Jermichael Finley: Shut Up.

I don’t know who the hell you think you are, Jermichael Finley.  Are you the athletic tight end the Packers drafted in the third round in the 2008 NFL Draft?  Or are you a Class A Idiot?

Right now, I’m leaning towards Class A Idiot.

Where do you get off at, Jermichael?  Do you seriously have the gall to criticize your quarterback on his throw?  You obviously do not know the pro game, young man.  You do not criticize your quarterback, no matter who you are.  After all, he is your lifeline to your paycheck.  You damn well do not criticize your quarterback when you’re a rookie whose statline consists merely of a drop.  Shut your mouth, kid.  And the fact you think you deserve more looks in the offense is going straight to the wayside.  Just an idiotic move.  You’ve barely seen any action so far this year.  You should be grateful to the coaches they gave you an opportunity to play in a big game and you should be grateful to Aaron Rodgers for having faith in you to make a play in two critical aspects of the game, a fourth down play and a play deep in the red zone.  You need to take responsibility, not deflect it off as misuse of your talent by the coaches.

Of the little game action I saw of the Packers 19-16 loss to the Tennessee Titans I did see, I did see the fourth-and-1 play in question.  Finley made no attempt on the ball at all, making it look like an errant throw by Rodgers.  It was obvious by Finley’s body language after the play, however, that it was all on Finley.  My first reaction to seeing Rodgers’ pass was, “Why the hell are you throwing it to him?”  Finley must be showing something in practice if Rodgers went to the rookie tight end at a critical juncture in the game over Ryan Grant, Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and Donald Lee.  Finley has extreme athleticism, but it’s obvious he is immature.

It’s also obvious that the Packers coaching staff does not like it.

Offensive coordinator Joe Philbin had this to say:

"“I could try to act smart and say there’s some super special technique we had for that, but I mean, jeez, go get the ball.  If you’re in the backyard, that’s what you’d do. … You have to go make the play.”“You don’t have a lot of time, and you better get as quick and clean a release as you can, knowing he’s got an inside guy covering him and a guy outside blitzing.  You have to understand the situation, have to understand the down and distance, understand they have everybody up (and he doesn’t) have all day to get off the ball and into this route.”"

Philbin’s comments make this sound more like inexperience than anything else.  However, if you contrast it with Finley’s quotation, well, Finley just sounds like a jerk:

"“I think he should have led me a little more, well a lot more.  Really he didn’t throw it good at all, to be honest. He knows my game, coaches know my game. I’m more like a run and jump (receiver). I’m really not no back shoulder or whatever he had going on back there. They just have to know what kind of player I am and use me in that aspect of the game.”"

There are a bunch of names I would love to call Finley right now, but I would like to keep Lombardi Ave family-friendly, so I have to put on the brakes with this one.  That’s just an idiotic quote.  When the quarterback throws the pass off kilter, you make an attempt to go get it.  You use effort.  You don’t wait until after the game to criticize him.  You make the play.  And shut up.

I don’t expect Finley to see the field any time soon.  And even if he does, he won’t be getting the ball.  When the head coach criticizes you without being asked a question about you, that does not bode well.  Finley’s quotation “drew the ire of coach Mike McCarthy, who in his Monday news conference addressed it without being asked specifically about Finley.”

"“I don’t agree with the tight end’s quote, Jermichael.  But we were expecting man in that particularly situation. It’s a hot situation for that particular play. Jermichael had a poor release. He was too high, and Aaron was trying to back-shoulder him. It’s a play that we practice all the time. It’s a common throw in our offense.”"

None of the testimony seems to side with young Jermichael.  The kid has to know when to put a sock in it.

Welcome to the NFL, kid.