Do you Still Think Mike McCarthy was a bad hire for Green Bay? (1 Viewer)

[Man in the yellow hat]

I know that when McCarthy was hired in Green Bay, many people did not understand it, and flat out that it was a bad hire. This was among fans of the team and non-fans alike. So, with a season under his belt, did your opinion change?

He took one of the youngest teams in the league, and kept them in the playoff hunt until week 16. He went 8-8 with a team that went 4-12 the season before. Many rookies contributed on the offensive side of the ball.

This team ranked 9th in total offense, after finishing 18th last season.

This team ranked 12th in total defense, after finishing 7th last season.

Is Green Bay better off today with McCarthy than they were a year ago?

 

[Slinger]

Is Green Bay better off today with McCarthy than they were a year ago?

This is like Otis starting a thread asking everyone if Frank Gore was a good pick for the 2006 season.

 

[Hamstring]

Favre is gone. The skill positions are so old they will be gone and the offense will falter even more. Not saying he made them worse, just nothing special. The D started to look a lot better. Sherman actually did well there, better than most.

 

[Man in the yellow hat]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

 

[Hamstring]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

 

[Man in the yellow hat]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Not to nitpick, but I'm not sure this is a reflection on McCarthy, which is where I was going with this. And Green will be resigned.

 

[parasaurolophus]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

 

[5Rings]

I'm impressed.

I thought it was the worst coaching hire of the offseason. It seemed to me that in NO, he had all the talent in the world but could never get them to consistently perform up to the level of talent there. In SF I hated him, and thought he was awful....but he didn't have the horses to work with here.

I was honestly thrilled to see him leave and Norv take over....looks like it worked out for both parties.

Of course...he did get to play the weaksisters DET and MIN 4 times, and their schedule was pretty soft overall. We'll see how he does next year.

As of right now, I'll say I was wrong about his hire being a huge mistake.

 

[onionsack]

I know that when McCarthy was hired in Green Bay, many people did not understand it, and flat out that it was a bad hire. This was among fans of the team and non-fans alike. So, with a season under his belt, did your opinion change?

He took one of the youngest teams in the league, and kept them in the playoff hunt until week 16. He went 8-8 with a team that went 4-12 the season before. Many rookies contributed on the offensive side of the ball.

This team ranked 9th in total offense, after finishing 18th last season.

This team ranked 12th in total defense, after finishing 7th last season.

Is Green Bay better off today with McCarthy than they were a year ago?

To suggest that the Packers had the 7th best defense in the league in 05 is just ludicrous. We gave up a ton of points, forced precious few turnovers (21 total on the year :X ), and in just about every facet of the game other than yds/game (where I'm assuming this rank of #7 comes from) we flat out stunk on D. Please use this site to provide a far more accurate assessment of team D. (#22 by their reckoning, which was even higher than I thought would be)

 

[Man in the yellow hat]

I know that when McCarthy was hired in Green Bay, many people did not understand it, and flat out that it was a bad hire. This was among fans of the team and non-fans alike. So, with a season under his belt, did your opinion change?

He took one of the youngest teams in the league, and kept them in the playoff hunt until week 16. He went 8-8 with a team that went 4-12 the season before. Many rookies contributed on the offensive side of the ball.

This team ranked 9th in total offense, after finishing 18th last season.

This team ranked 12th in total defense, after finishing 7th last season.

Is Green Bay better off today with McCarthy than they were a year ago?

To suggest that the Packers had the 7th best defense in the league in 05 is just ludicrous. We gave up a ton of points, forced precious few turnovers (21 total on the year ), and in just about every facet of the game other than yds/game (where I'm assuming this rank of #7 comes from) we flat out stunk on D. Please use this site to provide a far more accurate assessment of team D. (#22 by their reckoning, which was even higher than I thought would be)

Super fantastic. I was simply using NFL.com's total defense stats. That's all. I wasn't 'suggesting' anything, just pointing out the total D ranking.

 

[Slinger]

I will say that the Packers are A LOT better right now than they were a year ago. They still have a ways to go, but I like where they are heading.

 

[Hamstring]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Not to nitpick, but I'm not sure this is a reflection on McCarthy, which is where I was going with this. And Green will be resigned.

It will be when his offense sucks ### next year. Worse than normal bad.

 

[Kleck.]

