3 in a row: The Packers are now 5-3

Packers 24 Jaguars 15

 

Yes, this was an ugly win but it beats the hell out of the ugly loss or a stolen win.

The Vikings lost badly to the Buccaneers and the Bears also won ugly vs. Carolina so overall it was still a good week for the Packers.

The Defense gave up a lot of yards but only 15 points so they were not the problem this week. My MVP goes to safety Morgan Burnett, he played his best game this season when we needed it most. 

The Special Teams was great again except Mason Crosby, again. this guy has never become the kicker we expected him to be clearly has not yet figured out the wind patterns at Lambeau field after the latest renovations. His missed Field goal made things more difficult than they had to be and the Packers never did totally put the Jaguars away until he finally made a short one in the final minute. Zach and I saw him make a 75 yarder with the wind in warm-ups too.

 

It was the blocked punt by Devon House, recovered for a Touchdown by Desmond Moses, that won the game for Green Bay. Football is truly a young man's game and these two members of the Special Teams will start to play a bigger and bigger role on the Defense as well. They were both great in pre-season and now needed in regular season. The good times have just begun.

The Offense on this day was not very good at all. It was a very choppy game. Jermichael Finley continues to drop passes and when he does make a catch for a first down he looks like an idiot in celebration. The biggest problem was the Offensive Line, again. Both starting receivers being out was also a big problem, bigger than I expected. It looks like not ALL of our receivers are starting quality. Donald Driver is nearing the end of his career but with only two Touchdowns by this group on the day, Donald's score was huge as it turns out. We might have just seen his last Touchdown and Lambeau Leap so with no good candidates, I give the Offensive MVP to Donald Driver this week. Also worth noting, Randall Cobb continues to look good and scored another Touchdown and despite everything, Aaron Rodgers looked good. When he gets a little help he is unstoppable!

Winning games when you don't play very well is the sign of a good team!

 

This Packer/Bear battle in the NFC North should be a good one all season long. No style points gained by either teams Offense this week but there are other ways to win a game.

Get healthy Packers!

The Arizona Cardinals are coming to town and they have mastered the art of winning ugly!

PACKERTALK: 7 games in and 7 ramblings from me!

1. The 30-20 win over the Rams is about where our Packers are right now, 4-3, a good team but still lacking the killer instinct that it takes to be great.

2. Aaron Rodgers is so good that I bypassed him for my Offensive MVP of the game so far. The stats are great in both games but I was even more impressed with Aaron Rodgers in the win over the Rams than the win over the the Saints, where I gave the MVP to Jordy Nelson. My past two Defensive MVP's are Casey Hayward and Tramon Williams.

3. My MVP totals after 7 games:
Clay Matthews 3
Randal Cobb 2
James Jones 2
and the following 7 players with one each: Aaron Rodgers, Mason Crosby, Jordy Nelson, Casey Hayward, Mike Neal, Sam Shields, and Tramon Williams.
Charles Woodson will be missed while he is out and Cedric Benson has been missed. They did not get my MVP in any game but both were close twice. Just like in the championship season of 2010 it's "next man up" and this team does not miss a beat. The Packers are the deepest team in the NFL and Ted Thompson deserves most of the credit for that.

4. The Bears 13-7 win over the Lions on Monday Night Football made two things clear. It is still the Bears who pose a threat to to the Packers in the NFC North and the Lions who were coming on strong the past few years have taken a step back and could re-claim the cellar in the North if the Vikings continue to find ways to win games without a good Quarterback.

