Wisconsin Radio Network

Wisconsin News and Sports

You are here: Home / Archives for Titletown Report

Report: Leonhard turns down offer from Packers

By

 

Jim Leonard

Wisconsin Badgers defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard has reportedly turned down an offer to become the next defensive coordinator of the Green Bay Packers.

The Wisconsin State Journal was the first to report Leonhard’s decision.  It was confirmed by Wisconsin Radio Network on Saturday morning.

Leonhard reportedly talked with Packers head coach Matt LaFleur by way of zoom on Tuesday and then in person on Thursday before turning down the job on Friday.

Leonhard told the State Journal, “it was me choosing UW.  I want to stay at UW.  I want to be at this level right now.  Extremely flattered.  Awesome opportunity.  But it was not the right time for me to go back to the NFL.”

Leonhard staying at UW is huge for Paul Chryst and the Badgers.  Leonhard was a three-time All-American safety at Wisconsin and has served as the school’s defensive coordinator for the past four years.

LaFleur now must now move forward with his search.  Likely at or near the top of his list is Los Angeles Rams safeties coach Ejiro Evero.  Evero was a quality control assistant coach for the Packers in 2016.

 

Packers Hall of Fame Inc. postpones 50th Induction Banquet

By

The 50th Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame Inc. Induction Banquet, which was first rescheduled from 2020 until April of this year, will be postponed until August 2021, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The August date, which will be finalized once the Packers schedule is announced, will allow more time for the general public to be vaccinated.

The Induction Banquet will feature Charles Woodson and Al Harris as the newest inductees into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame.  Also being honored is Bud Selig as the Bob Harlan Leadership Award recipient and the late Zeke Bratkowski as the Bart and Cherry Starr Recognition Award recipient.

A new Media Award has been established by the Packers Hall of Fame Inc. and the first recipient will be the late Bud Lea, for whom the award will be named in the future.  Regarding the special recognition as the Most Memorable Moment in Packers history, LeRoy Butler and Robert Brooks will be accepting on behalf of the world-renowned Lambeau Leap.

Badgers Caufield and Holloway named Big Ten stars

By

Wisconsin sophomore forward Cole Caufield was named the Big Ten’s number-one star and sophomore forward Dylan Holloway was named the second star by the conference on Tuesday.

Caufield led the nation with seven points last week, including four goals in a series sweep of Michigan State.  He had a pair of goals in Friday’s 6-0 win over Michigan State and two more goals in Saturday’s 4-1 victory over the Spartans.

Caufield leads the nation in goals with 14 in 18 games this season.  He extended his point streak to 10 games (nine goals, 10 assists) and his goal streak to five contests (seven goals).

Holloway tied for second nationally with two goals and four assists on the weekend.  He now has a six-game point streak (three goals, eight assists) and five game multi-point streak.

The Badgers are in second place in the Big Ten, five points behind first place Minnesota.  The two teams will meet this Friday and Saturday in Minneapolis.  Wisconsin and Minnesota split a pair of games in Madison last month.

UW’s Leonard plans to interview for Packers vacant defensive coordinator position

By

 

Jim Leonard

Wisconsin Badger defensive coordinator Jim Leonard is expected to interview for the vacant Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator position.  The Packers are looking for a replacement for Mike Pettine, who they decided not to bring back after his contract expired at the end of this past season.

Leonard has served as defensive coordinator at UW since 2017.  Last season, UW finished fifth nationally against the run (96.1 ypg) and fifth in total defense (299.9 ypg).

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur started interviewing candidates over the weekend.  The list of candidates includes Rams safeties coach Ejiro Evero, L.A. Chargers defensive passing game coordinator Joe Barry and current Packers secondary coach Jerry Gray, who has previous defensive coordinators experience with Buffalo and Tennessee. [Read more…]

Packers part company with Defensive Coordinator Mike Pettine

By

Mike Pettine

Just days after head coach Matt LaFleur publicly criticized a defensive play call from Sunday’s NFC Championship game loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Packers decided not to bring Pettine back in 2021.

The Bucs scored on a 39-yard touchdown pass on the play in question and it drew the ire of the coach after the game.

