Game thread packers- colts

[Fritz]

I thought Jones had a better game than Nelson.

[HarveyWallbangers]

This just tells me Jones has the right mentality to be a playmaker in this league. Jordy is a happy-to-be-here kinda guy and that's good, teams need these guys too. Fire, passion and a little 'fuck you' go along way in being at the top of what you do. I think Jones and Jennings will be big for ARod over the next 5+ years.

You can have good players with all types of attitude. Nelson is more like Driver and Jennings. Jones is more like Finley. I don't think either one is the "right" attitude. However, the point is: if it doesn't really matter who is labeled #3, then the coaches aren't going to upset the apple cart. The proof will be in how many snaps each guy plays this year. I'm betting it will be similar--although Nelson will have a few fewer catches because he'll get more snaps in run formations because of his superior blocking (which is a part of a WRs game also).

[channtheman]

Burnett did well to catch the ball but I'm not sure that he was playing the coverage correctly. I think he was supposed to take the slot receiver, Austin Collie, instead of jumping Garcon's route. If Manning had seen how open Collie was, he had an easy 6 and Burnett is looking like a total rookie.

I am not sure either but it is one of the plays I want to look at again on my DVR. It did look like the cover rolled to that side of the field presnap with Burnett moving up to jam the slot and jump the WR.

It actually looked like the CB and Burnett switched coverages on the receivers. It looked like Burnett came up and acted like he was going to cover the slot receiver but then jumped the short route on the outside. It looked pretty sweet, and I hope it was a designed play.

[Smidgeon]

Some thoughts:

I thought BJacks blocking was excellent, I also thought he ran it pretty well up until the point he put it on the ground.

I'm not nearly as talented as watching players off the ball, so thanks for the insight to those of you who do.

From what I could tell Raji was a solid contributor.

I really HATE the officials positioning. It completely interferes with the flow of the game. I got sick of the announcers going on and on about it, but the officials should not hinder the game. An offense should be able to operate on its own terms and snap the ball at any point during the play clock. Put a helmet of sort on the official and possible some light pads and call it good.

Grant was running as hard as I've ever seen him run.

It seemed like the o-line and second string o-line gave really solid pass protection, but didn't open up a lot on the run.

I saw Quinn Johnson with at least one nice block.

Is it Nelson or Jones who is number 3?

Harris to Williams is a big fall off.

But for you who break down games better than I, how did Quinn Johnson, Harrell and Raji play?

Fixed.

[MichiganPackerFan]

I really HATE the officials positioning. It completely interferes with the flow of the game.[/color] I got sick of the announcers going on and on about it, but the officials should not hinder the game.

Fixed.

Ahh yes, my emphasis was severely lacking. A couple years back when I had to hit a sports bar in Michigan for the games, I would take my BlackBerry with the free NFL application and listen to the radio broadcast. With announcers like that, I must consider going back to that.

[SkinBasket]

Burnett did well to catch the ball but I'm not sure that he was playing the coverage correctly. I think he was supposed to take the slot receiver, Austin Collie, instead of jumping Garcon's route. If Manning had seen how open Collie was, he had an easy 6 and Burnett is looking like a total rookie.

I am not sure either but it is one of the plays I want to look at again on my DVR. It did look like the cover rolled to that side of the field presnap with Burnett moving up to jam the slot and jump the WR.

Maybe I have the rose colored glasses on but I thought Burnett just read his eyes...if THAT is true Look the F out!

True dat! Bigby couldn't even read a stop sign. Upgrade!

[mraynrand]

Burnett did well to catch the ball but I'm not sure that he was playing the coverage correctly. I think he was supposed to take the slot receiver, Austin Collie, instead of jumping Garcon's route. If Manning had seen how open Collie was, he had an easy 6 and Burnett is looking like a total rookie.

I am not sure either but it is one of the plays I want to look at again on my DVR. It did look like the cover rolled to that side of the field presnap with Burnett moving up to jam the slot and jump the WR.

