Giants @ Packers: Final Thoughts

The Playoffs are almost here for the Green Bay Packers, and all I can say is its about time!

I've spent all week listening to analysis and opinions about the upcoming game against the New York Giants, and I've been surprised by the amount of people that have jumped on the G-Men bandwagon throughout the week and not only think that the Giants will compete, but that they may upset the Packers!

Now being a Packer fan, I found myself upset and confused by all of the people that were hyping the Giants. I had to force myself to step back a little bit and take a less biased look at the upcoming game. Here are my thoughts:

#1: The media is comparing the upcoming game with the 2007 NFC Championship game, in which the Giants had gotten hot at the end of the season, squeaked into the playoffs and won 3 road games, including a game at Lambeau, to go on to beat the undefeated, 19-0 Patriots in the Super Bowl.

My first thought on this comparison is that none of it matters and there is no reason to give any weight to it. The teams are completely different. Rodgers > Favre.

#2:  The Giants are the "Hot" team right now in the NFC.

Herm Edwards called the Giants and the Saints the two hottest teams right now in the playoffs. I'm just not sure what his definition of hot is. The giants were inconsistent all season but were able to make it into the playoffs by winning a mediocre division. Following the Week 13 matchup against the Packers, the giants beat the Cowboys, Lost in Washington to the Redskins, beat the Jets in what was a home game for both teams, and then they again beat the Cowboys to seal the playoff bid. Then they went on to beat the Falcons, who didn't look like they belonged in the playoffs in the Wild Card round. To put it into perspective...

The Giants have won 4 out of the last 5 games. The Packers have won 21 out of the last 22 games.

Enough said. Moving on.

#3:  Two Good Offenses. The Packers Defense is Bad. The Giants Defense is Good.

I will be the first one to say that the Packers defense has been a disappointment all season. But let me follow that up by saying that who cares? The Packers defense has done exactly what it has needed to do all season to help the Packers win games. The Packers offense continues to get early leads and continue to score throughout almost every game, and sure, the defense has given up a lot of yards and points, but when it comes down to it, it doesn't matter. The defense for the Packers knows the score of the game. They know that the offense is going to move the ball and score points, so there is no reason for them to worry and they haven't. All the Packers defense does is play along and wait for the other team to make a mistake. The Packers are leading the NFL in interceptions for a reason. If the game ever comes down to the defense making a stop, our defense has done it without fail.

The Giants defense has one of the best set of lineman in the league and they are a force to be reckoned with. The G-Men are going to bring 4 man pressure the majority of the game because they have the talent on their line to create pressure without blitzing, and if they can manage to do that, the rest of their defense can work in coverage. I am nervous about the Giants defense and defensive line going into this game, but I also have faith in Aaron Rodgers and the Packers' offensive line. For the first time since Week 3, all of the Packers' starting lineman are back together and healthy. In the last meeting during Week 13, the Giants came away with 2 sacks on Rodgers and he threw for 369 Yards, 4 TDS and 1 INT. Rodgers is one of the best in the NFL when it comes to dealing with pressure. He is also one of the best at tearing apart a defense when he is moving outside the pocket, so if I were the Giants, I would be concerned with how to pressure Rodgers while not getting eluded and torched.

#4:  Eli Manning is an elite QB.

Eli has had a great year. He threw for almost 5,000 yards and has an amazing amount of 4th Quarter Touchdowns. One stat that the Packers like from him is that he has thrown 16 interceptions this year. I dont expect the Packers to shut down the Giants passing attack all game. The Giants receivers are very good and are going to give the Packers secondary all they can handle on Sunday. But since Eli entered the NFL in 2004, he has thrown more interceptions than any other quarterback, and this year, the Packers are leading the NFL in Interceptions.

#5:  The Giants are finally Healthy. Oh wait, So are the Packers!

Key players that will be healthy for the Giants include Ahmad Bradshaw, who had just two carries for 9 yards in the first matchup, and Osi Uminyora.

Key players that are now healthy for Packers are Greg Jennings, Chad Clifton, James Starks and AJ Hawk and Desmond Bishop (both absent for first meeting).

Last season the Packers entered the playoffs with 15 players on Injured Reserve. This season they will begin the playoffs suiting 21 out of the 22 starters that began the season, only missing Safety Nick Collins.



In conclusion, the New York Giants were not my first choice for teams to play this week and they will surely give the Packers a very good game. However, the Packers are 15-1 and have won 21 out of the last 22 games for a reason. They are a very good team I don't think there is anyone who can argue against that.

