to trade AR if they were confident in Love).

Last edited by MichiganPacker2

Im not upset, I think it’s fascinating how well Rodgers has played this. He certainly learned well from the Favre situation. Favre made GBP the victim and did almost nothing to shift the narrative beyond bitching about not acquiring Randy Moss. Rodgers likability is soaring and GBP’s is nosediving. I would guess there are more Green Bay Rodgers fans than Green Bay Packers fans right now.

Last edited by Grave Digger
@SteveLuke posted:

Regarding 1 above, and then KC confirmed that "indication" by trading a QB who led the team to the playoffs in Alex Smith to Washington right after Mahomes' rookie year.

If as some Packer fans are apparently contending, the Packer truly believe Love has "Mahomes-like" potential, one would think Gutey would be actively working the phones to get the best deal possible for Rodgers so he could unleash his own "Mahomes-like" QB on the rest of the NFL ASAP just like KC did with Smith.

Then again, maybe Love will just need some more time as a backup to develop his "Mahomes-like" ability.

If the Packers were broadcasting "Love is the next Mahomes" that would greatly decrease their leverage in trading Rodgers - never appear too eager when making any type of deal.

Interesting piece from Charles Robinson.

The reigning league MVP remains adamant that he won’t return to the team under the current stewardship of general manager Brian Gutekunst, a source in Rodgers’ camp said, and that he’s willing to weigh hardline options at his disposal — from refusing to show up for offseason activities to holding out of training camp and possibly retirement.

Don't see the organization firing Gutey to pacify AR (nor should they).

It was a ballsy move, I’ll give you that.  In the end, maybe he will get what he wants. But the team has a lot more options than him.

Increase or improve his likability?  You lost me there.  

Rodgers comes across as very arrogant and fake.   He also likes to indulge and remind just about everyone how smart he is and how stupid everyone else is.  Playing the victim card is the least of his concerns when it comes to how he is perceived and viewed.

Brent had that magical “aw shucks” relatable common man act down to an art form.  Rodgers is the guy that sips his beer while Bak pounds about 3 of them and waves him on.  

If anything else, this latest drama queen act by Rodgers just cemented his legacy and reinforced what the haters have been saying all along.  Those on the fence have likely moved in that direction as well.

Last edited by Tschmack
@mr21mr21 posted:

If the Packers were broadcasting "Love is the next Mahomes" that would greatly decrease their leverage in trading Rodgers - never appear too eager when making any type of deal.

Well apparently, according to one poster, "All indications are the organization views Love as having Mahomes-like potential," so apparently the Packers, if not broadcasting, are letting it be known (to at least some Packer fans) that they view Love as having "Mahomes-like" potential.

I mean, if that message is getting out about how great the Pack thinks Love is going to be to fans on a message board surely it is known within league circles.

If the Packers are convinced of Love's "Mahomes-like" abilities and given that Rodgers' is coming off an MVP season and his trade value will never be higher, why would Gutey not make the trade?

Eh, I’m thinking trade him for a boatload of 2022 picks. To an AFC team. We have been down this road before. It is somewhat stinking like the Favre situation. Let’s see what we have in Love, fortify everything around him this year and next.

@michiganjoe posted:

Interesting piece from Charles Robinson.

The reigning league MVP remains adamant that he won’t return to the team under the current stewardship of general manager Brian Gutekunst, a source in Rodgers’ camp said, and that he’s willing to weigh hardline options at his disposal — from refusing to show up for offseason activities to holding out of training camp and possibly retirement.

Don't see the organization firing Gutey to pacify AR (nor should they).

If the part about Rodgers' wanting a commitment for only two more years and the Packers were adamantly opposed to that, then Rodgers' position is a lot more justified. I thought perhaps he wanted them to commit for 4-5 more years and the Packers not wanting to do that would have been entirely logical. If the Packers would have needed only to commit to 2 more years (and only one more than they are now), they still get to evaluate Jordan Love in Year 4 (2023) before having to make a big contract commitment to him. What this really says (if true) is that the Packers front office is committed to moving on from Rodgers after this season no matter what happens. There is no superstar QB (or any player for that matter) that wouldn't get pissed about the Packers' response to this proposal from Rodgers. The guy just won an MVP and you won't commit beyond another 12 months? The Packers can't even argue that they need to prepare for the future and bring in a new QB to groom because of Rodgers' age. Their guy is already on the roster and if Rodgers gets hurt, they can play JLove anyway and develop him.