5. The ESPN Power Rankings:
#1 Falcons 6-0
#2 Giants 5-2
#3 Texans 6-1 (only loss came to the Packers)
#4 49ers 5-2 (beat the Packers but somehow lost to the Vikings and were stomped on by the Giants) #5 Bears 5-1 (only loss came to the Packers)
#6 Ravens 5-2 (but will soon fall as big stars have gone down to injury on Defense and Offense is not great)
#7 Packers 4-3 (looks like everyone is past the "Screwed in Seattle" thing but take that away and Green Bay is 5-2 and a Top 5 team)
#8 Patriots 4-3
#9 Vikings 5-2 (seems odd but it is true, should finish 8-8 at best)
#10 Steelers 4-3.
#19 is where we now find Detroit (what a shame, some good talent, but some poor coaching)

In my opinion it should read:
#1 Falcons
#2 Giants
#3 49ers
#4 Packers
#5 Texans
(and then maybe Seahawks and Broncos before the other five teams in ESPNs Top10, I really don't think the Bears, Ravens, Patriots, Vikings, and Steelers are even going to make the playoffs)

6. Obviously I feel like the NFC North is Packers, Bears, Vikings, and Lions BUT it is what it is and this is what it is:
#1 Da Bears 5-1 
#2 Vikings 5-2 (just a half game back)
#3 Packers 4-3 are *1 and half games back
#4 Lions 2-4 are a veryn undisiplined team and already 3 and half back.

7. Being in third place as we near the midpoint of the 2012 season does not concern me. The Packers play the Vikings twice in December, if somehow the Vikings are still ahead or tied with the Packers we all know that the problem is solved with these two victories. The NFC North could come down to the Packers at the Bears at Soilder Field in December, something about that just feels right. the Bears have a better Defense and even some talent on Offense now but when it comes right down to it we have Aaron Rodgers and they have Jay Cutler. ADVANTAGE PACKERS!!!

I AM ALREADY THINKING ABOUT THE NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME IN ATLANTA but let's enjoy this NFC North fight while it is happening because The Journey is the Reward!!!

Mike McCarthy "Time to Stack Successes"

I was right about the Packers beating the Houston Texans but I was wrong to think that the Texans were more talented overall. The Packers had all the advantages I thought PLUS Green Bay is the more talented team and won this game 42-24. As you all know if you watched, it was not even that close!

This game has converted the panicked Packer fans into fans who are now a bit too overconfident. To me, there was no reason to panic in the first place and now I am cautiously optimistic. A good rule of thumb is "Your team is never as good as you think or your team is never as bad as you think"

The Packers are 3-3 and might still have a 12-4 season, they are talented enough as we all know. Strange things happen in the NFL, if they didn't the Packers would be better than 3-3. The Packers could lose at St. Louis on Sunday but that better not happen. It is what Mike McCarthy says it is "Time to Stack Successes"

Feel Free to Comment on the posts on this blog anytime!

The Time is now Packers!

The Packers go into Houston tonight as a 2-3 football team. Forget about losing the opener at home vs the 49ers, forget about being Screwed in Seattle by the Replacement Refs and blowing a 21-3 halftime lead at Indianapolis and let's even forget about all the injuries. The Packers should have won all three of those games and be 5-0 right now like the Texans are but we are not, we must accept this reality!

However, do not mistake this for any indication of who will win this game. Let's examine the true and meaningful realities:

Quarterback: Advantage Packers with MVP Aaron Rodgers
Running back: Advantage Texans with Arian Foster
Wide Receivers: Advantage Packers with Nelson, Jones, and Cobb. None of them are better than Andre Johnson of the Texans but beyond him, what do they really have?
Offensive Line: Advantage Texans
Special Teams: Advantage Texans, the Packers would be better in this category except for the fact that Mason Crosby has never become the reliable kicker we thought he would turn into
Defense: Advantage Texans as they one of the better ones in the NFL (led by J.J. Watt) even after losing Brian Cushing for the season and the Packers Defense is a Work-in-Progress
Home Team: Advantage Texans

This looks like a 5-2 advantage overall for this undefeated team from HOUSTON, but the things that makes the NFL so great and can not be overlooked will not be overlooked here.

Teams get overconfident and lose that edge sometimes especially at home (case in point: when the Chiefs came to Green Bay and beat an undefeated Packer team last season)

Teams that have finally arrived playing on the National stage of Sunday Night Football. Can the Texans handle this? The Packers have been here, done this, many times.

