Packers History in 100 Plays - Project Update 2

We are behind.

No two ways about it, I am off the pace in my writing schedule. As of right now, I’m going to have to go on a pretty substantial tear or else I’m going to be cutting a check to the Minnesota Vikings on July 1.

Through six weeks of this project (give or take), I have written 12 chapters and researched 58. According to my progress tracker, that puts me roughly 25.8% of the way toward a completed first draft, meaning that I have to do a little less than 75% of the work on this book in the next 40-ish days.

That’s a lot! But it’s doable, and I think I’m the guy to do it.

You’re not here to read excuses, but here are some anyway. We’ve had some health stuff pop up in our family (which, to be fair to me, is a part of the allowable “loss conditions” that would let me off the hook for missing the deadline), and I committed to a trip to Texas to help a friend after the start of the project, which cost me about a week. It’s been busy summer, and I have a medical procedure and a family trip coming up in June that will further complicate things.

All that to say, I’ve got a big, challenging climb ahead of me. Time to get to work.

And, to be clear, this is going to be fun work. My research has taken me into the 1980s by this point, meaning I’m well past the point where actual video evidence of the plays I’m working on has started to pop up on YouTube and other sites. That’s pretty cool, and it adds another interesting tool to my arsenal when it comes to researching. It’s one thing to comb through newspaper reports, but being able to pair those reports with actual video is a treat, and it’s always enjoyable to dive fairly deeply into games that took place before I was born. Beyond the plays themselves, there are always interesting tidbits to uncover.

For instance, I either didn’t know or had forgotten that in the 1980s, the Packers used a gold version of their iconic G logo at midfield for their Lambeau Field home games. Does that matter to the book? Not at all, but it’s still cool to know.

In any case, it’s going to be a busy month. Win or lose, I’m hopeful about my prospects. I’ve got no other choice.