Ron Wolf disagrees with ya. When asked his biggest mistake, he said it was letting punter Craig Hentrich leave. 🙂 Wayne Simmons was traded because Seth Joyner came back from injury. I don't think this registers as a big mistake. :)
Originally Posted by: Zero2Cool
Yes, I think Wolf felt it was Hentrich, and he was up there, no doubt.
But this is kind of what I'm talking about:
"At 6-foot-2, 250 pounds, Simmons was far from the biggest player on the team, but he may have been the meanest on the field. He intimidated opponents with his brute strength, inspired teammates with his pointed criticism and comments, and played without fear.
It’s no wonder Simmons got along well with defensive coordinator Fritz Shurmur, who once said, “If you don’t like to fight, you shouldn’t be in this business.”
Simmons liked to fight. “He brought that toughness and nastiness to the Green Bay Packers,” said George Koonce, who started at linebacker next to Simmons in 1996. “Wayne would take a fight in the bar and take it right into the street. He brought that fight to the defense. He was a hell of a player.”
Buoyed by Holmgren’s speech, Simmons made a difference that day in San Francisco. On the 49ers’ first offensive play of the game, Steve Young threw a screen pass to fullback Adam Walker, but Simmons saw it coming.
He drilled Walker with a vicious hit, jarring the ball loose. Packers rookie Craig Newsome picked up the ball and ran untouched 31 yards to the end zone. It was the first blow in what would become a 27-17 victory, a win that took the Packers to the NFC championship game for the first time since 1967.
Simmons certainly followed Holmgren’s admonition to “kick the crap out of them,” making 16 tackles (11 solo), including the forced fumble and a sack of Young.
The next week, the Packers’ Super Bowl hopes once again were ended by the Cowboys in Dallas, but this time it was different: It was for the NFC championship, and they had a shot at winning. They led, 27-24, going into the fourth quarter. The Packers lost, 38-27, but they were one step closer to the Super Bowl, which they finally would reach and win the next season."
http://www.classicwisconsin.com/features/afterpackers.html