Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Packers players want to know what’s going on
GREEN BAY — After listening to chants of “We want Brett!” and “Fire Ted Thompson!” throughout a practice that Brett Favre didn’t even attend Tuesday afternoon, the rest of the Green Bay Packers have had enough.
In a room where Favre’s nameplate was back above the locker that caused such a commotion this offseason, player opinion was virtually unanimous: They want to know what’s going on, and they want the entire saga to be over.
“It’s to the point now, man, we’re tired of it here in the locker room,” veteran cornerback Al Harris said. “Hopefully they get something done upstairs and they can answer these questions instead of the questions coming to us in the locker room. We get paid to play football.”
Coach Mike McCarthy was supposed to explain the situation to the team at a Monday night meeting but could not do so because his talk with Favre prevented it, and he didn’t talk to the players about the situation before Tuesday’s practice because he was again talking with Favre.
Fellow cornerback Charles Woodson said several veterans were contemplating going to general manager Ted Thompson for an explanation of where things stood.
“I think that’ll happen soon. I’ve given that some thought myself. For us as a team, one way or the other, we want to know which way we need to go. It needs to be over,” Woodson said. “All we know is Brett is here (but) he wasn’t at practice. Pretty much, that’s what we know.”
Tuesday’s practice was bizarre. While new starter Aaron Rodgers tried to run the No. 1 offense, a vocal minority in the northwest corner of Clarke Hinkle Field created the biggest in-practice distraction of camp. While the chants never reached a crescendo, there was no ignoring them.
“I don’t care how focused you are, you heard that,” wide receiver Greg Jennings said. “That was one of those practices where you really had to try to just mentally be there. And if you weren’t mentally there, you were kind of listening in and letting it kind of distract you.
“That’s what we’re going to have to get ready to expect, because we’re just as outside the loop as the fans were who were yelling that. I haven’t seen Brett. We haven’t been told anything that really gives us any reason to believe that there’s a quarterback competition or that he’s getting traded or whatever. We haven’t been given any information. And it’s one of those situations where, are we getting treated like the fans and the media?
“When it’s in your face, like this, how do you avoid it? How do you not allow it to be in the back of your head? You can’t. You’re thinking about it. Everybody’s in here thinking about it, and we just don’t know what the next move’s going to be. We want to know what the next move’s going to be, but we just don’t know.”
The Packers practice again today at 8:45 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. According to sources, the team was in trade talks with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tuesday night while Favre was contemplating whether he would talk to Buccaneers management about his willingness to accept a trade.
How much McCarthy shares with his players today is unclear, but while the coach joked about the catcalls — “We don’t have to do crowd noise this week,” he said. “It was like working on the road” — he also acknowledged that the ordeal is taking away from the preparation of what he believes is a Super Bowl contender.
“We’re a good football team, and we have an excellent opportunity here to be a very good football team in 2008,” McCarthy said. “We’ve had
an extraordinary challenge dealing with this situation. A lot can be learned from it. But they definitely want this thing resolved as soon as possible.”
Woodson acknowledged the distraction, too, and admonished the fans who were calling for Thompson’s ouster.
“I don’t think it’s fair. At the end of the day, this is still the Green Bay Packers,” said Woodson, adding that he “briefly” talked to Favre on Monday. “Ted is trying to do the best he can for the organization. We understand that there are some diehards out there that are only going to be happy if Brett Favre is here in Green Bay. But, to yell out the ‘Fire Ted Thompson’ chants, I think that’s a little unfair.”
As for Rodgers, he stood in front of his locker and took on the media throng yet again, staying on message and praising the fans, even the ones chanting for his predecessor.
“We don’t have a team owner. We’ve got stockholders, and they feel like they’re team owners, and they are,” Rodgers said, “We’ve got great fans, and it’s just going to be my job to win ’em over.”
Jason Wilde is a sportswriter
for the Wisconsin State Journal in Madison.
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