Packers Morning Buzz: Why Mike McCarthy makes sense for Jets

Welcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com.

The Packers will be looking for their first road victory when they travel to New York to play the Jets at noon Sunday.

We'll start with ESPN's New York Jets beat writer Rich Cimini declaring that fired Packers coach Mike McCarthy should be atop the Jets' short list to succeed soon-to-be-fired coach Todd Bowles.

Cimini writes:

McCarthy is a known commodity, not a projection. He was 125-77-2 with the Packers, capturing six NFL North titles and one Super Bowl championship. A coach with that kind of resume doesn't hit the open market that often, and the Jets, of all teams, are in no position to look the other way.

Winning aside, McCarthy is attractive because he's an offensive-minded coach who could develop quarterback Sam Darnold, who is everything to the franchise. For a change, the Jets need a leader who sees the game through the eyes of the quarterback and can build a program in that fashion.

Under McCarthy, the Packers were a top-10 scoring offense for eight consecutive years, from 2007 to 2014. He was blessed with great quarterbacks, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers, but it's not like they were surrounded by an all-star cast. Only two non-quarterbacks made multiple Pro Bowls on offense -- fullback John Kuhn and guard Josh Sitton.

Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh would be a solid candidate as well, if he's fired, but the difference between him and McCarthy is Harbaugh never built a consistently strong offense. His background is special teams. If the Jets want a CEO-type of leader, they should make a strong play for Harbaugh, who also has a Super Bowl ring. But they need to consider the current and future landscape of the NFL -- offense, baby! -- and that's why McCarthy makes the most sense.

You can read the entire story here:

Aaron Rodgers is planning to play in the final two games even with no postseason at stake. Here's why:

Packers fans might wonder how Rodgers received a Pro Bowl berth despite a subpar (for him) season, but the Packers quarterback takes pride in the honor:

National pundits are questioning why Rodgers and the Patriots' Tom Brady were chosen:

Davante Adams was delighted with what he sees as Pro Bowl validation:

Packers running back Jamaal Williams knows he has much to prove filling in for the injured Aaron Jones:

The Packers' injury list remains lengthy (as does the Jets'), but right tackle Bryan Bulaga (knee) practiced on a limited basis:

Jim Owczarski and Olivia Reiner catch you up on the day's developments:

Jason Wilde write about backup quarterback DeShone Kizer being ready if and when opportunity comes:

The Titletown District just keeps growing:

An interesting deep dive into the growing use analytics in the NFL:

Speaking of which, the NFL is sponsoring the "Big Data Bowl," a data science competition involving player tracking data:

And finally ... with the 11th pick in The MMQB's way-too-early 2019 mock draft, the Green Bay Packers select ...