I'll admit it, I didn't watch the opening ceremony nor do I care to.  It's not something I'm interested in it so I just watch the events. 
First off a huge apology to my old bocce teammate Herbster for all the crap I gave him about gymnastics.  I'm really enjoying most of the gymnastics events, even my long time least favorite floor exercise.  I'm still not a fan of the dancing aspect of it but the actual gymnastics they do I like.  I didn't see any of the rings which is another I'm not overly big on.  I only saw a little of the vault which is normally my favorite.  The uneven bars is another of my favorites but I enjoyed the high bar more than normal.  And finally I really enjoy the pommel horse especially the kid who specialized it.  He looked like someone out of the movie Revenge of the Nerds but he came in and did great. 
For those who don't know Herb was a gymnast at SIU and he specialized in the pommel horse.  He actually won the event at the NCAA's, a great accomplishment.
And to Apryl, I really liked the rugby 7's.  Nothing like the rugby I'd seen before but very exciting, especially the USA's last second bronze medal.

Willie Mays died yesterday at age 93, another boyhood hero gone.  He's the reason I've been a Giants fan since the 1960's.  Such a great player and seemed to be a really nice person.
My dad wasn't really a baseball fan so I didn't really follow closely.  One day Mike and Tom's dad was pitching to them a probably a couple other kids.  They all wanted to be Musial, Mantle and such.  I didn't know any players so I asked him who's good and he said Willie Mays so that's who I pretended to be.  The rest is history as they say and I thank my lucky stars he didn't say Ernie Banks. 
Anyway I've been a Giants fan ever since that day almost 60 years ago.  I've made it through the numerous bad times and the great times as a Giant fan.  The worst time was the 94 player strike that turned me off on baseball for quite some time but I still followed the Giants, just not as closely.  Luckily St Louis got ride of that monstrosity of a stadium and built new Busch and I really wanted to see it and that got me back into baseball just in time to see the best time for me being a Giants fan.  The 3 in 5 championships were the highlight.
Anyway I knew it was going to happen soon but it still hurts to lose another part of you childhood.  Say Hey Willie.

For the first time in a while the Packers were active in free agency. 
Josh Jacobs:  Signing Jacobs is huge, he's still young enough and is an impactful running back
Aaron Jones:  This one hurts.  I really like Jones and loved his sombrero and macho man glasses. 
Xavier McKenney:  Awesome signing and still only 24.  Solves a big need.
David Bakhtiari:  Another one that hurts.  From his play on the field to his beer chugging off it a great Packer.  Really a shame he hurt his knee and hasn't been able to play.
Jon Runyon Jr.: Always liked him but he was way overpaid by the Giants.
Jonathon Owens: Hate to see him go but that's mainly because of how him and his wife, Simone Biles, embraced Green Bay.
Of course we resigned and lost some others but:::::::
After a couple days I feel the Packers are a lot better than they were before free agency started
and somehow got young, a great combination.

I wanted the 49ers to win the Super Bowl mainly because I don't want the Chiefs to get the chance to win three in a row.  No team has won three Super Bowls in a row however my beloved Green Bay Packers have won three NFL championships in a row and they've done it twice.  The Super Bowl wasn't started until after the 1966 season.  The Packers won the NFL championship in 1965 then the first two Super Bowls.
Anyway the Super Bowl has become too much hype and entertainment and not enough about the game.  I'm not a fan of all the halftime shows.  NFL halftimes are normally 12 minutes and I say keep it at that.  Super Bowl halftimes run close to 30 minutes.  Halftime is a time to go pee then grab a drink and some snacks then back to football,.
I also could care less about the commercials.  Another time to peek and get drinks and snacks.
Make the focus about football again.

