Sunday, February 12, 2012

Packers have to adjust after departure of Philbin

Rodgers is the face of the franchise and was named NFL MVP on the eve of the Super Bowl on Feb. 4. Yet, his on-air lobbying to have a onetime NFL quarterback such as Billy Joe Tolliver or Rich Gannon come in as Clements' replacement didn't make a difference with McCarthy.

Neither move comes as a surprise, though quarterback Aaron Rodgers hinted at some reservations about potentially having McAdoo as his position coach a day before the appointment came to light Feb. 8.

Clements is no stranger to leading an offense. He was the Buffalo Bills' offensive coordinator in 2004 and '05.

Green Bay's head coach promoted longtime aides Tom Clements and Ben McAdoo to key positions. Clements is making the transition from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, while McAdoo is progressing from tight ends coach to quarterbacks coach.

"I'm in my eighth season," Rodgers said on his weekly radio show on ESPN Milwaukee. "It will be interesting to see what direction (McCarthy) wants to go in victor cruz authentic jersey, if he wants to bring in a former quarterback with experience to kind of help me with the transition into the middle part of my career wes welker jersey, a more of an established player in the league now.

After proving his value with the development of the tight ends, particularly young standout Jermichael Finley, since he arrived in Green Bay in 1996, McAdoo will have his work cut out with his new position group. While he won't need to do much hands-on work with Rodgers, McAdoo will be entrusted to cultivate an unknown group of understudies as the Packers prepare to lose top backup Matt Flynn in free agency.

McCarthy, who incidentally replaced Reid as Green Bay's quarterbacks coach in 1999, has cast McAdoo in the same light as an emerging assistant coach who is on track to be an NFL head coach.

-- Packers outside linebacker Erik Walden reached a plea agreement stemming from a Nov. 25 dispute with his girlfriend, according to the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

McCarthy has to fill the position of tight ends coach, which also could come internally. Former longtime New Orleans Saints offensive lineman Joel Hilgenberg, who joined McCarthy's staff as an offensive quality control coach last year, might be under consideration.

The Packers absorbed only one loss on their enticing coaching staff after their near-perfect season ended prematurely in the playoffs. Yet, the departure of offensive coordinator Joe Philbin to become head coach with the Miami Dolphins has created some significant movement in the chain of command on offense under Mike McCarthy.

Taking a page out of Packers Hall of Fame-elect coach Mike Holmgren's personnel playbook hakeem nicks super bowl jerseys, McCarthy tapped the 34-year-old McAdoo to be the quarterbacks coach.

"I'm not sure what the dynamic would be with a coach who hasn't coached the position before," continued Rodgers, alluding to McAdoo. "But, Ben is a very a talented coach, and if they do make that decision, I'm sure he will make a smooth transition."

"I have enjoyed our six years of spending every working day together, and his relationship means a lot to me super bowl xlvi jerseys," Rodgers said on his radio show. "I have a lot of respect and admiration for him."

In fact, McCarthy put the kibosh on requests made by the Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers to interview McAdoo for their offensive-coordinator vacancies.

He was originally charged with felony substantial battery after his girlfriend claimed he pushed her into a bedpost, resulting in a bump and cut on her forehead. But she recanted that claim, saying Walden was defending himself, and the charge was reduced to misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

Fortunately for Rodgers, he still has Clements in the building. Rodgers gives a lot of credit to Clements, who was the team's quarterbacks coach since 2006, for being able to hit the ground running and quickly evolve into an elite QB after replacing Favre as the starter in 2008.

If Walden doesn't comply with the terms of the plea, he could then face the maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $1 super bowl realtree camo jerseys,000 fine.

Under the agreement, Walden must complete 50 house of community service and stay out of trouble for a year, and the charge will then be dropped and erased from the records on Jan 25, 2013.

McCarthy has yet to speak publicly since the coaching changes were made, but he likely will continue to call the plays on offense as he did his first six seasons as the Packers' head coach.

Holmgren promoted tight ends coach Andy Reid to quarterbacks coach in 1997. Reid's ability to establish a solid working relationship with then-star QB Brett Favre and earn Favre's respect the next two seasons opened the door for Reid to go to the Philadelphia Eagles as head coach.

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