Rodgers’ response, according to the source, was he presented the Packers with an opportunity to re-commit to him after the season with a new contract (with new guaranteed money) that would ultimately cement Green Bay’s “all-in” embrace of him as the starting quarterback for at least the next two seasons. The source said the Packers were not initially willing to consider anything beyond a modest restructure of Rodgers’ contract that would have done little more than guarantee the 2021 season.

Murphy just posted a rather anodyne statement on packers.com (as part of his weekly answering questions schstick):

https://www.packers.com/news/m...n-eventful-draft-day

The first day of the NFL Draft is typically a very busy day for all NFL teams, with plenty of newsworthy events. For the Packers, though, Thursday was definitely a day filled with more intrigue than usual. The day started with the report that Aaron Rodgers is upset with the Packers and doesn't want to return to the team. When a report like that involves the reigning MVP, it is obviously a huge story, and it dominated the sports news for most of the day. This is an issue that we have been working on for several months. Brian Gutekunst, Matt LaFleur and I have flown out on a number of occasions to meet with Aaron. We are very much aware of Aaron's concerns and have been working with him (and his agent Dave Dunn) to resolve them. We remain committed to Aaron in 2021 and beyond. He is not only a tremendously talented player, but has developed into a true leader for us. The relationship that Aaron has forged with Matt and the other offensive coaches has propelled us to the brink of the Super Bowl in two straight years. We look forward to competing for another Super Bowl championship with Aaron as our leader.

Sigh.

This is where the lack of independent (or at least not sycophantic to team management) local media would be helpful.

OMG  yes. Yes. And more yes.

The Wisconsin-Packer press dynamic is too often akin to that of college towns where uttering a negative word about the local university or its team gets you a one-way ticket out of Lincoln or Baton Rouge. (I mean does anyone not know by now that several reporters were openly discussing Ted's failing health and inability to perform essential functions of his job years before he was let go --- but were too cowed to report anything about it?)

The Packers control of the messaging through the compliant local press has mostly served the Pack's interests well. The problem is, when you get used to dealing with sycophants and the national boys come in and point out your shit really does stink you get a Gutey and Murphy-like deer in the headlights genuine shock that you are being called to account.

To take but one example, Jason Wilde who has reported on the Packers for everything from the Wisconsin State Journal to ESPN and The Athletic for over 20 years has been biting his tongue (on his radio show) for well over a year trying not to disclose too many details about all he knows regarding the deep discord between Gutey & Rodgers. (Hints about Gutey trading for Kizer, wanting to select Drew Lock, other possible replacements for #12 since Gutey took over, etc).

This week, he lost his composure and outright called Gutey a liar over and over again (for saying the Pack had not received any trade inquiries about Rodgers). The first time he said it was when he was initially informed (while being interviewed on the air) about the Schefter tweet regarding Rodgers and did not have time to check himself. Thereafter, he took the calculated and unprecedented for the market step of repeatedly referencing how Gutey lied to the press on Monday. Shocking development considering his colleague Demovsky was still peddling tripe about how reports concerning teams contacting the Pack about trades was fake news.

As with the management and coaching incompetence (medical and professional) that marked the end of the Ted, Mac, and Dom era, the truth will eventually come out regarding the end of the Rodgers' era in Green Bay.

And when it does come out, the "truth" will not only feature plenty of comments, statements, examples, etc. about how Rodgers is difficult, passive aggressive, an egomaniac, etc., but also a lot of "truth" about how the Pack's in-bred organization helped contribute to all those Super Bowl appearances while Aaron was the QB from 2011-202_?

Murphy should have been smart enough to recognize what was coming and either (a) done what it takes to get Rodgers back in the fold or (b) made the divorce as amicable as possible.

He failed.

Last edited by SteveLuke

I look at the upcoming season this way.

Rodgers, to make Gunt look like the chump he is, goes on another MVP tear and maybe even wins Super Bowl in spite of Gunt's failure to address massive holes.  Then he says

Or he mails it in and does whatever he wants and then says

Last edited by Henry
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