I think McCarthy did a decent job as a rookie HC. There were a few close games that slipped away, some play calling I questioned and getting out coached at times too. Because of the young talent, inexperience of many players and new systems being brought in, I’m not sure I can fully blame McCarthy for some of those mistakes. In fact, I think him and his staff did a great job getting those rookies and inexperienced players ready to play. For how much those rookies were depended on, I’m happy about an 8-8 season. A lot to learn as you go along and I saw a lot of improvement from the defense. However, that offense does need improvement, especially in the red zone, and McCarthy and his staff have a lot of work to do this off-season. Who McCarthy finds to replace Jagodzinski, and how they go about finding ways to improve those offensive areas will be a huge. Next year will be the year I really judge McCarthy, and when/if Favre retires will be an even bigger test of how good a coach he really is.

Overall, not bad, slightly better than I expected, but still a long way to go before I see this team being a legit NFC contender. I’m much happier with Thompson/McCarthy than I would be had they kept Sherman.

 

[BoulderBob]

I think McCarthy did a decent job as a rookie HC. There were a few close games that slipped away, some play calling I questioned and getting out coached at times too. Because of the young talent, inexperience of many players and new systems being brought in, I’m not sure I can fully blame McCarthy for some of those mistakes. In fact, I think him and his staff did a great job getting those rookies and inexperienced players ready to play. For how much those rookies were depended on, I’m happy about an 8-8 season. A lot to learn as you go along and I saw a lot of improvement from the defense. However, that offense does need improvement, especially in the red zone, and McCarthy and his staff have a lot of work to do this off-season. Who McCarthy finds to replace Jagodzinski, and how they go about finding ways to improve those offensive areas will be a huge. Next year will be the year I really judge McCarthy, and when/if Favre retires will be an even bigger test of how good a coach he really is.Overall, not bad, slightly better than I expected, but still a long way to go before I see this team being a legit NFC contender. I’m much happier with Thompson/McCarthy than I would be had they kept Sherman.

I wouldn't be surprised if we see him on the chopping block due to the questionable future of the offense, but he did a fine job this season.

 

[Sabertooth]

Favre is gone. The skill positions are so old they will be gone and the offense will falter even more. Not saying he made them worse, just nothing special. The D started to look a lot better. Sherman actually did well there, better than most.

Favre is gone? Hadn't heard that?Skill positions are old???? Ok, Favre is old as is Williams Henderson. Ahman Green is just now 30 and may or may not be back. Vernand Morency is like 26. Driver is not an old wideout by any means. Jennings was a rookie last season. Bubba appears to have played his last game as a Packer.

 

[Hamstring]

Favre is gone. The skill positions are so old they will be gone and the offense will falter even more. Not saying he made them worse, just nothing special. The D started to look a lot better. Sherman actually did well there, better than most.

Favre is gone? Hadn't heard that?Skill positions are old???? Ok, Favre is old as is Williams Henderson. Ahman Green is just now 30 and may or may not be back. Vernand Morency is like 26. Driver is not an old wideout by any means. Jennings was a rookie last season. Bubba appears to have played his last game as a Packer.

You're right Favre is playing another 10 years. Driver is 9 year vet? Not young and not sure if he's really any good or just Favre's fave. Bubba sucks, Green is done. By your count, they need a rb a decent tight end a decent qb. That's a lot.

 

[Kleck.]

Depending on who Atlanta brings in, Greg Knapp may be looking for a job. I'd love to see him as the OC in Green Bay, but he could be looking at HC jobs soon.

 

[Sabertooth]

Favre is gone. The skill positions are so old they will be gone and the offense will falter even more. Not saying he made them worse, just nothing special. The D started to look a lot better. Sherman actually did well there, better than most.

Favre is gone? Hadn't heard that?Skill positions are old???? Ok, Favre is old as is Williams Henderson. Ahman Green is just now 30 and may or may not be back. Vernand Morency is like 26. Driver is not an old wideout by any means. Jennings was a rookie last season. Bubba appears to have played his last game as a Packer.

