Packers swagger

[Jules]

I find myself this season since the Saints game increasingly seeing more and more non Packers fans claim Rodgers is arrogant or the Packers are cocky etc.

Now I am not sure I see this. I don't see arrogance. I do see swagger though and generally I think this is a good thing. Your team works hard, is talented and lives up to expectations. If they have confidence and have fun so what?

I have found myself defending Aaron at times. I think he sometimes has a chip on his shoulder but so be it.

It's not like with the Jets. The Jets blab and never won anything. I have gotten cocky vibes from the freaking Lions too.

I just find myself loving the Packers swag but I don't find them cocky.

Thoughts?

 

[GreenBayGal]

Thought? I think I like you.

 

[SpartaChris]

Finley is the only one who comes off cocky to me. Sam Shields a little bit too, but mostly Finley. I don't really see it out of Rodgers too much.

 

[Southpaw]

People often mistake confidence for arrogance. Rodgers is a confident guy with a chip on his shoulder. And who can blame him he was passed up in the draft by a lot of teams and even to this day people still deny that he's any good.

 

[Jules]

I do think some of it is slight jealousy at times. I tend to lurk at several forums at times to get a feel of teams. I have seen Falcons and Saints fans both flat out say Rodgers is a cocky ******.

Well, to me that sounds a bit harsh. I think he is confident and has swagger. Sounds like sour grapes that his team is beating their teams.

Granted, this occured to me recently when a Colts fan said to me on a forum, "The reason a few of the Colts fans here love Rodgers is that they mistake his arrogance for confidence."

I simply don't get it. And quite frankly I wish we could see more guys like Aaron having fun at times and playing with such determination. I think it rubs off on the rest of the team.

 

[Jules]

People often mistake confidence for arrogance. Rodgers is a confident guy with a chip on his shoulder. And who can blame him he was passed up in the draft by a lot of teams and even to this day people still deny that he's any good.

And of course you still have Favre saying what he said. And you have people who say he is a product of a great team and so much talent on offense.

 

[WhiteHouseOn3]

I just moved away from Bears territory in July. My friends back home still write "Rodgers sucks, the Packers suck" on facebook on a regular basis.

So I ask them why, and on what basis. Their answer? "We just hate the Packers." "Yeah, but why? They're humble, reputable, and contribute to their community. They are devoted to their fans, owned by their fans, and enjoy playing for a blue collar audience. What's not to like?" "Ummmm...." That's as far as I get every time.

I grew up in Chicago, but became a Packers fan because I admired the integrity of the team. The Bears play dirty and talk trash. Sure, we're 6-0, but we only see areas to improve. I have several Lions fans friends and did I even say a word to them this past Sunday? Nope. In fact, they were strangely silent after bragging the previous 5 weeks on how they're gonna beat us in November

We are our own culture. There's nothing like Packers fans. I wanted to say I respect the Steelers organization as well, but the more Steeler fans I meet, the less I like them. They say they should've won (even though we led the entire game) and only lost because their center was out (along with what, 11 key Packers?). Gimme a break. They don't get it. If we lose a game, we're not bringing pitchforks to MM's house and demanding he get fired. We back our team win or lose, 16-0 or 0-16.

 

[SpartaChris]

I do think some of it is slight jealousy at times. I tend to lurk at several forums at times to get a feel of teams. I have seen Falcons and Saints fans both flat out say Rodgers is a cocky ******.

Well, to me that sounds a bit harsh. I think he is confident and has swagger. Sounds like sour grapes that his team is beating their teams.

Granted, this occured to me recently when a Colts fan said to me on a forum, "The reason a few of the Colts fans here love Rodgers is that they mistake his arrogance for confidence."

I simply don't get it. And quite frankly I wish we could see more guys like Aaron having fun at times and playing with such determination. I think it rubs off on the rest of the team.

People didn't take too kindly to his title belt thing for a while, whining that he shouldn't do it because he hadn't won anything. Now that he's won the Super Bowl, it's a bitter pill for them to swallow.

But I think the thing that angers people the most about Rodgers is that he IS a humble guy. He never takes credit for wins in his interviews, always crediting the team. And he always accepts the blame, just like a true leader. People want him to be arrogant and cocky, and the fact that he isn't just drives them nuts. They take his humility for arrogance.

Eh well. Haters are gonna hate. Just the way it is.

