What Was the Sports World Like When Aaron Rodgers Was Drafted?
“You shouldn’t be surprised if we take a quarterback,” Packers general manager Ted Thompson told the assembled media in a press conference before the 2005 NFL Draft.
It was Thompson’s first year at the helm of the Packers, taking over for Mike Sherman. The media had yet to understand just how reserved Thompson would be in his tenure, so the quote was buried near the end of the Associated Press write-up.
A few days later, Green Bay drafted quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Now, fourteen years later, it’s easy to forget just how different the sports world was when Rodgers arrived.
John Madden and Al Michaels began their final season calling ABC’s Monday Night Football. The next season, Madden and Michaels called games for NBC’s Sunday Night Football. Madden retired from broadcasting after the 2009 season.
Cyclist Lance Armstrong won his seventh consecutive Tour de France. He announced his retirement in April, but returned to competitions in 2009 and 2010. Armstrong would later admit to blood doping, and had his seven championships vacated.
Pacers guard Reggie Miller finished his eighteenth and final NBA season. He played more games with the same team than all but five players in NBA history, and only ten other players have played in more total regular season NBA games. Miller is now calls NBA games for TNT.
Astros pitcher Roger Clemens earned a one year, $18 million contract – the highest salary ever paid to a pitcher in MLB history. Clemens posted a career-low 1.87 ERA, and the Houston Astros represented the National League in the 2005 World Series.
Head coach Nick Saban joined the Miami Dolphins after five seasons leading college football’s LSU Tigers. Saban’s Dolphins narrowly missed the postseason with a 9-7 record. Following the 2006 season, Saban returned to college and joined the Alabama Crimson Tide.
A Red Sox fan swung a short uppercut in Yankees outfielder Gary Sheffield’s direction during an April game, appearing to graze the side of the slugger's face with his right arm. After Sheffield picked up the ball, he shoved the fan before throwing the ball back into the infield. He then whirled around with a cocked fist, but restrained himself and began shouting in the man's face.
Ray Allen led the Seattle SuperSonics to 52 wins and an appearance in the 2005 Western Conference Semifinals. The SuperSonics would relocate and become the Oklahoma City Thunder following the 2008 NBA season.
Running back Reggie Bush led the USC Trojans to an undefeated 2005 season and won the Heisman Trophy. The Trojans would lose in the classic 2006 Rose Bowl to Vince Young’s Texas Longhorns. Bush was selected in the 2006 NFL Draft and has since retired from professional football.
