2016 Schedule Released

The 2016 NFL schedule has been released, eight days earlier than last year. Seen above, and by clicking on the link at right, you will see the Packers’ opponents and dates of battle. Some notable aspects of the schedule:

• They start with two road games, one of which will most likely be in high heat & humidity.

• They will be the Vikings’ first opponent in their new stadium.

* The Lions are the home opener opponent.

• Their Bye is in week four, the first eligible week.

• Including the Bye, they are home five weeks in a row.

• The October Bears’ game will be the “Color Rush” uniform game.

• They have three road games in November.

• The Seahawks come to Lambeau again.

• And most inconveniently, they play on Christmas Eve.

Minutes after the release of the schedule, we received this from the team:

You’re welcome.

Packers Draft Parties

 

There will be two “official“ 2016 NFL Draft parties held by the Green Bay Packers.  Since the draft is again being held in Chicago, a pep rally will be held at a local “Packers bar,” Will’s Northwoods Inn. The Chicago rally will begin at 7:30 p.m., and will include special guests — Packers alumni Gary Ellerson, Mark Chmura, Mark Tauscher and Frank Winters. The event will feature raffles, giveaways and specials from the venue.

        

The second party will be held at the 1919 Kitchen & Tap, which is located on the first floor of the Lambeau Field Atrium. This party will be on Saturday, April 30, beginning at 10:00 a.m., with a program at 11:00 a.m. Team President and CEO Mark Murphy and Packers alumni Jerry Kramer and Dave Robinson will participate. Giveaways, raffles and special menu items will be included.

Each event will include draft coverage on TVs throughout the venues and Wi-Fi Internet access.

Round one of the NFL draft begins at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 28. The second day of the draft, featuring rounds two and three, begins at 6:00 p.m. Friday, April 29. Rounds four through seven will be conducted beginning at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 30.

Speaking Up for Football

These days, there’s a constant negative barrage against football. This isn’t Packers-related, but it’s time someone stood up for football.

Playing The Game

Undoubtedly, there are long-term physical effects of playing football. Everybody involved knows that going into it. No one can say that they had no idea they could receive a concussion while playing the game. While the doom-sayers predict the death of football, we keep reading quotes from long-time players who say they would definitely do it all over again if they could. From an ESPN article on former Packers G Marco Rivera:

“It was all worth it. Without question,” Rivera said. “Why? I was able to provide not only for my family but for my extended family a better way of life. And I got to the point where my kids are going to have a really good and bright future because of the things I did in the past. And that’s what it’s all about.”

Rivera has had more than his share of post-football pain. Read the article.

A NASCAR driver cannot say, “Gee, I had no idea that I might die on the track.” It’s risk vs. reward, and there will always be men who accept the risk to chase the reward. One thing that may very well change is the length of players’ careers. We don’t know if B.J. Raji will return to the game, but we may see more like him. Get in, make a large amount of money in X number of years, and get out.

And changes to the way the game is played, or the equipment it is played with, are certain to change in the league’s new reality of hyper-critical media and public. Sometimes things need to evolve to survive, and football is definitely on that list. Your children’s NFL will not be the NFL you grew up with. That is one fact we are all going to have to accept, like it or not.

Packerville, U.S.A. in the Desert

The Packerville, U.S.A. staff is enjoying some time in the Arizona desert during this offseason. Posts will continue when we have returned refreshed.

eBay Photomania

As you’ll find through the offseason, Packerville, U.S.A. is updated semi-frequently. Today, we’re posting many old photos that we found (and on which anyone can bid) via eBay. Perhaps one or two have been on this site before, but after nine years, who can remember? Above, we see a team photo taken at Rockwood Lodge in 1947. Bid on this item here.

1929 NFL Champions team photo. Bid on this item here. 

Hall of Fame player Clarke Hinkle. Bid on this item here.

“The 1925 Packer Football Team” photo. Bid on this item here. 

1965 NFL Title Game sweep photo. Bid on this item here.

HB Paul Hornung magazine ad photo. Bid on this item here. 

Vince Lombardi diagramming plays on chalkboard. Bid on this item here. 

 1962 NFL Champions team photo. Bid on this item here.

Line of scrimmage photo — 1965 NFL Title game. Bid on this item here. 

1933 Green Bay Packers team photo. Bid on this item here.

QB Bart Starr passes against the Rams in L.A. Bid on this item here. 

1944 NFL Champs in the Polo Grounds locker room. Bid on this item here. 

1927 Green Bay Packers team photo. Bid on this item here. 

1938 Western Division Champions. Bid on this item here. 

1960’s generic Packers player poster. Bid on this item here. 

HB Paul Hornung Magazine photo #1. Bid on this item here. 

HB Paul Hornung Magazine photo #2. Bid on this item here.

HB Paul Hornung Magazine photo #3. Bid on this item here.

HB Paul Hornung runs against San Francisco. Bid on this item here.

QB Bart Starr passes against the Baltimore Colts. Bid on this item here. 

1967 NFL Champions team photo. Bid on this item here. 

1939 NFL Champions team photo. Bid on this item here. 

 1974 Green Bay Packers team photo. Bid on this item here.

The Packers take the field in Milwaukee’s County Stadium. Bid on this item here. 

Vince Lombardi and players on the Super Bowl I sideline in L.A. Bid on this item here. 

QB Bart Starr in the heat on the road. Bid on this item here. 

HB Paul Hornung against the St. Louis Cardinals. Bid on this item here. 

HB Paul Hornung and FB Jim Taylor on the sideline. Bid on this item here. 

RB Tom Moore finds daylight vs. the Colts. Bid on this item here. 

