"CRITICAL OFFSEASON"...sniff sniff....Change is in the Air

[rbaloha1]

Te'o is not a lunge tackler, although he looked that way at times in that game. The entire ND defense was behind the playing speed of that game, not unlike an NFL rookie is at first. Consequently, Te'o was shown to be lunging a few times in that game because he was behind and slightly out of position, or was trying to go around or over D-lineman that were pushed back into him or on the ground in his way. That has not been his normal tackling style for four years as a starter.

I think Te'o will adapt to the speed of the NFL, and he is more than willing to play a physical style of play. No LB will play well when his own D-linemen are pushed completely into his path to a ball carrier.

The overall difference in team speed and skill in that game was tremendous, and consequently it blunted the performances of even the better players on ND.

That said, I have no strong feelings for or against the Packers taking Te'o.

Well stated. Its too bad to many posters only look at a few highlights/lowlights to make definitive statements.

Trust me Teo you will like Teo as a Packer if it happens.

[Patler]

Actually, this year, after they went to the Patler lineup, I thought their performance got noticeably better. Doesn't explain slow starts and Bulaga's down year even before the injury, but they jelled late. The pass rush issues late in the 49er game were a one dimensional offense being forced to call the absolute correct protection to guard against Willis' delayed blitzes.

It seemed pretty obvious that without Lang at LG they were much weaker there, and due to ability or injury Lang was not playing well at RT. Might as well go to one weakened position rather than two. The move to EDS for Saturday seemed to be an upgrade as well.

The problem is, they will probably start like crap next year, too.

I thought the O-line played well against the 49ers. I was commenting collectively for this season, and for seemingly every season since MM came. Maybe its the whole zone to modified zone schemes they have used, maybe its Campen, I don't know. What I do know is that every year has been the same, poor starts, OK finishes and a lot of inconsistency in between.

[sharpe1027]

I thought the Oline had a very hard time forming a pocket against the 49ers. Too many times the tackles were pushed into Rodger's lap, barely giving him room to throw. There were several times that Rodgers had good protection, but it was not consistent enough to sustain good drives.

[red]

when i watched the patriots yesterday it became painfully obvious just how far our o-line has to go.

brady gets forever to throw, and he never has to worry about stepping up or out to avoid a guy in order to make a pass

i agree patler, campen is the main problem, the line has never performed well since he's been coach

[Bossman641]

It seemed pretty obvious that without Lang at LG they were much weaker there, and due to ability or injury Lang was not playing well at RT. Might as well go to one weakened position rather than two. The move to EDS for Saturday seemed to be an upgrade as well.

The problem is, they will probably start like crap next year, too.

I thought the O-line played well against the 49ers. I was commenting collectively for this season, and for seemingly every season since MM came. Maybe its the whole zone to modified zone schemes they have used, maybe its Campen, I don't know. What I do know is that every year has been the same, poor starts, OK finishes and a lot of inconsistency in between.

Yes yes and yes.

Going back to the early part of the year, I don't understand why we can't run and more specifically why we can't run right. We've been told again and again how Sitton is a brawler and one of the better guards in the league. This was supposed to be Bulaga's coming out year. Was Saturday single-handedly holding back the run game?

Even against SF, the niners rushed 5 on only 2 dropbacks. That's a slap in the face to the OL.

[run pMc]

Rodgers was sacked 51 times this year.
GB's line is mediocre compared to the rest of the league. Comparing to SF's is tough because they have a very good OLine and (with Justin Smith) DLine.
GB's squad looks good compared to CHI's OLine, so it's relative.

I've been unhappy with Campen in the past but it seemed like the last 2-3 years the line's gotten better...maybe that's just the talent improved but not the coaching.

There are questions with this line, mainly about the LT and C spots IMO.
Can Sherrod play, does Newhouse hold the spot, or does Datko surprise everyone?
Is EDS is the answer at C?

I thought the DL played worse than the OL against SF.

[pbmax]

when i watched the patriots yesterday it became painfully obvious just how far our o-line has to go.

brady gets forever to throw, and he never has to worry about stepping up or out to avoid a guy in order to make a pass

i agree patler, campen is the main problem, the line has never performed well since he's been coach

But if you saw the first three quarters of the Patriots versus the 49ers, you might come to the alternate conclusion.

