When I first heard about Nick Barnett's comments on Twitter... it bummed me out, because this is a time when the players need to focus on planning for the Steelers... not having to deal with distractions. However... it's not like Barnett didn't have a point.
If you're not sure about what I'm talking about... I'll sum it up for you. Originally Packers' management scheduled to have the team's Super Bowl photo taken on Tuesday, Feb. 1st. Unfortunately, the 16 players listed on injury-reserve weren't scheduled to arrive until Thursday, Feb. 3rd... which meant that they wouldn't be included in the photo. According to Michael Silver's Yahoo article... in recent years, players on IR have typically been included on photo day.
Obviously... if you're one of the Packers on IR... that news would be disappointing to say the least. And that's where Barnett's (& Jermichael Finley's) Twitter comments come into play. Now before things get blown out of proportion... neither of them were trying to stir up any drama... they were just letting their feelings be known. Later... they both stated that the last thing they wanted to be was a distraction to the team.
Well... thankfully... Packers' management has solved the issue.
The team photo will now include all 16 players on IR who played a part in helping the Packers reach the big game. But just to provide some insurance... I'm dedicating today's post to all of those guys who won't be able to take the field two Sundays from now.
Nick Barnett
Jermichael Finley
Ryan Grant
Mark Tauscher, Brady Poppinga, & Justin Harrell
Sadly... I don't have any cards of the remaining ten players: Josh Bell, Brandon Chillar, Spencer Havner, Brad Jones, Anthony Levine, Derrick Martin, Mike Neal, Marshall Newhouse, and Anthony Smith.
Today's question of the day...
Which of the 16 Packers players on IR will be most missed on Super Bowl Sunday?
There are definitely some huge names on this list... but some of the current players have done fine in their place. Desmond Bishop has had an excellent season at linebacker, while James Starks has exceeded most peoples' expectations at running back. But... nobody stepped up and filled Jermichael Finley's shoes. Don't get me wrong... I love Donald Lee... but he isn't the beast that Finley is. But... that's just my 2 cents... let's hear yours.
Happy "hump" day! Sayonara!
Without question, Finley. He is a match up nightmare for defenses. He is simply too athletic and dynamic at the TE position. It is sad that this offense doesn't have Finely. That's scary because the offense is pretty good without him.
ReplyDeleteBarnett is a nice player who provides leadership. He has been underrated for a long time. I used to trade for him on Madden back in the day because his ratings went up quickly.
Charles - I agree with you 100% on both accounts.
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