Good start out of the gate

[Bretsky]

I fully expect the Packers to struggle mightily early in the season - mainly b/c McCarthy is going to have to learn OJT and the OL will take time to gel.

Beyond that, even though the talent level has generally been improved, they still aren't a very talented team. They don't have a single pro-bowl calibur player on the team.

Chad Clifton is Pro Bowl Caliber
Donald Driver (who we agree to disagree on as a #1) has made the Pro Bowl a couple times

[MadtownPacker]

I know Sherman sat the starters longer than most coaches and I really didn't agree with it.

From what I recall reading, tice use to work his team extra hard to start the season. Could that have helped lead to all those late season collapses?

[Rastak]

I know Sherman sat the starters longer than most coaches and I really didn't agree with it.

From what I recall reading, tice use to work his team extra hard to start the season. Could that have helped lead to all those late season collapses?

Don't know what the heck led to those. It could be the guys were worn down. Well, let him screw up Jacksonville with his pal Del Rio.....

[wist43]

I fully expect the Packers to struggle mightily early in the season - mainly b/c McCarthy is going to have to learn OJT and the OL will take time to gel.

Beyond that, even though the talent level has generally been improved, they still aren't a very talented team. They don't have a single pro-bowl calibur player on the team.

I think you will be proven wrong this year.

BB, I hope you're right, and I hope I'm wrong... when it comes to the Packers, however, I'm usually right. I just don't see them getting off to a fast start, and I don't see them any better than .500. 6-10 wouldn't surprise me one bit.

Bretsky... Clifton and Tauscher are both close to being pro bowl calibur; but, bookend Tackles, and nothing else, isn't going to put W's in the win column. No pass rush on defense, no playmakers on offense, two rookie coordinators, and a rookie HC - who was nobody's pick but TT's - and you have the makings of a 6-10 team.

[retailguy]

BB, I hope you're right, and I hope I'm wrong... when it comes to the Packers, however, I'm usually right. I just don't see them getting off to a fast start, and I don't see them any better than .500. 6-10 wouldn't surprise me one bit.

Bretsky... Clifton and Tauscher are both close to being pro bowl calibur; but, bookend Tackles, and nothing else, isn't going to put W's in the win column. No pass rush on defense, no playmakers on offense, two rookie coordinators, and a rookie HC - who was nobody's pick but TT's - and you have the makings of a 6-10 team.

No playmakers on offense? You must be kidding. While I admit that losing two guards was a disaster, it didn't devoid the team of offensive talent. If you look at the skill positions overall, I'll take the packers players as a group over all the rest of the division for sure, and probably half of the rest of the league.

I don't expect both Davenport and Green to rebound, but odds are pretty good one of them will. Driver will be fine and someone will step up for #2. Exactly, what is wrong with Bubba Franks?

I don't expect them to rank #3 again, but 12 or 13 is almost a no-brainer with Favre upright. Yeah, back to the OL again....

I wonder if it is possible to finish 6-10 and rank in the top half of the league on offense and defense? Strange, but this wouldn't surprise me either...

[packrulz]

It will take time to install the new offense but it may actually work in their favor since teams won't know what to expect to see from them. If they can avoid injuries the schedule really isn't that tough, especially the first half of the season. NE & Seattle will be tough. If they do well against division opponents I don't think a wildcard spot is out of the question.

Date Opponent Time/Result
Sep 10 Chicago 4:15pm
Sep 17 New Orleans 1:00pm
Sep 24 @Detroit 1:00pm
Oct 2 @Philadelphia 8:30pm
Oct 8 St. Louis 1:00pm
Week 6 BYE
Oct 22 @Miami 1:00pm
Oct 29 Arizona 1:00pm
Nov 5 @Buffalo 1:00pm
Nov 12 @Minnesota 1:00pm
Nov 19 New England 1:00pm
Nov 27 @Seattle 8:30pm
Dec 3 N.Y. Jets 1:00pm
Dec 10 @San Francisco 4:05pm
Dec 17 Detroit 1:00pm
Dec 21 Minnesota 8:00pm
Dec 31 @Chicago 1:00pm

[PaCkFan_n_MD]

More important then winning early this year, is to regain home field advantage. I hate seeing the packers go anything less then 7-1 at home.