Maybe I have the rose colored glasses on but I thought Burnett just read his eyes...if THAT is true Look the F out!

True dat! Bigby couldn't even read a stop sign. Upgrade!

O Ye of little faith! Bigby the Messiah will save you come midseason!

[Fritz]

I've never put Nelson ahead of Jones. Nelson is too straight line.

Jones is just going to make more plays.

Haven't chimed in a lot this thread but I think Mike Neal looked like a beast last night and Shields should make more plays on those near-misses as he gets used to the speed of the game and his overall 'feel' on the field. He definitely is showing more than Bush, even with the completions around him. He's close, he can be good some day. If we're going to have some mistakes anyway, I'd much rather them be with personnel that have the ability to make up for it with turnovers.

Where's CJ Wilson been? Have heard nothing about him. Definite PS material IMO. I think 91 makes this team even with the bad stretch of plays that TPB described.

I don't think Zombo is as good or as bad as the differing opinions think. He has a motor and definitely doesn't stop, looks good in his drops and makes immediate break on the ball for short gain tackles. Looked a lot more smooth in zone coverage than AK ever did. Doesn't quite have the bulk that I'd like to see but he'll probably make the team and he's earned it. Don't think he can touch a healthy Jones at this point in his career.

Did he pull out his schvantz on the field last night? I missed that! Hope Goodell doesn't suspend him.

[SkinBasket]

About time you brought that back around you big homo. I didn't want to have to try to search for it.

[RashanGary]

You can have good players with all types of attitude. Nelson is more like Driver and Jennings. Jones is more like Finley. I don't think either one is the "right" attitude. However, the point is: if it doesn't really matter who is labeled #3, then the coaches aren't going to upset the apple cart. The proof will be in how many snaps each guy plays this year. I'm betting it will be similar--although Nelson will have a few fewer catches because he'll get more snaps in run formations because of his superior blocking (which is a part of a WRs game also).

I kind of agree here. Jones is better at getting open. He has a suddenness to his game that Nelson doesn't. Once he catches it, that same suddenness helps him quickly elude would be tacklers. And he's strong.

On the other hand, Jordy is our best blocking WR. Jordy was being used as the ONLY receiver in our first unit jumbo packages and he layed a couple fantastic blocks. He's also incredibly useful as a blocker on special teams.

Jones seems to have a bad attitude about special teams. He's not a great blocker whether that be because of attitude or not, I don't know.

Catching passes though, the guy who I think will have the more prolific career is James Jones. He's just more of a playmaker. If I had to have one or the other on my team, I'd take Jones.

[packerbacker1234]

You can have good players with all types of attitude. Nelson is more like Driver and Jennings. Jones is more like Finley. I don't think either one is the "right" attitude. However, the point is: if it doesn't really matter who is labeled #3, then the coaches aren't going to upset the apple cart. The proof will be in how many snaps each guy plays this year. I'm betting it will be similar--although Nelson will have a few fewer catches because he'll get more snaps in run formations because of his superior blocking (which is a part of a WRs game also).

I kind of agree here. Jones is better at getting open. He has a suddenness to his game that Nelson doesn't. Once he catches it, that same suddenness helps him quickly elude would be tacklers. And he's strong.

On the other hand, Jordy is our best blocking WR. Jordy was being used as the ONLY receiver in our first unit jumbo packages and he layed a couple fantastic blocks. He's also incredibly useful as a blocker on special teams.

Jones seems to have a bad attitude about special teams. He's not a great blocker whether that be because of attitude or not, I don't know.

Catching passes though, the guy who I think will have the more prolific career is James Jones. He's just more of a playmaker. If I had to have one or the other on my team, I'd take Jones.

I agree on Jones. Since he arrived here, he has steadily improved his game to the point where he just has the makeup of a play maker. Great body build, and a very good route runner. He just seems to know how to get open. The TD catch was a perfect example - that is something that is hard to teach. You need to be on the same page with the QB, the QB has to trust you, and you need to do everything right in that situation to be open for that pass, or it could lead to a easy pick.