I see the Giants attempting to drop as many players into coverage on defense by using just their front 4 to put pressure on Rodgers. If they can be effective in getting to Rodgers and can throw him off of his game, then they will put their team in good shape. However, I think that Rodgers will continue to do a great job at getting away from the pressure and either making plays with his feet or taking advantage by making throws out of the pocket.

I don't expect the Packers to rush the ball that effectively in this game, but any success that they have moving the ball on the ground is just going to make them that much harder to stop and it will give Rodgers the ability to play action on the Giants.

I think this game can be won by the Packers defense, or lost by the Giants offense. Everyone expects the Packers defense to be the weakness of the Packers, and they certainly have been, but if they decide to come out of their shell and can make some big plays, this game could get out of hand quickly. The Giants will most likely have to keep up with the Packers offense, and if they have any trouble moving the ball or the Packers defense can force punts out of them, its going to be over for the Giants.

So my final prediction for the game...

The Packers will once again start the game out quickly and get on the board early and often. The Giants offense will move the ball on the Packers defense both on the ground and through the air, but the Packers will continue to cause turnovers and put the ball back into Aaron Rodgers hands.

Final Score:    Packers Win, 34 - 17.

Packers-Giants Divisional Playoff Preview

If any of you don't know, whether it's because you stumbled upon this by mistake or because you are one of our Chinese followers and don't get American football news, the Giants defeated the Falcons 24-2 on Sunday and advanced to the NFC Divisional Playoff round. They will go to Green Bay to face the Packers at 4:30 EST (3:30 CST) on Sunday, January 15th.

The Giants have the look of that team that gets hot at the end of the year and nobody wants to play. Much like the Packers were last season. We here at the Malnarn agree that we would have rather played the Falcons, but I am confident that the Packers have what it takes to win this game. Here are some things to watch for.

1. Packers O-line vs Giants' Pass Rush - Rodgers is one of the best QBs in the league against the blitz. The problem here is that the Giants have possibly the best defensive line in the NFL and do not need to blitz much. This allows them to focus more on coverage. The Packers offensive line will be as healthy as they have been all season with the return of Bryan Bulaga and Chad Clifton. If they can keep Aaron clean, the game will be lopsided in the Packers' favor.

2. Giants Receivers vs Packers' Secondary - We really miss Nick Collins. To me it's the biggest reason for the Packers' last place passing defense. The Giants have very good WRs as well (not as good as the Packers, but that's beside the point). Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz have been lighting it up the past 4 weeks. Tramon Williams and Sam Shields will need to pick their game up and become lock down corners.

3. The Return of Greg Jennings - Jennings missed the final 3 games of the season with a torn MCL in his left knee. He has since returned to practice and is expected to be close to full strength against the Giants. The Packers proved that the offense can function without him, but the margin of improvement from James Jones to Greg Jennings is significant. Every Packer fan will be happy to see #85 back on the field.

4. Clay Matthews and Dom Capers - The Packers have thrived on forcing turnovers this season. It's been the one redeeming factor in an otherwise loose defense. Turnovers almost always start with pressure on the opposing QB, especially in Capers' 3-4 scheme. Will Dom bring back the psycho defense and add some new wrinkles to get Clay more opportunities? I hope so. We all know that Eli is prone to mistakes when he's under duress.

5. Running Game - This is something to watch for on both sides of the ball. James Starks' status is still in question for the game and the Packers have been neglecting the run ever since he went down with an ankle injury several weeks ago. Can he return and give the Packers' run game a boost like he did in 2010? If we can run the ball and control the clock, it will help the defense to rest and be absolutely huge for the offense. On the flip side, the Giants' RBs have been phenomenal as of late. The return of Ahmad Bradshaw gave them a new look on offense and that honestly scares me a little. We will need Raji and Pickett to be dominant up front to close any holes that the Giants' o-line opens up.

6. Special Teams - On a cold day at Lambeau, special teams could be the difference. I don't anticipate either team punting too often, but when they do they will be trying to flip the field. I also don't anticipate many field goals being attempted, but at the end of the 1st half and at the end of the game last second field goals could be the difference...much like the meeting in the regular season between these 2 teams.

The Packers are favored in this game, but I think that the Giants match up really well with us. I think if the offense can execute and the defense can come up with a handful of stops that the Packers will win by 10+. But if the offense struggles and the defense shows no improvement then it's going to come down to a last second field goal. We'll all hope for the former! GO PACK!

Injuries: James Starks

Starks was injured with just over 3 minutes left in the 4th quarter. The official diagnosis is a knee sprain. His status is unknown. Hopefully we will have more information later today.

