Green Bay Packers safety Morgan Burnett got his day in the local media sun on Tuesday. That resulted in a bunch of guys asking him some half-assed questions and skirting around the real issue.
That issue being why Burnett turned in a giant turd of a season after signing a big-money contract extension in 2013. So they talked about the zero picks the Packers safeties recorded last year — the only team in the NFL to achieve that honor. They also talked about the turdier M.D. Jennings, who’s now a member of the turdier Chicago Bears.
And they got the kind of answers you get when you ask shit questions.
“We’ve got to get more turnovers.”
“M.D. Jennings was a solid player.”
While that second one might make you laugh, remembering Burnett’s play last season will probably make you explode in a fit of rage. So here’s where we tip our cap to Tyler Dunne for asking the only question that kind of got to the heart of the matter.
Why do you suck, Morgan Burnett?
Actually, he didn’t ask that exactly. He sort of implied it when he asked if Burnett feels any pressure this year. Unfortunately, Burnett feels no pressure.
“I don’t feel any pressure,” Burnett said. “I challenge myself as a player because my goal as a player is to get better each and every year. I want to challenge myself to see where I’ve grown throughout my years in the league so far, and that’s just my main goal coming into every season.
“I want to improve, get better and show that growth.”
An appropriate follow-up there would have been something like this.
Then how do you explain your regression last season and how do you plan on improving your game this year?
That didn’t get asked though.
We do know Burnett is not worried, however. Why he isn’t worried is now the question.
The Packers drafted a safety in the first round and they also moved a playmaking cornerback to safety as well. That latter guy, Micah Hyde, is a guy that coach Mike McCarthy says he wants to be a three-down player. And you don’t draft a guy in the first round with the intention of stowing him on the bench.
So Burnett SHOULD feel some pressure.
If he doesn’t pick up his game, he could be the Packers third safety. Although we’d be surprised, Burnett could also be looking for a job elsewhere.
It’s as if the selection of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and the position switch of Hyde were meant to light a fire under Burnett’s ass. He’s apparently the only one who doesn’t notice it burning.