You're right Favre is playing another 10 years. Driver is 9 year vet? Not young and not sure if he's really any good or just Favre's fave. Bubba sucks, Green is done. By your count, they need a rb a decent tight end a decent qb. That's a lot.

ok, I was just checking if you were fishing or not. Aaron Rodgers is an unknown quantity. May or may not be any good. Obviously not too durable. I think Driver is pretty darn good. He is often keyed by the defense and still gets wide open. Tough over the middle. Not Hall of Fame good but certainly worthy of his pro bowl status in his own right. I think I read that the Packers have been in negotiations with Green for a while now. I don't know why you would say he's done. He is certainly a candidate to hit "the wall" though. They didn't have a decent tight end this season and struggled in the red zone because of it. I think they address this in FA. Remember the Packers have almost 30 mil in cap space as well. I see them looking for Eric Johnson or Jerramy Stevens, McCarthy has a connection to Johnson, and Ted Thompson was part of the team that drafted Stevens. Both are certainly offensive upgrades at TE for the Pack.

 

[Banger]

He did a great job with a lot of young talent and the defense really surprised me. That being said, if Favre leaves this team is probably a 4 win team and the natives will get restless despite his surprisingly good start this year.

 

[Warhogs]

I did not like the hiring a year ago. Not so much because I thought he would be a bad NFL coach but more because he was unproven as an NFL head coach and we did not know what we might get. After one year I feel a lot better about the results but I think it is still too early to make a sound judgement. He improved their record but the prior year was a poor year with a lot of key injuries. I will say I was most impressed by the defensive improvement. Here is to hoping he continues to move the Pack forward.

 

[mchmura89]

He did a great job with a lot of young talent and the defense really surprised me. That being said, if Favre leaves this team is probably a 4 win team and the natives will get restless despite his surprisingly good start this year.

Really? I would think if Favre left it would severely decrease expectations for next season and McCarthy would be in no danger whatsoever.

 

[Pipes]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

The offense underachieved this year with 3 rookies starting in the offensive line, no legitimate #2 WR and a starting TE with canoe paddles for hands? Give me a break.This team played hard this year. The players started tuning Sherman out and he had to go. I think McCarthy did a fantastic job this year considering what pieces he had in place. Oh and Sherman is much more of a Mr ho hum than McCarthy. How many times did you see Sherman get in Favre's face after a bad pass....I'll tell you none. Sherman is a putz.

 

[Banger]

He did a great job with a lot of young talent and the defense really surprised me. That being said, if Favre leaves this team is probably a 4 win team and the natives will get restless despite his surprisingly good start this year.

Really? I would think if Favre left it would severely decrease expectations for next season and McCarthy would be in no danger whatsoever.

It's possible but franchises like that are used to winning and memories are short. Could be wrong though.Also, it's reasonable for the fans to expect that the team has a plan B QB since it's obvious that Favre isn't going to be around forever so I wouldn't give them a total free pass. Look at what the Eagles did with Garcia. Their season was absolutely lost without him, same with Huard in KC. It doesn't look like Rodgers is the answer so it looks like the draft and/or free agency is where the next starting QB will come from. Or Favre could come back again.

 

[parasaurolophus]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

The offense underachieved this year with 3 rookies starting in the offensive line, no legitimate #2 WR and a starting TE with canoe paddles for hands? Give me a break.This team played hard this year. The players started tuning Sherman out and he had to go. I think McCarthy did a fantastic job this year considering what pieces he had in place. Oh and Sherman is much more of a Mr ho hum than McCarthy. How many times did you see Sherman get in Favre's face after a bad pass....I'll tell you none. Sherman is a putz.

This so called horrible offensive line gave up the fifth fewest sacks. And those completely incompetent skill players you speak of managed to gain the 9th most yards overall yet finished as the 22nd ranked scoring offense. So either the line can block or it cant. Either the offense can move the ball or it cant. You cant use it as a positive for the guy, but then use it as an excuse. ie. He got a bunch of rookies to play great on the offensive line so he is a good coach, but its not his fault the offense sputtered because he did have 3 rookies on the oline. Bottom line the packers couldnt score points against some bad teams. They failed in some crucial situations, and they couldnt capitalize on several gifts they received in games during the season. Does the offense look promising? Of course it does. It has youth and if Favre comes back it has a ton of experience between Favre, Green, Driver, Tauscher, and Clifton. If captain stockypants can just figure out how to call plays rather than having the defense almost always know exactly what they are doing, they might win a heck of a lot of games. If the Packers play exactly like they did this year, they probably go 6-10 next year. Detroit and Minny cant be any where near as bad next year, we wont get the bears when they lay down, and we also get the AFC west which could easily be 4 losses, seeing as how well Randy Moss does against us. I wasnt a Sherman fan either, but he really was dealt a crappy hand last year and easily could have gone 8-8 this year with this team and schedule. I think the defense would not have played as poorly early on and the offense probably couldnt have been any more sluggish.

