2010 NFC North Outlook

It's been an intriguing offseason, and the 2010 season is only 5 weeks away. Here's my take on the NFC North and what I believe will happen this year.

Minnesota - The Queens have shown more patience with He Who Must Not Be Named than the Pack did when he retired the first time. They essentially have put all of their eggs in his basket. I don't think there's any doubt that he will return for another season. Therefore, they are the team to beat this year.

Green Bay - The Pack are primed to have another great offensive showing in 2010. The o-line is beefed up with the addition of first round pick Bryan Bulaga and should give Aaron Rodgers a little more time to throw the ball which will hopefully lead to less sacks than last year. The defense, however, did not make any substantial moves to improve the secondary or pass rush. With Al Harris unlikely to return until midseason from reconstructive knee surgery and Johnny Jolly sippin' on his purple drank, we can only hope that the other guys can step up and play better than the D did against the Cards, Queens, and Steelers last year.

Detroit - The Lions are an interesting team. I think that Matt Stafford has potential, and he has one of the best WRs in the league in Calvin Johnson. I don't believe that they'll win more than a handful of games, but I do think that they will be improved and hopefully beat out da Bears for 3rd place in the division.

Chicago - Da Bears are relying on Jay Cutler to bounce back from the atrocious season he had in 2009. I don't see this happening. They didn't make any moves on receiving targets or offensive linemen to help him, and let's face it...Cutler is one of the most overrated QBs in the NFL. They did make a couple of moves that, although expensive, will make an impact on the team's performance. Chester Taylor will take some pressure off of Matt Forte if they give him the ball, and Julius Peppers will make their defensive line a little more impressive. I don't think that they have what it takes to turn the team around however.

So, that's my take and my prediction (assuming that You Know Who returns) - Queens, Pack, Lions, Bears in that order for the NFC North. Once the preseason starts, expect more updates. GO PACK!

Packer Buzz: Un-Drafted Free Agent CB Sam Shields

So the draft has come and gone and all of the teams in the NFL are sifting through the un-drafted players, looking for the next special teams gem.

Well, from the sounds of it, the Packers may have found one in former Miami Hurricane CB Sam Shields. Shields visited a couple of teams after the draft and decided that Green Bay seemed like a good fit for him. Shields is a speed demon! Clocked in around 4.3 in the 40 on his pro day at Miami.

Shields is going to be playing for a spot on special teams. My first thought was, "OK! We got a guy who has nasty wheels and those should come in handy when he is returning punts and kicks!" But I was mistaken. Shields' strengths are covering punts and kickoffs. His speed and aggressiveness make him very disruptive.

This is not that exciting as he wasn't even drafted, but the Pack desperately needs work and help on special teams and I'm happy that we are working on those needs. So keep your eye on this kid and hopefully he will surprise us!

Quick Draft Recap

So the 2010 Draft is over and the guesses begin. Who had the best draft? Did the team address their needs? Etc. Etc. Etc!

The Pack did not have a super exciting draft, but they did address some needs. First of all, I have to say that picking Brian Bulaga with our first pick was like drafting your mother over Megan Fox. Sure, its not a sexy pick, but you're mom will make you dinner, do your laundry, and clean your room. Brian Bulaga is a top tier lineman and we did not have to trade any players to get him. He isn't Dez Bryant, but he will come in right away and contribute greatly. Alright, so maybe my Mom/Megan Fox analogy was a bit strange, but you get the point. We will all be happy with Bulaga, and not because he "looks" like a Packer.

I think we stretched in the 2nd round with Mike Neal out of Purdue, but who knows, just when you take someone lightly, they end up surprising you.

We did get a couple guys later in the draft who are pretty intruiging. Third round we got a Safety from Georgia Tech who is a big guy and although they say consistency is an issue, at least we add some depth to our defensive backfield and in the 6th it sounds like we got a steal of a RB out of Buffalo who is a very big dude and will hopefully come pound the ball for us in short yardage situations.

We also ended up drafting another offensive and defensive lineman and a tight end. Big deal, who knows how any of them will do.

