Brats & Beer

The writing was on the wall when Ted Thompson selected Jordy Nelson first in the draft that either Koren Robinson or Ruvell Martin would probably be on the short list to be cut from the Packers roster. Today that list got shorter: Robinson has been released.

Robinson is 28 now, which doesn’t seem over-the-hill old but his best years are obviously behind him due to a lingering knee injury. TT brought him in during 2006 to help out on kick returns, but Robinson never performed up to his Pro Bowl expectations, and as a wide receiver he was just adequate with 21 catches for 241 yards in nine games last year.

That doesn’t mean Robinson won’t find employment somewhere in the league, as the past two seasons in Green Bay have probably helped rehabilitate his image in the league. As far as I can tell, he was a model citizen and a good teammate while a Packer, so someone will probably be willing to take a chance on him.

Maybe it’s just me but hasn’t this seemed like the longest week ever? (Obviously it’s not because I have been so hard at work posting here on this blog.) Whatever your week’s work situation, we all deserve to celebrate this afternoon with a tall icy cold one.

Although if you are in an adventurous mood — and you live in Canada — you might try a Corsairs Mojito, a new brew being made at Minhas Craft Brewery in Monroe. According to The Capital Times, those crazy kids at Minhas installed a clear malt filtration system at the brewery to make what they call a malt-based cooler. I’m not sure what to think about that, but the ads for it look kinda funny.

I’m just a little old fashioned, so I’ll stick to their other fine brews — if only I could get Berghoff down here in Texas.

With rookie camp underway, Packer Nation is all abuzz to find out how these new players look and what kind of impact they are going to have for the team this season. Greg Bedard at the JS Packers Blog does an admirable job with some thoughts watching them on the field for the first time, but he admits you can’t tell much from what went on yesterday; they were after all just running around in shorts getting used to their first NFL-style practice.

Those of us less fortunate who could not be in Green Bay to see the practice can however get a first impression of these new guys from the video clips posted on the Packers.com site. Overall I think they come across as well-spoken young men ready to play some football. I’m especially impressed with Jeremy Thompson, the defensive end from Wake Forest selected in the fourth round. Before camp, Thompson says he brushed up on his Packers history and did a little research on Green Bay to familiarize himself with his new home. I’m definitely pulling for him to make the team and to make an impact this year.

Some other reactions: Jordy Nelson comes across as humble and just happy to be playing football, Brian Brohm says all the right things in regards to Aaron Rodgers and the starting job (though I still think he’s a prima donna who’s going to have a tough time adjusting), and Patrick Lee seems confident bordering on cocky — the way you want a young corner back to be.

And then there is Brett Swain, the wide receiver from San Diego State who was Ted Thompson’s final selection in the draft. Just like Bedard, I don’t want to pile on anyone their first day, but check out Swain’s interview and see if you don’t agree he might be a couple pints short of a gallon. Swain strikes me as being somewhere between a surfer dude and a valley girl: Everything is “hey” and “whoa” and “organ-I-zation,” and he took a photo of his locker just to prove he had an NFL career. I’m betting when the veterans show up for mini-camp, Swain is the first one to get duct tapped to a goal post and bombarded with water balloons.

Great play by Joe Pavelski scoring the winning goal in overtime last night against the Dallas Stars and staving off playoff elimination for his San Jose Sharks. Of course what else would expect from a Wisconsin native who helped lead the Badgers to an NCAA title just a couple years ago?

Rookie camp opened in Green Bay today, our first chance to see what Ted Thompson netted in the NFL Draft and from the pool of rookie free agents. So what did we learn? Not a whole lot, except that Mike McCarthy is a happy guy: He’s “happy with our draft picks,” “happy with everyone,” and “very happy with the group we have.”

But with new players showing up for the first time in the locker room, there’s also the question of what to do with Brett Favre’s locker. It’s just as No. 4 left it at the end of last season and everyone wants to know what will the Packers do with it. Where else was a quarterback so important to a team, and the team so important to a community, that this would even be a question on anyone’s mind?

Some have suggested that the Packers should seal the locker in a glass case and leave it unoccupied for all time. Obviously no would feel worthy of taking over that piece of real estate, so they should just make it a tribute, a shrine, to the legend that is Favre. But rather than a museum piece, I think they should make it a living tribute to the man’s legacy.

To me, the greatness of Favre isn’t the records, isn’t the three league MVP awards, isn’t the Super Bowl ring and the NFC Championships. To me Favre’s greatness stems from the fact that he achieved all that as such an unheralded player coming into the league. Unlike Peyton Manning, Marino, or Elway, Favre was largely overlooked in the NFL Draft, barley made third string on the Falcons, and his trade to the Packers raised eyebrows because Ron Wolf gave up so much to get a player no one thought would succeed in the NFL.

So to pay perfect tribute to a living legend, why not assign his locker to the low man on the totem pole? It would certainly be a huge honor and an incredible source of motivation for that player to give it their all while inhabiting that space in that locker room. Then if it works out that he makes an impact and comes back the next year, the locker would pass to the next guy to get that last spot on the squad.

No one in Green & Gold will ever wear #4 again, and no one will ever fill those shoes, but a tradition like this would keep Favre’s spirit alive in that locker room, inspiring players for years to come.