“It was man coverage…definitely not the right call for the situation and you can’t do stuff like that against a good football team and expect to win,” LaFleur said.  “You just can’t do that stuff.  I blame us as coaches for putting our guys in that situation.  That’s inexcusable.  That should not have happened.  So we’ve got to take a look at it, do some self-reflection and try to figure out ways on how that can’t happen again.”

ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky first reported that Pettine never signed a contract extension that was offered to him after last [Read more…]

Reports: Shawn Mennenga fired as Packers Special Teams Coordinator

By

 

Shawn Mennenga

Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur spent the day meeting with his coordinators and word out of 1265 Lombardi is that Shawn Mennenga will not be back for the 2021 season.

The Packers struggled on special teams all season.  They ranked 29th out of the NFL’s 32 teams in Rick Gosselin’s 2020 NFL Special Teams rankings.

The Packers allowed a league-worst 17.1 yards per punt return and they were dead last in average yards (18.9) per kick return.

Mennenga joined the Packers in 2019, along with head coach Matt LaFleur.  He was previously the special teams coordinator at Vanderbilt and was an assistant special teams coach for the Cleveland Browns from 2011-2017.

 

Butler’s Hall of Fame bid falls short

By

LeRoy Butler

Former Green Bay Packers safety LeRoy Butler’s bid to join the Pro Football Hall of Fame fell short for a second straight year.

Butler was a finalist for a second straight season but revealed via Twitter on Wednesday that he once again came up short of the required number of votes for induction.

The formal announcement of the 2021 class will take place on February 6.

Butler remains the only member of the Hall of Fame’s All-1990’s team that has yet to be added to the Hall of Fame.

The finalist group consists of 15 players and as many as eight of those 15 could receive induction. Former Packers defensive back Charles Woodson is expected to be part of the 2021 class in his first year of eligibility.

Packers season comes to an end in NFC Championship

By

After working all season to secure a first round playoff bye and home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, the Green Bay Packers season came to an end in the NFC Championship game, falling to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-26 on Sunday at Lambeau Field.

Tom Brady threw for 280 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions and will play in his 10th Super Bowl in two weeks, this time on his own home field in Tampa.  Brady will be in search of his seventh Super Bowl title.  To get there, the Bucs had to beat three division winners, including the Packers on Sunday.

The Buccaneers (14-5) will face the Kansas City Chiefs (16-2) on Feb. 7 in Super Bowl 55.  No team has ever played in a Super Bowl on their own home field before.

The Packers (14-4) picked a bad time to play their worst game of the season, seeing their seven-game winning streak come to an end. [Read more…]

Ted Thompson passed away at age 68 (AUDIO)

By

Ted Thompson at 2019 Hall of Fame Ceremony – WRN Photo

One of the great architects in Green Bay Packers history, Ted Thompson passed away on Wednesday night, just days after his 68th birthday.

With Thompson as the teams general manager, the Packers compiled an overall regular season record of 125-82-1.  The Packers also made the playoffs nine times during his 13-year tenure, posting a 10-8 postseason record.  It included four NFC Championship games (2007, 2010, 2014 and 2016) and a 2010 Super Bowl victory.

When Thompson took over, his very first draft pick in 2005 was Aaron Rodgers (24th overall).  That pick put the Packers in the competitive drivers seat for years to come.

“I’ll never forget your loyalty,” said Aaron Rodgers during a prerecorded video at Thompson’s 2019 Hall of Fame induction ceremony.  “I’m going to always be thankful for the time I had to spend with you, and the fact that you took a chance on a [Read more…]

Packers get rematch with Tampa Bay in NFC Championship

By

Lambeau Field

The Green Bay Packers will face Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Sunday’s NFC Championship game (2:05 p.m) at Lambeau Field.

Brady threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score as the Buccaneers beat the New Orleans Saints 30-20 in the NFC Divisional playoffs in New Orleans.

The Packers advanced on Saturday with a 32-18 win over the Los Angeles Rams.

The Packers and Bucs met earlier this season, a week six matchup that saw the Bucs blow out Green Bay 38-10 in Tampa.

Green Bay and Tampa Bay have met once previously in the postseason.  The Packers beat the Bucs in the 1997 NFC [Read more…]