After the draft, I think that we addressed some concerns and forgot about a couple. I think that the Packers are counting on having Al Harris back and healthy, but it makes me a little nervous that we didn't get any CB's. As well, it looks like Clay Matthews will probably lead the team in Sacks again this season. Even though we got a couple defensive lineman, I am unsure of how much they will be able to help our mediocre pass rushing defense. I think that with the recent additions of big name pass rushers in the division (Peppers, Vanden Bosh, Suh), the Packers defensive front may be the least intimidating in the division. Bummer.

Well, now we just have to sit back and see if TT did a good job this draft. Fingers Crossed.

Recap: Bryan Bulaga

When the 23rd pick rolled around last night, Ted Thompson must have been in a bit of a quandry. I figured the pick would be easy because there were only a handful of players we were considering. But when the Pack was on the clock...THEY WERE ALL STILL AVAILABLE! Crazy! Bryan Bulaga, Jerry Hughes, Sergio Kindle, and Kyle Wilson were all still on the board. I had never been so excited about one of our draft picks because I had no idea which way old Teddy would go. In the end it was Bulaga, and aside from the fact that he grew up as a Bears fan, I really like the pick.

Clifton and Tauscher are solid tackles, but both are aging and are injury prone. This should give the Pack some time to groom their future starter by working him into the lineup as a guard or at least giving him some time to work against some NFL talent while waiting for an inevitable injury to one of the other starters.

I wasn't sure how i was going to like the new draft format, but I like it better than i thought i would. It gave me a whole nother day to look forward to meaningful rounds of the draft. I'm predicting the Packers will take either an OLB or Safety in the 2nd round...hopefully it's as exciting as the first.

With the 23rd Pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers select...

Holy Cow! It has been months since our last post and a lot has happened throughout the league. Tomorrow is also the first round of the NFL Draft.

First of all, I need to mention how disappointed I am that they changed the draft schedule and we will now be watching the 1st Round on Thursday, the 2nd and 3rd on Friday, and then the rest some other time during the weekend. I remember the good old days when I could sit on my couch for all of draft weekend, eat snacks and drink beer. That was fantastic. Now, I will have to get pumped up to watch the draft after a long day of work, and then do the same thing the next night. Complete garbage if you ask me.

Ok! Now that my rant is over, lets talk about the draft.

The Packers have very specific needs that they will look to address throughout the draft. Those needs are at CB, Safety, O-Line, D-Line, and then possibly RB. For a long time, the offensive line looked to be the top priority for the Pack, but after re-signing Clifton and Tauscher, and given that the draft seems very deep at that position, it sounds as if the Pack may look elsewhere with their first pick.

My thought is that the Packers will look at grabbing a top tier defensive back in the first. With rumors of the Pack being interested in trading up in the first round, the options grow larger. Lets take a quick look at some of the players available in the first:

1. Eric Berry - Safety: Unless the Packers are looking to trade way up in the draft, it sounds like Berry will be long gone.

2. Earl Thomas - Safety: Thomas is projected to go around 10 or 11. If the rumors about the Pack trading up into that area are true, Thomas could be the guy targeted by the Pack.

3. Joe Haden - Cornerback: Haden is the top CB in the draft. Again, Haden would be in the same boat as Thomas and would only be available to the Pack if we were to move up in the draft.

4. Kyle Wilson - Cornerback: Wilson is a solid cornerback and has been talked about a lot this week as one of the top DB's in the draft. Wilson once thought to go late in the first round had a great Senior Bowl and could end up being taken earlier than originally expected. I don't anticipate him being on the board @ 23, but he may be another potential trade up opportunity.

5. Taylor Mays - Safety: Mays is a beast at safety. He is big, strong, and fast. However, I have heard mixed reviews on him. Regardless, Mays has a huge upside and I think unless someone better drops down tomorrow, he would be hard to pass up at #23.

So I started off by talking about the defensive back, mostly because that's who I want the Packers to take in the first, and also because they are more exciting to talk about that Offensive Lineman. There is also talk about the Pack looking for pass rushers in the first and I think it may be likely to get one of the top guys to play OLB/DE in our 3-4 scheme. I also think we can assume that TT won't be drafting a RB in the first round.

