For every beginning, there is an end.

I have been watching the Green Bay Packers play football for a long time, and never have I watched them with any man other than Brett Favre lining up behind center.

The beginning of the legend that is Favre started in 1992. As the perennially uncompetitive Packers were hosting the Cincinnati Bengals at Lambeau Field, Green Bay quarterback Don Majkowski fell to the turf, writhing in pain as he held his ankle. Head coach Mike Holmgren motioned towards his bench, and out from behind the crowd of green jerseys emerged some kid, some immature, strong armed, yet erratic third stringer that new General Manager Ron Wolf had squandered a first round pick on to acquire him from Atlanta. No one knew of him, no one knew what to expect of him, and very few knew quite how to pronounce his name.

They would quickly learn.

Favre connected with obscure receiver Kitrick Taylor for the game winning touchdown in the closing moments of the game, and the rest was history. A record three MVP awards, a Super Bowl championship, and scores of remarkable numbers that may never be toppled later, Brett Favre is a lock to make the Hall of Fame on the first ballot, and is arguably the best quarterback to ever play the game.

For every beginning, there is an end.

Soon, we may know;  more likely, we'll be living through year three of the Brett-Favre-holds-the-franchise-hostage-as-he-pond
ers-retirement saga. I’ve been saying since before this season started that I thought this would be number four’s last, and I’m fairly certain that it is. In a season where there has been little to cheer for, I can’t recall the last time I got quite so anxious watching a Packer game as I did in the fourth quarter this past Sunday. All I kept thinking as the clock ticked down and Seattle attempted an onside kick was, “curtain call.” The Packers eventually retained possession and then, in the closing seconds, we had it. It was brief – surprisingly brief, I mean if Michael Jordan gets six minutes in a Wizards uniform in Philadelphia, why couldn’t Favre get one – but it was a sight to behold nonetheless. I talk very little during football games (I never got the yelling at the TV thing; I mean, it’s not like they can hear you), but as the crowd rose, Favre trotted off the field as Aaron Rodgers jogged past him to take his place, and as he acknowledged the Green Bay faithful, I said aloud with a tone of unwelcome finality, “this is it.” This was the moment that Packer fans have dreaded for years, yet at the same time, out of morbid curiosity, had wished to witness. After all, Favre had done everything necessary: he threw a touchdown pass to Antonio Chatman, had another bomb to Donald Driver, had gotten his due praise, and to top it off had actually won the game, sadly a great achievement for the Packers during this disaster of a season, finishing dead last in the NFC North at 4-12 – their first losing season in the Favre era.

The Packers will have the fifth pick in the NFL Draft in April; if they had lost to Seattle, they would’ve picked third, and it hurts me to say probably would’ve ended up with Southern Cal RB Reggie Bush, who may be the best tailback of the next decade (as Houston would’ve taken Virginia OT D’Brickashaw Ferguson with the first pick, and the Saints USC quarterback Matt Leinart second). Head coach Mike Sherman may or not be fired; I’ve said before that they can’t justify it, but if Sherman does get the axe some possible replacements could be former Lions head coach Steve Mariucci, Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera, Falcons defensive coordinator (and wrongfully exiled former Packers defensive coordinator) Ed Donatell, and current Packers defensive coordinator Jim Bates.  RB Ahman Green is a longshot to return, FB William Henderson may retire, and there is a gaping hole at OG to be filled. If Favre retires, the Packers will have gabs of money to throw around in the offseason. If he returns, well, then this was a wasted column. In any case, great changes are on the horizon for the Green Bay Packers.

If Brett Favre isn’t around for it, it’s been a privilege to watch him play all these years.

For every beginning, there is an end.

Let the next era begin.

Some guys just get no respect.

When Mike Sherman, a relatively unknown commodity who had served as offensive coordinator in Seattle and as an assistant in Green Bay under Mike Holmgren, was hired to replace Ray Rhodes as head coach in 2000, the hiring was met mostly with intrigue.