 

[Jules]

People didn't take too kindly to his title belt thing for a while, whining that he shouldn't do it because he hadn't won anything. Now that he's won the Super Bowl, it's a bitter pill for them to swallow.

But I think the thing that angers people the most about Rodgers is that he IS a humble guy. He never takes credit for wins in his interviews, always crediting the team. And he always accepts the blame, just like a true leader. People want him to be arrogant and cocky, and the fact that he isn't just drives them nuts. They take his humility for arrogance.

Eh well. Haters are gonna hate. Just the way it is.

Yeah I have seen plenty of title belt rants in the past lmao. I don't see the big deal. I think it's funny.

I think many do like Rodgers. I also think he caught many off guard. I think many were counting the Packers out nearing the end of the season too and were not prepared for this. A lot of people don't like it when there is a new guy who has it all going on.

 

[peteralan71]

Finley is cocky and arrogant. Rodgers is confident and self-assured. There is a major difference. If you don't know what it is, just watch some tape on the two of them during both big plays and interviews.

The Packers as a whole: confident, which is one of the most dangerous aspects about the team in the eyes of opponents. The difference between this and arrogance is that they go into the game knowing that they have the upper hand, but it is because they truly do (confidence) and they believe, not because they simply think they are better than everybody (arrogance).

 

[ivo610]

Haters gonna hate

 

[Powarun]

We are our own culture. There's nothing like Packers fans. I wanted to say I respect the Steelers organization as well, but the more Steeler fans I meet, the less I like them. They say they should've won (even though we led the entire game) and only lost because their center was out (along with what, 11 key Packers?). Gimme a break. They don't get it. If we lose a game, we're not bringing pitchforks to MM's house and demanding he get fired. We back our team win or lose, 16-0 or 0-16.

SB 45 was troll week, and by god they were the defintion of trolls, any bad thoughts about Favre's compliments, nothing compared to Steeler's fans.

But onto the topic. The Packers can have all the swagger in Green Bay, because quite literally they can do no wrong in the fan''s point of view. Only those who cross the Pack can do bad. Hell after next week our view of Hawk's bird will probably change to yeah it was a joke and boy Hawk is a rowdy one. Its just something we do.

As for A-Rod, the guy handles criticism greatly. I don't think he talks too much and let his actions do the talking. He makes snide remarks afterwords but its better than what some QB's do. Just how he handled the post Favre was excellent, and how he answers questions given to him he seems to know the right answers. Examples are before the SB what was his favorite moment in GB, and his answer was the standing ovation he received in Lambeau after we defeated the Lions his first season as starter. Now yes his championship belt is something that can be seen as arrogant but at least its harmless.

Heck with a record of 6 - 0 and the team is not satisfied, and McCarthy had to keep saying that we won by 3 touchdowns as an excuse, what should the Packers be saying? "Yeah well, 6-0 is pretty darn difficult and its all because the other team messed up, and its not like we tried but those touchdowns happened by accident."

 

[Jules]

SB 45 was troll week, and by god they were the defintion of trolls, any bad thoughts about Favre's compliments, nothing compared to Steeler's fans.

But onto the topic. The Packers can have all the swagger in Green Bay, because quite literally they can do no wrong in the fan''s point of view. Only those who cross the Pack can do bad. Hell after next week our view of Hawk's bird will probably change to yeah it was a joke and boy Hawk is a rowdy one. Its just something we do.

As for A-Rod, the guy handles criticism greatly. I don't think he talks too much and let his actions do the talking. He makes snide remarks afterwords but its better than what some QB's do. Just how he handled the post Favre was excellent, and how he answers questions given to him he seems to know the right answers. Examples are before the SB what was his favorite moment in GB, and his answer was the standing ovation he received in Lambeau after we defeated the Lions his first season as starter. Now yes his championship belt is something that can be seen as arrogant but at least its harmless.

Heck with a record of 6 - 0 and the team is not satisfied, and McCarthy had to keep saying that we won by 3 touchdowns as an excuse, what should the Packers be saying? "Yeah well, 6-0 is pretty darn difficult and its all because the other team messed up, and its not like we tried but those touchdowns happened by accident."

I take it Steelers fans were pretty harsh?

I remember when my Colts lost to them in 05. It was pretty bad. They took over a Colts forum or two. And to make it worse many were still mourning the loss of Dungy's son and the game was secondary at times. It was really just a rough ending. The Steelers seem to get the best of us quite a bit. We should have beaten them IMO earlier this year even. We always manage to find ways to lose against them and sometimes in creative fashion to boot. We got a win over them in 2008 but it took a lot of luck.