We will attempt to make posts over the next few days regarding the Packer's draft results and thoughts. So for our follower out there, check back later!

Super Bowl Preview

Well it has been some time since I have posted, but I think its finally time. The Super Bowl is coming up this weekend and I know that I'm cheering for the Saints simply because I don't like the Colts, and I really don't care for Peyton Manning for a couple of reasons. I know that this has nothing to do with anything, but let me explain.

I grew up watching Brett Favre as QB #1 for the Green Bay Packers. As hard as it is to talk about Brett right now after what Packer fans have gone through recently, he was something to watch, a pure gun slinger. He wore his heart on his sleeve and he was fearless, pure guts. When I compare that to Peyton, it just bores me. Don't get me wrong, I think in the grand scheme of things, Peyton is probably one of the greatest QB's ever. He is a calculator, he reads the defense, calls audibles and he is a true student of the game. I have great respect for the preparation that goes into every game that Peyton plays, but there is something about him that just seems boring. I would love to see him take over a game and show some grit and some personality.

Please don't get me wrong, I do think that the Colts will win the Super Bowl since I don't think that the Saints were the best team in the NFC and the only reason that they won was because the Vikings couldn't protect the ball. Needless to say, the Saints are a very good team and behind the arm of Drew Brees, there is no saying that they can't show up on Sunday and upset the favored Colts.

I think that the Saints are a very good team and if they can get their offense rolling they will be hard to stop. The main thing about this game that bothers me is that to me, the Colts do not seem like that good of a team. Their defense is average at best and their best defensive player (Bob Sanders) hasn't played all year. But for some reason, they just seem to win their games. The real reason that the Colts have been so successful this season has been their young receiving corps and the emergence of Austin Colley and Pierre Garcon. Who would have thought that these two young receivers would be able to step in and complement Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark the way that they have? If you ask me, this will again be a game of offense and whoever is either more powerful on offense or can make more stops on defense will win. And as much as I dislike it, I think that Peyton is the steadier QB and has too many quality targets to be stopped.

Moral of the story, I am picking the Colts to win 31-21, but I will definitely be cheering for the Saints. Who Dat!

The Dust Has Settled...It's the Offseason...

There has been a little bit of news over the past few weeks that we have failed to report, but I think that at this point we’ve finally gotten over the heartbreaking loss we sustained in Arizona. So…here goes. Charles Woodson was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year for 2009 much to the dismay of Rex Ryan, due to the Saints going to the Super Bowl and Favre foregoing the Pro Bowl Aaron Rodgers will be the starting QB representing the NFC this Sunday in Miami, and Vikings fans now get to endure what Packer fans dealt with more than once over the years…Favre throwing a season ending INT and now sitting and waiting to see whether he will retire or not. I personally would like to see him wait until around August 1st to decide and then say that he is done for good. The more likely Sage Rosenfels or Tavaris Jackson will be the QB, the better off we will all be.

Anywho, what do we talk about next? The Pro Bowl? Free Agency? The Draft? There are plenty of weeks ahead to discuss free agency and the draft, so I’ll address the Pro Bowl for now. The Packers had 3 players selected to play (only 1 to start), but due to injuries and decisions to forego the Pro Bowl we ended up with…well…still 3. But Woodson decided to sit it out and Clay Matthews stepped in as an OLB. Rodgers is the only starter, he and Matthews will be joined by Nick Collins (making his 2nd straight Pro Bowl appearance). I like seeing the Packers have some representation in this game. Not that it makes a big difference, but it shows that we have some talent and that it’s being recognized. I believe that Rodgers will be a great QB for the Pack for many years to come and that Woodson will continue to play extremely well in Capers’ new 3-4 scheme for a few more seasons. Clay Matthews was maybe the brightest spot on the defense this year, after missing the first few games of the season he dominated offensive lines and finished with a team-leading 10 sacks. I am looking forward to seeing him continue to develop and making many more Pro Bowls in for the Green and Gold. Collins is really the only question mark, not about his play, but about his contract. It’s understood that he’s a restricted free agent this year and he’s hoping to get a multi-year contract extension. So we’ll see what happens. I expect Teddy Thompson to make him a priority during this offseason and solidify part of our somewhat shaky defensive backfield. But I digress, I’m actually more interested in the Senior Bowl this weekend than I am in the Pro Bowl. I’m really just hoping that none of our guys end up getting hurt. I’ll be scouting the Senior Bowl for some talent that the Pack can grab in April. We’ll discuss Free Agency and the Draft in further detail in the coming weeks. GO PACK!

