[h=3]The makeup of the Packers[/h]
|
| Clay Matthews was a walk-on in college before becoming an all-pro with the Packers. (David Stluka/Associated Press/) |
It had been pointed out to me that the Packers' locker room is unique in that it is largely devoid of cliques, something you rarely see in the NFL. And so in my 10 days there recently, I tried to figure out how that came to be.
CEO Mark Murphy gave me the best answer. He said that, by design, the roster that GM Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy have constructed is stocked with players who had been dismissed at one point or another on their road to Green Bay. Seems weird when you think about the Packers, with their core of 20-something stars that promise to keep this operation rolling for a long time to come.
But it actually is true. Take their six Pro Bowlers from last year:
»
Greg Jennings: Lightly recruited out of Kalamazoo, Mich., Jennings stayed home for college, and went to Western Michigan. Starred there and was drafted in the second round in 2006.
»
Chad Clifton: Still a second-round pick, and has a good pedigree, as Peyton Manning's left tackle at Tennessee. But he did overcome a serious pelvic injury in 2002 and is a 12-year Packer staple.
»
Clay Matthews: Was a 170-pound high school safety who walked
on at USC and worked his way into becoming a first-round pick. Didn't even start for the Trojans until his senior year.
»
Charles Woodson: Another one who came to the NFL with an unquestioned pedigree, but struggled mid-career, dealing with injuries as a Raider before being discarded, reluctantly heading to Green Bay.
»
Tramon Williams: Overlooked in favor of teammate
Brandon Jacobs in high school, Williams walked on at Louisiana Tech and was cut by Houston in 2006 after getting a shot as an undrafted free agent.
Unlock HQ Video HQ video delivered by Akamai
»
Nick Collins: Started his career at I-AA Bethune-Cookman as a linebacker, before switching to safety and playing his way into the second round of the 2005 draft.
» Then, there's
Aaron Rodgers, who wasn't a Pro Bowler last year, being edged out by Mike Vick,
Drew Brees and
Matt Ryan. The quarterback was barely recruited at all coming out of high school, went to junior college, landed at Cal and dealt with the Brett Favre drama when he got to the NFL.
A
lmost everyone in the locker room has a story like that. The belief in Green Bay is that's why the team doesn't have a sense of entitlement, and it's no mistake the roster has been constructed this way.
"Every decision that's made, when Ted and I sit around and talk about bringing a guy in during the draft or otherwise, the last thing that's always said is, 'How would he fit in the locker room?'" McCarthy told me, after I asked about that dynamic. "It's something we've really invested in since '06. We're really conscious of the people we bring in here. It's not just that they're all really good guys. We believe culture wins. People win, people lose. At the end of the day, it's about people."
Those people just got done winning 19 games in a row. And when you really pore over the above, it's not really all that hard to see why none of it has gone to these players' heads
