Sticks and stones can break your bones but a 4-12 season will get you fired. Just as former Packer Head Coach Mike Sherman. Fired by General Manager Ted Thompson on Monday, Sherman said he was surprised and upset at the news when he and Thompson had their little meeting early Monday morning inside 1265 Lombardi Avenue.

The assistant coaches, along with some players who were there after Thompson's press conference, echoed the same sentiment. They couldn't believe he had been fired. Surely the horrible season that spawned the 4-12 record wasn't his fault alone. What about the injuries? Green Bay ended the season with 19--count them--19 players on the IR. And not just second stingers and has-beens either. One could nearly field a winning team from the Packers' injured reserve list. It included Green Bay's starting and top backup running backs, their only pro bowl wide receiver, their number three wide receiver, their top draft pick of last year and highly touted wide receiver, their only pro bowl tight end, their starting punter, (oh yeah, it was that kind of season...) a starting linebacker and the two top backups in the secondary. Not mention it took Green Bay all season to realize they had failed in their attempt to replace their two pro bowl guards who had escaped via free agency this year.

I was on a Packer website Tuesday after the news had spread like wildfire about Sherman's beheading, and of the people polled almost half said the same thing; How could that have happen? Everybody was so surprised and shocked at the firing. Nobody saw it coming. Most were flabbergasted, knocked for a loop even.

Some were mad.

How could Ted Thompson come in to Green Bay and fire a coach with a winning percentage like that of Sherman's? Is he crazy? How could this white haired GM waltz in to Title Town and ax the man responsible for three straight division titles from 2002-2004? Is he nuts?

Does Thompson realize that Mike Sherman, before the debacle this year, compiled a 53-27 record in his first five seasons with the Packers? His winning percentage ranks him right up there with Lombardi. How could that happen?

When asked, even Ron Wolf said it took him off guard that Thompson--his protégé --had given Sherman the boot. (Remember, it was Wolf who hired Sherman in 2000, after saying that he had been "blown away" by him his initial interview) Wolf says he thought Sherman had done a fine job in Green Bay and probably wouldn't be unemployed long because he was such a good coach... Of course that needs to be taken with a grain of salt, too, because if you remember correctly, it was Ron Wolf who also hired Ray Rhodes as head coach after Holmgren left for Seattle, saying that Rhodes was his man and was going to be a great head coach for Green Bay... Yikes!

But in general, there were plenty of people really miffed at what happened to Sherman.

On the other hand, I had a few friends of mine attend the game on Sunday against the Seahawks and they said there were more than a few fans in the stands who were singing along in a chorus of a "Fire Sherman" chant.

On that same web site I visited on Tuesday, over half of the people polled said they weren't surprised at Sherman's firing and it was about time. There was no way the new GM could keep a coach who not only missed the playoffs, but didn't win the division title this year with a 4-12 record. Most said Sherman's job was gone after the loss to the Viking on Monday Night.

It's evident that not everybody was on the Sherman bandwagon despite the injuries the team suffered this year. Quite a few fans thought that Sherman lacked the essentials to make a good, or consistent head coach. And there is good reason for that. It stems from more than just what we witnessed this year from him. Some people thought he was a lousy coach from the beginning.

Many felt he walked in and took over a team that was led by a future Hall of Famer quarterback and if left alone, could have won the majority of their games by themselves. So give Sherman some credit, he didn't tinker with the offense like Rhodes had done. However, there were other inadequacies that Sherman possessed that led to his down fall. When called upon to win the big ones, Sherman came up short. Perhaps his 2-4 playoff mark stands as some sort of proof. After all, Sherman was at the helm with Atlanta came in and broke the consecutive winning home playoff record, right?

Now some of that can be attributed to his lack of experience when he was first hired. He had only three years of NFL experience. Two were as tight ends coach of the Packers (1997 and 1998) under Mike Holmgren and one was as offensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks (1999), also under Holmgren.

So when backed into a corner during a game, when faced with a critical situation that called for some expertise, some past experience, some mastery of the game, Sherman was clueless. And instead of leaning on his assistant coaches for help, as any good coach would do, we were told he did just the opposite. It was said that Sherman kept his assistants at bay and didn't pay any attention to what they had to say. So left to make his own calls, Sherman sunk not only himself but the entire Packer team.

His indecisiveness in his play calling was just one of his glaring weaknesses caused by his inexperience. More often than not, he made questionable, or completely wrong, decisions which cost them the game. This year alone, when the victories were coming at a very high price, more than a couple losses can be directly linked back to him and his inadequacy at calling plays.

And not just this season either. Less we forget one year past, the January 11th, 2004, NFC Divisional playoff game against the Eagles. It will be forever known simply as the "fourth-and-26" game. (yes, this column's namesake)

Everybody wants to talk about "the Play" but there was other things during that game that caused the Packers' fall from grace.

Okay, fine, let's recap "the Play" for old time sake. (my doctor says it's good therapy...) Green Bay was staring victory and more importantly, a trip to the NFC Championship game, right in the face. All they had to do was hold on for a lousy 1:12 and they were winners. Leading 17-14, the Packers had the Eagles choking on a fourth and 26th from their own 26 yard line. Fourth and 26...