 

[Illegal Pants Downfield]

Remember the Packers have almost 30 mil in cap space as well. I see them looking for Eric Johnson or Jerramy Stevens...

With all due respect, Jerramy Stevens??? The Packers already have a nice stable of TEs that are phenomenal at dropping the ball...not sure why we would need to add another?

 

[parasaurolophus]

Another thing to add... This team played horrible in close games. Sure they squeaked out wins against Detroit and Minnesota, but I refuse to give them credit for keeping a crappy team in the game and squeaking out a win. They blew games early in the season to NO and STL at home. They lost to buffalo on the road in a game where it looked like the Dback was in the huddle and knew right where to go on the stupid play to driver that we had already used and there was a huge breakdown in the secondary on the long pass play by Buffalo. We lost to seattle where we were leading 21-12 at halftime and made amazing halftime adjustments to score a whopping 3 more points. The only difference between the first and second half of that game was Seattle stopped giving us the ball every third play.

 

[Aaronstory]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

The offense underachieved this year with 3 rookies starting in the offensive line, no legitimate #2 WR and a starting TE with canoe paddles for hands? Give me a break.This team played hard this year. The players started tuning Sherman out and he had to go. I think McCarthy did a fantastic job this year considering what pieces he had in place. Oh and Sherman is much more of a Mr ho hum than McCarthy. How many times did you see Sherman get in Favre's face after a bad pass....I'll tell you none. Sherman is a putz.

This so called horrible offensive line gave up the fifth fewest sacks.

This was a product of the scheme and a veteran QB much more than thier play. Even as a horrificly negative homer, you must be able to recognize this.

 

[drummer]

McCarthy's hire in Green Bay sure helped the 49ers.

That, and Norv Turner's firing from Oakland.

 

[Banger]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

The offense underachieved this year with 3 rookies starting in the offensive line, no legitimate #2 WR and a starting TE with canoe paddles for hands? Give me a break.This team played hard this year. The players started tuning Sherman out and he had to go. I think McCarthy did a fantastic job this year considering what pieces he had in place. Oh and Sherman is much more of a Mr ho hum than McCarthy. How many times did you see Sherman get in Favre's face after a bad pass....I'll tell you none. Sherman is a putz.

This so called horrible offensive line gave up the fifth fewest sacks. And those completely incompetent skill players you speak of managed to gain the 9th most yards overall yet finished as the 22nd ranked scoring offense. So either the line can block or it cant. Either the offense can move the ball or it cant. You cant use it as a positive for the guy, but then use it as an excuse. ie. He got a bunch of rookies to play great on the offensive line so he is a good coach, but its not his fault the offense sputtered because he did have 3 rookies on the oline. Bottom line the packers couldnt score points against some bad teams. They failed in some crucial situations, and they couldnt capitalize on several gifts they received in games during the season.

I think to assume that because they didn't give up a lot of sacks that the line was good is faulty logic. Favre is a vet among vet's among QB's, sees blitz's coming and gets rid of the ball quicker than nearly any qb in the league. This year they were 5th with 24 sacks against, in '05 they were 5th in sacks against with 27, '04 2nd with 14 against and '03 3rd with 19. So it was Favre not the line. Most other QB's in there would have had many many more sacks. The largest problem with the Packer offense was they only had 1 1/2 guys that could catch the ball. Driver + Jennings for 1/2 season. They could move the ball between the 20's but had no red zone target that could hold onto the ball in the end zone. I can remember at least 4 TD's drops in the last 2 games alone. If they can get Bubba Franks or Lee, etc. some hands they'd be ok.

 

[Mario Kart]

Mike McCarthy = Ray Rhodes

 

[mr. id]

Favre is gone. The skill positions are so old they will be gone and the offense will falter even more. Not saying he made them worse, just nothing special. The D started to look a lot better. Sherman actually did well there, better than most.

Sherman destroyed this teams depth. as a coach he was OK. as a GM he was HORRENDOUS.

 

[Pipes]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

The offense underachieved this year with 3 rookies starting in the offensive line, no legitimate #2 WR and a starting TE with canoe paddles for hands? Give me a break.This team played hard this year. The players started tuning Sherman out and he had to go. I think McCarthy did a fantastic job this year considering what pieces he had in place. Oh and Sherman is much more of a Mr ho hum than McCarthy. How many times did you see Sherman get in Favre's face after a bad pass....I'll tell you none. Sherman is a putz.

