AllGreenBayPackers.Com

Kris with Tom Crabtree

Tom Crabtree stood on stage and told all of us he hoped never to see us again.

No, the Green Bay Packers tight end didn’t go all “Jay Cutler emo” on us.  What he meant was that he didn’t want to see us at the 2013 Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Walk to Cure Diabetes because he wanted a cure to be found by then and therefore nullifying the need for a walk.   People in attendance, including yours truly, applauded.

That’s why we were there. We weren’t there to talk football (although I sheepishly admit I asked a few football questions), we were there to spend time together and hear stories of people’s heroic battles against Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) of which there obviously is no known cure.

This cause means a great deal to Crabtree personally.  His wife Chelsea was diagnosed with T1D when she was four years old. He lives the disease every single day of his life, and so do many others.  More than 80 people are diagnosed with T1 each day and more than 3 million Americans currently have the disease.  Read more... (1012 words + 1 image, estimated 4:03 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Florida RB/WR Chris Rainey

Green Bay Packers draft prospect profile: Florida RB/WR Chris Rainey

Player information:

• Chris Rainey, RB/WR, Florida
• 5-foot-8, 180 lbs.
• A world-class track athlete who can do far more on a football field than just run.

NFL Combine:

• 4.45 40-yard dash*
• 3.93 20-yard shuttle*
• 11.06 60-yard shuttle*
• 6.50 3-cone drill*
• 120″ broad jump
• 36.5″ vertical jump
• 16 bench press reps

* =Top performer

News & Notes:

Won two straight USA Today high school National Championships while at Lakeland (Fl.) High School…Played in four games his freshman season but received a medical hardship waiver after hurting his shoulder…Ran for 682 yards and four scores during his redshirt-freshman year, earning SEC All-Freshman honors…Finished his college career with 2,393 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, plus 66 catches for 764 yards and six more scores…Returned 25 punts and 18 kickoffs…Lost seven fumbles during his four years…Was charged with aggravated stalking in 2010 after sending his ex-girlfriend a threatening text message, later suspended by the school…Those charges were dropped when he completed a program of community service and anger management…Has experience playing running back, receiver and special teams…He’s been one of the nation’s most productive punt blockers over the last four years, as his six blocked punts set a SEC record…Struggles blocking out of the backfield but has a solid, compact frame…Most compare him to Percy Harvin, his former teammate at Florida and current Minnesota Viking…If used right at the next level, could have Darren Sproles like impact…Given his versatility and rare athleticism, the Packers could realistically afford to use a roster spot on him as another Swiss Army knife type player.  Read more... (672 words + 1 image, estimated 2:41 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Surviving Sundays With No Packers Football

The Packers signed free agent center Jeff Saturday this week to replace the departed Scott Wells. Yes, I said the Packers signed a free agent. A free agent that I actually heard of, nonetheless.

I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to react to this occasion.  It’s been a while since Ted Thompson blew the dust off the checkbook he uses to sign free agents from other teams and actually brought someone in. Fans from other teams often celebrate like they just won the Super Bowl after inking a free agent so….congrats fellow Packers fans?

Thompson obviously didn’t know how to react to the occasion, either. He was so confused and out of sorts about what he just did that he turned around and did it again, signing free agent defensive lineman Daniel Muir.

Now, Muir fits the mold of a Packers free-agent signing much more than Saturday. Muir is a journeyman that Thompson signed and released once before. He’ll have to fight hard just to make the team and anything he contributes during the season will be a bonus.  Read more... (916 words + 1 image, estimated 3:40 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Surviving Sundays With No Packers Football

I was watching the Minnesota Gophers play the Michigan Wolverines in the Big 10 tournament on Friday night and somehow the end of the game made me think about the NFL.

It was one of those down-to-the-wire college basketball games that makes the sport so exciting, or at least should make the sport so exciting. Unfortunately, whenever the intensity got ratcheted up to 10 and you were getting to the edge of your seat, a timeout would be called. Or the refs would need five minutes to review a play. Then another timeout. Then another review. And so on, and so on…

The end of what should have been a memorable game was ruined by meddling coaches and refs who relied too heavily on the crutch of instant replay.

So what does this have to do with the NFL? I guarantee you if a similar problem existed in the NFL, it would do something to correct it. The NFL isn’t afraid to innovate, even if it means upsetting some people in the process.  Read more... (1123 words + 1 image, estimated 4:30 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Packers WR Donald Driver is willing to take a pay cut to stay in Green Bay.

Speaking a day after his team had lost to the New York Giants in the NFC Divisional Round, Green Bay Packers receiver Donald Driver wasn’t having any of the speculation that he may be retiring after 13 NFL seasons.

And without actually saying it, Driver made it seem clear that continuing his career in another city had become a viable option.

“If the Packers don’t want me, I’ve got to go somewhere else and play,” Driver said. “I don’t have a choice. I’m not ready to hang the cleats up.”

That sound-byte from Driver probably caught Packers GM Ted Thompson a little off guard. A fair number of observers had envisioned 2011 being the 37-year-old’s final season.

The plot added another twist last Friday.

At a breakfast banquet in Milwaukee, Driver said that he’d be willing to take a pay cut to stay with the Packers in 2012, a statement that seemed to contradict his earlier feelings on wanting to play elsewhere if the Packers weren’t willing to keep him.  Read more... (1099 words + 1 image, estimated 4:24 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

It took just 2 days for the Packers to sell 185,000 shares of stock, over 75% of the initial offering that was supposed to last until February.  That’s 48 hours, $43 million dollars total or over $1,500 dollars donated every minute.

The media (maybe most notably Bill Johnson of Green and Gold Today) and fans (even some Packers fans it appears), have been taken to ridiculing the idiots who have decided to buy a stock that offers little in terms of power within the Packers organization, does not constitute a stock in the traditional sense of the word (as stated on the website), and can only be resold to the Packers for 2.5 cents, which is a 100 fold loss.   Some have called the sale disingenuous (or greedy as Jason Wilde put it) since the Packers aren’t in dire economic troubles.

I think the biggest misconception that people outside of the Packers faithful (and even some Packers faithful) is that this is indeed a stock (which let’s be honest it really isn’t) So I’ve put this list together for all of you to why buying Packers stock isn’t a stupid idea.  Read more... (922 words + 1 image, estimated 3:41 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

There has been a wave of cautious optimism about the CBA negotiation over the last few weeks. Oowners met as a group last week to get everyone on the same page as to how the negotiations were going and followed that up with another round of talks with the players.  While both sides are under a court-mandated blackout, reports have trickled out that there wasn’t much resistance from ownership and while the players don’t love the new deal, they will live with it.

Follow that up with reports coming out that another round of talks will be held in Boston/Minnesota and it’s understandable that NFL fans are happy to see significant progress being made.  Amidst all this optimism, some aspects of the new deal have been leaked out.  Will this change the way the Packers do business?  Read more... (1322 words + 1 image, estimated 5:17 mins reading time)

• Players will earn somewhere around 48% of revenue: Perhaps the biggest roadblock between the owners and the players is how much of the pie everyone gets.
  • Effect on the league: Some teams will definitely be hit harder than other teams; while Jerry Jones and the Cowboys probably won’t be affected that much due to their massive profit margins, small market teams such as the Jacksonville Jaguars could feel the financial pressure of keeping up with the rest of the league.

---- Get AddToAny