We have a by this week...

...and next week...and the week after...oh, until about something like mid-August for pre-season play. And what changes will take place by then!

New head coach and probably entire coaching staff. Possibly a new kicker and punter. Possibly a new starting running back and fullback combo. Possibly a new center, new linebackers, new defensive backs, new D-linemen. And, lest we forget, perhaps even a new QB. Wow! It is all a bit much to contemplate. And it seems more like that dreaded word, "rebuilding," starts to enter our collective Packer consciousness. This is the legacy of the Mike Sherman as General Manager era.

But now it's up to Ted Thompson to hire the best coach possible, to find an up-and-comer who will generate excitement and most importantly, wins. It's also up to Thompson to deal with all the free agent issues, those possible departures or re-signings on the Packer roster, as well as bringing in the necessary talent through free agency and the draft so that this last season becomes like Da Bearz' winning seasons: a one-year anomaly.

So, Packer fans, enjoy your weekends free of football for a while. Do all the things you might have put off while the Pack was playing. We can continue to watch the coaching situation and speculate on how any of the coach prospects might impact the Pack in the future. But until the roster situation comes more fully into view later this Spring, we really won't have much of a sense of what the 2006 Packers might be able to do. Still...it's better being a Packer fan than...who are those other teams in the division again???