Former Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Gilbert Brown is probably one of the most underrated media personalities out there. The way he explains the ins-and-outs of playing in the NFL and being a player/former player is both entertaining and informative.
Every Monday morning, Gilbert does a segment on The Earl Ingram Show called “Under the Helmet with the Gravedigger.” This week’s show was especially entertaining, informative, and thought provoking as he and Ingram covered a wide variety of topics.
The first two topics they covered regarded two former Packers players that are still active in the NFL: Aaron Rodgers and Amari Rodgers.
Green Bay Packers Hall of Famer Gilbert Brown Explains Why Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets Could Go 0-6
Last week, former Packers wide receiver Greg Jennings made waves in the New York Jets fanbase by claiming that he could see them starting 1-5 going into their bye week. Of course, this claim flies in the face of most predictions that have the Jets being Super Bowl contenders. After all, they traded for Rodgers this offseason, drastically improving the quarterback position on their team.
Gilbert, however, does not think it is that far out of the realm of possibility that Jennings is correct. In fact, he claims they could even start 0-6:
“Guess what, Earl. [The Jets’ opponents] are all p***ed off because all they heard all offseason is Aaron Rodgers and the Jets. Here’s the killer part, Earl. It don’t matter if you had Aaron Rodgers at quarterback.
“Let’s say you even had Davante Adams at wide receiver. Let’s Emmitt Smith at running back. It won’t matter if they don’t got that offensive line right. He better hope the offensive line is right, because last year they were not.”
The Jets open up their season with six incredibly tough games. If the offensive line is not even a little bit better than it was in 2022, Rodgers and the Jets could be in serious trouble.
Gilbert notes that the AFC is a great deal tougher than the NFC, and the defenses that he is going to play this year are more difficult than the defenses he faced in Green Bay.
Gilbert Brown Addresses Amari Rodgers’ Recent Comments About Being Released by the Green Bay Packers
Former Packers wide receiver Amari Rodgers recently spoke about what it was like being released by Green Bay midway through last season. He was quoted as saying that the NFL stands for “Not For Long,” and Gilbert agreed with him.
“He’s right. I might have said that on this show at one time. You can’t take it for granted. You got to everything you got to do to stay on board. You cannot be satisfied with just making it.
“You got to improve every year. I had to improve every year that I played for the Green Bay Packers, or I was going to lose my job and be gone.
“It don’t matter [what you’ve achieved in the past] because they don’t want to pay you that money. They’re going to be like, ‘Oh, this guy’s cheaper.’ Or some cat is going to be outstanding and they’re going to pay him extra money to pay your position.”
Amari Rodgers was certainly given his opportunities in Green Bay. The Packers arguably let him play kick returner for far too long, especially considering Keisean Nixon’s emergence as an All-Pro. When Aaron Rodgers was asked about Amari in preseason, he offered no encouragement, “He plays kick returner for us, that’s it.”
As harsh as it sounds, Amari Rodgers did not do enough to improve and keep his spot on the Packers’ roster. Hopefully it was a tough lesson that he learned from and will not make the same mistake on the Houston Texans.
Other Topics Gilbert Brown Talked About
Listen to Gilbert and Ingram in the full segment linked about talk about:
- The five people, living or dead, they most would like to have dinner with
- Why Sterling Sharpe and Mike Holmgren should be in the Hall of Fame
- Explaining why Hall of Famer Mike Singletary and former Packers linebacker Dr. George Koonce could play in any era
For More Great Wisconsin Sports Content
Follow me on Twitter at @theotherRobin19 and follow us @WiSportsHeroics for more great content. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in Wisconsin sports, click here!