Packers Daily Links 7.8.10

Your daily spin around the world of Packers football ...

On the Packers calendar today is a wine tasting event for cornerback Charles Woodson's TwentyFour wine label at Ocean Prime in Troy, Mich. ...

Piggybacking on a post by Joshua Green of The Atlantic, we here at CheeseheadTV take a look at how the New York Jets are creating their own wine while Woodson is prevented by the NFL from promoting his own wine brand. "For a league plagued by illegal dog-fighting, persistent strip-club shootings, and domestic violence, this strikes me as absurd and completely wrong-headed," writes Green. "Wine-making would confer some much-needed class and sophistication to a sport in very short supply."

The Packers sent a personnel director to scout Joshua Price-Brent of Illinois in advance of the supplemental draft on July 15 says Gil Brandt of NFL.com. While Brandt broke the news, we give a little bit more in-depth examination of Price-Brent and the likelihood of the Packers drafting him. "The workout took place outside on FieldTurf at the University of Illinois with four teams — San Francisco, Green Bay, New Orleans and Detroit — sending their personnel directors," writes Brandt. If I had to take a guess, I'd say the Packers will stay away from Price-Brent because of the depth they already have along the defensive line.

Offensive lineman Allen Barbre is profiled by Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com. Barbre, as Wilde says, remains an enigma. "What’s vexing about him is that he looks the part of a dominating lineman (6-foot-4, 300 pounds) and has the on-field demeanor of one, yet he hasn’t played like one yet," writes Wilde. Head coach Mike McCarthy has called him one of the most physically gifted players on the team and said he's very imposing on kickoff coverage running down the field. Why he can't put it all together is very puzzling.

A couple quotes from Packers players and coaches are provided by Lori Nickel of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, among them Cullen Jenkins on his quest to make the Pro Bowl. “Oh I definitely want to go,” said Jenkins. “I’m tired of my brother (Kris Jenkins) being able to brag to me about going to the Pro Bowl and I can’t say nothing. That’s definitely a goal. All I can say is that’s a little tougher for a D-end in the 3-4 -- but its still possible. You can get the sacks, you just have to work hard. (Justin) Smith from San Francisco, he went last year as an alternate and he didn’t have I don’t think even 10, he had seven or eight. It is possible. You just have to be consistent.” Jenkins is right. He's going to need somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 sacks or so if he's ever going to get to the Pro Bowl.

Depending on how much you can read into a couple words posted on Twitter, safety Atari Bigby, who has yet to sign a contract with the Packers, says he'll be at training camp. "In a couple of interesting exchanges on Twitter last evening, Bigby seemed to reassure fans that he would be present for what is shaping up to be a mission to the Super Bowl," writes Alex Tallitsch of Packers Lounge. The five words Bigby offered up: "I'll be there, don't trip."

Speaking of Tallitsch and Packers Lounge, if you haven't seen yet, the Lounge is moving to CheeseheadTV.com. Aaron Nagler introduces the move in a post, but the new Packers Lounge is already up and running. Check it out.

Jermichael Finley is tied for the fifth-best tight end in the entire NFL by Charles Davis of the NFL Network. Max Ginsberg of the blog Purple Pants Green Jersey thinks Finley could possibly be ranked higher on that list while Tony Gonzalez could fall down. "I see a lot of skill on that list, but I don’t necessarily agree with the order," writes Ginsberg. "At the very least we need some caveats for each player. Should a player’s upside be taken into consideration? How about value to their team? If we’re talking about value and upside, I think Finley jumps up that list and Gonzalez falls off the list completely."

A Q&A with rookie tight end Andrew Quarless is posted on Packers.com. In the exchange, Quarless talks about what he thinks will the toughest part of his first NFL training camp. "I think just learning the plays," said Quarless. "When you don't know the plays, in and out, you are a little hesitant. When you know the plays by heart you are able to play at that fast speed and aren't thinking, you are reacting. I think that is going to be the hardest thing for me. Once you learn it, then you'll be able to react." For Quarless' sake, hopefully he's studying the playbook in this July time period. He'll need every opportunity to make a bigger impression than he did during OTAs and minicamp.

PackerWorld Central reacts to the post here at CheeseheadTV on the possible expansion of Lambeau Field and its ramifications. "Lambeau Field is one of the oldest stadiums in the league. It has, nor will it ever, host a Superbowl or take centerstage in the league in some way, but the history of Lambeau is a definite part of the culture and history of the league itself, similar to Wrigley Field in the MLB," according to PackerWorld Central. "I believe that turning part of the stadium into entertainment for "an amusement park atmosphere" is not respecting or honoring Lambeau's special place in league history."

Chad Lundberg of Bleacher Report wonders if a Packers/49ers rivalry could ever emerge. Not anymore than, say, the rivalry between the Cowboys and the Packers had in the mid-90s when they met for several consecutive years in the playoffs.

Former Packers running back Basil Mitchell will be a coach at the 4th and 1 youth football camp from July 12-16 on the campus of Northeast Texas Community College.

Make sure to check out Cheeshead Radio's debut this evening!

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Comments (4)

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JohnRehor's picture

July 08, 2010 at 07:57 am

Basil Mitchell?-wow, it must be the slow time of the year.

Great job as always Brian.

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Brian Carriveau's picture

July 08, 2010 at 08:01 am

There's never a slow time of year talking about the Packers.

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JohnRehor's picture

July 08, 2010 at 08:20 am

Slow time for Packers, no. Basil Mitchell references deserve extra props though.

Who will be on the Links tomorrow? Rondell Mealy? That's why I check the Daily Links every day-never know who will show up.

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PWC's picture

July 08, 2010 at 12:48 pm

Thanks for the link Brian. Just to edit my own post. That first sentence should read, "it has NOT, nor will it ever..." Just left out the word not.

Go Pack Go!

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