The Packers season came to a halt last night 😞  It ended way too soon but it also lasted longer than I thought it would.  Missed opportunities were the story of the game for the Packers. 
I always have a let down when the season ends and this year seems worse.  Longer post coming.
Go Pack Go

If I would have wrote about the Packers a few weeks ago like I started to this post would be a lot different.  A few things that have changed:
Most importantly Jordon Love quite throwing behind and under throwing receivers and started doing a better job with his accuracy.
Christan Watson finally got healthy but got injured again towards the end of the last game.  I'm thinking he's like that sports car that looks great but spends a lot of time in the shop.
The O line got healthy and started working more as a unit and the rotation at Left Tackle seems to be working.
The offense started looking more like Lafleur's offense instead of a Lafleur/Rodgers blend.
The rookie CB's have been playing good enough that there are questions about Jaire Alexander willingness to tackle.
That being said I'm still not totally sure Love is the long term answer but I have more hope than I did.
Joe Barry's defense is still Joe Barry's defense, I'm not a fan even though they seem to be playing well.
This team has an young, exciting feel to it, a far cry from last years old, stale team.
Go Pack Go

The Murphysboro Red Devils football season came to a crashing halt yesterday as they lost to perennial powerhouse Rochester 42-14 in the state semi finals.  Final four is nothing to be ashamed of.  Sure us Red Devil fans would have loved it to go on but only two teams finished ahead of us.  Great season Devils.
We watched the game on TV with a bunch of old Red Devils athletes including myself, Lisa, Fred, Mike, Ted and Danny plus one non Red Devil Debbie.  Lisa fixed some of her famous chicken wings and Mike brought several different chip and dip options. 
Once a
Red Devil
Always a
Red Devil

This past weekend Lisa turned 60 so her brother Mike planned a surprise party for her.  He really worked hard on it and while it wasn't really a surprise to her it worked out great.  There was a big surprise when his third brother Danny from Cali showed up with his wife and his wife's sister and her significant.  Long time friend Valya came down from Champaign and added to the surprise. 
There were some other friends and family and all in all a really nice group of people having a nice time.  There was plenty of food and snacks and two cakes. Lisa had a blast, she got several unexpected gifts and cards.  The party went on until about midnight but I gave it up a couple hours earlier.
Gr

Shad got eight tickets to yesterdays Cards-Giants game so Shad, Bailey, Brinley and Greyson went in one car while me, Lisa, Mike & Debbie went in the other.  We hit a traffic jam and it took us a long time to get over the bridge.  I didn't think we would be able to meet them but they ended up behind us.  We parked in a lot that I think used to be Hraboskys and got a free drink ticket at Patty-O's so that's where we went.  I was pleasantly surprised to find they had Yuenglings so that's what I got.  We ended up having a second round and running into some guys from Murphysboro there.
We met the others and got in the stadium while the first inning was underway so I missed one of the Giants get a hit in his major league debut.  We ended up having really nice seats that were under the second deck so we were shaded the whole game.  Lisa got us a couple 25oz Ultras and by the time I was ready for another it was already the seventh inning.  I did get a pretzel to soak up some of the beer and it was pretty good.
The Giants got a two out two strike homerun to tie the game in the top of the ninth and then won in the 10th.  After seeing a game in person I have to say I'm a fan of the new efforts to speed up the game.  The flow was so much better without as much dead time.  The only rule I'm still undecided on is the ghost runner in extra innings.
After the game we stopped at Skootrs to grab a bite to eat.  I got the rueben with house made chips.  Lisa got chili while Mike got pulled pork and Debbie got nachos.  The chips were nicely cooked but not much seasoning on them, I'd ordered mine with seasoning so they were a lot better.  My rueben was disappointing mainly because of the corned beef being tough and hard to bite through.  Lisa said her chili was good and Mike liked his bbq.  Debbies nachos were big and looked pretty good.
🍺🍺

Bittersweet.  Aaron Rodgers was finally traded to the Jets this week, a move that had been all but certain for several weeks.  Rodgers had become increasingly annoying in the past few seasons. I never really cared one way or the other about his being vaccinated nor did I really care about his tripping in South American on some kind of plant that has psychedelic properties.  The "darkness retreat" come on, I mean who really does that.  To me sitting in a dark room by yourself for several days sound like punishment not enlightenment but to each their own.  The one thing that really bothered me was holding the Packer organization hostage so that he could get what he wanted even at the expense of the team.
On the field he will be missed, he gave us a chance every week.  He made throws that no one else could make.  On the field I'll really miss him.  For younger fans he's the only qb they remember, some also remember Rodgers predecessor and I really hope they don't experience what I went through in the 70s & 80s.
It was time to move on but it's still a bittersweet feeling.

