"Ask Vic" will publish on Mondays and Thursdays through the offseason.
Timothy from St. Louis, MO When did the First Amendment become left wing and the Second Amendment become right wing? Liberals talk, conservatives shoot? That's funny. Stephen from Chicago, IL Who were the men who got off the bus first during your time covering three football franchises? That first-off-the-bus talk is classic college football baloney. In my career covering the NFL, the "bus" was multiple buses leaving the hotel for the stadium at different times. Special teamers, reserves and early tapers would ride the early buses. Starters, coaches, light tapers and those who got taped at the hotel would ride the second bus, and the late bus would accommodate stragglers. The buses would usually pull into a stadium tunnel area where stadium workers and a few media would be the only people who would see who got off the bus first. I can think of times I got off the bus first. I bet that scared some people. Be that as it may, if I was going to pick one player in my career covering the NFL who might intimidate the opposing team, if they were assembled and forced to watch who came off the bus first, it would be Ernie Holmes. He was a lovable man, but not at first glance. The arrow he shaved onto the top of his head made him the scariest player I ever covered. Irving from Bristol, CT At a distance, the Jags appear locked in on doing what it takes to acquire Nick Foles. They already hired his offensive coordinator from Philly. Foles will cost at least $25 million. What is your opinion on the Jags' pursuit of a starting QB? Would you pursue Foles, Haskins, Murray, Lock, etc.? I think the Jaguars are picking high enough to target a quarterback they believe can lead them into their future. I would prefer they draft a quarterback and acquire a veteran to serve as a bridge to the future, as the Browns did, rather than go all in on Foles. Ryan from Chicago, IL What, if anything, should the league do about Robert Kraft? I'm not sure, yet. Ben Roethlisberger was suspended for six games and he wasn't even charged with a crime. Part of me thinks no punishment by the league can be greater than Kraft's own. I'll wait for a verdict on this. Nate from Naples, FL One of your draft mantras has always been to get the big guys early because there are only so many athletic big guys in the world. This becomes clear while watching the low quality of line play in the AAF. My question is would a big tight end who blocks as well as he catches fall into that category? Mike Ditka? John Mackey? I don't think that player exists anymore. The tight end position has been pencil-whipped into specialization. James from Orlando, FL The question about animosity between teams was good, as well as the response, but it reminded me of what was going on between the Steelers and the Raiders in the 1970's. Those games were vicious and brutal, but great to watch as you knew they were going to very physical. Physical teams engender intense rivalries. The Steelers have always done that, as evidenced in more recent history by their games against the Ravens and the Bengals. The Jaguars have acquired a physical reputation in the last two seasons; they have a budding rivalry with the Bills. The Packers haven't been that kind of team. They have more of a play-calling, finesse reputation. In the five years I covered the Packers, I never got a war-of-the-worlds feeling in covering their games. The rivalry with Seattle developed as a result of the "Fail Mary," not because of physical play. Josh from Lynchburg, VA In your opinion, should women be ministers? Figured we might as well open all the cans of worms. The pastor of the Edisto Island Presbyterian Church is a woman. I think it's wonderful. Why is that a can of worms? Pete from Minneapolis, MN Vic, some in the comments are characterizing your politics as radical. The only political positions I’ve seen you take have regarded the importance of First Amendment rights and the existence of climate change. What’s so radical about that? The option is shut up and drown. No thanks. Mark from Bettendorf, IA What's the funniest thing you have ever written? We had a debate about the TV first-down line, during the "Ask Vic" years in Jacksonville. I claimed the line was invisible paint. I greatly enjoyed the responses and opinions. Eric from Green Bay, WI I think what the AAF and the XFL are failing to realize is we need the offseason. Our time away from watching the game recharges us for when the fall comes around. Rod Woodson nailed it. Willie from Hayward, WI There was a Packers player who came out in the press and hoped the new coaching staff would hold players more accountable. He refereed to being late to meetings and for road trips and missed assignments on the field. Yet, this is the same team that traded Damarious Randall as soon as the league started last offseason, traded an under-performing Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and traded or cut bonehead performers Ty Montgomery and Jermain Whitehead as soon as they got off the plane in Green Bay. What is your take after actually walking the halls at 1265? Accountability comes from within. If the Packers' players lack accountability, the Packers need new players. Eric from San Francisco, CA Since retirement, what's your favorite activity to spend your time on? I walked in the same circles for a long time. Since I retired, I've enjoyed meeting and socializing with people from places and backgrounds with which I was not familiar. It goes back to my new year resolution for 2016: Be new. I knew I was retiring and I knew what that meant. David from Capitol Heights, MD Vic, are there any other sports you really enjoyed and were able to cover as a reporter? I enjoyed covering golf, when the occasion arose. It was a very different forum. Instead of sitting in a press box, I was able to walk the field and talk with fans. I have wonderful memories of covering golf: the 1983 U.S. Open, especially the final-holes continuation on Monday morning, when I was able to walk so close to Tom Watson I could "hear" his every thought; the 1994 U.S. Open, when Colin Montgomerie nearly died from the heat but somehow rallied to come to the press tent and share his thoughts with the media. It always intrigued me the way golf tournaments would build to a crescendo, the cymbals would crash and then everybody would just leave and go to the next place. Pro golf has a carpetbagging feel to it I kind of like. I like professional sports, and no pro sport is more about the money than golf. Andrew from Mount Dora, FL One year ago, I told my co-workers the Browns would be in the playoffs in two years, meaning this coming season. It was my bold prediction and I still take a lot of heat from it. I think I have a decent chance of being correct, do you? It's not a bold prediction, it's an expectation. It's OK to be 16-0 or 0-16; just don't be 8-8. Paul from Green Bay, WI When do you think the Rodgers/McCarthy relationship went south? I think it was after the 2014 Seattle loss. They seemed to never get past that. The first signs of trouble were in Cincinnati in 2013. Paul from Hartland, WI What would be your first offensive play call as the Packers' new head coach? No doubt, Matt LaFleur would gain considerable favor with fans by calling a well-executed screen to Aaron Jones. I'd favor a quick slant to set the tone, but I'd be happy with anything as long as it's not that awful step back, wide receiver screen play they've run so often the last few years. I don't know about the first play, but I know what the first contact drill of training camp would be: the Oklahoma drill. Please, somebody complain. Who'll be the first?
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AuthorVic Ketchman Archives
January 2021
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