Packer fans, who had suffered through over two decades of futility prior to the arrival of Holmgren, general manager Ron Wolf, and quarterback Brett Favre, had gotten used to success; 1999, their lone season under Rhodes, was Green Bay’s first non-winning season since 1991, as Green Bay finished 8-8.

Five years later, Mike Sherman has established himself as one of the most successful head coaches in the history of one of the National Football League’s most prized franchises.

So, why does everyone want him out?

In the midst of their first losing season in over a decade, Packer fans and league pundits alike have begun to turn on Sherman, ironic considering a lot of them never bought into the man to begin with. Sherman, who has been dubbed "Charmin" in some circles here in Wisconsin (because he’s cushiony soft), is now being faced with the speculation that he may be replaced at season’s end, perhaps by exiled Lions head coach and former Packers quarterbacks coach Steve Mariucci. As the losses pile up, the criticism will grow, and ultimately first year GM Ted Thompson will have to make a decision on Sherman.

As a life long Packer fan, I have a strong opinion on this matter, but it does not fall into that of the majority:

Let the man stay.

You want reasons? Here are a few fairly convincing ones:

1. They aren’t that bad.

Make no mistake, 3-10 is what it is. With that in mind, it should be duly noted that in the ten games Green Bay has lost this season, five games have been by three point or less, and the biggest defeat, the season opener at Detroit, was by fourteen. The Packers had perhaps the single most dominant game in team history when they slaughtered the woebegone Saints in week five, 52-3. They also managed to perhaps ruin Atlanta’s playoff hopes when they upset the Falcons five weeks ago. All of these things taken into consideration, ponder this: if you gave Mike Sherman a legit tailback (all due respect to Samkon Gado, but the guy is a third down back at best in the long run), All-Pro WR Javon Walker, and a right guard who could block a turkey sandwich, the Packers may have very well be in the playoff hunt right now. Also, huge credit has to be given to first year defensive coordinator Jim Bates, who has taken a laughingstock of a defense and turned them into a top ten unit, including the top ranked pass defense in the NFL. Despite their awful record, the Green Bay Packers have laid down for no one in 2005.

2. Even with his team’s struggles, Sherman still commands the locker room.

With all the drama surrounding Favre, the preseason contract gaffes with Walker and DT Grady Jackson, the abundance of injuries, the "Fire Sherman" proclamations that have now commenced in green and gold clad message boards across the internet, and the obvious reality that the season is pretty much lost, Mike Sherman somehow has still managed to hold his locker room firmly together. He hasn’t cracked under the pressure that his job may be in jeopardy (despite the minor contract extension he received prior to the start of the season), and he has his players competing to the upmost of their abilities each and every week.

 3. The man’s record speaks for itself.

Here’s a little known, if largely overlooked fact: in the illustrious history of the Green Bay Packers, only the late, great Vince Lombardi has had a higher winning percentage than Mike Sherman. Looking past this season’s struggles, just look at the record this man has compiled:

2000: 9-7

2001: 12-4, playoff berth

2002: 12-4, NFC North Champions

2003: 10-6, NFC North Champions

2004: 10-6, NFC North Champions

Here are a few more interesting tidbits of knowledge for you:

- second fastest of Green Bay’s thirteen head coaches to reach fifty career victories

- 6-2 road record in 2004, a team best since 1972

- in his first five seasons, had a 20-4 record on or after December 1^st, best in the NFL over that time span

- 4-0 on or after December 1^st in 2003 and 2004

- 8-0 at Lambeau Field in 2002

- three consecutive division titles from ‘02-‘04 are matched in club history only by Lombardi’s 1965-67 and Holmgren’s 1995-97 division winners

- one of four head coaches in Packers history with a career winning percentage over .500, joining Lombardi, Holmgren, and team founder Curly Lambeau

So, with these facts now taken into consideration, answer me this:

How again does firing Mike Sherman make the Green Bay Packers a better football team?