By Darrell Moody
Appeal Sports Writer
- All I can say is thank God it's over.
The Packers did what they had to do when they traded Brett Favre to the New York Jets earlier this week. Judging by the stories I've read, Favre spent more time whining about how the Packers had treated him more than anything else in his face-to-face discussions with coach Mike McCarthy. The Packers were right in the sense that Favre would have been a cancer had he been allowed to stay.
The Packers will probably stumble a bit this year without Favre, but may even be better in the long run. No, Aaron Rodgers doesn't have the strong arm that Favre possessed, but he throw a nice intermediate ball.
This decision was made for the long haul, and the Packers knew that Favre would have only been around for one or two more years.
It will be interesting to see how the New York media treats Favre when and if the 38-year-old QB struggles. Will they cal for his retirement right away, or will they give him a free pass for a while? Knowing the cynical New York media, I would bet on the former.
If I were the Packers, Chad Pennington would be a good guy to pick up if the Jets release him. He would give the Packers an experienced back-up behind Rodgers. I don't think the Packers want to enter the season with just Rodgers and Brohm.
- Today marks the first of three scrimmages for the University of Nevada football team leading up to its season-opener at home against Grambling State, a school that is right down the road from Louisiana Tech.
I'm interested to see how the defense, particularly the secondary, will play. There are several new players in the mix, including JC transfers Doyle Miller, and Mo Harvey.
Players have said that new defensive coordinator Nigel Burton plays a little more wide open; more aggressive. That would be fun to watch. I thought the Pack defense, which was riddle by injuries to Erics Clark and Joshua Mauga last season, was pretty vanilla last season.
I'll be interested to see the progress of quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and how Nick Graziano fares after his long layoff because of foot surgery. It will be interesting to see if the loser of this battle opts to transfer out to a place where he can be a starter.
- Pictures of the opening ceremonies from the Olympics were breathtaking to say the least.
My attention, first and foremost, will be on the men's basketball squad. This could very well be the best team assembled since Dream Team I and Dream II. I'm glad to see these superstars put their personal agendas and aside and represent our country.
The Europeans are catching up to the Americans, and I suspect Team USA will be tested a couple of times before all is said and done. Anything short of a gold will be treated as a huge failure by most fans.
My next area of interest would be track & field. As my boss Charles Whisnand has chronicled in past editions, former Carson grad Kevin Reid coaches the top American decathlete, Bryan Clay. It would be nice to see him medal. I'd also like to see Fallon triple-jumper Aarik Wilson medal in his first-ever Olympics.
When I ventured to Atlanta for the Summer Olympics in the 90s, I was fortunate enough to see eight days of track & field competition. I remember the performances by Michael Johnson and Carl Lewis like they were yesterday. I remember the men's 200 finals where all three medalists eclipsed the 20-second mark with Johnson winning the gold.
I know the time difference makes a difference in the level of fan interest, but take a break from preseason football and baseball to watch one of the greatest sports spectacles unfold over the next couple of weeks.
- Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com, or by calling (775) 881-1281