13 Years Later: A look at life before Mike McCarthy

January 12th, 2006. 13 years (and two days) ago. That was the day it was announced that Mike McCarthy would be the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. Relatively speaking, it’s been a very long time.

I was discussing this topic with my wife (who I didn’t even know back then) today. 13 years is quite a long time to us. That’s almost half of our lives. I did add “relatively” as the difference in time passed from 16 to 29 is a complete lifetime compared to 40 to 53.

So let’s go on a nostalgic journey together. I’m going to wind the clock back to 2005 and really look at what has changed in the monumental amount of time that has passed since the last time Mike McCarthy wasn’t the head coach of the team.

It’s May 2005. Lacrosse season is over and I’m thinking about quitting. It is nice to be part of a team. These are the first people to call me “Matub”. There are downsides, though. I’m 5’4 with my shoes on and about as athletic as Tony Siragusa after hitting a buffet. I’m not very good and I don’t really fit in.

In the world of football, the Packers finished the season at 10-6 only to get mollywhopped by the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card round. The draft just happened and a team WITH A THREE TIME MVP AT THE HELM JUST DRAFTED A QUARTERBACK IN THE FIRST ROUND? Who does this Ted Thompson guy think he is?! The internet has yet to grow into an all-encompassing juggernaut so I can only get snippets about the team on Sports Center and other traditional media outlets. I’m not a very well-informed fan, living an hour north of Detroit.

I look like this:

My junior year of high school starts and so does the 2005 NFL season. I get my braces off. I start dating a girl who owns horses. I did quit the lacrosse team, but I use that spare time to join choir. I’ll eventually get multiple leads in the spring musicals. Everything’s coming up Milhouse! Well, in my world. Holy wah was 2005 a bad year for the Packers.

It ends up being the worst season in 14 years. Brett Favre leads the league in passing attempts, but posts the worst full-season passer rating of his career. His ANY/A is 4.45. For reference, Mark Sanchez has a career ANY/A of 4.82. No one on the team eclipses 600 yards rushing. The saga of Brett Favre’s “will he won’t he” decision grows.

On January 2nd, 2006, Mike Sherman is mercifully fired from the organization.

I look like this:

13 years have gone by and countless things have changed.

Mike McCarthy replaced Mike Sherman. He had a wildly successful career for a decade and brought home a Lombardi trophy in the process. While his last few years left something to be desired, he does leave behind the legacy of a highly successful coach (as well as some legendary sound bites).

As for me, I grew up...sort of. I graduated high school and went on to college, where I didn’t graduate. I met a girl and moved out of my mom’s house. I eventually finished that degree. I fell in love with “making”. Woodworking, 3D modeling, photoshop, video production...doesn’t matter. I packed up my entire life and moved halfway across the country. I fell in love with a new place. I climbed a mountain to propose to that girl I met. We got married, we bought a house, and now we have a daughter.

That’s just the ebb and flow of life. Things are going to change. Sometimes it’s for the worse but you’d be amazed how often the change you’re afraid of is exactly what you need. I’m not afraid of the changes we’re seeing because in the last 13 years I learned everything I needed to know about how to handle it.

As I write this, it’s January 12th, 2019. Matt LaFleur is replacing Mike McCarthy.

And I look like this: