Notice to Season Ticket Holders Re: 17 Games

 

Green Bay Update — March 2021

Time to post some more photos of what’s going on around Lambeau Field this offseason, or specifically, in March. These were all taken on my daily walk last Friday (March 19th).

While heading over to the training camp practice field, I noticed that this building on the south end of Clarke Hinkle Field (along Mike McCarthy Way) has some interesting (and plentiful) vents and pipes on the roof. A quick check of Google Maps shows that they weren’t always there, and by their shininess, are most likely new. Hmmm... what is contained therein?

I was heading in this direction because I noticed while walking on Oneida Street that work has been progressing on the resurfacing of Ray Nitschke Field — where the Packers spend Training Camp each summer. This view is through the open gate outside of the Green Bay Packers Turf Department.

The old practice field is being replaced to match the SIS Grass playing surface in Lambeau Field. The Packers don’t miss any chances to help the team’s performance in NFL games. If you’re going to play on it, why not practice on it?

When you’re used to seeing this view with lush green grass, seeing it consisting only of pea gravel at this point gets your attention.There is quite a bit of work to do yet, as even the existing gravel has not been worked into a level surface yet.

Partially-buried pipes that are perhaps part of the sprinkler system, or perhaps the drainage system.

A view of the field with the grandstands that will hopefully be filled with fans this August. That would include me and my group of friends who meet there for practice each and every time the Packers are scheduled to practice.

A view of the field, looking toward The Don Hutson Center.

This water access plate shows just how far down things are taken when installing new turf. The top of the concrete is at field level, so as to not be a tripping hazard.

For the unfamiliar, the Training Camp field is Ray Nitschke Field, on the east (or back) side of The Don Hutson Center.

The gates though which I long so badly to enter later this summer.

We are now looking at the field from the north end (along Armed Forces Drive).

There are various types of equipment in use to install the new field.

Only a few workers were on hand late on a Friday afternoon.

Looking all the way down the field toward where I was standing and seeing the pea gravel.

Still quite a bit of work to finish on the north end before moving to the next step in the field installation process.

The tall black poles at left are described in our last installment of Offseason Updates. Since then, the workers have completed the concrete work around their bases and along the north fence line.

I resisted the urge to enter the fence gate opening and take a closer look at things.

A view of the new Resch Expo and Lambeau Field beyond that, walking west on Armed Forces Drive.

I had to stand on my tippy-toes to get a shot of Clarke Hinkle Field (the fences remain covered), where you can see the wear and tear from 2020’s in-season practices. 

And now, for more in-depth coverage of the relocation of a 400,000-gallon wastewater surge tank at the easternmost edge of stadium property, along Oneida Street. We’re pretty sure this is the only place on the internet that you’ll see what we present here. 

Above and below, various views of the project, taken through small holes in the construction fence, which is covered by a photographer-annoying green mesh fabric. But we get the shots we need anyway.

Now we’re inside Lambeau Field’s Atrium, which has been turned into a Bellin Health COVID-19 vaccination center. Below are some shots of the set-up. According to the press release: “The Lambeau Field vaccination clinic initially will operate in the Atrium and may expand to other areas of the stadium as supply and weather allow, said Bellin Health President and CEO Chris Woleske. With adequate supply, the site will have capacity to vaccinate 6,000 individuals per week initially and quickly ramp up to 10,000 individuals weekly.”

And lastly, we see some last vestiges of winter hanging on in the Lambeau Field parking lot. But, if you’ve lived in the midwest, you know that there’s always that possible April blizzard waiting just around the corner.

NFL Announces New TV Deal

Amazon gets Thursday night games, NFL nearly doubles TV deal

March 18, 2021, 7:04 PM ET

Associated Press

Much like they did with cable in the 1980s and satellite television in the 1990s, the NFL on Thursday made another significant transition in the way its games are viewed.

The league's new rights agreements, worth $113 billion over the 11 seasons of the new deals that begin in 2023, include a streaming service receiving an exclusive full season package for the first time when Amazon Prime Video will be the home of 15 Thursday Night Football games.

