When it comes to all-time most likable Green Bay Packers Marcedes Lewis might not be at the very top of the list, but he’s certainly vying for a spot on cheesehead’s Mount Rushmore. A constant cool and calm presence, Lewis does all the dirty work while giving off nothing but positive vibes. From his locker room boosting attitude to his Grinch Christmas cleats it’s hard to find something to dislike about the 17 year pro.
Big Dog even manages to make long-time Packers detractor Colin Cowherd seem likable to Wisconsinites. No stranger to the show, Lewis made another appearance on Fox Sports’ The Herd and had an answer for Colin and the National media’s criticisms of his quarterback and coach.
When Colin discussed all the opinions about Rodgers personality and behavior and asked “Do you think sometimes the criticism of Aaron is unfair based on the fact that he’s kind of being his true self?” Lewis responded:
“Yeah I think when you don’t know a person personally it’s really open to interpretation based on a lot of things that are being said by people who don’t actually know him or are with him on his day to day. He’s a guy that’s very cerebral. He has his own frame of thinking and how he wants to go about things and how he chooses to operate and what I can say is that he’s just one of those true competitors that’s obsessed with the game and sees it a certain way. And I think he goes about his life in that same manner…It’s definitely something that you have to be here to feel it. It’s hard to kind of get a beat on what he’s thinking or what he’s thinking about if you’re not here with him. So we just both laugh at what people have to say in the media because it’s so far off.”
Lewis continued by dismissing the idea that playing with Rodgers as a young receiver is as unfairly difficult as the national media has framed it:
“When we’re out there practicing or playing games or in the meeting room and A-Rod is kind of giving his two cents on how he sees the game and what he expects out of them you know obviously it’s going to be tougher because you’re dealing with a Hall of Fame quarterback right. So it’s not going to be the same as if you got drafted to a team with a quarterback who hasn’t really accomplished anything. A-Rod has accomplished so much and he has sort of you know his view and his way and if you’re not about that it’s probably not going to work out for you here. So I think as far as that’s concerned the learning curve is different but once you get it it’s going to make you a greater football player but also a greater person because you’re going to go through these situations that are going to make you better.”
Lewis didn’t stop with Rodgers, he managed to defend Lafleur when Cowherd echoed a familiar criticism of the young coach that he abandons the run too easily and gets too cute and pretty.
“I think obviously I’m not the coach or the quarterback so with respect to percentages but I know when I come to the sidelines and I feel like whether there’s a lull in what we’re doing out there or we just lose that rhythm…what I will say about Matt is he’s always pulled me aside and and said ‘hey look if you feel like there’s some runs out there that we need to be running or different things that we need to be doing to kind of establish that dominance In the run game let me know.’ So he’s always been open to suggestions when it comes to the run game if we’re not running enough. But I’ve always been an advocate of Aaron Jones getting the rock whether it’s in the run game or the screen game.”
The constant national media crusade against the Green and Gold takes up any gust of wind it can grab and tries to turn it into a hurricane. It’s always great to hear from Lewis and it’s even better when he’s defending those in the building from ridiculous narratives. The whole interview is fantastic.
