Packers: Recapping key points of season, offseason to date

No division title, no playoffs

Maybe we, as Packers fans, are spoiled. Maybe our winning ways are taken for granted. We have been blessed with some good coaches in the three Mikes: Holmgren, Sherman and McCarthy.

Under their tutelage the Packers have won their division 12 times in 25 years. OK, Ray Rhodes had an 8-8 year in 1999 but nobody remembers that season or remembers him coaching the Packers for that matter.

They have made it to the playoffs in 19 of those 25 years. That is in incredible feat. Considering the rival-Bears have had over 10 coaches during that same period, it shows the Packers have had a solid foundation and a strong tradition of winning for a long time. Most of the remaining 31 teams in the NFL would love to have that success rate.

Yeah, the Packers only ended up in three Super Bowls in that time (winning two and losing one to a possessed John Elway) but the threat to get there was still realistic in most of those remaining playoff years.

The 2017 season had a lot of promise. The Packers started hot en route to a 4-1 record as they beat heated rivals in the Seahawks and Cowboys. Aaron Rodgers finally beat the only team he hadn’t won against in his career in the Cincinnati Bengals. It was a great start.

Then came that Vikings game in Minneapolis. To quote Bart Simpson: “Aye Carrumba!”. What a season-changer that was. After losing Rodgers for the remainder of the year (besides the Carolina game) the Packers went 3-8 and failed to have a winning record for the season.

Guys were hurt. Game plans were jumbled together. Coaching was subject. Unproven players were forced into major playing time. Other guys had off years.

I am not going to tell you that any member of the team threw in the towel after Rodgers went down but the confidence level took a major hit and it was a hit that they never seemed to bounce back from. Their star player was not out there leading the team and they looked lost and vulnerable.