John from Milwaukee, WI
In yesterday's column you wrote, "A part of me believes the Packers might even favor undrafted players." Why would the Packers do that?
Don't we all favor undrafted players? We love the story. We love the underdog.
Donald from Rochester, MN
Is it possible to have a green and gold tie-dye theme for the rush uniforms?
I love it.
Marcio from Santa Monica, CA
Vic, how about a navy blue for the color rush, with gold numbers?
I don't love it; too dull.
Gary from Fitchburg, WI
Vic the player: Would you prefer hot Jacksonville or cold Green Bay as your home field?
I'm a hot weather guy. I can work outside all day and barely break a sweat. Put me in the cold and I turn to stone. It's just the way I am. I marvel at the players' ability to perform as they do in the cold. I don't know how they do it. Going back to the home playoff game against the 49ers a few years ago, I couldn't even pump gas for a few minutes without collapsing, but the players acted out a great drama in single-digit temperatures for three hours. You have to be tough to do that. I am not tough. I am soft.
Nicholas from Fort Atkinson, WI
Vic, any predictions on where the overall defense will rank this year with the new draft picks?
I don't make those kinds of predictions, but I'll tell you my expectations are high for the Packers defense. They've collected a lot of talent and I can see the defense leading the way in 2016.
Devin from Woodland Hills, CA
Vic, loved the Mike Ryan article on microfracture surgery! Definitely provides a new perspective.
I've written if you don't know the salary cap you don't know professional football; that's how important the cap is. I think we might apply that same standard to the medical side of the game; that's how important knowledge of injuries is to understanding the game. Injuries have become the biggest part of football. The media spends every week during the season asking about injuries. Coaches aren't going to volunteer information, for the obvious reason, so I see an opening for a former trainer, such as Mike, to tell us about the injuries that are so topical. I mean, before you can expect your team to draft a Jaylon Smith or a Myles Jack, don't you need to know the specifics of their injuries?
Eric from Monroe, OH
Is it chomping at the bit or champing at the bit?
I was taught to use champ and I still use champ, mostly because I really enjoyed seeing how angry Gators fans got when I referred to the "Gator champ."
Erik from Sanford, FL
Is football for the rookies a meritocracy? What I mean is does every player start from the beginning of camp with equal chance to win the starting position?
Cut the first-round pick because he struggled in his rookie camp and was outplayed by an undrafted free agent? That's not going to happen. Yes, football is a meritocracy. Players are judged on their performance, and that competition began when the players entered college. Based on their performance in college football, they were drafted in a pecking order, and that's how they enter the NFL, according to how they fared in the college competition. Eventually that slate will get wiped clean, but not now, not this quickly. How they played in college football is the best information teams have on the players they drafted up to this point.
Mark from Winfield, IL
Vic, I was listening to a local sports talk show talking about a recent story about eliminating the NFL draft. The salary cap would remain, but all candidates would enter as free agents, able to sign with any team at whatever the market would bear. My first reaction was this would be a mess, with the winningest teams attracting all the players. What are your thoughts?
As long as there's a salary cap, the winningest or wealthiest teams couldn't sign all the players. I don't think it would be a mess. I think the winningest or wealthiest teams would sign the top quarterbacks, but do we really know who they are? Look at the busts at the quarterback position. What if you were one of the teams that couldn't compete for the top quarterbacks and you had to settle for Tom Brady?
Nick from State College, PA
If you could caddy for any four football figures from any time, who would they be?
Vince Lombardi (I'd love to tell him, "Hit the driver and let's get the hell out of here"), Johnny Unitas, Pete Rozelle and Jim Brown.
Jarrid from Madison, WI
Vic, I'm sure I wasn't the only one to jump on Google after you mentioned HBCU (historically black colleges and universities) yesterday. I appreciate this column not only for the insight it offers regarding the Packers, but also for the impromptu education we get from time to time. Keep up the good work.
I throw things in with the hope my readers will research those topics. You did exactly what I hoped you'd do. Proposition 48 killed HBCU football as we knew it, and it's a terrible loss to the football culture. In my opinion, it was disrespectful to those esteemed programs. The HBCU programs' impact on professional football is grossly underappreciated. Those programs drove the merger because they made the AFL competitive.
Derek from Houston, TX
Vic, on the color rush topic, any idea when they'll announce/showcase the choice? Surely it'll be in this offseason.
I don't know of any plans to display the uniform the Packers will wear in their color rush game. Maybe we'll just have to wait until they fire the cannon and the 13-time, world-champion Green Bay Packers coming charging out of their tunnel to the strains of "Hail to the Packers," or something like that. I'm champing at the bit to see what they'll be wearing.
Paul from New Richmond, WI
Vic, it seems like there are a lot of questions comparing the Packers' picks unfavorably to other division teams' picks, as though we should be frightened. I guess I'm at a loss as to why that is. Maybe it's the other teams that are frightened of us. Ted has assembled a few very successful teams in the past 10 years. I'm not frightened of any of our opponents. I can't wait to play them and unleash our picks on them. Champions don't cower.
It's only May, Paul. Come to balance, as Frank Gansz was fond of saying.
John from St. Augustine, FL
It was 89 in Jacksonville yesterday, in the shade. Green Bay has no idea.
Do the aliens still arrive at halftime and abduct half the fans at the game? I know, I know, they're all in the "Bud Zone" getting out of the heat.
Maximillian from Sydney, Australia
Vic, do you think because the Packers didn't draft a running back they believe Crockett is a reliable option coming into this next season?
John Crockett is one of only three returning running backs, and the Packers didn't add a running back in the draft, so it would seem the Packers have plans for Crockett. The rest is up to him.
Mark from Bettendorf, IA
You did it, Vic. You got your readers to talk about the weather.
Watch this: The color of fabric has nothing to do with temperature. That's a fact proven by scientific research.
Andy from Saint Paul, MN
I think the Chicago Bears had the best draft in the NFC North, but as I heard one draftnik say, "Other teams drafted players, Ted Thompson drafted Packers." I like our draft a lot.
So do I, but I don't know what that comment means. It sounds stuffy and snobbish, and I don't like that.