I completely missed the boat on the sports town hall program hosted by Bob Costas the other night, but I have since seen the videos of Buzz Bissinger’s insane tirade against sports bloggers and blogging in general. If you missed it too, The Bucky Channel has some clips. The sound of an industry dieing is not pretty.

In the week or so before the Costas show aired, some of the major newspaper companies released their earnings for the first quarter and the numbers were not good — I should say, still not good and getting worse. Circulation continues to decline and advertisers continue to flee the print medium. At the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, circulation is down by more than 5% from a year ago and advertising revenue is off by more than 15%. It’s no longer a question of if print is dead, but rather which major daily will be the first to follow the lead of The Capital Times of Madison and transition to an all online edition.

And to think it’s all the fault of us bloggers. Way to go folks, way to go.

One of the more hilarious, although increasingly annoying, sentiments to come out of the NFL Draft weekend is has been this general opinion among certain mainstream media scribes that by selecting Brian Brohm in the second round, Ted Thompson has sent a message that he and Mike McCarthy have serious doubts about Aaron Rodgers’ chances for success. “What will poor Aaron think?” they ask, “Won’t this put too much pressure on him?”

Puhleeze. I seriously doubt Rodgers is such a dainty flower that his feelings are going to be hurt by what transpired during the draft. And as for added pressure, let’s see: He’s getting his first start in the NFL with an elite team supported by a rabid fan base with high expectations, oh and he’s replacing a bona fide football legend in the process. Is it even possibe there can be more pressure in that situation?

Maybe if these “journalists” were to, I dunno, interview Rodgers (isn’t that what they teach at them there journalism schools?) they might find out he’s actually pretty happy with how things stand right now. The pressure to succeed is great, yes, but unlike fellow 2005 draftee Alex Smith or this year’s top QB draft pick Matt Ryan, Rodgers is getting his first start on a great team that was stocked with offensive weapons already before Jordy Nelson and Jermichael Finley were selected in the draft. He’ll be playing behind a solid line that will give him plenty of protection, and he’ll be backed up by a defense that was fifth in the league for yards allowed and sixth in scoring.

Let’s not forget the fact that for the past two seasons Rodgers has been under the tutelage of a solid and stable coaching staff, and has been fully steeped in MM’s system. He also has the confidence of his teammates, most of whom have had at least a season to get to know him.

If he can stay healthy, which admittedly is still an issue at question, Rodgers will do just fine this season. My biggest concern at this point is whether or not he brings back the porn stache this year. (Please don’t!) If we’re going to worry about someone’s “feelings,” it’s probably Brian Brohm we should be more concerned with: For maybe the first time ever, he’ll have to deal with what it’s like to not be at the top of the pecking order.

The awesomeness that is beer doesn’t need to be debated, but I happened to come across an article about how City Brewery in La Crosse is helping fight both the energy crisis and global warming. The former G. Heileman Brewery is supplying methane to the Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation, which is using the biogas to generate electricity. So all we need to do to ween this country is build more breweries to produce more methane. And of course it would be our patriotic duty to drink all that beer. Brilliant!

It’s nice to see that the Packers front office is not averse to adding some home-grown, Dairyland talent to the roster, or at least giving it a try.

Punter Ken Debauche was signed to a free agent contract Sunday immediately after the draft. He finished his career at Wisconsin as the second all-time punter for the Badgers with a 42.5 yard average. He’ll compete with Canadian-born Jon Ryan through training camp. Ryan definitely provided an upgrade this past year, but there’s still room for improvement. I’m not sure if Debauche is the answer, but the competition should help out.

Also getting a try this off-season will be running back Justin Beaver from UW-Whitewater. He led the Warhawks to a national title last season and was named Division III player of the year after rushing for 2,455 yards and 15 touchdowns. Following the title game last December, Beaver told ESPN he really wanted to play for the Packers in the NFL so it’s great he’s getting a shot at his dream. Packergeeks has a good rundown on how Beaver could help out in the punt return department, and I would add that having a bowling ball back (he’s 5′7″ and 191 lbs.) could help out on short yardage situations as well.

Ted Thompson is not one to shy away from gambling on young players who have bounced back from injuries. Last year’s #1 draft pick Justin Harrell had missed most of his senior year after suffering a ruptured biceps tendon, and Ryan Grant missed his second year in the pros with the Giants after his arm was sliced open in an accident, severing a tendon and a nerve and nearly bleeding to death.

And then there’s Kregg Lumpkin, a rookie free agent running back out of Georgia the Packers signed yesterday. Lumpkin was a top prospect coming out of high school but was slowed by a hamstring injury his freshman year. A torn ACL wiped out his next season of college football, but he managed to come back play as a backup for the Bulldogs in 2005 and started nine games in 2006. A probable starter for last year, Lumpkin suffered a broken thumb and then a knee injury kept him from all but six games.

Here’s what separates me from professional athletes: I would have given up at some point and switched to a career that didn’t involve a torn this and a strained that. Lumpkin certainly has a lot of determination to play football, and I’m guessing that’s why TT decided to take a chance on the kid.

As much as I like the other running backs already on the Packer roster, I think I’ll be rooting for Lumpkin to make the team — and for him to stay healthy.