Whenever the Colts play the Steelers at home they travel well of course and I have to see those towels waving all over the place.

 

[Bensalama21]

2 things to remember:

Rodgers = Swag and Confidence
Finley=Swag and Cockiness

 

[ivo610]

I take it Steelers fans were pretty harsh?

I remember when my Colts lost to them in 05. It was pretty bad. They took over a Colts forum or two. And to make it worse many were still mourning the loss of Dungy's son and the game was secondary at times. It was really just a rough ending. The Steelers seem to get the best of us quite a bit. We should have beaten them IMO earlier this year even. We always manage to find ways to lose against them and sometimes in creative fashion to boot. We got a win over them in 2008 but it took a lot of luck.

Whenever the Colts play the Steelers at home they travel well of course and I have to see those towels waving all over the place.

They just have no class. It started out not too bad but we found threads online with them targeting this forum and trying to troll and harass members. We have had problems here and there with different fans but normally it was only a few. This was the majority of the Steeler fans. Disgustingly low class with their fan base. Steelers went from being a team I didnt care about to a team I cheer against every week bc I hate their fans.

 

[Jules]

2 things to remember:

Rodgers = Swag and Confidence
Finley=Swag and Cockiness

Is Finley truly that bad?

 

[peteralan71]

Is Finley truly that bad?

Just depends on who you ask. I am old-fashioned and hate it when players are talking themselves up all the time, saying they want the ball, talking just to talk, etc. I can't handle that.

Others have a different viewpoint--they like all the talk and don't see anything wrong with it because he has the ability to produce. Everybody deserves an opinion, I guess.....

 

[ivo610]

Is Finley truly that bad?

He is young and full of himself. If this was the Cowboys he wouldnt stand out. But on the Packers it does. Small market and we dont really have players like that. I mean look at the change in woodson when he was at Oakland to now. The players give Matthews are hard time about being cocky even, so its not just the community. I think the Packers winning a title without Finley showed him how important he is to the offense, and brought him down a little bit.

 

[Kitten]

Every fan base has their share of people who make the fan base look bad. I'm a Philly cat, the Eagles fans give the team a bad name.

But as for players,I kind of think they have their own personalities and sometimes it shines through on the field. Finley is just young and full of talent and confidence. I think when you are playing at the level these guys are, there is nothing wrong with showing a bit of confidence. I love to see my team show some emotion, some spirit, a spark of passion for the game. It draws me. When Aaron gets a TD, I run up to the TV and imitate his title belt celebration. When Clay gets a sack, I run up and flex and then assume the Predator pose. In an odd way, it connects to the fans and just translates that passion directly. I love swagger, confidence, even cockiness where it is warranted.

 

[GeeDogWarrior]

Yeah I have seen plenty of title belt rants in the past lmao. I don't see the big deal. I think it's funny.

I think many do like Rodgers. I also think he caught many off guard. I think many were counting the Packers out nearing the end of the season too and were not prepared for this. A lot of people don't like it when there is a new guy who has it all going on.

no doubt, everyone is either too quick to crown a guy (matty ice/tim tebow) or too stubborn to like a guy (Rodgers).
I think some people just see that our team won a championship, our dude has some swagger and does the belt, and backs it up by winning and what not... it's a little like Brady hate, but it's not on that level yet.

I noticed a couple saints/falcon fans begging for Rodgers to get concussed and get his smirk smacked off his face
(a bit much imo) and a ton of panther fans thumbs down a highlight video of the packers beating the panthers...
idk, guess when you're the current top dog, everyone wants to knock you down a peg...

 

[Bensalama21]

Is Finley truly that bad?

He is bad for a Packer player... We Packers fans are usually blessed with the most modest players. Donald Driver, Greg Jennings, Nick Collins, and many others. Finley is the only person on the team that is cocky. He doesn't mean it in a bad way. He is just a little immature still and I think sometimes everyone including myself look at his extremely high level of confidence as cockiness. He tries his best to keep it hidden but he just is always sweating extreme confidence. Every single player (and I mean every single player) besides Finley is completely neutral and modest that in all honesty makes Finley look even worse.

If this was the Cowboys he wouldnt stand out.

This sums it up. Actually no he wouldn't. He would stand out for acting humble next to those guys. haha...

