motife
12-06-2007, 09:46 PM
5-step plan for Packers to get ready for playoffs
Posted: Dec. 6, 2007
Tom Silverstein
E-MAIL
Green Bay - Through the outstanding coaching of Mike McCarthy and the unexpected renaissance of the passing game, the Green Bay Packers have established themselves as the second best team in the National Football Conference and put themselves in position for a long run in the playoffs.
But before anyone starts checking fares to Arizona, the Packers have some housework to do. Their 37-27 loss to the Dallas Cowboys last week showed they are not ready to turn this season completely around.
They have flaws that were exploited by the Cowboys and that must be fixed in the final four weeks of the season so they can go into the playoffs confident they're capable of beating Dallas on the road. None of the final four opponents should scare the Packers, but they will be challenged and will have to play to the level they reached against Minnesota, Detroit and Carolina.
Included in their task of sweeping their final four games is making sure their house is in order.
Here are five ways they can ready themselves for the playoffs.
1. Start Aaron Rouse at safety
It doesn't matter which safety they replace, Rouse deserves a shot to be a starter. It doesn't matter that he's a rookie or missed a significant amount of training camp with a hamstring injury or has played in only eight games.
In his three starts at safety in place of the injured Nick Collins, he showed more play-making ability than either Collins or Atari Bigby have shown all season. Rouse might be slower than Collins and less of a tackler than Bigby, but after the defensive debacle in Dallas, how could he be worse than either of those two?
Go back to the first Minnesota game when Rouse had to fill in for both Collins and Bigby because both went out at separate times with injuries. One of the plays that stands out was Vikings quarterback Kelly Holcomb throwing the ball into the ground because the pass he was about to throw was going to be intercepted. Rouse cut in front of Holcomb's intended target as his arm moved forward and Holcomb had to do all he could to keep from throwing it. McCarthy and his staff had an inkling about Rouse right then and there. Four weeks later he's in the starting lineup in place of an injured Collins.
After a so-so game against Minnesota in which he missed several tackles, Rouse came back against Carolina and made plays on three different passes, intercepting one and nearly intercepting the other two.
Then the next week, he makes the biggest defensive play of the game against Detroit with another interception. Unfortunately for him, he injured his knee late in the game and was ruled out of the Dallas game.
It's a stretch to say Rouse would have made a difference in that game, but his football instincts are so far ahead of Collins' that it's almost a travesty to keep him on the bench. He studies film like he's a starter and rarely loses his cool like Bigby tends to do. Maybe he's not ready to be a starter, but don't the Packers have to find out? They're cheating themselves if they stand pat.
2. Replace Vernand Morency with Brandon Jackson
Morency has done next to nothing all season long. It took him from the first day of training camp until the fourth week of the season to even get on the field. Since then, he has 17 carries for 70 yards and 20 receptions for 127 yards playing as a third-down back. Not since the Chicago game has he had a play of 10 yards or more.
Jackson, meanwhile, shows far better hands and instinct in the passing game, can run it between the tackles and isn't the sieve in pass protection that he was in training camp.
At least the coaches need to see if Jackson can add something to the third-down package in the final weeks. They're not going anywhere with Morency and there's probably a pretty good chance he won't be on the team next year with Ryan Grant, DeShawn Wynn and Jackson returning. Jackson was a second-round pick. It's time to use him.
3. Get Justin Harrell as many snaps as possible
Harrell isn't ready to be a great player. He still has a long way to go to be a good one. But he needs to play a lot in the final four weeks so that he can both develop and take pressure off of Corey Williams, Ryan Pickett and Cullen Jenkins.
With the season-ending losses of Colin Cole and Johnny Jolly, the Packers are getting thin upfront. They can get along with their starting four playing all game long because they have the ability to do that. But as the Cowboys game showed, they were not nearly as effective as normal, especially late in the game, which is when they tend to get their sacks. It was a tired group at the end of the Cowboys game and the coaches have to prevent that from happening.
Harrell should be used with both Pickett and Williams so that he can find out what it takes to be a successful NFL player. He and fellow rookie Daniel Muir are going to be counted on in the playoffs and they need to get better in a hurry.
4. Open up the nickel cornerback job
There's nothing wrong with keeping Jarrett Bush as the third corner. But give Tramon Williams and Will Blackmon a legitimate chance to win the job.
Bush has had many failures, but he's had a lot of success, too. He's been the nickel guy almost since camp began and there's a lot to be said for that. But when a guy like Williams comes off the bench and plays the way he did against Detroit, he deserves another look. He was far more physical than anyone thought he could be for a 185-pound corner.
Plus, having a guy on the field with his kind of speed is always an asset. Bush can't run as well as Williams and so he has less chance of making up for his technique errors. Williams showed what an asset he could be when he chased down Avion Cason on a kickoff return. His pass interference call against Dallas was questionable and unlike Bush it didn't involve him panicking and using his arms.
Blackmon is less of an option because he wasn't as reliable in coverage as Bush when he was healthy. But he also is an outstanding athlete and should at least be given a look down the stretch.
5. Figure out a way to blitz A.J. Hawk more effectively
OK, blitzing isn't a big part of defensive coordinator Bob Sanders' scheme. But if you don't use Hawk to rush the passer, you're wasting one of his best talents.
Rushing him up the middle in a combination blitzes with Nick Barnett isn't getting it done. He needs to roam more and get chances to use his speed in space. He needs to get matched up with running backs so that he can overpower them.
The Packers don't bring heat very often and they don't fake it very often either. They need to find a way to make it so that other teams have to prepare for Hawk coming off the edge. It would take away from his coverage duties and leave the safeties more vulnerable, but if the Packers' pass rush is non-existent the way it was against Dallas, there has to be another option. Hawk would be it.