[pbmax]

It seemed pretty obvious that without Lang at LG they were much weaker there, and due to ability or injury Lang was not playing well at RT. Might as well go to one weakened position rather than two. The move to EDS for Saturday seemed to be an upgrade as well.

It was a bit odd. Because EDS played more effectively last year filling in for Lang. He was not lock up guy, but he performed pretty well. But he struggled mightily in one of his starts at LG.

[Patler]

It was a bit odd. Because EDS played more effectively last year filling in for Lang. He was not lock up guy, but he performed pretty well. But he struggled mightily in one of his starts at LG.

I have to admit, when Bulaga went down, I thought EDS at LG would work OK, but it didn't. I read an article somwhere, by a writer who said he went back and looked at the EDS games at guard last year, and came to the conclusion that he had not played nearly as well as it might have seemed. The offense was just clicking so well overall in 2011that they were able to overcome it. Not the same this year when the offense overall was not as good.

[King Friday]

As I have wanted for YEARS...a RB that is a threat both as a runner and as a receiver would be a huge benefit to this offense. The Packers haven't had a guy like that since Ahman was here. That kind of back forces the defensive front seven to pay attention to him and makes it easier for the OL to gain an advantage. Part of our ineffectiveness as a rushing offense has been a lack of talent at RB. It is time to fix that. Even with the slight pickup we saw in the 2nd half of the year, I still think we need a big upgrade there.

[woodbuck27]

Silverstein gets an "F" for proposing a theory, then supporting it with facts.
He proposed that TT has leaned away fron acquiring physical players, then identifies four acquired in the last two years that do appear to be physical types. Unfortunately, all four had their seasons impacted greatly by injuries.

For some reason, the Packers can't seem to catch a break on defense with the health and performance of players:

Justin Harrell comes on board with some very interesting skills and natural gifts, but never gets on the field due to injury after injury.

Johnny Jolly shows a real presence on the DL, a performance many people said was worthy of the Pro Bowl, and he gets himself suspended, apparently for life.

Tramon Williams has a year that causes people to mention him among the best cover-corners in the league, then has an injury that completely takes away his style of play last year, and seemed to change him even this year.

Nick Collins developed to the point of meriting mention with the best safeties in the game today, and has his career ended by mere inches on a freak injury.

Davon House looks like the all-around CB the defense needs for a while in preseason, and goes down to injury that takes away his role.

Desmond Bishop waits years, then finally makes a real physical impact as a starter, gets injured and now has to be considered a question mark for next year.

Mike Neal, another high draft pick, loses two years of development to injuries, then gets himself suspended for the start of this season.

Nick Perry, another first rounder, hardly has a chance to make an impact his rookie season before going on IR. Unfortunately, the better part of a year's on-field experience in converting to LB is lost.

Sam Shields up and down career seems to reach a new level, and he loses a big chunk of his first season as a starter to injury.

Clay Matthews' ongoing hamstring concerns finally cost him significant playing time this year. This has been a continual issue since his rookie year, what will the future bring for him?

Manning, Smith, McMillan all could have had larger roles this season, but circumstances denied them their opportunities.

The defensive roster just can't seem to develop the cohesion it needs.

Solid post and analysis. Of course you realize that noone's finding fault in our hard exits from the last two playoffs because of anything Ted Thompson.

We overcame adversity somehow in 2010-11 to win a Super Bowl. That kind of success in the NFL, under similiar conditions, cannot reasonably be expected.

[RashanGary]

You make it sound like Capers is a robot programmed to make certain calls in certain situations. Roman was with Capers two decades ago. Aikman turned an old personal history into an explanation for a systemic failure in the Packers defense. Don't take him too seriously.

Let's face it, to have a great defense, you need great players. Nick Collins was a great player in 2010. Charles Woodson was. Raji and Clay were. . . . We had 4 studs that year. Collins hits like a linebacker and runs like a corner. Matthews covers and tackles in space like a 230lb 4-3 LB or big SS and plays the run/rushes the passer like a probowl DE. He could probably play safety and be good at it. Raji was a gap shooting machine in 2010. Size of a NT with agility of an end. Woodson played his slot position as well as it can be played in 2010. Could cover like a good corner and was elite in every way an inside player can be elite. . . .

We had guys who were bigger, faster, stronger. . . .


This year we had two guys. Matthews and possibly Raji, depending on how you think of him.


