Aaron Rodgers hoisting the Vince Lombardi Trophy this year?

[RashanGary]

We've beefed up our OL and DL. We have depth at safety, ILB, DL, WR, TE, OL, RB, QB and FB. We're going to need a few key players to stay healthy (Woodson, Tramon, Matthews, Rodgers). . . .

But all in all we were one of the top 12 teams in the league last year, didn't lose any players of note, very few are declining, several look to be improved in their 2nd and 3rd years. . . I consider it to be good common sense that this team is ascending from an already high level.

The question is, what do we think their chances are?

[HarveyWallbangers]

Talent-wise, we are good enough. Whether you are a champion or not often boils down to chemistry and dumb luck though.

I look at the 96 team, and there were holes, but they had a lot of stars on the team too. Also, we caught lightning in the bottle with Desmond Howard. He had a magical year. Basically, the only one in his pro career. I think we are good enough on offense and defense. Special teams scare me though. Coverage is okay, but we'll need better play on punt returns, a better punter, and a better year from Crosby.

[Tony Oday]

TT STOP WRECKING COLLEDGES CAREER!!!!!


Being serious though. This team has to beat the Vikings. Until that game we really dont know.

[Tarlam!]

This thread is about 8 months premature.

I'm looking forward to a team that does better than start at 4-4. I'm looking forward to a team that beats Rastaks Vikings. Twice. And the Bears. Twice. And the Lions. Twice. They'll have achieved a lot if they sweep the division.

They have a damned tough schedule, maybe the toughest in years. They play NFC East/AFC East. I don't think there's a tougher double out there. Maybe Buffalo is a gift - or a trap game.

I don't underestimate Detroit, either. The damned Bears hate the Packers and always turn up for that duel.

Sorry, this poll/thread is way premature AFAIC. I think the team will be good and have a lot of fight. I don't know if they finish 7-1 with this schedule. They won't have to if they start and finish 6-2.

[Lurker64]

No reason they couldn't, but no reason to expect that they will. They're one of the most talented young teams in the league, with fewer severe holes than a lot of clubs, but a lot of it comes down to luck and momentum two things about which we have no clue at this point.

[swede]

I'd say we are about a 1 in 8 shot of getting to the Super Bowl this year.


And I'd say we're trending up for another 4-5 years, or as long as the healthy AR era lasts. Aaron is the grizzled veteran now. The core is even younger than he is. We will be extremely happy fans if Bulaga, Neal, Burnett, and Starks turn out to be really good players.

If luck holds than it's even odds for us to get to another SB in the next five years.

[Scott Campbell]

I'd say we are about a 1 in 8 shot of getting to the Super Bowl this year.


And I'd say we're trending up for another 4-5 years, or as long as the healthy AR era lasts. Aaron is the grizzled veteran now. The core is even younger than he is. We will be extremely happy fans if Bulaga, Neal, Burnett, and Starks turn out to be really good players.

If luck holds than it's even odds for us to get to another SB in the next five years.

If they hit gold in the draft with more guys that contribute like Mathews, we'll be awesome. Every team has holes. But I don't think we have too many.

[RashanGary]

Obviously I don't know as much about other teams in the NFC, let alone NFL, but here's my thread of logic into why I believe the Packers are a front runner.


The Vikings and Saints were about equal last year in terms of overall quality of team as it relates to winning a championship.

The Packers were not as good as the Vikings last year, but were not all that far off. If the Vikings were a 9 out of 10, the Packers at the end of the season were a 7 out of 10 by my view.


Using the Vikings team as the level we need to achieve to be SB competitors, and using my view of how we compared to them, I think we need to make up a little ground, but nothing extreme.

I think the defense being in it's 2nd year, Matthews and Jones growing in their 2nd years, the addition of the new DL to strengthen and deepen our DL rotation is enough reason to think our defense will be stronger, especially against the pass.

I think Rodgers going into his third year starting, having learned some valuable lessons, Tauscher being 2 years removed from his knee injury and starting the first game, Finley growing in his 2nd year starting and the added depth on our OL is reason to believe our offense will be better and handle injuries better.

Our ST's sucked last year. Can't get much worse is reason for me to believe they almost have to get at least marginally better.

Again, using the logic of how we compared to last years SB competitors, that this years SB winner will be similar in quality to last years and the trend of where our team is heading along with the depth that will help us sustain it. . . .