“This is a seminal moment for the distribution of our content,” commissioner Roger Goodell said. “These deals remind me of back in the 60s, how NFL content and games were a big part of the broadcast TV growth, and then going into the 80s, with our first commitment to cable television, and then the '90s with our commitment to satellite television and our Sunday Ticket package. Im sure were going to look back on these deals the same way that we did back in the 1980s.”

“This provides our fans with greater access. We want to provide our games on more platforms than ever before.”

The new contracts also mean the NFL will nearly double its media revenue to more than $10 billion a season. The league took in $5.9 billion a year in its current contracts.

The total of $113 billion is an increase of 80% over the previous such period, a person with direct knowledge of the contracts told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the money figures were not made public.

Amazon has partnered with the league to stream 11 Thursday night games since 2017, but it will take over the entire package from Fox, which has had it since 2018. Amazon streamed a Week 16 Saturday game between the 49ers and Cardinals last year that was seen by an estimated 11.2 million total viewers and had an average minute audience of 4.8 million. That was the largest audience to stream an NFL game.

Over the last five years we have started the migration to streaming. This is another large step in this direction, said New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, chairman of the league's media committee. Our fans want this option and understand streaming is the future. We have created a unique hybrid of viewing options and streaming. This should provide a smooth transition to the future of content distribution.

Marie Donoghue, Amazon's vice president of global sports video, said the next couple seasons will be used to test certain things.

Our relationship with the NFL has been a process. It is incredible trust the league has put in us which is largely based on our track record with them, she said. It is a game changer for us. We are really excited for the innovative technologies and ways to serve fans.

Games on Amazon will also be carried on over-the-air broadcast stations in the cities of the participating teams, also the case with games aired on ESPN and NFL Network.

ABC gets back in the Super Bowl rotation with two games over the 11 seasons. ESPN gets some flexibility in its schedule on Monday nights, with the NFL agreeing to potentially move as many as five games from Sunday, and will have three doubleheaders, up from one.

The contract also expands digital rights for the other networks as well. ESPN+ will air one of the London games and NBCs Peacock platform will also have one exclusive game per season for six years beginning in 2023.

Games will continue to air on CBS, Fox, NBC as well as ESPN/ABC. ESPNs deal was scheduled to end after 2021, while the others expired a year later, but ESPN will have a bridge deal for 2022.

The new deals kick in with the 2023 season and expire after the 2033 schedule. The league was able to get a sizable increase despite ratings for regular-season games decreasing by 7% after two years of growth. The declines have been largely attributed to the coronavirus pandemic and a presidential election.

Even with declines, regular-season games last year averaged 15.6 million television and digital viewers, according to the league and Nielsen.

Here are other key points of the new contract:

INCREASED REVENUE: With the hefty new contracts the 32 NFL teams and their players can look forward to increased salary caps throughout the decade. The cap decreased by nearly $16 million this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The broadcast partners also figure to get an extra game per season, likely beginning this year. NFL owners are getting ready to implement a 17-game regular season. Goodell said discussions about the new schedule will be conducted during the owners meetings later this month with an announcement expected within the next three weeks.

The media deals have wrapped up a hectic 12 months for the league, which included completing a new labor agreement and having no games canceled in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

BIG WINNER: Without a doubt it is ESPN and ABC. Not only does ABC return to the Super Bowl rotation for the first time since the 2005 season, but it finally gets those flex scheduling options for Monday Night Football. That was a right only previously given to NBC when flex scheduling was introduced in 2006. ESPN's flex option will start in Week 12 and can be done on 12 days notice.

There will also be three weeks of multiple games, including two on Saturday in the final week of the regular season with playoff implications for the first time, and a divisional round playoff game to go with their wild-card weekend contest. The two Saturday games will begin this year as part of the bridge agreement.

While the other networks saw their rights fees double, Disney's increase came to 35%. It will still pay the most though as its contract averages $2.7 billion per season.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON STABILITY: Fox will remain the primary network for the NFC while CBS will have the AFC. Eric Shanks and Sean McManus, chairmen of the respective networks, said it was important to retain those unique identities.

Fox will average $2.25 billion a year and CBS' rights fees come to $2.1 billion. Both networks also have provisions for their streaming services: Tubi for Fox and CBS' Paramount+.