It wasn't much. but it was masterful in how he created enough space for the catch.

He has a bit of "I want the ball" syndrome like many WR's get, but I think he also understands that he isn't a starter yet. He seemed perfectly content until we drafted jordy nelson, as he felt the packers were trying to replace him. He is in line I think to replace Driver, and I think he is the one most likely to be able to do the things driver does for us.

Nelson to me seems like a great slot type wr - the sort of guy you want in a wes welker role. No need to be a great route runner, just use your speed, run across the middle, catch and turn the burners on.

We have a great situation, and when the time comes to replace Driver as the starter, most likely at the end of his contract unless his play declines, it will be Jones stepping in (assuming we kept him around) and I cross my fingers that nelson is still around for our slot. If not, I am sure we'll find someone.

Both WR's have looked good, but only Jones to me has shown the "ability" to make plays in big situations.


As for Zombo, one thing I like about him is he seems to have the nonstop motor that Kampman had. AK coming in was not really a great DE, but he became great because he just wouldn't stop playing hard. All game long, every play, and by the time the 4th quarter came, he was just simply beating the tackles. As time moved on, he becamse better at the technical standpoint and started getting even more pressures earlier in games.

ZOmbo isn't fantastic at anything. He isn't speedy, he isn't a great blitzer, he isn't the best zone or man to man guy, but he is average at them all, none really being weaker than the other, and he just doesn't quit. Guys like that can really develop well. They usually carry the right attitude, understand their limitations, and just keep grinding it out.

He could either become a great LB in 3 years for us, or a solid backup. I really do like Brad Jones, but there are some concerns with him.

[HarveyWallbangers]

I kind of agree here. Jones is better at getting open. He has a suddenness to his game that Nelson doesn't. Once he catches it, that same suddenness helps him quickly elude would be tacklers. And he's strong.

On the other hand, Jordy is our best blocking WR. Jordy was being used as the ONLY receiver in our first unit jumbo packages and he layed a couple fantastic blocks. He's also incredibly useful as a blocker on special teams.

Jones seems to have a bad attitude about special teams. He's not a great blocker whether that be because of attitude or not, I don't know.

Catching passes though, the guy who I think will have the more prolific career is James Jones. He's just more of a playmaker. If I had to have one or the other on my team, I'd take Jones.

Cool. We agree on something other than Aaron Rodgers.


Like Brandon Jackson, there's something about Jones this year that I really like that I didn't see in previous years. Maybe his injuries sapped whatever speed he had last year, but his straight line speed seemed slower than Finley last year. This year he looks quicker to me. Personally, I can see Nelson oozing potential too. I like the way that when he catches the ball, how he spins and seems to get out of the first tackle, but this preseason there's always been a second player around to bring him down. I think he has nice balance running the ball, and I wouldn't be surprised if he has a couple of plays where he breaks a tackle and busts it long. Jones has that nice shake and bake where be jukes defenders out of their jocks. My main problem with Jones has been that he hasn't always played as physical as his body type and he hasn't always caught the ball well--despite having the ability to make phenomenal catches. Maybe that was concentration, and he's matured. Looks like less of a problem this year. I like these two. I honestly think both could be decent starters for several teams.

[RashanGary]

I like Nelson because he brings something a little different than the other guys. He's such a good blocker. If you line up with:

Nelson/Finley/Lee/Quinn Johnson/Ryan Grant

You are looking at a jumbo group. Lee's a solid blocking TE. Finley isn't horrible at blocking. Nelson is a great blocking WR. Quinn Johnson is a great blocking FB. Ryan Grant is a good short yardage back. . .


Nelson could get some deep bombs out of this look. His long speed is fantastic. If he gets off the line quickly, I could see a few play actions where safeties bite hard at the play action and Nelson runs right past the defense for a Rodgers, bomb, belt moment.