This so called horrible offensive line gave up the fifth fewest sacks. And those completely incompetent skill players you speak of managed to gain the 9th most yards overall yet finished as the 22nd ranked scoring offense. So either the line can block or it cant. Either the offense can move the ball or it cant. You cant use it as a positive for the guy, but then use it as an excuse. ie. He got a bunch of rookies to play great on the offensive line so he is a good coach, but its not his fault the offense sputtered because he did have 3 rookies on the oline. Bottom line the packers couldnt score points against some bad teams. They failed in some crucial situations, and they couldnt capitalize on several gifts they received in games during the season. Does the offense look promising? Of course it does. It has youth and if Favre comes back it has a ton of experience between Favre, Green, Driver, Tauscher, and Clifton. If captain stockypants can just figure out how to call plays rather than having the defense almost always know exactly what they are doing, they might win a heck of a lot of games. If the Packers play exactly like they did this year, they probably go 6-10 next year. Detroit and Minny cant be any where near as bad next year, we wont get the bears when they lay down, and we also get the AFC west which could easily be 4 losses, seeing as how well Randy Moss does against us. I wasnt a Sherman fan either, but he really was dealt a crappy hand last year and easily could have gone 8-8 this year with this team and schedule. I think the defense would not have played as poorly early on and the offense probably couldnt have been any more sluggish.

Nice leap there guy...no where did I say they had an "horrible line" and "incompetent" skill players. I said they were young and inexperienced which generally doesn't translate into being a top offense in the NFL.I think you're confusing bad play calling an poor execution. I think their lack of red zone production had more to do with the fact that Favre's only dependable receiver was Driver. When you have bad TE's and a #2 that while he showed promise was still a rookie it's hard to score TD's. They had Ruvell Martin & Carlile Holiday making significant contributions so no wonder their offense struggled at times.You seem rather hard on McCarthy. What I see is a young coach, while he did make some mistakes, have his team fired to play week in & week out. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely but I like what I see. The players seem to play hard for McCarthy. Last year there was way too many games where they came out flat and uninspired. The team got worse every year under Sherman and this year they improved under McCarthy. No matter what their schedule was most everyone had them as one of the worst teams in the league.

 

[Aaronstory]

McCarthy's hire in Green Bay sure helped the 49ers.That, and Norv Turner's firing from Oakland.

Yeah, esp when Green Bay and the Niners played each other.

 

[Hamstring]

Favre is gone. The skill positions are so old they will be gone and the offense will falter even more. Not saying he made them worse, just nothing special. The D started to look a lot better. Sherman actually did well there, better than most.

:(Sherman destroyed this teams depth. as a coach he was OK. as a GM he was HORRENDOUS.

Agreed, coaches shoul dnot be GM.

 

[Southside Stosh]

Mike McCarthy = Ray Rhodes

:( That pretty much sums up my opinion of the Mike McCarthy. The rest of the NFC North would like to thank Ted Thomson for his choice of HC.

 

[packersfan]

Sean Payton was the guy I wanted a year ago at this time and nothing happened this season that led me to believe the Packers made the right call in taking McCarthy and not even giving Payton any meaningful consideration.

 

[parasaurolophus]

the offense will falter even more.

What means this? They improved nine spots and finished top ten in total offense. Granted, red zone production was bad, but they got better, not worse.

No Green, no Favre, Driver is old (not to mention a Favre creation)

Mccarthy was still a horrible hire. The offense sputtered all year. The play calling was not good, and the team lacked an identity. They got lucky with a nice schedule and went 5-1 in a horrible division. They sucked at home and lost too many close games. Mccarthy has no track record of offensive success and frankly I think underachieved this year. That defense should have been golden.Two lock down corners and a defensive line that doiesnt even start KGB because it has better options. That is the key to defense in the NFL. Good dline, good CBs and you should be great. If you arent, you arent coaching or scheming properly. I know he isnt the D coordinator, but come on. Why did it take til week 10 to figure this out? The offensive line played great considering the circumstances, but that doesnt make Mccarthy look better, that makes him look worse. They should have done better in the red zone. Am I happy with the way the season went? of course, but not because of mr ho hum jr. Frankly I would have rather had Sherman. They seemed like the same guys and at least that way we would have kept Bates as def. coordinator.