I'm a healthy offseason and a couple positive signs away from calling this team a front runner. Obviously even the best teams are still relative long shots to win a title, but I love the look of this team. I've been optimistic in the past and felt pretty good, but I think this team is loaded with talent, anchored with stability and a front runner to win it all!!

[Pugger]

I think we have a shot like several other clubs. Every year one or two teams that everyone has penciled in the playoffs has a bad year and one team that stunk out the joint the year before surprises everyone. These factors alone make it difficult to say. We need everyone to either play like they did last year or better and we have to be lucky when it comes to injuries. Often times the healthiest team in December is the one that gels and goes deep in the playoffs.

[Deputy Nutz]

They have a slim shot, and it is not because of the Packers offense. Their defense is going to be the weak link. The Packers simply don't have an answer for teams with a strong passing attack.

I am sorry but I am not betting on rookies to improve the team from one year to the next. The weakness is in the pass rush and in the scheme that Capers runs. The Packers have to get pressure on the QB otherwise the zone will not work, a decent QB is going to shred it because the recievers will have time to get to the pockets in the zone coverage. I can't expect the secondary to play any better than last year, Harris is coming off his first major leg injury, and Woodson was out of his mind last year, and I expect him to come back down to reality, which is still really good. Collins will hopefully improve from last year being in the same defense that relies on it safeties. The Packers unfortunately only have one legit safety on there roster.

I am not as high on Mathews as everyone else. I think he is a good ball player with good instincts, but he doesn't blow me away with his skill on the football field, that can always improve, but when you already have ten sacks by just flying up field at the QB, why change what works. I also expect any OLB in his position on this defense to come close to double digit sack numbers. Well any player that is half way decent. Brad Jones will improve.

The defensive line will probably take a hit at some point when Jolly, who is the most athletic defensive linemen will be suspended for 4 games, unless he gets a fantastic attorney. I don't like the fact that Raji is going to play end, he is a nose tackle a penatrator from the middle. Jenkins has been a disappointment for the most part of his career, and should be replaced.

I predict a season very similar to last year. Maybe they will win a playoff game.

In the division it is really going to depend on whether or not Favre comes back. At this point it is pretty much a given that he is going to suit up again for the Vikings, unless age finally catches up to him I think the Vikings win the North going away. If that happens then the Packers are going to be on the road for the playoffs.

I predict a wild card playoff berth, and a record well over .500 with double digit wins for the Packers.

Packers are going to be more competitve this season in fact I think they win at lambeau against the Favre led Vikings, but they still won't win the division. I expect loses against teams you would expect the Packers to beat. I wouldn't be suprised if they lose to Detroit this year. That is as bold as I will go with my prediction.

North Divison
Vikings 12-4
Packers 11-5
Lions 7-9
Bears 7-9

[retailguy]

I'm looking forward to a team that does better than start at 4-4.

I think that this is the key to the 2010 packers season.

[RashanGary]

Nice post, Nutz.

12-4 for Vikes, 11-5 for Pack. . .

I agree it will be a dog fight and I think a split too, but I flip your results. Favre is declining. Rodgers is ascending. The Vikings have as many aging players they rely on as they do promising young players that look to improve. Because they're declining as fast as they're improving, with Favre they should be about equal.

The Packers finished one behind the Vikes last year. Had they split, the Packers take the division by a game. That's what I think happens this year.

[RashanGary]

I think the biggest reason people become shocked when something happens is that many people look at one data dot and assume future results to be exactly like the singular past dot.


In Nutz' case, the single data-dot he looked at was the Packers getting beat in the air badly by top passing teams. He assumes everything will stay the same.

The problem with that, the two edge rushers were 22 year old rookies. Smart money says they will be better. The back 7 were all in teh first year of a new scheme. Smart money says they'll be better. Raji is coming into his 2nd year. Smart money says he'll be better. They've added a high draft pick to the DL. Smart money say's he'll be better than who he replaced (montgomery).

We'll see how it goes. Are they a team that is plateued or a team that is getting better? Beauty in the eye of the beholder for now. The most angry, belligerent, insulting person will usually win that battle before the results are in. The proof will be in the pudding in a few months. We'll see how it goes.

[Kiwon]

The Packers were so close last year, especially as they had momentum going into the Playoffs.

I think it depends on injuries and the schedule.

It's a crazy game with too many variables to predict. Who could have predicted the way that the Arizona playoff game would have finished last April?

[Brandon494]

I'll wait til after training camp and preseason til we actually know the 53 man roster to make my prediction.