Welcome To Parity

I've been thinking back to the early 1970s, just after the National Football League and the American Football League merged.

At the time, then Commissioner Pete Rozelle touted the mantra of "On Any Given Sunday..."

Meaning, of course, that any team could get a win against any opponent.

It may have taken decades, and Covid, but those days have arrived. Going into today's games on this Boxing Day 2021, there were 21 of the 32 NFL teams with a record of .500 or better. That's 65.6% of the league -- and two other teams were right on the cusp at 6-8 and 7-8!

After setting the team record for touchdown passes thrown, passing HOFer Brett Favre, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers sure sounded pretty humble as he looked at his place in the history of this 102-year-old franchise.

What's truly amazing with this record is, when you take a deeper dive into the numbers, you see that Favre had 286 interceptions (lord, didn't he break our hearts trying to make big plays, especially in the playoffs?)

Rodgers only has 93 picks in his time with Green Bay.

And based on the success with the team, and the affection Packer fans are showing him despite the ugly times this past summer, it would NOT surprise me if Rodgers and the front office make up and he stays in the Green & Gold for another few seasons. This could mean they trade Jordan Love and end that experiment to keep him happy, of course. And it would mean coming up with a lotta bucks to ink All-Everything wide receiver Davante Adams.

But, hey, stranger things have happened!

If Green Bay can hold onto home field advantage and the Road To The Super Bowl runs through Lambeau Field, I like the team's chances.

Yes, things need to be tightened up on defense. And the Not-So-Special Teams need to be, while not spectacular, at least mistake-free.

Is there any doubt that Coach Matt Lafleur should be the NFL's Coach Of The Year? No other coach in his first three years has won at least 10 games a season AND three division crowns. There's been ups and downs, but the work that has been done to repair and replace the offensive line, a group that has been operating without a starter for weeks should be rewarded.

Same for GM Brian Gutekunst, who has found some pretty good players from the waiver wire and trades (where would the team be without defensive back Rasul Douglas?) 

Thinking that  the Wisconsin Badgers will fare pretty well out in Las Vegas this week against Arizona State. The school will play in it's 20th straight bowl game.

Enjoy that, Badger fans. There's not a whole lot of schools that have enjoyed this kind of success, year in and year out.

What About That "Not-So-Special" Team?

 Those of us who follow the Green & Gold were not doubt aghast by the pitiful performance Monday night at Lambeau Field

Who the hell is coaching the Special Teams, anyway? The Keystone Cops?? Thought the Packers could drop no farther into the depths of mediocrity after watching the Not-So-Special Teams week after week.

Thought wrong.

Head Coach Matt Lafleur and his staff had better get things sorted out and soon with the group. This area is clearly the Achilles Heel of the Pack and could doom them in a Super Bowl Run.

Looking for thoughts on last minute Christmas gifts for the sports minded? Here's a couple of suggestions.

* The Baseball 100 by Joe Posnanski. It's a great read for a baseball fan! Filled with information, stories and facts, this 800-plus page effort deals with greats you've heard of and players you only wish you had seem in person.

* The Greatest Story in Sports: Green Bay Packer 1919-2019 by Cliff Christl. A massive four-volume set feature history, stories and photos of the Green and Gold. I've know Cliff since the early 1970s when our paths crossed covering high school sports in the Fox Valley. Another UW-O grad, he's been the go-to historian voice for the Packers for several years, following in the footsteps of longtime public relations man, Lee Remmel.

Saw that Covid continues to rear it's ugly head in both the NFL and the NBA. No surprise there. Think this is with us for a long, long time.

This Little Piggy, Wisconsin Version

All around Green Bay Packer Nation, there's no bigger game right now than This Little Piggy...since the little piggy in question is on the left foot of Packer quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

We've all been anxious as Rodgers plays through the injury. We've all wondered whether he'll have surgery or not. And how will it affect his performance.

As Rodgers & his toe goes, so go the Packers. At least that's how it seems as Green Bay heads into the final five games of the regular season, taking a 9-3 record with it. Thankfully, three of those are at home and the finale is against the woeful Detroit Lions.

So Packer fans, join me in saying This Little Piggy Went Wee Wee Wee...all the way to the Super Bowl.

It's about time! Baseball has finally corrected an injustice and is putting Buck O'Neil in the Hall Of Fame. This great from the Negro Leagues, never given a chance to play in Major League Baseball because of the color barrier, should have been named a HOFer when he was still alive and could savor the moment.

Having read a lot about the Negro Leagues, and O'Neil, I continue to admire the men who played then. Some pretty amazing athletes. And you gotta hand it to O'Neil. He could have been bitter about the fact that he never got the opportunity, but never was. As a manager and scout, he helped guys like Ernie Banks and Willie Mays take the giant step he was never allowed to take.

In the later stages of his life, O'Neil was pretty much a constant presence at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, ready to talk baseball and tell stories to anyone and everyone.  And if you're a true baseball fan, you have to make this trip and visit it.

So, prior to the end of baseball's current CBA, there were a LOT of free agent signings and movement. Milwaukee Brewers outfielder, Avi Garcia, for example, inked a deal with the Miami Marlins.

Good for Avi, I say. Hope it works out for him and he enjoys the quiet and solitude in Marlins Park.

Quiet and solitude, you ask. Well, the Marlins don't draw flies when it comes to attendance. Since 2018, they have averaged 10,000 or less -- this past season, just 7,934 per game. The Brewers, on the other hand, averaged over 22,000 fans. And keep in mind that, for much of the season, they were limited to numbers due to Covid. For example, only about 11,000 of us got to attend opening day for a game that usually sells out to over 42,000!

In 15 of the last 16 seasons, Miami has ranked dead last in the National League in attendance. So Garcia will have a lot of quiet time to think during games.

Minnesota Gold Gophers quarterback Tanner Morgan is coming back for his SIXTH college season, Perhaps he should change his name to Tenure??

This past weekend, week 13 for the NFL, Green Bay had it's bye week. Pretty late, for sure, and I pictured millions of Packer fans shuffling around Wisconsin, feeling out of place and out of sorts without their Green & Gold heroes in action.