Former Green Bay Packers tight end Mark Chmura currently does a daily morning radio show for ESPN Milwaukee called "Jen, Gabe, and Chewy." During Wednesday morning's show — possibly to the surprise of very few — Chmura made a pretty questionable statement in advocating for the Packers to get in a late hit on San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy, "as long as it's worth it."
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As if Purdy hadn't already been facing enough skepticism throughout the 49ers' entire 12-5 season, the second-year player now has a former NFL player suggesting that the Packers purposely hit him late during Saturday's divisional-round playoff game.
Here's the entirety of what Chmura had to say:
"You guys are gonna think I'm crazy..." Always a hot start when Chewy starts a thought on @JenGabeChewy with that.
Trust us, you WANT to hear what the big guy says about the #Packers setting the tone on Saturday ⬇️#GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/4fstnB13eO
— ESPN Milwaukee (@ESPNMilwaukee) January 17, 2024
For starters, the intro line to the Purdy talk of "you guys are gonna think I'm crazy" is just classic, cliche sports talk radio openly begging for attention. And, well, he's 100 percent getting it. But what follows here is not necessarily the best way to make the rounds on social media.
"A 15-yard penalty, and I don't condone this, but I kind of do in the playoffs," Chmura said. "A 15-yard penalty for a late hit on Brock Purdy is not a bad thing, as long as it's worth it."
The noticeable groans from his co-hosts right after those words kind of summarize everyone's reaction to the notion. Because, really, it's not the greatest thing in the world to be out there suggesting that late a hit on the opposing quarterback is the ideal way to set the tone.
What makes it infinitely worse is when one finishes such a thought with "as long as it's worth it." That kind of punctuating finisher is absolutely left open for interpretation. But if football fans are being honest with themselves, it's pretty clear what "Chewy" was implying.
However, about 30 seconds later, Chmura made sure to figuratively spike his comment directly into the frozen tundra of Lambeau to let everyone know exactly what he meant:
"Sometimes a 15-yard penalty is worth it early in the game, if you knock the living crap out of the guy."
It's really a shame, because the beginning of the segment simply discussed physicality in a way of setting the tone without getting into all this late-hit madness. Naturally, the Purdy knocks are just getting warmed up.
Here's Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt chiming in:
Devonte Wyatt on Brock Purdy: "When D-linemen just get pressure into him, he’s always throwing off or it’s behind them or it’s overthrown or short ... when you get pressure on him, it’s a guarantee we’ll get a turnover."
Purdy led NFL this season in passer rating when pressured.
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) January 17, 2024
Why Wyatt decided to say that out loud for media members to record and fire out on social media, we'll never know. But it would be truly shocking if Purdy says a word about any of this — and if he does, it won't be stoking any fires.