McCarthy has talked about being an aggressive football team. This would be one way to show it.
Posted: Dec. 6, 2007
Tom Silverstein
Green Bay - Through the outstanding coaching of Mike McCarthy and the unexpected renaissance of the passing game, the Green Bay Packers have established themselves as the second best team in the National Football Conference and put themselves in position for a long run in the playoffs.
But before anyone starts checking fares to Arizona, the Packers have some housework to do. Their 37-27 loss to the Dallas Cowboys last week showed they are not ready to turn this season completely around.
They have flaws that were exploited by the Cowboys and that must be fixed in the final four weeks of the season so they can go into the playoffs confident they're capable of beating Dallas on the road. None of the final four opponents should scare the Packers, but they will be challenged and will have to play to the level they reached against Minnesota, Detroit and Carolina.
Included in their task of sweeping their final four games is making sure their house is in order.
Here are five ways they can ready themselves for the playoffs.
1. Start Aaron Rouse at safety
It doesn't matter which safety they replace, Rouse deserves a shot to be a starter. It doesn't matter that he's a rookie or missed a significant amount of training camp with a hamstring injury or has played in only eight games.
In his three starts at safety in place of the injured Nick Collins, he showed more play-making ability than either Collins or Atari Bigby have shown all season. Rouse might be slower than Collins and less of a tackler than Bigby, but after the defensive debacle in Dallas, how could he be worse than either of those two?
Go back to the first Minnesota game when Rouse had to fill in for both Collins and Bigby because both went out at separate times with injuries. One of the plays that stands out was Vikings quarterback Kelly Holcomb throwing the ball into the ground because the pass he was about to throw was going to be intercepted. Rouse cut in front of Holcomb's intended target as his arm moved forward and Holcomb had to do all he could to keep from throwing it. McCarthy and his staff had an inkling about Rouse right then and there. Four weeks later he's in the starting lineup in place of an injured Collins.
After a so-so game against Minnesota in which he missed several tackles, Rouse came back against Carolina and made plays on three different passes, intercepting one and nearly intercepting the other two.
Then the next week, he makes the biggest defensive play of the game against Detroit with another interception. Unfortunately for him, he injured his knee late in the game and was ruled out of the Dallas game.
It's a stretch to say Rouse would have made a difference in that game, but his football instincts are so far ahead of Collins' that it's almost a travesty to keep him on the bench. He studies film like he's a starter and rarely loses his cool like Bigby tends to do. Maybe he's not ready to be a starter, but don't the Packers have to find out? They're cheating themselves if they stand pat.
2. Replace Vernand Morency with Brandon Jackson
Morency has done next to nothing all season long. It took him from the first day of training camp until the fourth week of the season to even get on the field. Since then, he has 17 carries for 70 yards and 20 receptions for 127 yards playing as a third-down back. Not since the Chicago game has he had a play of 10 yards or more.
Jackson, meanwhile, shows far better hands and instinct in the passing game, can run it between the tackles and isn't the sieve in pass protection that he was in training camp.
At least the coaches need to see if Jackson can add something to the third-down package in the final weeks. They're not going anywhere with Morency and there's probably a pretty good chance he won't be on the team next year with Ryan Grant, DeShawn Wynn and Jackson returning. Jackson was a second-round pick. It's time to use him.
3. Get Justin Harrell as many snaps as possible
Harrell isn't ready to be a great player. He still has a long way to go to be a good one. But he needs to play a lot in the final four weeks so that he can both develop and take pressure off of Corey Williams, Ryan Pickett and Cullen Jenkins.
With the season-ending losses of Colin Cole and Johnny Jolly, the Packers are getting thin upfront. They can get along with their starting four playing all game long because they have the ability to do that. But as the Cowboys game showed, they were not nearly as effective as normal, especially late in the game, which is when they tend to get their sacks. It was a tired group at the end of the Cowboys game and the coaches have to prevent that from happening.
Harrell should be used with both Pickett and Williams so that he can find out what it takes to be a successful NFL player. He and fellow rookie Daniel Muir are going to be counted on in the playoffs and they need to get better in a hurry.
4. Open up the nickel cornerback job
There's nothing wrong with keeping Jarrett Bush as the third corner. But give Tramon Williams and Will Blackmon a legitimate chance to win the job.
Bush has had many failures, but he's had a lot of success, too. He's been the nickel guy almost since camp began and there's a lot to be said for that. But when a guy like Williams comes off the bench and plays the way he did against Detroit, he deserves another look. He was far more physical than anyone thought he could be for a 185-pound corner.
Plus, having a guy on the field with his kind of speed is always an asset. Bush can't run as well as Williams and so he has less chance of making up for his technique errors. Williams showed what an asset he could be when he chased down Avion Cason on a kickoff return. His pass interference call against Dallas was questionable and unlike Bush it didn't involve him panicking and using his arms.
Blackmon is less of an option because he wasn't as reliable in coverage as Bush when he was healthy. But he also is an outstanding athlete and should at least be given a look down the stretch.
5. Figure out a way to blitz A.J. Hawk more effectively
OK, blitzing isn't a big part of defensive coordinator Bob Sanders' scheme. But if you don't use Hawk to rush the passer, you're wasting one of his best talents.
Rushing him up the middle in a combination blitzes with Nick Barnett isn't getting it done. He needs to roam more and get chances to use his speed in space. He needs to get matched up with running backs so that he can overpower them.
The Packers don't bring heat very often and they don't fake it very often either. They need to find a way to make it so that other teams have to prepare for Hawk coming off the edge. It would take away from his coverage duties and leave the safeties more vulnerable, but if the Packers' pass rush is non-existent the way it was against Dallas, there has to be another option. Hawk would be it.
McCarthy has talked about being an aggressive football team. This would be one way to show it.