Give it another year and Finley will have soaked in the Packers way and he will blend in like the rest of them.

 

[Vinniemack84]

You will only see more and more of it if you keep winning. In the 90's everyone hated the Cowboys. now it's the Patriots. I don't get why people hate Tom Brady so much...he says and does all of the right things but I've had conversations with people who cannot except that he is good because they hate him that much. When the Pats won in 01' people loved him. By 04' everyone who wasn't a Pats fan hated him. This is exactly what you can expect as Rodgers climbs the ranks of elite QB's. If he wins another ring it will only get worse. The more the media gushes over him, the worse it will get. Just my two cents. I think Rodgers is awesome, I love watching him play. But if Brady put on a mock title belt every time he scored a TD...he'd be eaten alive by the media.

 

[Jules]

You will only see more and more of it if you keep winning. In the 90's everyone hated the Cowboys. now it's the Patriots. I don't get why people hate Tom Brady so much...he says and does all of the right things but I've had conversations with people who cannot except that he is good because they hate him that much. When the Pats won in 01' people loved him. By 04' everyone who wasn't a Pats fan hated him. This is exactly what you can expect as Rodgers climbs the ranks of elite QB's. If he wins another ring it will only get worse. The more the media gushes over him, the worse it will get. Just my two cents. I think Rodgers is awesome, I love watching him play. But if Brady put on a mock title belt every time he scored a TD...he'd be eaten alive by the media.

I dislike the Pats but I respect Brady as a QB and he is a genuine friend of Peyton.

But, lets be fair here for a second. In 2001 Brady was a Cinderella story, he had the awww shucks factor going. Good ole boy who was new at all this. Then as the years advanced I started to feel he became a glamour ****. From the famous Super Model wife to the hair styles.

Now he can do what he wants in his private life but he did change from 01.

I also don't recall people hating the 49ers and Montana as much as they did the Pats teams. I don't mean to be rude since I do respect Brady but he never was too likable to me as the years went on and neither is the NE market as a whole. It's teams from NY/Boston/Philly/Chicago who can irk people too.

 

[Vinniemack84]

I dislike the Pats but I respect Brady as a QB and he is a genuine friend of Peyton.

But, lets be fair here for a second. In 2001 Brady was a Cinderella story, he had the awww shucks factor going. Good ole boy who was new at all this. Then as the years advanced I started to feel he became a glamour ****. From the famous Super Model wife to the hair styles.

Now he can do what he wants in his private life but he did change from 01.

I also don't recall people hating the 49ers and Montana as much as they did the Pats teams. I don't mean to be rude since I do respect Brady but he never was too likable to me as the years went on and neither is the NE market as a whole. It's teams from NY/Boston/Philly/Chicago who can irk people too.

I'l agree with the fan bases...I'm from New Hampshire but have moved around enough to hate being in New England / New York strictly because of the fans. But disliking a guy because he lives a 'rock star' life seems silly to me. I can't say that if I was rich and ultra successful I wouldn't be out (pardon the language) banging models left and right and jet setting around the globe. He doesn't throw teammates under the bus, he is very PC when he speaks. Never really saying anything that is cocky or arrogant. People just look at him and say...I hate that guy and go from there.

As for the 49ers...the 80's and 90's are two different animals. ESPN really changed the media into a 24 hours nitpick everything always in your face sports. Many people never even watched the 49ers play accept on their big games (monday, Playoffs, etc). Now we all see everything. We get the highlights every day for a week straight. It's hard to compare those eras because it is hard to hate a team if you never even see them.

 

[Vinniemack84]

I dislike the Pats but I respect Brady as a QB and he is a genuine friend of Peyton.

But, lets be fair here for a second. In 2001 Brady was a Cinderella story, he had the awww shucks factor going. Good ole boy who was new at all this. Then as the years advanced I started to feel he became a glamour ****. From the famous Super Model wife to the hair styles.

Now he can do what he wants in his private life but he did change from 01.

I also don't recall people hating the 49ers and Montana as much as they did the Pats teams. I don't mean to be rude since I do respect Brady but he never was too likable to me as the years went on and neither is the NE market as a whole. It's teams from NY/Boston/Philly/Chicago who can irk people too.

I'll also add...that players that play with him love him. All the old vets who have retired now, WR's who come in, rookies, coaches, they all say he is truly an awesome guy who is a great teammate and leader. That means a lot to me as a fan.