[Noodle]

I just don't see us coming out strong right out of the gate this year. As much as I like Green, I don't see him getting on track until after the bye, and I think the pooper and Sam will have their issues as well (pooper with his injury, Samkon with the new system). And, like some other posters noted, I think it will take some time for the O-line to come together.

So that means relying on the passing attack, which I think will be a little raggy at the start. Why? Because Favre missed the minicamp in May, that's why.

So I'm fully prepared for a 2-3 start. But, if the losses are close, I think we'll be set for a solid run the rest of the year.

One side note -- I don't see Clifton as a pro bowl caliber tackle until he reduces those god-awful false starts. He has been brutal on those, and they seem to come at crappy times.

[GBRulz]

More important then winning early this year, is to regain home field advantage. I hate seeing the packers go anything less then 7-1 at home.

Totally agree. I want the days back where playing at home was almost a guaranteed win. THANK YOU SHERMAN

[wist43]

Of those first 5 games before the bye, you've got to figure that the Packers will be underdogs in every game except against New Orleans.

For the first 4 games after the bye, they've got a pretty good shot at going 0-4 in that stretch. Arizona should be much better, Buffalo is a tough place to play on the road, and Minnesota and Miami are clearly much better teams than the Packers.

Never minding the schedule, there is the small reality of a coaching staff that has to learn on the job... Despite the relatively easy schedule, the Packers could very well find themselves 1-8 after nine games.

[cpk1994]

Of those first 5 games before the bye, you've got to figure that the Packers will be underdogs in every game except against New Orleans.

For the first 4 games after the bye, they've got a pretty good shot at going 0-4 in that stretch. Arizona should be much better, Buffalo is a tough place to play on the road, and Minnesota and Miami are clearly much better teams than the Packers.

Never minding the schedule, there is the small reality of a coaching staff that has to learn on the job... Despite the relatively easy schedule, the Packers could very well find themselves 1-8 after nine games.

Vikins clearly better? I don't think so. They have a good OL but they have no RB or WR plus their QB is one hit from retirement. Their defnese still sucks and they have the same situation at HC with the added in headache of learning a COMPLETELY new system. Remember, the Packers arre still running the WCO. The Vikings clearly better? Not by a long shot! Arizona is still Arizona(Denny Green is the coach, so that means no D). I think your 1-8 is laughable.

[SD GB fan]

ya i agree with wist. our schedule isnt exactly as easy as some think. arizona improved a lot and philly shud be bak to playoff form. AFC east teams will be tough. and we probably wont sweep our NFC north teams.

any upgrade over 4-12 will be great. worst case scenario, at least another top 10 pick next year will definitely get us bak in 2007.

but im still excited about this season and i think a lot of players will do well.

predicition: 7-9 or 8-8

[wist43]

I don't think the Packers will be 1-8 after 9 games... but, it's certainly possible.

Arizona has the best WR tandem in the league, throw in Edgerrin James, and if Warner is playing - they are very tough on offense. I think they're defense will be better this year as well.

As for Minnesota, I think their defense is pretty good - Green Bay doesn't have a single player on their roster as good as Kevin Williams - and while their offense may struggle a bit, they do have a solid line, and Johnson isn't going to lose games the way Favre has done the past few years. As much as I hate the Vikings, I think they're better than Green Bay. Childress and McCarthy are total wildcards.

3-6 is probably a realistic record after 9 games... and, as long as they play relatively well, are reasonably competitive, and are showing improvement... I'd be okay with that.

[b bulldog]

7-9 with a 2-0 start

[SD GB fan]

3-6 wud be good. that means they only need to win 1 game out of 7 to meet this years record

but i think we are all shooting for something a lil higher