Vince Lombardi carried off the field. Bid on this item here. 

Player introductions before Super Bowl I. Bid on this item here. 

One last photo of HB Paul Hornung gaining yards against the Cardinals. Bid on item here.

New Helmet Design

We came cross this recently, and thought it might be a good thing to share now that the season is over. It’s the VICIS ZERO1 — a new football helmet design which might be a promising option for the future. Even with better cushioning, the issues of reducing blows to the head must be of prime importance to the league, if the game is to survive.

VICIS ENGINEERS AND NEUROSURGEONS HAVE DEVELOPED A MULTILAYERED, HIGHLY-ENGINEERED HELMET DESIGN THAT MITIGATES LINEAR AND ROTATIONAL IMPACT FORCES

THE LODE SHELL™
Absorbs impact load by locally deforming, like a car bumper. Automotive safety engineers have used local deformation to protect people for decades. We’re the first to bring this proven innovation to football helmets.

THE CORE LAYER™
Employs a highly-engineered columnar structure that moves omni-directionally to reduce linear and rotational forces. The columnar geometry used in our CORE Layer is based on principles first described by Leonhard Euler, a Swiss physicist in the 1700s.

The LODE Shell and CORE Layer work together to reduce impact forces, leveraging well established engineering principles and materials long-used in stringent aerospace and automotive applications. Tested to withstand multiple seasons of play, the VICIS ZERO1 delivers 21st century innovation built on bedrock scientific principles.

THE VICIS AXIS FIT SYSTEM™
A great fitting helmet is critical to comfort and safety. The current standard is to measure head circumference, but that approach has serious limitations. Consider two rooms with a circumference of 100’. While the rooms share the same circumference, they have markedly different dimensions: One measures 10’ x 40’ while the other measures 25’ x 25’. Human head anatomy is also variable; the same circumference could yield scores of different head lengths and breadths. Traditional sizing approaches do not account for these differences.

The VICIS AXIS Fit System incorporates head length and breadth measurements to determine a player’s optimal helmet size. Informed by detailed head measurements of hundreds of current and former NFL and NCAA football players, the AXIS Fit System provides an anatomically correct fit based on the unique head shapes of elite athletes. The ZERO1 offers 12 different sizing combinations, eliminating the need for shims and air bladders, taking comfort and safety to a new level.

After determining the player’s optimal helmet size with the AXIS Fit System, the ZERO1’s two innermost layers provide additional protection and exceptional fit and comfort:

THE ARCH SHELL™
The AXIS Fit System determines the relationship between head length and breadth measurements (commonly called an “aspect ratio”) for a player and facilitates selection of an appropriately sized ARCH Shell. There are 3 different ARCH Shells available, providing outstanding fit and additional protection.

THE FORM LINER™
The FORM Liner is designed to work in unison with the ARCH Shell. Constructed of special foams and waterproof textiles, the FORM Liner conforms to the player’s unique head topography and distributes pressure uniformly around the head. There are 4 different FORM Liners available to enable unparalleled comfort and precise fit. 

And here’s a mock-up of how it would look with Green Bay’s colors. The larger face mask could present issues with the helmet logo, but we’re sure they could figure out a solution.

The Ultimate Packer Collection

The Ultimate Fan Cave from EARTHWORKS on Vimeo.

Frozen Tundra

Frozen Tundra from Oliver Würffell on Vimeo.

The NFL’s New York Headquarters

 

Here’s some non-Packers specific material that we thought might be of interest to some of you. If you’ve ever wondered what the NFL’s New York headquarters looks like, keep on reading. From the company who designed it:

In 2012, Ted Moudis Associates (TMA) teamed up with the NFL to create a new headquarters for the organization at 345 Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. “One of the NFL’s most important goals for the project was to carry its strong brand identity throughout the design. Our team worked closely with the NFL’s Creative Group to develop a design that celebrated the NFL Brand while providing the organization with an amazing workplace.

The program included general office space, conferencing facilities including a League Room for owners’ meetings, an employee cafeteria with full cooking kitchen, an interconnecting stair between the four main office floors, a multipurpose room that supports both medium and large scale functions, a fitness center with locker and shower facilities, and an employee store. Each of the organization’s floors is a representation of one of the “Four Pillars” of the NFL: The Game, The Teams, The Fans, and Innovation. The architectural finishes, furnishings, and graphics change on each of these floors to emphasize the floor’s theme. The heart of the organization can be found at the center of the 5th floor, where the Officiating Command Center is located. There are also two outdoor terraces on the 6th floor; one adjacent to the main reception area and the other as an extension of the employee cafeteria.

The TMA Design team prepared test fit studies that helped the NFL understand how different planning approaches could affect the overall efficiency of the floor plan as well as the quality of the spatial design. With these plans, TMA was able to help the NFL establish new standards that provided them with a flexible plan that allows them to continue to change and grow over time. By bringing the majority of the offices to the interior and maintaining collaborative zones at the corners of each floor, TMA was able to maximize the amount of natural light that reaches the workplace.

In order to represent the power and energy of the game, the regular, orthogonal nature of the plan is juxtaposed with architectural elements that cut through the space in dynamic and angular fashion. These angular elements include the ceiling planes, accent metal and carpet inlays in the floor, and continuous linear light features that also provide an element of way-finding. Throughout the space, TMA integrated collaborative zones that support daily employee interactions as well as provide an opportunity to highlight different elements and products that make up the NFL.”

The NFL’s building at 345 Park Avenue, New York. Besides the NFL, other tenants include The Blackstone Group, Consulate General of Ireland, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Capital Trust, Deutsche Bank, Enterprise Ireland, KPMG, and Piper Jaffray.