Often the team who "wants it more" gets the win and the team who "needs it more" is usually the one who "wants it more" The Packers want and need this one badly. A 2-4 start in the NFC this season would be very hard to recover from. If this is going to be a good season THE TIME IS NOW to start playing like champions.

For the Texans, who are from the "weaker" AFC, losing a non-conference game is no big deal at all. It would not figure into any tie-breaker scenarios as they try to  win home field throughout the AFC Playoffs. A loss  would take away the pressure of trying to go 16-0.

These three advantages even things up at 5-5 but clearly these final three things are more important than the seven before them. They explain why there are so many upsets in the NFL.

Therefore I am very confident that the Packers will emerge victorious. It really is the best thing for both teams and the league itself if Green Bay wins. It will be fun to be the underdog.

If you are still not sure always look at the Quarterbacks to decide. Aaron Rodgers has had a slow start to this 2012 season but he is still better that Matt Scaub who is good but not an "elite" Quarterback!

I've been waitin all week for Sunday Night and now it is less than 18 hours away. "CAN'T WAIT"

No Need to panic Packer Nation!

The 2012 Green Bay Packers are more solid on Special Teams than they have been in years. On both Offense and Defense they are a work in progress as they try to change things up. A lot of rookies are a big part of the Defense this year and the Offense is trying to add a running game. THIS IS A WORK IN PROGRESS, injuries and bad luck have caused us to be 2-3 and not 4-1 but that does not change what happens from here on out.

The Packers will get better as the season goes on. This is how you want to do it, similar to 2010 but a different style of Offense and a different style of Defense. Not the same Packers as the past two seasons. WE ARE NOW MORE TALENTED and hopefully it starts to show on Sunday Night in Houston! Even if falling to 2-4 happens I think Green Bay will finish at 10-6 and win the NFC North!

Luck was not on the Packer's side at Indy

This is hopefully the low point of the season. I am not going to play the blame game here so I will start with the good.

 

My Offensive MVP is James Jones again, he had 4 catches for 46 yards with 2 touchdowns and between him and Randall Cobb playing so well I think we can afford to let Greg Jennings rest and heal the groin until mid-November.

 

On Defense I am giving the MVP to Mike Neal who had one of the four Packer sacks and a tackle for a loss in his first game back. Losing BJ Raji to injury still hurt as the Defense was gassed in the 4th quarter. Also what a great play by first round draft pick Nick Perry. He had a huge sack and forced fumble wiped out by a bad call. It was not a helmet to helmet hit but that is what was called and we were not the same team after that play.

 

Obviously the injuries to Cedric Benson and Jermichael Finley had a huge effect as well but I don't want to make excuses or blame the kicker Mason Crosby for missing two Field goals. We need to give credit to Andrew Luck and the entire Indianapolis Colts team for an emotional effort, they wanted it more and got the win!
 

It is very important to always find the good in every situation so here we go:

The NFC North won't be easy and boring this season. The Packers now get to come from behind and pull this thing out. Forget Wild-card, the best way into the playoffs is by winning the division which we should still be able to do:

Minnesota 4-1

Chicago 4-1

Green Bay 2-3

Detroit 1-3


 

The Vikings are better but no way do they stay this hot plus the Packers can make up these two games by beating the Vikings twice in December. It's not how you start the season, it's how you finish. Hopefully all the main people will be healthy by then including Greg Jennings.


 

The Packers have already beaten the Bears once, will do it again at Chicago on December 16 and hopefully we wind up with at least one more win than Chicago by seasons end. I think we will but the Bears look like they are for real so I do expect that it might take until December to catch them.

 

This is the NFL, this is fun. No need for anger, don't worry about things you can not control, don't let the loss get you down. The game was still fun to watch and now we know for sure that this season EVERY GAME MATTERS!!!
 

Mike Trescher

 

P.S. I can't wait for Sunday Night at the Houston Texans who will be 5-0 with a win tomorrow night. BEING THE UNDERDOG WILL BE FUN!!!

 

WHAT DO YOU THINK IS WRONG WITH OUR PACKERS?