Somewhat negative/extremely negative Packers v. Carolina

Let's face it the stars were aligned in 2010.  They gelled and got hot at the right time and got the ring.  Then the following year it looked too easy and they got boat raced by the Giants at home in the playoffs.

Bottom line it's really hard to win a Super Bowl - and in 1996 and 2010 they had some ugly losses.  Doesn't mean they can't right the ship and despite my negativity at the moment I have to remind myself that they are 6-2 and control their destiny for the division and a 3 seed at the worst. 

Now, if they lose to Detroit next week my head might explode

Jake Ryan had 10 tackles today (6 primary/4 assisted).

Remotely positive: At least the defense got mad at somebody and it seemed to provide a spark.

Randall isn't going to emulate Willie Buchanon's rookie season but he's coming.

 

They did not quit. I did but the team didn't.

 

Way negative:

 

Blown coverage's, especially in long yardage situations, have been going on 5 seasons now with many different players.

 

Poor tackling.

 

Our C was awful. Our overall OL play spotty. Rodgers planted on the 4th and 4 when he had to have time for the receivers to work open.

 

Missed opportunities by Rodgers.

 

The play by the safeties was as bad today as it was in 2012 with MD Jennings and Jerron McMillian.

Let's face it there aren't many Earl Thomas type safeties - we had one with Nick Collins - and haven't replaced him yet.  Burnett is great in run support but has his struggles covering guys.  Hyde is much the same.  Dix has pretty good coverage skills - but I question his ability to play center field (see today WTF) and he can't tackle worth a damn.   I really wonder if he's better suited to play corner.

Makes me wonder if they should bench Dix and play Randall at free safety.

You don't move a legit cover corner. Randall's got the skill set and mentality to be just that.

Shields and Rollins are also legit cover corners. 

Our inability to cover center field has killed this defense since 2010 post Collins

Randall played safety at ASU- it's not like it would be something new

No heart. No fight. Got a defense that has no clue what is going on so they take it out on each other and a QB that can't find anyone else to blame so he takes it out on a ****ing tablet. Classy. Bunch of whiney ****ing primadonnas. Been reading their press clippings and patting each other on the back for too long.

 

When do they start filming Pitch Perfect 3?

 

Indy just taking the Broncos apart go figure

Positives:  The next 5 weeks the schedule lightens up a bit with the game AT Minnesota being toughest, but not as tough as these last 2 games.

 

Negatives:  The Packers need to get back to pure fundamentals.  Blocking was awful for about 3/4 of the game.  Rodgers is too in love with trying to pass while dancing around.  

 

There's times where he could step into a throw but chooses not to, and it's hurting his accuracy.  Sometimes, it's not Rodgers fault as he's trying to get the ball out before getting sacked, but other times, it's just sloppy footwork and maybe being a little too confident that he can make a great throw without focusing on proper mechanics.

 

As for the defense, there just might not be enough talent there to be great or even good, but at the very least, you would like them to be assignment sure.. which they are not.

I have no issue with the guys on d getting in each others' asses. None at all. Lifeless teams need a spark, something that pisses them off. And if it can't be the play on the field, let it be each other. They cannot possibly think they're good enough not to be critical.

I think the offense waking up is a somewhat comforting though, and it sure looked to me like we finally got an Aaron Rodgers that somehow resembled the MVP, but where are you the other half of the game?

Plain and simple- they're not the same team without their best WR, and that's to say they're awfully average. Average ain't good enough. And this team is supposed to have a great offense. They're leaving the defense on the field too much, and that's the biggest problem.

That OL needs to look in the mirror and decide what they want to be. If this is it, you start putting in new blood. Tretter, Barclay, whatever. And Eddie Lacy needs a trip to the bench this next game. Make a decision- you're entitled to nothing. All of them.

       
       
Didn't Ajay always rack up a lot of tackles as we??

It's like teams play differently on the road than at home.

Believe it or not I gotta plus!  At least there will not be another bye week to self-scout.

Down go the Donks

The good news is Denver and ATL losing probably overshadows the Packers game

Geee....The talking heads had me convinced that they were a great team cause of their ass whoopin upon the Packers.  

Aqib Talib deserves to be suspended for intentionally poking an opponent in the eye.

 

Donkeys dropped a horseshoe out of their ass at the end of the first half, nothing but donkey apples at the end of the game.

 

Bert's yardage record still stands.

It's all good.

Talib has a bit of d- bag about him

Guy can play but he should be suspended

ha ha Peyton didn't break Brent's record by what 3 yards??    Love that.  

