Lets end the Mike Holmgren rumors right now: Brian Noble said on the Packers Radio Network last fall that Holmgren left Green Bay under poor terms. Translation: Bob Harlan didn't like how he left and he ain't coming back.
Second, there's much to do with the roster before Sherman's situation needs to be addressed.
My theory is this: Thompson is dangling a sword over Sherman's head with not Holmgren, but Bates.
And if all the Sherman haters didn't see this post elsewhere, lets provide some positive Mike Sherman news: from Packers Plus from J-S...
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Sherman recalls himself to call plays
Rossley OK with his role
By ROB REISCHEL
Special to Packer Plus
Posted: June 15, 2005
Green Bay - Mike Sherman didn't send out a memo among his coaching staff. But Green Bay's head coach made it official last week saying he will call the team's offensive plays again this fall. Packers offensive coordinator Tom Rossley had handled play calling duties for more than four seasons, before undergoing an angioplasty last Oct. prior to Green Bay's game in Detroit.
With Rossley sidelined that day, the Packers put up 38 points and 434 yards. For the most part, Sherman handled the play-calling from that day forward.
"We haven't talked about it yet," Sherman said of he and Rossley. "It's not something we've discussed a whole lot. There may be games he does it, maybe. But I'm going to continue to do what we did at the end of the season."
Under Sherman's guidance, the Packers' offense took off.
In the first six games Sherman called the plays - all Green Bay victories - the Packers averaged 439.3 yards and 33.7 points per game. Only once in that stretch did the offense fail to record at least 400 yards or 28 points.
Green Bay slowed a bit over the final five weeks of the regular season, yet still averaged 407 yards and 29.5 points in the 11 games Sherman called the show.
In the Packers' first five games - in which they went 1-4 - Green Bay averaged a respectable 376 yards per game with Rossley calling the offense. But they weren't capitalizing and scored just 19.8 points per contest.
"I enjoy it," Sherman said. "I know what the offense is capable of doing. And I think the Detroit game was a unique situation where we were really rallying the troops. We had to win, the guys were laying it on the line, making plays and it was more about players making plays than me making great calls."
During the four seasons Rossley ran the offense, it certainly functioned at a high level. Between 2000-'03, the Packers ranked 15th, sixth, 12th and fourth in total offense and were 11th, fifth, sixth and fourth in points per game.
The 2003 unit scored 442 points, the second most in team history and set a single-season rushing record with 2,558 yards. That team also scored 53 touchdowns - tied for the second most in team history - and had the NFL's second-best red-zone touchdown percentage (65.4%).
Rossley, who turns 59 in August, feels fine today and is working as many hours as ever. But because Sherman seemed to have a real knack for calling plays, Rossley apparently will be Wally Pipp-ed.
If Rossley's peeved about the lesser role on game days, he wasn't letting on last week.
"Whatever it takes to win," he said. "That's how I feel. I can't comment about it any more than that."
Sherman said his decision to take on an expanded role has nothing to do with Rossley's abilities or the job he did in that role.
"I'm still always sharing thoughts with Tom Rossley, all the time," Sherman said. "Tom's a part of this offense as much as anybody. He's done a fantastic job.
"The best game we ever called was the Seattle game two years ago (a 35-13 victory in Week 5 of 2003). Five straight touchdowns in five possessions. This has nothing to do with Tom Rossley, that's for sure. He's solid. We couldn't be more pleased with him."
Sherman had to be extremely pleased with the job he did though.
Although Sherman was Mike Holmgren's offensive coordinator in Seattle during the 1999 season, Holmgren did almost all the play-calling. So Sherman's play-calling skills were on display for the first time last season.
Sherman likely has several reasons to keep calling the plays.
First, he was awfully good at it. Green Bay set a franchise record for both passing yards (4,449) and total net yards (6,357), finished fourth in total yards per game and fifth in points per contest.
Just as important, though, Sherman might simply want to control as much of his own fate as possible. Stripped of his general manager duties this off-season, Sherman now enters the final year of his coaching contract. While he and Rossley are close friends, Sherman might have decided that with his future on the line, he's not willing to put a key part of it in someone else's hands.
"It was something I found I liked and want to continue doing," Sherman said. "One thing about us offensively, and I think the 49ers were the last team to do it in '88, but to break the franchise rushing record one year, then to come back the next year and break the passing record, that doesn't happen very often.
"It shows tremendous balance in the offense. Tom's the offensive coordinator and he's done a good job keeping us balanced."
For the time being, though, Rossley will take a backseat to Sherman when it comes to play calling.