The offense underachieved this year with 3 rookies starting in the offensive line, no legitimate #2 WR and a starting TE with canoe paddles for hands? Give me a break.This team played hard this year. The players started tuning Sherman out and he had to go. I think McCarthy did a fantastic job this year considering what pieces he had in place. Oh and Sherman is much more of a Mr ho hum than McCarthy. How many times did you see Sherman get in Favre's face after a bad pass....I'll tell you none. Sherman is a putz.

This so called horrible offensive line gave up the fifth fewest sacks.

This was a product of the scheme and a veteran QB much more than thier play. Even as a horrificly negative homer, you must be able to recognize this.

I realize the two are of course related. However good QB with a bad line does not equal no sacks. My point is more that he cant get credit for piecing together a good Oline, but then have it be a crutch for why they sputtered in the red zone. It is either bad, or it isnt.

 

[Ditkaless Wonders]

I believe a day old buritto could have improved upon the Packer's record from last year. Last year was an anomaly cuased by unprecedented injuries.

My memory of this year is that the offense showed steady improvement as the rookie linemen integrated themselves into the system. That said, playcalling in the red zone was not impressive and needs to improve.

The Packer's defense was disorganized throughout the year. The disorganization was somewhat covered for statistically by facing poor opponents.

This year told me nothing. The organization looked horrible early but grew out of it some. If the growth continues next year I will be pleased, but no team should have had the communication issues this team had early. I am withholding judgement.

What I was pleased with was the GM work in the draft. It's been since Ron Wolfe that we had a draft not to be ashamed of. I was and remain disgruntled with last year's free agency period and with the handeling of the Walker matter, which in my mind was not fully redeemed in the draft as they should have gotten more for Walker.

At this point I am mildly optomistic the team is headed in the right direction, mildly.

 

[Pipes]

Mike McCarthy = Ray Rhodes

That pretty much sums up my opinion of the Mike McCarthy. The rest of the NFC North would like to thank Ted Thomson for his choice of HC.

Um...Green Bay was 5-1 against the NFC North this year.

 

[drummer]

McCarthy's hire in Green Bay sure helped the 49ers.That, and Norv Turner's firing from Oakland.

Yeah, esp when Green Bay and the Niners played each other.

Alex Smith under McCarthy - 1td-11intAlex Smith under Turner - 16td-16intThe 49er offense was abysmal under McCarthy. Smith was asked to compare between the 2, and while he didn't have anything negative to say about McCarthy, he praised Turner for his second year improvement, and explained that the difference was that McCarthy just basically gave him the playbook, which was about as thick as a phone book, and that was it. Turner simplified the offense for Smith to digest it faster, spent time developing Smith, which McCarthy didn't do, and Smith had improved this year markedly. McCarthy as an OC in SF was a disaster. Now, the future means more than one game, right? To add, Gore has had a breakout year also.

 

[Mario Kart]

Um...Green Bay was 5-1 against the NFC North this year.

And they were 3-7 against other opponents not to mention their bad home record. It is easy to go 5-1 in a division as bad as the North. If Favre leaves this team is in trouble. If Favre stays they are contenders for a playoff spot next year.

 

[Hamstring]

GB beat only one team with a winning record I think.

 

[Pipes]

Um...Green Bay was 5-1 against the NFC North this year.

And they were 3-7 against other opponents not to mention their bad home record. It is easy to go 5-1 in a division as bad as the North. If Favre leaves this team is in trouble. If Favre stays they are contenders for a playoff spot next year.

I was replying to the poster who said the rest of the NFC North was happy with the hire and I don't think Marinelli & Childress are too happy because they failed to beat the Packers this season.Look I'm not saying that McCarthy's a coaching genius but that fact is they had a decent season this year. Not too many people had the Packers winning 8 games this year, even with their schedule. The jury is still out on McCarthy but they improved as the season went on and appear to be heading in the right direction. Let's give the guy a break.

 

[Banger]

GB beat only one team with a winning record I think.

I think the same is true for Chicago, the 9-7 Seahawks. They also beat 2 8-8 teams. Man did they have an easy schedule.

 

[Pipes]

GB beat only one team with a winning record I think.

I think the same is true for Chicago, the 9-7 Seahawks. They also beat 2 8-8 teams. Man did they have an easy schedule.