QUITE A COMBINATION: NBC's next four Super Bowls, beginning with next year's game in Los Angeles, will also come during the Winter Olympics, which was important to the network. Sunday Night Football has been the top-rated prime-time program since 2011.

NBC also retains the opening Thursday night NFL Kickoff game as well as a Thanksgiving night game and flex scheduling beginning in Week 5.

MORE ALTERNATE BROADCASTS: After the success of CBS doing a kids-friendly broadcast on Nickelodeon, and ESPNs MegaCast during the NFL playoffs, there will be an increase in alternate presentations. The networks will also have greater flexibility to use stats and integrated social feeds on their digital presentations. Amazon experimented with on-demand highlights and increased use of Next Gen stats during Thursday night games last season.

 

This video is always entertaining. Enjoy!

1960 NFL Championship

Researching some Green Bay Packers history today in The Daily Iowan, December 27, 1960, and coverage of the 1960 NFL Championship Game. Unfortunately, it was a loss — Vince Lombardi’s only playoff loss as head coach in Green Bay. How news was reported at the time is so interesting.

President Ford in Green Bay — 1976

The subject of President Gerald R. Ford attending the April 3, 1976 dedication ceremony of the original permanent Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame (at the southeast corner of S. Oneida Street and Lombardi Avenue in Green Bay) came up in a discussion with a friend this week, so we sought to see what we could find about this subject on the internet. The photos seen here were just recently posted (on February 17th) by the Hall of Fame on their Twitter account (@PackersHOF). We see Ford (center) speaking to the assembled crowd and press. Prior to this, he uncovered the dedication plaque as then-Packers head coach Bart Starr looked on (at left, below).

Photos: Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame

Photo: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum

We also found the photo seen above on the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum Tumblr page. Here is the text which accompanied the image: 

“This week Football Friday heads north to the Packers Hall of Fame in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

The Green Bay Packers football team dates back to 1919 and is known for its impressive success on the field as well as its fiercely loyal fan base. Having many great teams and such a long history, the Packers started a Hall of Fame program as a rotating exhibit at Brown County Memorial Arena in the 1960s. This exhibit was turned into an addition to the Arena and was dedicated by President Ford on April 3, 1976. 

During this trip, President Ford toured the facilities and met with some of the players and staff. This picture show Ford in the weight room talking to Offensive Lineman Keith Wortman (#65), who was later traded to the St. Louis Cardinals before the 1976 season; Defensive Lineman Mike McCoy (#76); and Running Back Eric Torkelson (#26). Also accompanying the President on the tour was Packers head coach Bart Starr. A future NFL Hall of Famer, Starr had been Green Bay’s quarterback through the 1960s under the future Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi. During that time the Packers won five NFL Championships, including Super Bowls I & II, in seven years. Unfortunately Starr could not replicate his success as on the field as head coach and the team would take a downward slide through the 1970s. 

President Ford remarked on the program’s success at the Hall of Fame dedication, noting “the main thing is that through tradition, through the great successes – winning three consecutive football championships, the first two AFL, NFL championships, here in Green Bay you have developed a character and a leader and inspiration and a tradition that are the envy of all of our 215 million Americans, and I am among them.” He also reflected that he could have been part of that tradition since Coach Curly Lambeau had asked him to play for the Packers in 1935. Ford instead took a job with Ducky Pond and the Yale football team in order to pursue law school. Ford was heard to joke, “If I had gone into professional football, Jerry Ford might have been a household name today.”

Photo caption & information: Image: President Ford Talking with Green Bay Packers Football Players in the Weight Room at the Green Bay Packers Headquarters in Green Bay, Wisconsin, 4/3/1976 (White House photograph A9083-15A)

We have visited the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame many, many times over the years, and you should too. Find out more via this link.

We also have visited the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum in Grand Rapids, MI, as part of a goal to experience all of the presidential libraries if we happen to be near one on a business trip or vacation. Find out more about the Ford facility here.

Jim Taylor Is...

A TIME magazine ad from November 11, 1966. Packers FB Jim Taylor was called many things, but this is the first time we’ve seen him labeled as “well-upholstered.”