The re-build of the Packers should have begun at the end of last season, but there is absolutely no excuse not to go ALL IN on the re-build beginning today, November 7, 2022. What does a re-build entail?
Team President; Nothing demonstrates the GB way of doing business more than allowing a Team President/CEO who has been in charge of the organization for 11 straight non-Super Bowl appearance seasons to remain in place for a full 3 years after announcing his retirement, but here we are. Murph will be hanging around until the summer of 2025.
If the Board of Directors takes its duties seriously, it will NOT allow Murph to hand-pick his successor. In reality, however, the successor is likely to be promoted from within the most insular, incestuous, good-old-boy management team in the business. The sooner this announcement is made the better.
General Manager: Gute played the good soldier and kept his mouth shut while his boss drove the roster into the ground between 2015-2017 (hat is while Ted was medically incapable of performing his duties). Murph rewarded Gute for not pointing out Murph’s own managerial malpractice in allowing Ted to remain as GM long past his sell by date by promoting him to succeed Ted.
Gute signed a slew of free agents in 18 & 19 to re-build a shitty roster and many were deceived into thinking he would deviate from his mentor’s draft and develop at all costs approach to roster-building. They were wrong. Gute is mostly Ted without Ted’s early-tenure drafting acumen.
There is no way, in the next 2 seasons, Gute can transform his roster that (a) lacks talent, (b) is way too expensive, and (c) is screwed at the most important position in the game QB. I mean what team would not want to feature a $200M prima donna who is approaching 40 and a 2020 1st and 4th round (Gute) pick who will either never play meaningful snaps in GB or will be forced into action 4 years after his selection with a watered down, talent-deficient roster, right?
Gute is already dead man walking, though Packer management and its apologists among the faithful will continue to deny this reality until the last possible moment (Murph's retirement) in much the same way they refused to accept the Rodgers’ era was over after last season. Gute is here until 2025 and sadly will not be doing what he should be doing, building the roster with an eye on the future rather than trying to seriously compete in 2023 or 2024.
I hope and pray that the next team President understands football sufficiently to realize he should stay the F out of personnel decisions and is willing to hire the best GM candidate possible the way Bob Harlan did with Ron Wolf.
I fear that Pack will do what it has done throughout this century by staying in-house and promoting the most promising yes man inside 1265 Lombardi.
Coaching; MLF just signed an extension and he ain't going nowhere until after the 2025 season (when Murph finally retires) at the earliest. However, just because MLF will be here for at least 3 mores seasons does not mean he has to stick with the status quo.
In fact, adversity can lead to growth and there is no reason that MLF can't take the opportunity to re-charge his coaching staff as soon as this crappy 2022 comes to an end. For instance, is there anyone other than Joe and his close family members who think Barry shouldn't be canned?
2022 Roster; Get rid of Sammy Watkins right now, today. Play Toure, Winfree, Fulgham, some young nobody on another team’s practice squad even Amari Rodgers, but for God sake get rid of Gute’s big offseason signing to replace Davante Adams. Watkins is a symbol of all that is wrong with the team right now – old, bad, and no hope for the future.
Beyond Watkins, give as many young players (Slaton/Wyatt over Lowry, Yosh/Tom at LT over Bakh, Hill at RB, etc.) a chance to play as possible. And do it now. Not starting in week 17. Now. And yes, that includes #10 at QB.
2022 Post-Season; The team has no cap space and is going nowhere in 2023 or 2024 so it is time to cut bait with Bakh, Aaron Jones and any other expensive vet given the cap realities. Let Crosby, J. Reed, Lowry, Lazard, Cobb, Tonyan, Lewis, and E. Jenkins all walk in free agence. Sign no free agents who count against the compensatory draft pick formula and accumulate as many picks as possible. Trade away any assets who won’t be around the next time the team might become viable in 202_?
Finally trade, trade, trade Aaron Rodgers. Eat his salary for 2023 and take the cap hit, but get whatever you can for him and move on. Clinging to the ridiculous notion that 40 year-old Aaron Rodgers will lead the Pack to the promised land in 2023 destroys whatever credibility the FRONT OFFICE retains.
The next 2-3 years promise to be a real shit-show whether the Packers accept their fate and go all in on the re-build or not. Denying that a re-build needs to begin immediately will only extend the pain.
Sakly, we all know that a re-build ain’t likely happening any time soon because neither Murph nor Gute is willing to admit where the team currently stands nor are they capable of starting, much less completing, such a re-build.
Nonetheless, only the biggest kool aid drinkers can deny that the (too long delayed) re-build should not start today rather than at the end of the season or after Rodgers leaves or after we all get done celebrating Murph's retirement in the summer of 2025.