Long story short, Philly snaps the ball, McNabb scrambles to his right, bada bing, the Packers' defense breaks down and he connects with a streaking Freddie Mitchell across the middle for a 28 yard completion. That play eventually turns into a tying field goal, which in turns leads to an Eagle win in overtime.

However, as I said, Sherman's debatable play calling earlier actually put the game in that last minute situation. He makes two different decisions and who knows? For instance, the call in the second quarter, when Sherman decided to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line instead of taking the sure points. The play-call fooled nobody and was snuffed at the line of scrimmage and the Packers failed to convert.

Now move to the fourth quarter; facing a fourth and 1 from the Eagles' 41 with two and half minutes left in the game, Sherman punts the ball. The team had been moving the ball well enough to give the impression the first down wouldn't have been that difficult to convert. And a first down here almost certainly seals the win and Green Bay goes to the championship game.

But is that enough to oust a coach with a winning percentage? Maybe not but I truly believe it was a lot more than just some questionable play calling that caused Thompson to want a new leader on the sidelines.

I think it was a culmination of things Sherman had done, including his bad job this year. He reminded too many people of the nightmare they had to live through back in the Infante era in the late 80's.

One just has to remember how the years were that followed Infante and you'd be happy to help Sherman pack his bags. Both coaches left the team in disarray, damaged almost beyond repair. They both left the Packers gasping for talent on the roster and free agents not wanting to come to Green Bay to play at all. Not to mention those already hear screaming they wanted out.

And in Sherman's case, seeing how he failed as the general manager didn't help either. Watching him throw good money after bad free agent investments counted against him too. So between the bad calls both on and off the field, the many draft choices he squandered while getting nothing in return, it seemed his release was inevitable. Most read the writing on the wall back last January when Bob Harlan was forced to bring in Thompson as GM.

Do we have to go into the blunders in personnel?

Okay, fine.

Nothing stands out more than Sherman's dreadful decision, back on March 26, 2002, to sign veteran defensive end Joe Johnson to a six-year, $33 million contract. This guy was washed up when he got to Green Bay and had to be considered the biggest free agent flop in franchise history. Johnson was finally released on June 9, 2004 after he contributed absolutely nothing to the club.

That was followed up by the Hunt misadventure. To this day it is still unclear to a whole lot of people why Sherman, in all his wisdom, and based solely on one productive year, thought he had to give defensive tackle Cletidus Hunt a six-year, $25 million contract, which included a $6 million signing bonus. But he did and he was repaid with missed training camps, missed individual workouts, missed mandatory team functions, lies and disrespect over the next two season from Hunt. And adding salt to the open wound, Hunt never came close to that one productive year on the field for the Packers. And yet, Sherman never pulled the trigger to get rid of him. Thompson released him at the end of training camp last summer to finally stop the bleeding.

And of course, the Packer war room under Sherman was anything but constructive. Sherman’s drafts were ill conceived and he was quick to bail out on his plan when he thought the draft wasn't going according to plan. Proof is in the pudding, as they say. Sherman would often panic and regularly traded up to take players that may have fallen to him anyway. In the three drafts he was directly in charge of in Green Bay, he traded away 20 draft picks while acquiring only eleven. And it wasn't as if this led to him picking impact players for the organization, either.

One of the biggest question marks in any of his draft choices still lingers in the minds of many. Sherman took a punter, B.J. Sander, in the third round of the '04 draft. While that's almost unheard of, the fact he had to traded up to do, giving away a fourth-round pick in the process, was really the kicker.

But then again, perhaps the real kicker of the entire deal is that Sander still hasn't proven he's NFL caliber. His first year he was unable to win the punting job in training camp forcing Sherman to carry two punters on the roster. He's then sent to NFL Europe to get more practice, comes back and though better, not anywhere near the league's best this season and struggled in the cold weather at home late in the season before getting injured and eventually placed on the IR.

And there were other questionable selections made by Sherman. For example, he gave away picks and traded up to take the likes of defensive tackle Kenny Peterson and defensive tackle James Lee. Peterson is still nothing more than a backup at this point while Lee is out of the NFL altogether. And let's not forget Jamal Reynolds.

Who?

Exactly. Another Sherman bust.

Now, never let it be said I'm not fair when bashing people. Sherman can take credit for Pro Bowler receiver Javon Walker and linebacker Nick Barnett. Of course, follow that up with Joey Thomas and Ahmad Carroll and I'm thinking it's a push.

Anyway, as a parting shot, as I always try to cover everything, ponder this; Is Sherman the only one to blame for his demise in Green Bay? After all, it was Ron Wolf who brought him in with little to no experience and handed over the team and then bailed on him. And it was Bob Harlan who made the decision that Sherman, with no experience whatsoever as GM, was capable of being both General Manager and Head Coach.

Now consider this, not only was Harlan's move the first time in Packer history one man had both jobs, but because Harlan wouldn't do it a year earlier with Mike Holmgren, it was the main reason Holmgren went to Seattle in the middle of his dynasty years in Green Bay.

So it's kind of funny how both Wolf and Harlan sing Sherman's praises loudly knowing full well that if anyone took the time to stop and examine this situation they'd find that both of them had a hand in, and were partly to blame for, Sherman's ill-fated tenure in Green Bay.

And so, even though I am one of those glad to see Sherman gone, I wish him the best of luck.

Until next time ... Keep Driving Forward.