Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews had a thought after his team beat the Atlanta Falcons that should scare the shit out of the rest of the NFL.
The Packers haven’t played their best football yet.
“It’s nice to know that we’re not playing our best ball, yet we’re getting better and at the same time we’re still winning,” Matthews said, “so we’re 5-0, got a chance to go 6-0 and play better ball next week heading in to Week 7 and just continue to develop and progress as a football team.
“That’s what’s encouraging.”
Encouraging indeed.
Anyone that’s watched the Packers this season knows Matthews is right.
While the offense has been hitting on all cylinders, the Packers’ defense started the season slowly. They’ve improved as the season has progressed, but are nowhere near the level they played at last year.
Simply, it hasn’t been necessary and defensive coordinator Dom Capers hasn’t shown opposing offenses a lot of different looks, blitzed heavily or employed a truly aggressive game plan. The second half of the Atlanta game might be the first time all season Capers turned past page three in the defensive playbook. The team’s pass rush has been non-existent at times and Matthews has only one sack on the season.
When you think about it, there’s really nowhere to go but up.
The Packers are already the best team in the NFL. When everything really comes together and they utilize their full playbook, they can, realistically, be even better.