Good point since there were only 5 teams in the NFC with winning records the same probably can be said for almost every NFC team.

 

[Aaronstory]

McCarthy's hire in Green Bay sure helped the 49ers.That, and Norv Turner's firing from Oakland.

Yeah, esp when Green Bay and the Niners played each other.

Alex Smith under McCarthy - 1td-11intAlex Smith under Turner - 16td-16intThe 49er offense was abysmal under McCarthy. Smith was asked to compare between the 2, and while he didn't have anything negative to say about McCarthy, he praised Turner for his second year improvement, and explained that the difference was that McCarthy just basically gave him the playbook, which was about as thick as a phone book, and that was it. Turner simplified the offense for Smith to digest it faster, spent time developing Smith, which McCarthy didn't do, and Smith had improved this year markedly. McCarthy as an OC in SF was a disaster. Now, the future means more than one game, right? To add, Gore has had a breakout year also.

(gasp) You don't think Gore's breakout year had anything to do with Smiths improvement do you? McCarthy played the hand he was dealt.

 

[Kleck.]

McCarthy's hire in Green Bay sure helped the 49ers.That, and Norv Turner's firing from Oakland.

Yeah, esp when Green Bay and the Niners played each other.

Alex Smith under McCarthy - 1td-11intAlex Smith under Turner - 16td-16intThe 49er offense was abysmal under McCarthy. Smith was asked to compare between the 2, and while he didn't have anything negative to say about McCarthy, he praised Turner for his second year improvement, and explained that the difference was that McCarthy just basically gave him the playbook, which was about as thick as a phone book, and that was it. Turner simplified the offense for Smith to digest it faster, spent time developing Smith, which McCarthy didn't do, and Smith had improved this year markedly. McCarthy as an OC in SF was a disaster. Now, the future means more than one game, right? To add, Gore has had a breakout year also.

San Fran was also real banged up in 2005. I believe they led the league in number of games missed by offensive players that year. Alex Smith had nowhere to go but up, and having a healthy Gore made a world of difference.McCarthy helped shape up the Saint's offense in 2000 and was voted Assistant Coach of the year. The Saints also lead the NFC in points scored while McCarthy was the OC. He also did well as a QB coach in KC helping Grbac and Gannon. Over a 3 or 4 year span, McCarthy's QBs had the fewest INT's in the entire AFC. Gannon has also praised McCarthy multiple times for being a key reason for his later success. He has had success in the past... Green Bay needs some more help now... We'll see what 2007 brings.

 

[drummer]

(gasp) You don't think Gore's breakout year had anything to do with Smiths improvement do you?

What part of "To add" did you not get?

San Fran was also real banged up in 2005. I believe they led the league in number of games missed by offensive players that year. Alex Smith had nowhere to go but up, and having a healthy Gore made a world of difference.

McCarthy helped shape up the Saint's offense in 2000 and was voted Assistant Coach of the year. The Saints also lead the NFC in points scored while McCarthy was the OC. He also did well as a QB coach in KC helping Grbac and Gannon. Over a 3 or 4 year span, McCarthy's QBs had the fewest INT's in the entire AFC. Gannon has also praised McCarthy multiple times for being a key reason for his later success.

He has had success in the past... Green Bay needs some more help now... We'll see what 2007 brings.

Well the point is that Turner has done a way better job developing the $50 million dollar franchise QB that what McCarthy wasn't doing. I agree that injuries played a big part of the paucity of offense last season, but the key for a lot of 49er fans is what kind of QB Smith was gonna turn out to be. Under McCarthy, he looked like a disaster. Maybe if McCarthy had a whole 'nother offseason to work with Smith, it would be different.

 

[Man in the yellow hat]

Yeah, I think the important thing is to stick to the things McCarthy can control. Some people are talking about Favre retiring, Green being done, Driver being old...

None of that has much to do with how McCarthy looked in year one. Did he do a good job with the talent on hand? In retrospect, does the Packer record change your opinion? The Packer team performance?

We all know there are holes on the team, but I'm more interested in an evaluation of McCarthy.

 

[Hamstring]

GB beat only one team with a winning record I think.

I think the same is true for Chicago, the 9-7 Seahawks. They also beat 2 8-8 teams. Man did they have an easy schedule.

At 13-3, the Bears beat more than 1 team with a winning record. Thanks