That is the question.  Aaron Rodgers goes on his buddy Pat McAfee's show today.  Speculation is high that he will announce his plans for the future.  Speculation is also high he will finish his career with the Jets.  The Jets just are signing Allen Lazard to help facilitate the trade and supposedly there are a few other players Rodgers wants if he goes there. 
One thing that appears obvious is the Packers are ready to move on.  Jordon Love was drafted for a reason and has now watched for three years, it's time to see what he's got or trade him.
My thought is that on today's show Rodgers will tease viewers for a while then announce that he needs more time to gain clarity on what to do.
Rodgers is just a different cat so no telling what will happen.  I don't think money will be a big factor in his decision.  Whatever his decision just do it, I'm not worn out like I was when the previous qb left and I hope it doesn't get to that point.
If Rodgers leaves, thanks for the memories. 

Another Packer season has a disappointing end and while they all hurt this one hurt more than any in several seasons.  It's going to take awhile to get over it. 
I really thought this was the year.  We overcame adversity all year long and it had the look of a team of destiny.  We kept winning even with injury after injury.  We also had will he or won't he distraction early followed by vaccination gate and finally toe gate.
Another factor is the game itself.  We dominated early but couldn't capitalize and build a big lead.  The defense played great only giving up six points but the offense could only score ten.  That should be a win but special teams gave up seven points on a blocked punt and also kept us from having another three points.  Not to mention several field position changes.
Lastly and the worse is what the future holds.  Several long time Packers will bid farewell to the Packers or the game itself.  Rodgers, Adams, Crosby and Cobb are long time Packers who may be gone.  Others who haven't been around as long like both Smiths, Amos, Lewis, MVS and others may be cap casualties.
I'm really worried we're headed back to the wasteland that was the 70's and 80's. 
I'm a Packer fan and will always be but a return to that would be tough.

Yesterday golfing buddy David who turned 81 a few days ago shot an 81 on the golf course.  He was in the group ahead of me so I didn't get to witness it.  David is a very interesting guy who is retired from SIU where he was a renown kidney expert.  He was born in London and remembers some  of WWII.  Congratulations David.

Unbelievable.  After two days of the NFL draft the Packers have failed to add a wide receiver in what is supposed to be the best wide receiver draft ever.  It might be understandable if they'd draft a tackle and inside linebacker but the draft a quarterback, a running back and a tight end.  To make it worse they traded up for the quarterback and no longer have a fourth round draft choice.
Twenty years from now if we're closing the window on our third hall of fame quarterback in a row I'll admit I was wrong but that's highly unlikely.
So far I hate this draft for the Packers.

