Reporters write notebooks after games. Basically, it’s their way of touching on a few key topics they couldn’t get to in their game story and sidebar.
We aren’t really reporters here at OBOD, so consider the following an emptying of my mental notebook (like THAT’S not scary) from the last week or so.
- Schneider hired as Seahawks’ GM
Between writing our offseason to-do list and bashing Brett Favre, we completely forgot to write about the news that John Schneider, formerly Green Bay’s director of football operations, was hired as Seattle’s general manager last week.
While his was a name likely unfamiliar to many fans before the news of his new gig, Schneider was a key guy in the Packers’ front office in recent years. He kind of had a hand in everything – including scouting college and pro players and hashing out trades and, truth be told, I was actually surprised Green Bay held on to him this long. Schneider, along with college scouting director John Dorsey, were both very key in building this team. And I’m still shocked no one has made a run at Dorsey given the fact that the Packers have been built almost entirely through the draft.
Regardless, Schneider should do a nice job in rebuilding the Seahawks, provided Pete Carroll actually listens to him. I know this much: He will be a tough guy for the Packers to replace. Congratulations on the move up, John.
- Is Peterson really the best running back Favre’s ever had?
Even before Favre signed with Minnesota, football analysts were saying, almost across the board, that Adrian Peterson would be the best running back he ever played with – by far.
Something about that never quite sat right with me. It just seemed like they were all forgetting about Ahman Green and how good he really was.
Then I went and looked at the numbers. Turns out, I was right to feel that way.
Some of Peterson’s numbers, through the first three seasons of his career: 4,484 yards rushing (4.9 per carry), 40 touchdowns, 829 yards receiving, one touchdown, 20 fumbles.
Compare that with Green’s numbers in the same categories for the three best seasons of his career (2001-2003): 4,510 yards rushing (4.8 per carry), 31 touchdowns, 1,354 yards receiving, nine receiving touchdowns, 16 fumbles.
Green had more yards rushing (and a lot more receiving yards and touchdowns) and fumbled the ball less (shocking since that seems to be all many of us remember about Green). Peterson had more rushing touchdowns and a slightly higher per-carry average, but that’s it. Peterson’s shown a big play ability, yes, as he holds the league record for most yards in a game. But Green’s 2003 season is still tied for the eight-best ever by a running back, so I’d at least call that a tie for Ahman.
Now, it should be noted that Green’s years came between the ages of 24-26. Peterson is just now 24 years old, so he could ultimately have better numbers than Green did for those same years. And honestly, I wouldn’t be shocked if Peterson did just that – he’s a tremendous talent.
But until he actually does it, I’m saying Green is the best back Favre ever played with – by a decent margin.
- Packers’ ticket prices increase for next season
For the first time in quite some time – three years, to be exact – ticket prices will increase for the Packers, as reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last Friday.
The average increase, according to the story, is $9 per ticket, with the increases ranging from $8 to $11 per ticket. Packers’ President and CEO Mark Murphy is quoted as saying the increase was needed to keep the team competitive. The story suggests that the increases will bring in an extra $6.3 million to the franchise. That might not seem like much, on the surface, but to a team like the Packers, it’s a huge amount. That’s almost enough to pay the combined salaries of Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy, for example.
Even with the increases, Green Bay will still likely be below the league average in terms of average ticket price. The article says that, last season, only two teams had a cheaper average ticket price than the Packers ($64.48 per game).
At first glance, some fans might get upset by this, powered by the mindset that, once again, prices go up as the little guy continues to get squeezed out. That’s not really the case, though. Again, it still costs far less to get into a Packers’ game than it does many other NFL games. And if you think about the truly unique, once-in-a-lifetime-type experience that going to a game at Lambeau provides, is an extra $10 really a dealbreaker?
If you haven’t been to a game there yet, trust me on this: Cough up the extra dough. It’s more than worth it.
-Chris Lempesis
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