A pall was cast over the Packers as they prepared for their NFC playoff matchup with the Giants yesterday when the 21-year-old son of offensive coordinator Joe Philbin was found dead in a river in nearby Oshkosh, Wis.
Packers coaches, players and front-office personnel were stunned and grief-stricken by the death of Michael T. Philbin, who apparently fell through the ice-covered Fox River early Sunday after an outing with friends at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Divers recovered the body of a young male late yesterday afternoon, and Packers team sources confirmed that Oshkosh police had informed the elder Philbin that it was his son.
The Packers canceled player availability to the media yesterday, and coach Mike McCarthy struggled to get through a brief afternoon news conference in which the Giants were barely mentioned.
“The Philbin family is obviously going through a tough time right now, and as we always have, we’re a family-first philosophy with our organization, with our program,” McCarthy told reporters. “We’re supporting Joe and his family the best we can.”
The elder Philbin, 50, is a hot commodity to be a head coach himself after getting credit from Aaron Rodgers for helping the Green Bay quarterback win the Super Bowl MVP award last season and throw for more than 4,600 yards and 45 touchdowns this season.
The Chiefs interviewed Philbin for their head-coaching position before settling on Romeo Crennel.
McCarthy calls all of Green Bay’s plays, but Philbin is a popular and respected assistant. That much was obvious from the outpouring of emotion from both his players and from people around the NFL that greeted the news.
“As children we all have to someday say goodbye to our parents, but a parent should never have to say goodbye to their child,” offensive lineman T.J. Lang, whose father died last week, wrote on Twitter.
The Giants extended their condolences, too, with defensive end Justin Tuck also expressing his sorrow on Twitter.
“Our prayers go out to the Philbin family and Packer nation for their loss,” Tuck wrote.