It's Over...Who's to Blame?

The Pack came out on the wrong side of a thrilling game that will likely make up for at least 5 of Sportscenter's top 10 plays today. Now begins the long offseason full of "what ifs" and "what now's".

What if...

Rodgers doesn't throw the pick and Driver doesn't fumble on the first 2 possessions of the game...

Crosby doesn't miss the 54 yard field goal in the 1st half...

The Pack had better clock management and could have scored a TD at the end of the 2nd quarter instead of kicking a field goal...

The #2 ranked defense in the NFL could have come up with more than 2 stops during the entire game...

Rodgers didn't overthrow a wide-open Jennings on the first play from scrimmage in overtime...

Darren Colledge didn't hold on the Packer's overtime drive...

The Refs had called one of the roughing the passer penalties in overtime that were no-calls...

Needless to say, there were several things that could have gone slightly different to give the Pack the win. It just wasn't meant to be this year. Now come the big quesions as to what the Pack will do in Free Agency and the Draft to help our chances of not letting this happen next year. Will Al Harris be able to recover from his knee surgery and come back at full-strength? What is the future of Aaron Kampman? Can we re-sign our now free agents? Who do we target in the draft? O-line? CB? RB? That's what this blog is for and that's what we'll be talking about from here until draft day.

All in all, I believe this season was successful. After losing to the lowly Buccaneers the pack went 7-2 (including yesterday's playoff loss) and were very close to winning the division. This is still a very young team and has a bright future as long as we can keep it together. A few key offseason acquisitions (and an actual retirement of a certain old QB that plays for the queens) should be able to catapult this team to an easy division title and hopefully a deep playoff run in 2010. We find out in 2 days if Woodson wins DPOY.

GO PACK!

Wild Card Weekend: Packer-Card Pregame

Well we a little over 1 hour away from the start of the game and I'm very excited. The Packers are the favorite to win this game and with Boldin being listed as inactive, I think that we match up extremely well against the Cardinals.

The Packers are hot coming into the Playoffs and some people are picking them to make it to the SuperBowl. I don't know what will happen, but i'm excited that the Packers made the playoffs and I think that we should win this game.

I've just decided that i'm going to talk a little about the game and how I think it will need to go for the Pack to win.

First of all, I think that we need to start by playing great defense. We need to be able to put pressure on Warner without sacrificing our match ups in the secondary. If there is one part of the Packers' that makes me nervous it is the lack of depth we have at CB, and a lot of times it seems as though we leave Truman Williams and Bush in single coverage and without help. I think that is one of the keys to the game is for those guys to be successful and given help if they need it.

On offense, we need to stick with the gameplan. The Packers have been great running the ball lately and we need to be able to control the ball and keep it away from the Arizona offense. I feel very confident that the Packers offense will have success again this week.

When all is said and done, I think the Packers are the better team in this one and if we lose, it will be bad. I think that our defense plays strong and the packers cruise to a 28-17 victory.

Sunday Early Games...Looks Like Pack-Cards in Round 1

So, the Vikings are beating up on the Giants right now and if they hold on for the win, it will secure our future of playing the Arizona Cardinals again next week.

In other places around the league, the Bears right now are losing to the Lions, which I find spectacular. I just love the story lines that surround Jay Cutler. He is physically and mentally strong because he doesn't only have to deal with being on a shitty team, but he also has diabetes! Yes, in case you didn't know, they check his blood pressure several times during the game. They have determined that when his blood pressure crosses a certain point, he is more likely to throw interceptions.

Ok, that isn't exactly accurate, but sometimes commentators need to stop making up story lines and they need to talk about real things that are happening in the game or around the NFL. Nobody cares about Cutler's Diabetes. Nuff said.