Written by Albert Breer at SI.com
From where Mike McCarthy is sitting, on a bench and under a tent by the Packers’ practice fields, he could turn left, look over a fence and see Lombardi Avenue. Holmgren Way is right in front of him, beyond a set of stands. And now, McCarthy has one of his own—to his right, the former Potts Avenue, renamed Mike McCarthy Way in 2014.
Heady stuff? Sure it is. Vince Lombardi turned the Packers into one of the league’s flagship franchises in the ’60s, and Mike Holmgren restored that greatness in the ’90s.
Now, here’s what you might not realize: McCarthy actually has been in Green Bay for considerably longer than either of those two legends. (Lombardi coached the Packers for nine seasons; Holmgren seven.) What’s more, if it’s up to him, he won’t be leaving anytime soon.
“I’m young for this league, I feel like I’m just going into the prime of my career as a football coach,” McCarthy said, with conviction in his voice. “I think it’s obvious that I’d like to be here for as long as I coach. What we’ve established here, it’s a great place. It’s a great place to live. It’s a great place to coach. Best fans in the world. So I won’t be rushing out.”
Late Raiders patriarch Al Davis used to say that coaches have a shelf life of 10 years in one place, before their message grows stale and their voice loses its effect. When Bill Walsh left the Niners in 1988, after three titles and 10 seasons, Walsh reiterated that sentiment.
McCarthy, now at 12 years, isn’t buying it.
And it’s not that he thinks Davis or Walsh were full of it. No, McCarthy sees it as something that came into focus for him when he sat down with ex-Steelers coach Bill Cowher earlier this year—times have simply changed.
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