Toughest Matchup for the Packers?

[swede]

I watched the replay of the game last season last night on the NFL Network and the difference in our defense today compared with last year's is striking. Raji is much more of a force up the middle and T. Williams is now a true cover corner. Shields is head and shoulders better than Bell and Bush back there too. I can't see the Steelers racking up passing yards like they did last time. If I were the Steelers I'd be more fearful of Rodgers and company. In that game Tomlin even opted for a onside kick try rather than trust his D to stop our passing attack. It didn't work and really too quickly did James Jones score yet another TD and gave Big Ben time to move down the field and throw the winning TD pass at the 'gun'.

Dang him to heck!

Good points. I saw the same game and I agree completely.

[pbmax]

Big Bad Ben Worthlessburger's ability to get out of trouble and make plays. That's the challenge. Guys are gonna have to stay in their lanes, which means fewer paths to the QB and more time. And when the Packers blitz, anyone who gets to the QB better hang on to that mofo. Come in under control, grab him, and hang on and wait for help.

I am not sure you need to stay in your lanes. He isn't escaping anywhere. He will just stand and shift in the pocket like Manning. He doesn't run much and when he is rolling, he is usually throwing. The big thing is unlike Manning, if you hit Rothliesberger, he doesn't care. He just stands there. You need a hit and then a second guy. And then a burlap bag and some twine.

[Packers4Glory]

Toughest match ups for the Pack

Offense:

Keeping pressure off Rodgers. Pitt has an awesome pass rush.
Controlling Troy Palamolecule. He is the Woodson of their defense.


Defense:

Not getting gashed w/ the run
Getting Big Ben to the ground
Covering Miller
Staying w/ the WR when the plays break down.


I really hope we see a lot of 4 WR sets and spread those guys out and hit them w/ short quick passes off the blitz. We shouldn't be able to run much against them, so we just gotta stick w/ it enough to make the play action effective.

[Smeefers]

I think stopping the run and forcing Big Ben into throwing into our excellent secondary is the key to success. Our team can put up points in the air against the Steelers D. Can they do the same? I think it's going to be more difficult for them than it will be for us.

[imscott72]

If their starting center is out for less than 50% for this game it will be huge. He's been a monster for their OL.

[mission]

If their starting center is out for less than 50% for this game it will be huge. He's been a monster for their OL.

I'm not sure if he's been a "monster" but he's had a real solid year. That said, I'd much rather have The Garaji go against a rookie with a high ankle sprain than I would him going against a healthy backup.

Say what you will about Pouncey, but he's not playing on the same level as The Garaji. He's going to eat him up if he's hobbled in the slightest.

[HarveyWallbangers]

I like The Freezer more than The Garaji.

[mraynrand]

I like The Freezer more than The Garaji.

Garaji has the virtue of being flexible - For example, if he gains weight he could be the "Three car Garaji"

[AtlPackFan]

I'm going to go with the Steelers front 7 against our OL. Better hope like hell Clifton is 100%. We won't run on them much, and I expect them to come after Arod hard. We can't get him knocked around back there.

I agree totally.

[vince]

It should be interesting. I believe Arod is the highest rated passer in the league against the blitz. He's pretty good beating the blitz, although he probably hasn't seen the likes of the Pittsburgh blitz. We may see more of Jackson than in past games because of his excellent blitz pick-up capabilities.

Wasn't it the Pittsburgh game last year where McCarthy said that Jackson did the best job in blitz pickup of any back he's ever coached?

[Bub]

The O Line will have their work cut out for them this week. In ATL lots of guys came free on blitzes and just missed ARod. Pitt's rushers are a step quicker.

I think we might see less corner blitzes this week from Dom. I'm not sure how effective lil Sammy will be trying to sack the Lady's Man (Ben). Luckily our DLine is actually decent at getting to the QB now that CJenk is all better, and Pitt's OLine is a little banged up (even though they seem to be playing decent). We might need to rely on LB and DL getting Ben down.

Mendenhall (sp?) runs pretty hard. He's no Turner, but not too different than Forte. Fairly quick and has some power. Forte forced us to switch up our D and try to stop him. Luckily for us, the Bears didn't have much luck passing during the first 3 quarters. Forte caught 10 balls out of the backfield. I haven't watched Pitt much this year, but I do recall them having a fairly decent screen game.

[steve823]

Here's a couple matchups I think are key:

The Freezer vs. Steelers Center - Whether it's Pouncey playing healthy or hobbled, or even their backup (who played absolutely horrible vs. the Jets), I expect the Freezer to generate good inside pressure which will be key to bringing down Big Ben. Raji's been on a roll all year and I expect him to come up big again with everything on the line.

Steelers OLB's vs. Clifton/Bulaga - Harrison and Woodley are both great players, especially Woodley who for some reason is not talked about much. Hopefully Clifton will be healthy by game time and can neutralize Harrison or at least slow him down. Woodley vs Bulaga is a scary matchup. Even though Bulaga has played great the past two games only allowing 1 sack, 1 pressure, and 1 hit in both games combined, I still worry about how the rookie can handle one of the elite rushers in the league in Woodley.

Packers front 7 vs Steelers run game - While the Steelers may not have the best pass blocking offensive line, they are good at run blocking and extremely physical in the run game. Add that with the fact that Mendenhall looked nearly unstoppable last week, getting most of his yards after contact and almost 100 yards before halftime. Packers run D is stout in the base 3-4, but Capers likes running the 2-4-5 (his version of it anyways). If we can stop Mendenhall with only two down lineman we will be in great shape , but if Mendenhall and the Steelers start gashing us badly in the run game Capers might have to adjust. Though remember, the defense' first goal is to stop the run so they will definitely focus on shutting it down.

Arod + Wrs vs. Steelers Secondary - When the Packers offense is clicking they can be nearly unstoppable. Luckily, they won't need to be vs Pittsburgh because their cornerbacks are bad and are usually covered up by their pressure/Safety play. Clark is solid, and obviously Polamalu is one of the bests safetys in the game, but if we can exploit their corners in the passing game we'll be in good shape.

Clay Matthews and co. vs. Steelers O-line - Steelers are lackluster at best when it comes to pass protection. Without Big Ben, you can probably add more sacks to what they allow. Clay Matthews will need to generate some pressure and continue to make plays with his favorable matchup, no matter who he faces on the line. If Walden plays he will need to get pressure, or if he can't play then whoever is opposite of Clay will need to step up like the Packers have done all year.

IMO the Steelers 2 biggest weaknesses are their O-line and their CB's. If you can get to Big Ben consistently (and bring him down), and expose their secondary then the Packers could come away with the Lombardi Trophy.

[Cheesehead Craig]

If we can run how we did vs ATL, the play action becomes that much more dangerous as Polamyheadandshoulders will be coming up aggressively to stop the run, which opens up huge areas of the field.

[Tony Oday]

Toughest matchup will be do we put the new Lombardi Trophy right next to the one Favre won or will it try and eclipse ARs trophy?

[HarveyWallbangers]

Though remember, the defense' first goal is to stop the run so they will definitely focus on shutting it down.

That's what they tell us, but Capers propensity to run the nickel on 75% of the plays makes you believe he finds it much more important to shut down opposing passing games. This game might be an exception. Like Atlanta and the Jets, the Steelers have the potential to run it down our throats all day if we don't show we can stop it early, so I think it will be the early focus in this game.