He better be... That was a punk ass move...

They're also not the same team without their best RB. Whatever the reason we're not seeing the Lacy whose play lifts the entire team (you know what I mean, some of his runs just ooze smash mouth and that confidence and mindset just ripples through the entire roster) and wears down and demoralizes opponents. McCarthy knows this IMO and has been trying to get Eddie started, but it hasn't been happening.

Fumbling is not going to get him more carries

       
       
I thought he earned some playing time with his second half performance... Thomas and Ryan should allow 52 to play some more on the line of scrimmage.

Agreed MC with regard to the best OL since MM came here.

 

As for 3rd and long against our defense, Detoilet may want to consider taking a knee the first 2 downs.

 

Didn't we fix that when we canned Donatell?

 

Positive; forecast for sunny weather tomorrow.

I dunno...maybe the trailer will play after we get through these 8 State Farm commercials.

Ryan can't be worse than Palmer and earned some playing time.

 

However, his tackles were mostly 5+ yards down the field like a certain former inside linebacker who played here for many years.

 

Would love to see a true inside linebacker (Ryan was DE at Michigan 2 seasons ago) playing the position.

+ stadium had to be 50/50 Packer fans today

+ brats were warm, beer was cold. tailgating was awesome

 

+++  you guys are much more positive about the game than our group on the ride home.

 

+ I still trust AR to right this ship though most facets of this team are trending in the wrong direction.

 

- just the game. have to rewatch but the WR group looked horrid today. lazy routes, drops, blocking. This group really needs to pick things up. Our defense is abysmal. Has Peppers shut it down?

 

 

 

 

Annnnnd I will call this one of the weirdest tweets I've gotten..Thx Johnny!! https://t.co/HlfeC8Kkeo

— Erin Andrews (@ErinAndrews) November 8, 2015

 

@ErinAndrews You have beautiful child bearing hips. Be well.

— John Molta (@JohnnyValpak) November 8, 2015

 

Paws:

 

Randall.  Took some lumps but he is our future starter outside.

Daniels.  Only one to play well on the line.

Starks.  Great game, no quit in him.

Adams.  Starting to come on.

Most importantly, we showed signs of life.

 

Negs:

 

Rodgers.  He needs to trust the play and stay with Cobb longer.

Lindsly.  How many free rushers right up the pipe?  

Lacy.  There is no defense for him, he's been horrible.

Play calling and subs.  Starks was the hot hand from the start. Not enough touches.

Dix thinking he has enough capital to talk shh to Peppers.

Micah Hyde, tits on a bull. 

No pressure from OLB group.

The Packers are hemorrhaging points and yards against even the most pedestrian WR's and RB's in the NFL. That has not a rats rear to do with injuries to offensive players. I can see why MM immediately steered the focus that way. He didn't want to talk about his DC. Look at Bridgewater's stat line today. They still won.

 

The most you can say is that the Packers offense can't overcome how much they suck on defense like in past seasons. And Jordy wasn't going to cure that because they suck historically this season. Hell. I'm not sure a tandem of James Lofton and Don Hutson could compensate for the Packers 2015 defense.

I'm not going to get all freaked out, because this is the same crazy Packers crap we've come to know for years now in GB. Failing to show up? How can one explain such a thing?

Two pretty important games, and it is as if our entire team missed both flights... One to remain undefeated, the other for a big chunk of HFA.

 

Nope.

 

We just are not as good as I thought we were. Staff and players alike. Let's just see what positives the rest of the season brings. Maybe they come around and surprise most of their fans, in the opposite manner that they surprised us these past two weeks.

 

Maybe... MAYBE.... our OL and DL decides to show up to play a game of football. MAYBE our OC decides to stop stalling his own good running game for a change. Starks had 6 carries averaging 4.8 yds per at the half...

 

Our problems are bigger than any of us knows. Both sides of the ball suck.

 

Let's see if Mike McCarthy can show up next Sunday, with a team behind him.

+ Adams seems to be getting his sea legs back.

+Rodgers figuring out that sometimes you do just need to throw it and let the guy make the play (too bad that did not happen on the 4th and goal but....).

+Starks. Nuff said.

+Team shows some grit all be it a little too little and a little too late.

 

- Teams have found the antidote to our defense.

- Free interior linemen hitting the QB with what seems to be too much regularity.

- Kind of like in Denver, there were a few tipping points where there were some 3rd and longs that had the potential to allow the Packers to keep the momentum they had just struggled to get on offense only to give up a string of big plays.

