Farewell, Rob Davis

You know, when the Packers recently announced the signing of long snapper Thomas Gafford, I wondered what this meant for Rob Davis. I mean, long snappers have been brought in before, but with Davis getting up there in age, I thought he might want to be hanging them up as well. Turns out we were on the same page, as Rob Davis has announced his retirement from the NFL.

Yeah, it's easy to lead into the Rob Davis story by refering to Brett Favre's retirement, but it shouldn't be done jokingly. Rob Davis, like Favre, was a Packer in every sense of the word. The last remaining player from the 1997 Super Bowl team, Davis is hanging them up after 12 years as a Packer. For 11 of them, he was our long snapper.

Davis has always been one of my favorite Packers. How do you stay with a team as their long snapper for 11 seasons? Year after year I thought the Packers would eventually cut him, and sign a guy who could play line and also long snap, but they never did. Long snapping was the only thing Davis did, and we saved a roster spot for him every year. I always thought it was cool that no matter what, Rob Davis would be returning to the Pack.

Davis also spent a lot of time in the community. Often, when the Packers send people on visits throughout the state, they usually send a couple of rookies and maybe a guy on the injuried reserve. But the loyal veteran Rob Davis was always there with them, giving his time as a representative of the Packers.

Davis's career with the Packers isn't over, however. Ted Thompson announced today he will stay with the team as the director of player development. We wish him the best.