Before the Dallas game, which will, barring a miracle, be Green Bay's last game of the year, I wanted to say that it's been an interesting and very entertaining season this time around. The early-year struggles in which the offense looked as ineffectual as last year's version, and Rodgers's own struggles (I don't give a damn what the announcers all said; Rodgers was not playing well), made even their early winning record seem in no way reflective of the future.
And then there was that sudden, precipitous, gut-wrenching slide. The defense, supposedly designed to stop the run, couldn't stop Ezekiel Elliot from ramming for seven or eight yards per rush in that Dallas game. Then came the other debacles - Washington, Tennessee - and it all looked gone. We were all posting about whom to fire and whom to draft for next year.
And then there was this weird turnaround that the players said was ever only a play or two away. The slowly increasing confidence, the discovery of Ty Montgomery, the re-emergence of the old Aaron Rodgers. At first it was more injuries and more injuries, but then they began to heal. And though I haven't looked through last year's playoff threads, my sense is that we, as fans, felt that this year's team had more of that 2010 battle-tested juju. Every game already crucial ten games into the season, the bandwagon rolled on and it felt like this year was different. In past years, I felt even after an opening-round win (like against Washington last year) that things were still not right, and we had hope but not much confidence.
This year felt different for fans. This team seems different, seems to have that toughness, that swagger. They are playing well at the right time.
So I wanted to start a thread to say how enjoyable this season's been. I just don't think they can beat Dallas, I really don't, and I'm okay with that.*
It's been a great, fun, entertaining ride, and I feel like this team gave us all they had. So hats off to a fun season. Not what all the "if-you-don't-win-the-SB-the-season's-a-failure" would want, but truly entertaining, and in a good way, this second half. I've enjoyed this season more than any one since the five minutes-left-against-Seattle in 2014 season, and maybe before that, the magical and unexpected 2010 season.
*Unless of course Green Bay has the lead and seems to have control, and then an unfortunate series of dumb plays and ball-sack-shriveling play calls costs the Packers the game. Or if the Packers have the ball with a chance to win on the final possession and don't. Or if Dallas has the ball with a chance to win on the final possession and they do.