January 12, 2015 at 2:03 p.m.
Shoutouts & Callouts
Packers survive and advance; HOF selections receive scrutiny
Shoutouts & Callouts
Where do I start when discussing the Green Bay Packers' 26-21 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Playoffs on Sunday? So many thoughts went through my mind as I penned this in the moments following the game.
Obviously, you have to start with the play that everybody's still taking about - the fourth-and-2 that was ruled a Dez Bryant incompletion after a challenge by Mike McCarthy.
As much as I cannot stand Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, give Fox credit for being the first in the industry to bring a rules official into the booth and I think Mike Pereira explained it as well as humanly possible. Simply put, if a receiver goes up for a ball he must maintain complete control of the ball through the process of the catch, including when he hits the ground. That did not happen. Now, I will admit, in real time I thought it was a catch and I was certain the Packers would lose the challenge, but I also thought the Calvin Johnson catch against Chicago in 2010 that made the "completing the process" rule famous was a catch as well.
I equate it to the "Tuck Rule." It's counterintuitive to what you would think watching a play in real time, but it's the letter of the law. Cowboys fans can hate the rule (and have a legitimate gripe), but the call was correct.
As for the debate on whether the Cowboys' should have attempted a 50-yard field goal instead of going for it, like Aikman suggested, I think Dallas made the correct call for two reasons. One, Dan Bailey missed from 45 (negated by a false start penalty) and had a 50-yard attempt partially blocked and sail wide right on that end of the field during the second quarter. Two, Dallas would have still trailed by two with a successful attempt and, as it turned out, the Cowboys would not have gotten the football back (more on that later).
One last thing, Bryant was lucky for the second week in a row he was not penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct for arguing a call on the field without his helmet. He had every right to be upset, but that reaction coupled with leaving the field with a towel over his head, further cements his reputation as whiner.
Speaking as a Packers fan still salty from "Fail Mary," and knowing that Dallas was the benefactor of a controversial call reversal in last week's win against Detroit, I do not have one iota of sympathy for Cowboys fans. Period.
The one sad thing about the call is that has overshadowed what was otherwise an excellent game played by both teams. I think a few myths were well and truly debunked Sunday:
• Aaron Rodgers is not as tough as Brett Favre was.
• Tony Romo can't win in January.
• The Packers are a soft team.
Rodgers' mobility was clearly limited on Sunday, but he was able to move around in the pocket enough to make the plays he needed to make. Romo, meanwhile, was Rodgers equal Sunday. He made plays and made a great throw on the jump ball to Bryant. He did not commit a turnover and, simply put, Romo was not the reason Dallas lost the game. For Cowboys' fans, that's a positive sign moving forward. Finally, the Packers did enough running the football and stopping the run to be competitive in the game. They didn't outrush Dallas, but they were unintimidated by the Cowboys' offensive and defensive line. They will need to take that same mentality into Seattle this Sunday if they stand any chance in the contest.
Meanwhile, anyone who thought that the Packers' signing of Julius Peppers was a waste of money need only look at only two plays from Sunday's game to know they were wrong. Peppers forced two fumbles in the game - one a strip sack of Romo in the first quarter and the strip of DeMarco Murray in the third quarter. Both were game-changers. One forced a punt. The other conceivably saved a touchdown and led to a Packers' field goal. Those two plays alone were a 13-point swing in the Packers' favor.
Finally, I was fairly confident that the Packers could run out the clock following the Bryant reversal. Why? Because the Packers have done it several times this year. In fact, three weeks in a row in the second half of the season - against Minnesota, New England and Atlanta - the Packers needed to pick up key first downs in the four-minute offense to keep their opponent from attempting a comeback. The Packers came through every time with the same formula - tough running from Eddie Lacy and clutch throws from Rodgers. A great catch of a tipped ball by Randall Cobb on third and long helped too. I don't know what I would have done in Mike McCarthy's shoes facing fourth-and-11 and a potential 53-yard field goal try. We'll never know, thanks to Rodgers and Cobb.
As for this Sunday's NFC Championship game, I'll come right out and say I am picking the Seahawks. As a fan I would love nothing more than to see Green Bay walk into CenturyLink Field and erase the memories of "Fail Mary" once and for all, but Seattle's defense is just too tough. Seattle can be physical with the Packers receivers, create pressure with a four-man rush and, if Rodgers' mobility is limited again, that is not a good recipe for the Packers.
While my heart says Packers, my head says 27-10 Seattle. I fervently hope I am wrong.
Callout: Mommas, don't let your babies grow up to be HOF voters
This past week I came to a conclusion. The most thankless job in sports is not that of head coach, general manager or even the equipment manager who deals with the laundry following a muddy football game. No, the most thankless job in sports is that of hall of fame voter.
It's a no-win situation. Take the Baseball Writers Association, which was deemed too harsh last year when it failed to vote in any new Hall of Famers. This year they voted four very deserving players in - pitchers Randy Johnson, John Smoltz and Pedro Martinez, and second baseman Craig Biggio - but they are getting criticism "left" and "right," from Curt Shilling, who suggested he didn't get voted in because he's a Republican, and Keith Olbermann (who is anything but a Republican), who suggested the hall of fame process should be recreated from scratch.
Or you could be the National Football Federation and be taking heat - and rightfully so - for including scandal-plagued coach Jim Tressel and admitted PED user and NFL flop Brian Bosworth among the inductees in the 2015 College Football Hall of Fame class.
That's the rub about hall of fame voting. There never seems to be a right answer, only several wrong ones. Sure there are no-brainer selections, but what about the players with marginal statistics, or the individuals who seem to be locks with their merits on the field, but have red flags off the field - either real of perceived?
They say you can't please them all. Hall of fame voters can't seem to please anybody.
Extra Point: Fitting tribute to a successful coach
It was almost an afterthought, a spur of the moment decision, for me on Friday night. I was not at Lakeland Union High School to cover the Ted Voigt Court dedication. I was there to cover the games that were played immediately before and after it. Yet I felt compelled to snap a picture from my position up in the balcony during the ceremony and tweet it out.
It turned out to be one of the more popular tweets sent out from the River News Sports (@RiverNewsSports) account. A former Wisconsin men's basketball player and a hall of fame coach who racked up 538 wins over 38 seasons in Lakeland, you won't hear any argument from me as to whether Voigt was worthy of such an honor. But as the replies, retweets and favorites piled up, it became apparent the respect Voigt has garnered across Wisconsin's basketball landscape.
To wit, the first and most poignant reply came from Mark Miller, editor of Wisconsin Basketball Yearbook and contributor to WisSports.net. Miller's reply, "One of the truly great coaches in Wisconsin prep basketball history. Terrific person as well."
That pretty much says all you need to know about Voigt's reputation around the state.
Voigt thanked God, his assistant coaches and his family for his successful tenure during an impassioned speech and the respect in the room was evident. Fans of both teams rose to their feet and gave Voigt a standing ovation. The boys' and girls' basketball teams from both Rhinelander and Lakeland looked on. State senator Tom Tiffany was on hand.
I went to Northland Pines High School and Lakeland was one of our biggest rivals in the days of the old Lumberjack Conference. Though I watched Voigt's teams dismantle my Eagles more times than I'd like to remember, you cannot argue with what he built in Lakeland and the class with which he did it.
Hat's off to Ted Voigt on the honor and props to Lakeland for Friday night's ceremony. It was truly a special night and, coming from this old Eagle, that's high praise.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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