Peppers, man-to-man.
Your thoughts?
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I would like to see Peppers and Matthews rotating in and out of the ILB slot for this game but not specifically just to key in on Gronkowski. Along with Peppers athleticism, his height alone helps to shut down some passing lanes.
The Pats are going to get their match ups and their yards. If the defense goes into this with a prevent mindset they will get destroyed.
The defensive front needs to win their matchups, plain & simple, and the back end must tackle well. Short catches aren't the problem, keeping them short is.
yer mama, that's who's covering Gronk
No clue. But against a team that wants to get physical and pound the ball and look to its huge/fast TE, the less Hawk the better on Sunday.
Originally Posted by IL_Pack_Fan:
No clue. But against a team that wants to get physical and pound the ball and look to its huge/fast TE, the less Hawk the better on Sunday.
The problem is that if Capers is right, Hawk is the key to getting the defense set in the proper positions. That is as important as anything when facing a Belichick-coached team. However, the thought of Belichick setting up an offensive scheme to isolate AJ Hawk on Gronkowski should give Capers nightmares.
Can we sign Wayne Simmons' ghost for one game?
I wish. RIP Wayne. Maybe one of the last Packer LB's with an "attitude".
Wayne's BFI was off the chart
I think it was 2008 when Greg Olsen was tearing it up in Chicago or at least was causing match up problems with defenses. We played them and Bob Sanders had Charles Woodson on Olsen all day and it not only limited Olsen, it limited the Bears offense. It's a different scenario with New England because Gronk is a much better TE than Olsen was, but I won't be surprised to see a similar tactic used to limit him. The D be almost exclusively Nickel and Dime so I'm guessing we will see Gronk matched up with Hyde a lot.
Agree with GD. They will probably play a lot of Nickel and Dime with a Safety on Gronk. I would like to see Perry or Peppers line up over him for a jam ala Wayne Simmons if he is inline.
This is probably the approach BB is expecting as well and will be ready to feature that power run game. That's fine by me, I would rather take the slow death and hope for a fumble or penalty to derail a drive than dare Brady to beat us.
And then the Bears traded Olsen to Carolina. It was a brilliant move.
Hyde, is my guess. But I think you'll see Clay in the middle more than in the past. Clay roaming in there will hopefully slow down Gronk. I don't think we have to worry about the read option 
so we want to be able to get up the field and get some pressure on Brady.
Gronkowski is a beast but let's not lose sight of the fact that Billy B. uses two tight ends to great effect, indeed better than any team since the Keith Jackson-Mark Chmura innovation unveiled by Holmy. The kid they picked up in the Logan Mankins trade, Timothy Wright, already has 6 TDs including two yesterday vs. the Lions. Gotta figure that out, too.
To me the key is pressuring Brady. He's still susceptible to getting skittish especially if you bounce him around in the early going of games.
At the end of the day if I were NE I'd go smash mouth early and try to grind the life out of the Packer front seven. Packers' strengths are pass rush pressure and (yesterday notwithstanding) pass coverage. Run D has improved with Clay's move but really benefits the most from GBs staking out big leads. So I see NE running, and a lot, with the occasional shot to Gronkowski. Also flare passes/circle routes to RBs. I can see them lining up with 6 OL like they did against the Colts a week back. Packers D has its work cut out for it.
Guion and Jones (if he's back) are key. Need a push up the middle.
Maybe Barrington could play the Wayne Simmons role or could it be Bradford chance to harass Gronk within 5 yes of the LOS. Or maybe Gronk swats them like skeeters.
Originally Posted by Tavis Smiley:
And then the Bears traded Olsen to Carolina. It was a brilliant move.
They did it for the same reason they extended Cutler. To make me happy.
Why are you guys so worried about covering Gronk?
the Packers welcomed Brad Jones back to the defense.
The sixth-year pro Jones, in the doghouse the last month for poor play, returned as Green Bay's dime linebacker.
I did not watch the whole Saints game last nite but for most of the part I did watch the Ravens covered Jimmy Graham one on one, no gimmicks or special coverages. Worked out OK. 6 catches, 47 yds.
Opposing TEs are killing us. The article points it out: The Vikings' Kyle Rudolph (50 yards on three catches); Martellus Bennett (134 yards on 11 catches); New Orleans — still returning from shoulder injury — Jimmy Graham had a 22-yard touchdown; Carolina's Greg Olsen caught all eight balls thrown his way for 105 yards. I guess I don't see any change in that this week.
If we could also jam Gronk at the line and not let him out (Neal?), it would help. If I remember, that was one way another team neutralized him.
but I'd take any of the stats you cited as Gronk's numbers for the day and be alright with it as long as no one else on the Pats lights it up.
First priority has to be to generate pressure on Brady and make him extremely uncomfortable in the pocket. Hope I'm wrong, but I'm not terribly optimistic about the ability of the Packer defense to do that.
From YA's link
Jones replaced A.J. Hawk in dime (i.e., passing situations) at Minnesota, as the Packers also brought in the physical Sean Richardson for a four-safety look.
It is time. Do it Mr Wizard! 
Originally Posted by Fandame:
Opposing TEs are killing us. The article points it out: The Vikings' Kyle Rudolph (50 yards on three catches); Martellus Bennett (134 yards on 11 catches); New Orleans — still returning from shoulder injury — Jimmy Graham had a 22-yard touchdown; Carolina's Greg Olsen caught all eight balls thrown his way for 105 yards. I guess I don't see any change in that this week.
If we could also jam Gronk at the line and not let him out (Neal?), it would help. If I remember, that was one way another team neutralized him.
Opposing TE's have been killing the Pack for years. I'm not expecting this D to stop Gronk from getting his
Pats WR's though...they can be contained, especially with the talent/depth GB has in the secondary. Gronk can get his as long as nobody else is doing damage and they are stopping the Pats rush offense
Gronk is a problem that I'm not sure there's a solution to league-wide. When he's on, he's a complete mismatch in the NFL. That said, I would think GB would have to put a safety on him.
Yeah, any of these athletic freak TE's are going to be a problem vs anybody, especially with all the rule changes that cater to offenses more and more. DB's can't touch receivers...but how else are they going to try and contain guys who are 4-5 inches taller than them and weigh a good 40-50 lbs more than them?
Creative blitz packages and rattling Brady are our best hope. Look what Bridgewater did to us last Sunday.....
Originally Posted by Pikes Peak:
I did not watch the whole Saints game last nite but for most of the part I did watch the Ravens covered Jimmy Graham one on one, no gimmicks or special coverages. Worked out OK. 6 catches, 47 yds.
Don't forget the two TDs and at least one more if Brees puts the throw in the right spot on his outside shoulder.
Gronk is getting his catches and yards. Try to force Brady to go elsewhere in the red zone. But there's only so much you can do in 2014.
This game is going to swing on plays similar to the ones that went down when these two squared off back in 2010. A Flynn pick 6 and a damn O-lineman for NE running back a kickoff 70 yards ended up being the difference.
Wonder if Belly-cheat will have dual headsets in Brady's helmet?
Originally Posted by Tdog:
advantage Lambeau!
And no Flynn (hopefully ever)
is there anything in the rule book that would keep us from shackeling his legs with a short chain?
Say, any of you boys smithies? Or, if not smithies per se, were you otherwise trained in the metallurgic arts before straitened circumstances forced you into a life of aimless wanderin?
JF Hawk.