I would assume he will not be ready to play on Thursday against the Lions.

Injury Update: Alex Green

Rookie RB Alex Green sustained a season-ending knee injury on the opening kickoff against the Vikings. Green did not contribute much to the offense, but has been improving weekly in special teams play. I do not forsee this as being a huge hit to the team so long as the health of Ryan Grant and James Starks remains intact. The Packers are weighing all options to replace Green on the roster. My best guess is that they would re-sign Dmitri Nance who was cut at the end of the preseason.

Packers Outlast Vikings - Move to 7-0...

I have to admit, it was bittersweet for me to watch the Packers pull out a close one against the Vikings yesterday. One one hand, I always want to see the Packers blow the queens out of the water by 50 points. But on the other, Christian Ponder is from my Alma Mater (FSU) and I enjoyed seeing him play well. With that being said, I hope that Ponder's success was temporary and that the Vikings only win against the Bears and Lions for the remainder of the season.

It was disappointing to see the slow start from the Packers, awesome to see the great 3rd quarter 20-point explosion, and then nerve-racking to see them allow the queens back into the game in the 4th. I will elaborate below...

THINGS I LIKED

Aaron Rodgers - Rodgers is playing out of his mind through 7 games this season! He is the only QB in NFL history to post 7 straight 110+ point QB Ratings to start the season (Is it too early to start talking about MVP candidates?). He only had 1 off-target throw vs the Queens...AMAZING!

James Starks - After only posting 20 yards in the first 3 quarters, Starks turned on another gear on the final drive of the game by gaining 3 first downs and guaranteeing the Packers' victory...give the o-line some credit here too.

Randall Cobb - I love that the Packers are starting to use Cobb more. His 42 yard punt return showed his dynamic ability to change the game. I also noticed that he lined up as a RB and took a handoff from Rodgers in the 3rd quarter. I'm expecting him to continue to get more looks in the offense.

Charles Woodson - Woodson added 2 INTs to his amazing career total. This guy can still play and is definitely the best player in the secondary with the injuries to the other guys back there.

THINGS I DID NOT LIKE

Roughing the Passer - I didn't see very many bad calls, but the "roughing the passer" penalty on Clay Matthews was one of the worst calls I've ever seen. I think the league needs to have disciplinary actions for officals who blow calls like that. Luckily it did not affect the outcome of the game.

Run Defense - Up until last week, I thought the Packers weakness was the pass defense because they hadn't given up too many yards on the ground. Adrian Peterson posted 175 yards! I know he's probably the best RB in the league, but with a Rookie QB making his first start, you would have thought that we would have keyed on Peterson a little bit more. Poor tackling didn't help this.

Drops - I counted 3 drops...it's becoming an epidemic. Hopefully this will get fixed over the bye, because it could come back to bite us if it happens in critical game situations going forward.

Randall Cobb on Punts - I love his ability to return punts and that he has no fear. But it finally caught up to him. I'll excuse this one as a one-time rookie mistake. But muffed punts are not acceptable.

There you have it, my thoughts. I am happy about the win, and happy that we have a bye this week to get healthy. Bring on the Chargers (in 2 weeks)! GO PACK!

Starks vs. Grant

To begin the 2011 Regular Season, Mike McCarthy and the Packers came out with a true two-headed running attack with both James Starks and Ryan Grant splitting carries. In the first game, the Packers started with Ryan Grant getting the majority of the first half carries and Starks taking over as the game went along.

Ryan Grant finished the game with 9 carries for 40 yards, averaging 4.4 yards per carry. Starks had about the same workload and similar results carrying the ball 12 times for 57 yards and 4.8 yards per carry.

First of all, the Packers are the defending Champs. Last season the leading rusher on the team was Brandon Jackson, and now, we not only have 1 healthy and talented running back, but two!! And they are competing for the top spot!! This is great news to me, and aside from trying to figure out which one I want on my Fantasy Football team, I don't care who gets more carries at this point, because they are both better than Brandon Jackson.

After watching the first game, I would have to give Starks the edge, just based on his impressive touchdown run and his strength and size. I think that either of these guys can carry a larger load for the Packers, but one thing is for certain...We are a completely different team with a running game, so everyone else better watch out, because this is a better team than the one that won the Super Bowl back in February!

1-0! A Solid Start to a Title Defense...