The Packers surprising season came to a crashing halt as they lost to the 49ers for the second time this season.  Even with this crushing defeat the Packers season was a success.  Some of that success was due to timing and we caught some teams without their best players and we stayed very healthy all year long.
We made a much needed foray into free agency prior to the year grabbing Z. Smith, P. Smith and A. Amos for the defense and B. Turner for the offense.  All these players started when they were healthy and provided much needed help.  Z Smith was outstanding all year long and was the defenses best player and possibly the whole teams best player.  P Smith started off playing very well but tapered off a lot as the season wore on.  Amos helped stabilize the back end of our defense.  Turner helped the line but I'm not sure he was worth the amount of money in his contract. 
A lesser known free agent, C Sullivan, also ended up playing a lot and shows promise for the future.
More help came in the draft.  Our second pick in the first round D Savage added much needed speed to our secondary and looks like he may be a star in couple years.  The second round pick E Jenkins too over a guard position early in the season and played exceptionally well all year.  Our first pick R Gary was a disappointment and didn't play much all season, hopefully he can make a jump next year.  The third round pick J Sternberger was hurt most of the year but made some impact as a blocker and showed promise in the playoffs as a pass catcher. 
We still have a lot of needs to fill thanks in big part to some very shaky draft picks for several years in a row.  TE remains a big problem area and needs to be address in free agency and possibly in the draft.  WR is also a big need and should be address very early in the draft and possibly in free agency.  RT may also be a big need if Bulaga isn't resigned.  Other lesser needs are qb of the future, backup OL and backup RB.
On defense we have a glaring need at ILB that has to be filled in the draft or free agency.  We also need DL help for K Clark plus some DB depth.
Probably too many needs for one off season but WR, TE, ILB and DL are must and RT if Bulaga departs.
It's always sad to see the season end but this one was worse than the past couple years disasters.  It was a fun season to watch and the Packers always seemed to make games exciting one way or another.
Go Pack Go

Wow, what a run and what a great thing for the community.
Starting with the heartbreaking loss to the dreaded terriers after having a 17 point second half lead. Then going on a run before forfeiting a game because of the teachers strike.  Then finishing the regular season with another run and beating Benton and DuQuoin who were both undefeated at the time and then it was playoff time.
In listening to the Althoff game the last minute seemed to go on for hours but the Devils held on and moved to the next round.
In the second round the Devils played undefeated IVC from Chillicothe and the surrounding area.  In watching the game I had no doubt the Red Devils were far and away the better team.  They proved me right and on to the next round.
In the third round the Devils played perennial  powerhouse Kankakee McNamara.  If I was a McNamara fan I would be pissed.  They lost a lot of big plays due to penalty and lost a fumble recovery deep in Devil territory because of an early whistle.  Murphysboro ran the opening kickoff back for a td then recovered an onside kick which they took down the field for another td.  McNamara came back though and tied the game late in the fourth quarter.  The Devils answered with a long drive capped off by a td and a win.  My high school teammate and buddy Twink said early in the third quarter that McNamara's lineman were getting tired and he proved right.
In the quarter finals the Devils played Effingham who have the unfortunate name of Flaming Hearts.  The field was awful and had a big impact on the game.  The Devils got on the board with an early safety on a bad snap for a punt.  This proved big since the Devils kicking game wasn't very good.  The Red Devils scored twice more in the first half and had a 14-0 lead.  The Hearts came back behind a couple long passes but their kicker missed the second extra point and the score was tied 14-14.  Effingham got the ball back and drove down inside the Devil 10 and was setting up for a winning field goal when they fumbled the snap and the Devils recovered to sent the game to OT.  In OT they kicked a field goat however on second down the Red Devils scored a TD on a deflected pass and it was off to Dekalb.
In the championship against Richmond-Burton the Red Devils were outclassed.  They had a very big line and some really good backs and the game was never close. 
I really hope there isn't any of the 2nd place state champions stuff that occurred a few years ago with the basketball team.  There's only one champion and that's Richmond-Burton.  2nd place is a great accomplishment in itself.
As a lifelong Murphysboro resident and a former Red Devil player I'd like to thank the coaches and players for what they accomplished.  While I'm ecstatic about what they did on the field I'm even more ecstatic about what the accomplished off the field.  People were talking Red Devil football in the stores, restaurants and bars around the town which reminded me of the way things used to be and hopefully will be again every year.
THANKS.

As a Boston Bruin fan the Stanley Cup didn't end the way I would have liked but for the most part it was exciting.  I thought the Blues were the better team for most of the series.  Both goaltenders were spectacular and I thought Binington should have been chosen as the Conn Smyth (MVP) award.  The city of St. Louis has waited a long time for this and so far I haven't heard of any of the stupidity that happens in other cities such as Detroit and Chicago.
Congratulations to the Blues, their fans and the city of St. Louis on raising the Stanley Cup.

