The Ol' Gray Tundra, She Ain't What She Used to Be...

The hallowed "Frozen Tundra" of Lambeau Field is...no more. Let's pause for a moment of silence, please ... ... ... Thank you.

Since the end of the season, a major renovation has been taking place in terms of the famous playing surface. If you're digging down 3 feet in an effort to get better drainage, a better in-ground heating system and a better playing field, that's major. Especially at Lambeau. The only thing that fans will see, of course, is a beautiful green field that will hopefully be as good in December as it is in September. The key to that is a field replanted with a mix of real and synthetic blades of grass.

This is not the first time the Packers have tweaked the field. For Packer purists who might decry this modernization of the sacred tundra, talk to Vince. Lombardi was the first to try to improve the playing field at Lambeau by installing an in-ground heating system. Over the years, the Packers have tried a few different types of improvements to the surface, without great success. In the late 1990s, a similar blend of real and synthetic grasses was tried on a mesh bed. It was removed after a few years as players complained about footing. This new surface is the same one the Packers installed on one of its practice fields a couple years ago. Players apparently love it. This is also the same type of system that is already used in Denver, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. The key is that, late in the season when the real grass dies off, players are still able to get good footing.

If you want to read more about this, and also see a few photos of the renovation, click here.

The Ho-Hum Time

So, Packer fans...it's that time of year: the ho-hum time. No playoffs for the Packers. Not much in the way of exciting news, unless you count the fact that the tundra at Lambeau is being torn out in preparation for the new synthetic "reinforced" grass surface, drainage and heating system which will be installed. If that doesn't get you excited...OK, if it did get you excited we'd be worried about you.

Anyway, not much going on. Yes, there is the now annual rite of the Brett Favre "tractor watch." Will he retire or won't he? My bet is still that he won't. Someone created a semi-entertaining clip about this on YouTube. If you care to check it out, click here.

Oh, there is also the search for a new offensive coordinator, with some reports indicating Head Coach Mike McCarthy might bring aboard his friend and mentor, Paul Hackett, who is winding up his contract as quarterbacks coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Hackett hired McCarthy at the University of Pittsburgh in 1989 and then took him along for the ride to the Kansas City Chiefs in 1993. According to a report in today's Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "Hackett, who specializes in handling quarterbacks, learned the West Coast offense from legendary coach Bill Walsh while serving as an assistant with the San Francisco 49ers from 1983-'85 and taught it to McCarthy. In addition to an extensive career coaching in the college ranks, Hackett has coached for the Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, 49ers, Chiefs and Buccaneers."

Sounds good to me. However, in an early tally of the Journal-Sentinel's sports poll of the day, fans still seem to prefer someone else. Literally. That is the candidate in the lead at the time of this post, "someone else", 43 percent to 35 percent, over Hackett. Probably just a reflection of the fact that...well...who knows. If we have to get excited about offensive coordinator searches and new turf for the tundra then...never mind...

Of course, we can also turn our attention to the upcoming draft. Yes, this is what fans of 8-8 teams that miss the playoffs are doing this time of year. The Packers have the 16th pick overall in the first round. Can't be any more middle of the road than that. Who are the candidates at that position? Will GM Ted Thompson trade down for additional picks, something he seems very good at doing with a fair amount of success? Discuss among yourselves.

What else? There is that upcoming playoff game this weekend between Da Bearz and Holmgren's Seahawks. Of the top-slotted teams, this writer believes -- as many do -- that Da Bearz have the greatest chance of losing this weekend. I just know it would crush the spirit of my misguided Bearz-fan friends were that to happen. As Seinfeld would say, "That's a shame."

Have a great weekend, Packer fans.