 

I think that there is plenty to learn here. I am not so worried about the losses. The team need to find a way to move forward, find a way to overcome the issues they have and play well when it really matters. I am hoping that the staff and players find a way to use this to galvanize the team and plow forward. I am certain that this team has it in them. It will be interesting to see if they can do it. If they can, there will be great reward in being able to overcome this adversity. This is where the leaders show their mettle.

CHEEZE,

 

That's a far better post and outlook than I was able to make.

Here's the story for the #Packers today: Thirteen first-down snaps either gained 0 yards or lost yardage.

— Packer Report (@PackerReport) November 9, 2015

Not really a surprise that GB struggled on third down again. Team is dysfunctional and broken on both sides of the ball.

Positive: C-Boy's decision to listen on the radio and get all of fall clean-up done.

 

Negative: Still have some fall clean-up to do.

Nit picking here but "any competant QB could have put up 50 on us yesterday" when referring to CN is myopic.  Name a QB who a D has to respect running that can throw as well as "Rivers, Manning..."  Part of the reason Newton has any time to throw is the D has to rush to contain, not flush and the second level has to watch for him taking off on a run.  Any "other decent QB" isn't going to have that threat and the D can play the pass more than they did yesterday.  Neither Manning nor Rivers put up 50 and I don't think the D played any worse yesterday.

 

Just rearranging some deck chairs.

 

Favre always looked like he was having fun, enjoying the game. Rodgers looks like a joyless tax accountant most of the time.

— JS Comments (@JSComments) November 9, 2015

 

Draft and develop is a nice way to build a program, but by definition you are always developing. Tthe problem with it is that you are constantly playing 1st and 2nd year guys who are prone to blown coverages, running lazy routes, etc. It takes a while to adjust to being a professional player where almost everyone is a good athlete, even for the most mature guys.

Significant portions of our secondary and WR/TE are 1st and 2nd year guys. Now a lot of the missed assignments were not directly due to these guys, but how much extra effort does it take for the veterans to make sure that the young guys are lined up in the right place and ensure they that have the correct assignment? Every time, for example, Morgan Burnett has to take time to do that, it's less time for him to just play football and make plays based on film study, etc. It makes the veteran guys more tentative in some ways.

 

The good news is that as the young guys get experience, this should get better. The bad news is that by the time this happens, the team will end up playing a road game in the playoffs instead of at home.

 

I sometimes think TT pride in his draft and develop philosophy is similar to the Favre consecutive game streak or Rodgers interception stats. For the significant majority of things, it's something to be proud of and celebrate. However, there are some times when you have to act differently. If you're Rodgers, you don't go Favrian and play rocketball, but you do take some chances on 3rd and long (or 4th and long) when a long interception is as good as a punt. Rodgers clearly did this in the 4th quarter yesterday (the Jones 4th down conversion and several other examples). Favre never got over this. TT has never really used free agency extensively to try to fill in some gaps for a year or two. The two times he's done it (Woodson and Peppers), it's worked wonders. It would have been nice the last few years to have a veteran safety, a competent veteran ILB, or a savvy veteran TE. Those guys are out there every year and generally not that expensive. At least bring them in as competition in training camp. Ron Wolf went and got guys like Eugene Robinson, Ron Cox, Santana Dotson, Sean Jones, Bruce Wilkerson, Andre Rison, Keith Jackson, etc. Belichick does this constantly.

 

The Packers will make the playoffs and likely lose in the divisional or championship round. That's a good season. The Packers have gotten most of the difficult stuff right - a HOF QB, a decent OL, good outside pash rushers, good depth at CB (especially once Shields is back). That's why they win consistently. Once in a while a veteran addition might have pushed them a little higher.

I was unable to watch the game, but some thoughts...

 

Best WR - Jordy Nelson

Best RB - Lacy

 

Tackles had been dinged up.  Devonte Adams dinged up.  Montgomery dinged up.

 

We gotta get guys healthy and my main concern on offense is Lacy.  You're talking one of the best RB's in the entire league.  In this age of a cap, an offense doesn't lose its best WR and have no productivity from an RB like Lacy and not suffer.

 

If Lacy can resume his former play and the WR's be healthy and on the same page with Rodgers, the offense ought to be able to score and consume clock.

 

If so...

 

Gotta have Shields healthy and the young DB's will mature as the season progresses.

 

At a high level, my half full cup assessment then has one main concern - the defensive line.