Packers 42 - Saints 34. The opening game of the 2011 NFL season was nothing short of a thriller. In fact, it came down to the last play of the game where the Packers' worn out defense made a crucial stop on the goal line to bring home the victory and start the season off 1-0. There were a lot of positives in the game, and a few negatives. Here's my take:

THINGS I LIKED-
Randall Cobb - Easily the biggest surprise of the game, the rookie WR out of Kentucky dazzled us all with his 2 touchdown performance. He took in a 35 yard catch and run on a slant (which he admitted after the game was a mistake in that he ran the wrong route) and brought back the first kick return TD for the Packers in over 10 years from 108 yards deep (which he admitted after the game, by team rules, he should have knelt). In spite of these 2 "mistakes", Cobb proved to be another valuable weapon in the arsenal that is the Packers' potent offense.

Aaron Rodgers - Rodgers came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, throwing 3 touchdowns in the first quarter. Granted, he slowed down after that and missed a few throws. But all in all, Rodgers looked sharp and is poised for a great season.

JerMichael Finley - Finley was not as involved as I anticipated he would be, and McCarthy could be easing him back in due to his minor injuries. But when he was on the field, he was impossible for the saints to cover. There is no team in the league that can cover the Packers' receiving corps.

Offensive Line - I will admit that I was concerned about the line going into the season because of the issues I noticed in the pre-season. Even though they gave up a few sacks, I thought that overall they did a pretty good job of protecting Rodgers and opening up running lanes. I believe that they will continue to improve going forward.

Running Backs - It was hard to determine who was the better RB last night. Grant started off the game well, and just when it seemed like he was the sure fire starter, James Starks took over and looked even better. I think that this will cause problems for opposing defenses knowing that they can't just try to cover the pass anymore and will have to deal with the Packers' in 2 different dimensions.

THINGS I DID NOT LIKE-

Missed Tackles - I don't have the exact number, but I'm guessing it was somewhere in the teens. There were several occasions where the defense looked like they were going to make a stop, they were in position, and then bounced off of the ball carrier. This is actually the reason why Tramon Williams is now injured. If AJ Hawk makes the tackle, Tramon is still healthy...This will need to be improved upon if the Packers are going to be successful this year.

Tramon Williams' Injury - The worst part about this is that it could have been completely avoided. We do not know how serious it is yet, but it could potentially have a big impact on the season. Jarrett Bush is a decent CB, but is a significant drop off from Williams. We will keep our fingers crossed that Tramon will be back on the field soon.

3rd Downs - It seemed the defense could not get off the field on 3rd downs. They either missed a tackle or let a receiver get wide open. Granted the saints offense is good and Brees is an elite QB, but elite defenses need to be able to make stops more often than the Packers did last night.

There you have it. My thoughts. It was a great win for the Packers and all-in-all I think the things I didn't like are fixable and will be addressed and improved upon in the coming weeks. For now I am going to enjoy being 1-0 and watching football the rest of the weekend! GO PACK!

Another Heartbreaking Loss...Reinforcements on the Way...

In another tough-to-swallow overtime loss, the Packers' Defense looked decent at times, but it was obvious that Clay Matthews' presence was missed. There was little to no pressure on Chad Henne, and the secondary couldn't find an answer for Brandon Marshall. Even with a big TD drive at the end of regulation, the offense looked flat without Jermichael Finley or a running game. And the big kicker was penalties. They weren't as often or as serious as they were a few weeks ago against the bears, but a 5 yard penalty on 4th and 3 set up the go-ahead TD for the Dolphins and essentially lost the game for the Packers. That's what happens when you have inexperienced players in the game. Francois, who was called up from the practice squad last week, was the culprit for the penalty. But there is good news...

Atari Bigby, James Starks, and Al Harris could return to action this week after being released from the PUP list. If they pass their physicals on Wednesday they will be able to begin practicing with the team and see immediate action. The question is whether or not they can return to form and help out a suspect secondary and running game.

Harris is returning from major knee surgery, Bigby from an ankle injury that has plagued him since 2008, and Starks will try to see his first NFL action after being drafted in the 6th round in this year's draft. Can these guys provide the needed spark to get the team back on the winning track? I think they can. Bigby has significant experience and will be better than any of the other safety options we have in Morgan Burnett's absence. If Harris is confident in his knee, then he will be a much better nickel corner than Sam Shields, Bush, or any of the other corners we have tried in that spot. Can Starks jump start the running game? I have my doubts, but I'm hopeful. These additions come at the most opportune time with a HUGE divisional matchup against the queens this week.

Ted Thompson also traded a conditional 7th round pick to Jacksonville for safety Anthony Smith, who was cut from the team at the end of the pre-season in 2009. This fortefies the safety position with Bigby returning, and makes me feel much better about our secondary. GO PACK!