I'm not sure what to think of the Packers choices in this past weekends NFL draft. 
In the first round the picked Rashan Gary and plan to play him at OLB.  He's very athletic but didn't have as much production as you expect from a player with his talent.  I just don't know what to think about this pick.  It seems like they taking a big chance on him upping his production plus he has a shoulder injury that will probably need surgery in a season or two.  This wasn't a need since the Packers just signed two OLB's to big contracts so this was definitely a case of picking the best player on your board.
With their second pick they took Darnell Savage who will play FS.  Savage is a player I really wanted the Packers to draft with their second #1 or their #2 pick.  I just wish we didn't have to give up our two fourth round picks to move up for him.  Big need pick here on a great athlete.
In the second round we took Elgton Jenkins an OL who played mainly C in college but the Packers project him as being able to play all five OL positions.  This pick surprised me with all the higher ranked WRs and OLs still left and a perceived big eed at WR. 
In the third round we took Jace Sternberger a TE.  I really liked this pick and there is a definite need for a young TE on the Packers.
I don't have a feel for the last four picks but it sounds like Kingley Keke in the 5th and Dexter Williams in the 6th have promise.
Hopefully Gutenkunst made some great picks and helped fill some of the many holes the Packers had this past season.

This past week we met Bailey and the grandtwins at 17th street for lunch before the grandtwins had a dentist appointment.  I had the brisket sandwich and a sweet potato.  Both were very good and while it's not hard to cook a sweet potato it's very hard to find good brisket.  We didn't have as good a luck yesterday when we went to Midlands.  My country fried chicken was good but the Glue's fried chicken wasn't that good.
Yesterday was a cold crappy day in Southern Illinois so I watched the Masters which was starting in the morning because of bad weather moving in.  I'm not a Tiger Woods fan but it's good for golf.  The network coverage of the event was lacking though.  While I understand Woods was the big story and was playing in the final group there were other players on the course some of whom made runs at the top.  At events they always keep showing Woods even though he may be way behind but at the Masters you don't show the number one ranked golfer until he made a run in his final few holes (Dustin Johnson). 
I wish Johnson or Brooks Koepka would have made their birdie putts on 18 which would have forced Woods to make a par to win it.  It would have been a lot more fun to watch the final hole if that had happened.
We took a ride around the Kinkaid Marina yesterday and were surprised to see the Marina open.  We stopped in to see how it was looking and we ran into the new owners.  They were very nice and talked a little about what they are planning.  The remodeling of the Marina is taking shape nicely and hopefully it will be a good place to go.

Last night was the beginning of the final season of Game Of Thrones.  I don't want the series to end but I'm anxious to find out how they tie everything up.

The Packers fired their Coach, Mike McCarthy, this past Sunday which was probably something that needed to be done.  Personally I wish they'd have let him finish the season but on the other hand it saves him from answering questions about his status for the next month and gives him a chance to recharge.  It also gives him an early start on any jobs opening up for next season and he stands a good chance of being in demand.
The Packers allowed McCarthy into the locker room on Wednesday to address the team a final time which is something I don't know that's ever happened before.  When he left the team gave him a standing ovation.  A very classy move by the Packer organization and the Packer team.
McCarthy himself took out a full page add in the Green Bay paper thanking Packer fans for the opportunity and their support the past 12 years.  I've read about several coaches and players have done this but its still a very classy move by McCarthy.
Moving forward with the remainder of the season I'd like to see the Packers play some of the younger players such as Robert Tonyan, Montavious Adams and Jake Kummorow to see if they have a chance of contributing in the future.  I also hope that Joe Philbin is not going to be our next coach.  I'd like to see a younger offensive minded coach hired and wouldn't mind seeing him keep Mike Pettine as the defensive coordinator. 
I don't have a lot of faith in the Packer organization making a good decision, mainly because I think the organizational structure at the top sucks.  I reminds me too much of what was happening in the 70's and 80's when Green Bay was the Siberia of the NFL.  I'm afraid that Packer president Mark Murphy is becoming too involved in the football aspect of the Packers.  This needs to be solely general manager Brian Gutenkunst's domain but instead the Packers have the gm, coach and Russ Ball the cap guy all reporting to Murphy.  That type setup has never seemed to work in Green Bay.
The Packers have better talent than the 70's and 80's but only because of Rodgers and a few of the other players (i.e. D. Bakhtiari, D. Adams, K. Clark, M. Daniels and a few others).  Overall there is a lack of talent that needs to be remedied fast if the Packers are going to be competitive next year.