If I'm GM of the Packers (and thank god I'm not ) I would want a superstar inside player with crazy game speed. Nick Collins or Patrick Willis would be the ideal players for our team. We not only need toughness inside, but we need speed to keep up with the new breed of NFC QB. Casey Hayward, IMO, has star potential. One more superstud, an inside player, I think would be enough to put us in the elite defensive category (and that's assuming Hayward turns into an elite ball hawk inside (something that's far from proven.)

Long story short, Thompson has his work cut out for him, and Capers pretty much is taking the blame for somethings that were just bad circumstance (losing Collins) and other things that just weren't good enough (Thompson not getting star players to replace Wood and Collins. It's a tough job, but if the Packers want to win SB's, TT is going to have to be the best GM in football. Unfortunately, that's not an easy thing to be. . . . We might not win another, and TT might be gone a few years from now. We might win another, and he could retire on his terms. Players win football games, and now Thompson has to show his mettle once again. It's all on him.

[RashanGary]

If a coach has a crock-pot and his job is to make chicken salad out of chicken-shit, well, I'd call that a crock-of-shit. Ask any chef, he can make something taste better, but he's not going to win any awards without the right ingredients. Give one cook a pile of frozen perch, and another one fresh lake perch caught within the last 12 hours, and whether you're the better cook or not, you're going to lose with the lower quality fish. The NFL isn't about making something taste better, it's about being the best. The Packers just don't have the best talent.

And let's face it, when everyone is so damn good at what they do in the NFL, it takes some good breaks too. Credit to SF for Kaepernick, Willis, J Smith, A Smith, D Gholston, Gore, Crabtree, etc. . . . . They have studs, and they got them on their own account. But Willis could have lost his career the same way Collins did, and we could both be in the same boat right now. One year is just that, one year. A GM has to be good year after year after year and like TT says, "the proof will be in the pudding" or crock-pot, or whatever the fuck analogy you want to use.

[Smeefers]

As I have wanted for YEARS...a RB that is a threat both as a runner and as a receiver would be a huge benefit to this offense. The Packers haven't had a guy like that since Ahman was here. That kind of back forces the defensive front seven to pay attention to him and makes it easier for the OL to gain an advantage. Part of our ineffectiveness as a rushing offense has been a lack of talent at RB. It is time to fix that. Even with the slight pickup we saw in the 2nd half of the year, I still think we need a big upgrade there.

I agree, but in order to have a back like that, you still have to be willing to commit to the running game, and a 75%-25% approach isn't going to do it. Until the packers make the running back position a priority, it doesn't matter who we have in there. Some guy who was selling cars a couple months back will do. Why? because nobody cares about the run. They'll play pass every down and dare us to beat them with the run... which we won't, because we can't. It's the reason why everyone flipped their shit and got excited when we picked up Cedric Benson. A credible threat that we might actually use turns our offense into a supreme threat.

Passing may be the way to go in this league, but if you completely abandon the running game, you're not going to be able to toss the ball consistently. The two parts of the offense go hand in hand. I'm not saying we a 50-50 balanced attack, I'm just saying we need something.

[Smeefers]

If a coach has a crock-pot and his job is to make chicken salad out of chicken-shit, well, I'd call that a crock-of-shit. Ask any chef, he can make something taste better, but he's not going to win any awards without the right ingredients. Give one cook a pile of frozen perch, and another one fresh lake perch caught within the last 12 hours, and whether you're the better cook or not, you're going to lose with the lower quality fish. The NFL isn't about making something taste better, it's about being the best. The Packers just don't have the best talent.

And let's face it, when everyone is so damn good at what they do in the NFL, it takes some good breaks too. Credit to SF for Kaepernick, Willis, J Smith, A Smith, D Gholston, Gore, Crabtree, etc. . . . . They have studs, and they got them on their own account. But Willis could have lost his career the same way Collins did, and we could both be in the same boat right now. One year is just that, one year. A GM has to be good year after year after year and like TT says, "the proof will be in the pudding" or crock-pot, or whatever the fuck analogy you want to use.

If San Fran had the injuries we had and we had the injuries they had, it would have been an interesting match up.

I honestly think how well we did through the season with the talent we had on the field is amazing. There's a lot of teams out there who wouldn't even compete if they had the names go down that we did. I mean seriously, take away all SF's RB's, half their line, remove their safety and corner for most of the year, take out half their LB's and half their back ups on the DL and see how they turn out.