There was a lot going on in the area this past weekend highlighted by a visit from the President.  Unless you were under a rock this past weekend you know Trump visited the area this past weekend.  Like him or not this was a big deal for the area. 
Last Wednesday I was walking off the 12th green at Hickory when the presidential C5 Galaxy cargo plane came in for a landing.  It was about 300-400 yards away and it was impressive.  I also played the morning that President Trump arrived but had left long before Airforce One came in.  When I left the course there were a steady stream of cars coming up Airport Road and I counted five stands selling Trump stuff between the course and my house including three inside Murphysboro itself.  The vibe around the area seemed to be similar to the Apple Festival parade.  Of course beautiful weather helped out too.
Both Murphysboro and carbondale also hosted football playoff games and both were victorious.  I went to the Red Devil game and it was a great game to watch.  Not too many penalties or turnovers and a lot of excitement.  It was a game of halves as the Devils lead at half time but Prairie Central came back in the second half.  In the end the Devils made just enough plays when it counted to walk away with a 22-20 win including a stop on a two point conversion with three seconds left in the game.
Also going on this past weekend was Carbondale's attempt at bring back and calming down it's infamous Halloween celebration.  I haven't heard reports of any problems that plagued the event in the past so that in itself was a success.

The Packers opened their 100th season with an unbelievable win against their arch rivals, the chicago bears.  In the first half the Packers were dominated on both sides of the ball.  The defense looked like it was still being ran by Capers, once again getting no pressure and leaving wide open receivers.  Offensively McCarthy refused to give help to Bulaga who was coming off a knee injury and was facing the bears newly acquired Mack who may be the best pass rusher in the game. 
Bad went to disastrous when Rodgers went down under a heavy rush and didn't get back up.  He finally limped off the field and ended up riding in a cart to get checked out.  It looked like an acl injury and the Packers season would effectively be over.
On comes Kizer and after a really good start he rolls right into the waiting arms of Mack who just takes the ball away from him.  The Packers got the ball back with time running out in the first half only trailing 10-0 after having been thoroughly out played.  Deep in their own territory facing a second and nineteen with only fifty seconds left and your young backup quarterback in the game seems like a good time to run out the clock.  Nope, let's try a screen pass which wasn't a bad call but couldn't have turned out worse.  Kizer threw it right into the hands of Mack who returned it for a touchdown, 17-0 bears.
Things were looking awfully grim when Rodgers comes limping out of the tunnel to start the second half.  The bears took the second half kickoff and marched down the field but had to settle for a field goal and a 20-0 lead. 
Remarkably Rodgers takes the field and marches the Packers down the field but they have to settle for a field goal too,  Somehow things start changing, the defense starts getting stops and the offense finally goes to shorter throws to protect Rodgers. 
The fourth quarter starts with the Packers down 17 points.  Rodgers makes an absolutely perfect throw to Allison in the end zone cutting the score to 20-10, game on.  Another stop and Rodgers marches the Packers down and Adams caps it off with a catch and fights his way into the end zone.  20-17, hmmm. 
The bears answer and march down the field as time starts running down.  On third down they run a dump pass and the runner gets all the way inside the five and a first down but McCarthy challenges.  The runner stepped out of bounds earlier so the bears get moved back and most importantly some time goes back on the clock.  A touchdown here seals the game but the Packers defense manages to hold them to a field goal.
With just under three minutes to go there's plenty of time for Rodgers to move down field.  With the ball on their own 25 yard line Adams slips on his route and Rodgers throws it right into the hands of Fuller, the bears db but he drops it.  The Packers face a third and ten when Rodgers buys a little time and finds Cobb over the middle for what would be a first down but when he turns around there is no bears defenders.  The bears pursuit can't tackle him and the Packers take the lead 24-23 but there's just over two minutes left. 
Still plenty of time for the bears to get into field goal position, something us Packer fans have seen way too often in the past.  The Packers force the bears into a fourth down and the pass is incomplete but there's a flag down.  Roughing the passer on Mathews, dumb dumb dumb dumb.  The bears move down the field some but the Packers force another fourth down.  Pass is once again incomplete and there's no flags.  Packers win.
Unbelievable

This past Friday we met our Packer friend Schmuck at Quatros to discuss the Packers and generally catch up.  Yesterday was cut down day in the NFL so initial rosters are set but most likely will change in the coming days after the waiver period expires.
Some random Packer thoughts from the offseason:
Trading Darius Randle for Deshone Kizer and flopping some draft choice was a good deal.  Apparently Randle was not very popular in the clubhouse and was going to be released anyway.
Trading Brett Hundley was also a good trade.  Hundley's fate was sealed when the Packers made the Kizer trade.  Hundley is in the last year of his contract while Kizer has two more after this season.
Aaron Rodgers deal needed to get done and it appears there was some give and take on both sides.  Overall a pretty good deal for both sides and probably means Rodgers will retire as a Packer.
Not getting Kahil Mack was not surprising in the least but him going to the bears was disappointing.  The Packers couldn't afford to shell out that much money to two players a couple days apart.
The Packers initial 53 player roster contained some big surprises.  Eight wr's and only two rb's is a little perplexing especially since no fb's were kept.  Gutenkunst showed some balls by moving on from some high draft picks from the past few drafts (Randle, Rollins, Biegal) and some others picks that had played a lot (Murphy, Hundley, Ripkowski).  Thompson didn't do a very good job with his last several drafts which has created what appears to be a thin roster.

Until the final hail mary pass hit the ground and there were no flags on the field I thought the patriots were going to pull it out somehow. 
It was unbelievable the amount of offense in this game or maybe it was the lack of defense. 
I still can't believe that the eagles touchdown in the back of the end zone stood up.  Tough call which seem to always go the patriots way.
The other controversial eagles touchdown looked like the correct call.  The receiver had caught the ball and ran a few steps before contact making him a runner and different rules apply then.
Doug Peterson must have major cojones to call that trick play in that situation,  I thought he should kick the field goal but I also thought he should kick the second extra point after missing the first one.  Seems things like that end up biting a team in the butt.
The eagles D sure picked a great time to finally make a play.
I don't like the long half time show.  It's a football game not a concert.
I don't pay a lot of attention to the commercials but it seemed like a down year.
Two best things about the Super Bowl:  the patriots didn't win and The Glue's regionally famous Wings, they were outstanding.

On another note, me and the Glue went to Gabby's on Saturday and they redeemed themselves from last visits mediocre fried chicken.  The Glue again went with the fried chicken and it was much better.  I went with the chicken fried steak and it was great.

For the first time since 2008 the Packers will play the last two games of the season with no playoff chance.  Since 1993 this will only be the fifth time the Packers have missed the playoffs.  Farve and then Rodgers have given the Packers a chance practically every year.  It's been a great run and I hope this is just a bump in the road.  It's hard for me to not want the Packers to win so they get a better draft pick but I think the best option is to set Rodgers and Davante Adams for the rest of the season.  While this doesn't guarantee we would lose it does make it much harder to win.  I'd like to see some changes made but know that not all changes end up positive.  Knowing that I'd like to see a new defensive coordinator and staff and also some fresh ideas on offense however I will stop short of wanting a new head coach.  I have mixed emotions on changing general managers but regardless would like to see some better talent to take advantage of Rodgers remaining years.  Ultimately Packer fans have to be careful what they wish for, change isn't always best.