Boy, where to even begin. We cannot remember a Green Bay Packers team being more ill-prepared than what we saw on Sunday night in some time.
Maybe in the 2011 divisional round loss to the New York Giants. I’m sure there were other games, but the amazing thing here is the Packers were coming out of a bye. They are typically totally prepared in that situation and play some of their best football.
This Packers team, somehow, was not. It’s as if the coaches did nothing to address any of the team’s faults during their week off. Nothing new on offense, which really needs a shot in the arm, and the defense just keeps getting worse.
Add it up and you get a 29-10 loss at the hands of a far superior Denver Broncos team.
The bad thing here is, the Packers were pretty much completely healthy for a change. There isn’t someone that will return from injury and make a huge difference.
Rookie receiver Ty Montgomery is the only player who sat out because of injury.
So let’s cut through the fog here and see what’s left from this train wreck.
This game doesn’t matter
Sure, we would all have loved a Packers’ win on Sunday, but this game simply doesn’t mean as much as a tilt against a conference or divisional opponent. If the Packers were going to lose a game, they’re better off losing it to an AFC opponent. No one is going to go through the NFC undefeated and losing to an AFC team means nothing in terms of playoff seeding tiebreakers. If the Packers lose to the Carolina Panthers next week, then they’re going to have a problem claiming home field advantage in the playoffs. That’s the game that they better be prepared for. The current stretch of schedule almost makes us wonder if the coaching staff overlooked this game in order to prepare for next week. We’re not going to suggest they purposely lost this game, but the team clearly wasn’t prepared and bad losses in games such as this one are often just the thing a team needs to refocus and galvanize. Just sayin’.
How about some defensive adjustments?
San Diego gave everyone the blueprint for gashing the Packers defense. Quick throws. The Broncos executed that perfectly and Peyton Manning suddenly looked like he had some life back in his body. Here’s a guy who had been awful all season long. What’s the cure for those ills? Why, facing the Green Bay Packers, of course! Manning threw for 340 yards, his highest total of the season. That wasn’t all. The Broncos running game had been a trash heap all year. What’s the cure for that? Why, facing the Green Bay Packers, of course! C.J. Anderson rushed for 101 yards on 14 carries. Ronnie Hillman added 60 on 19 carries. For Anderson, that’s a season high by nearly 60 yards. And all of this came behind a bad offensive line. How does that happen? Well, the quick throws don’t allow the Packers to generate any pressure. They got no sacks on the evening. And when this defense doesn’t generate pressure, they’re screwed. It’s a defense built on the basis that it will pressure the quarterback and that will cause all kinds of problems. No pressure, no problems. But could Dom Capers adjust somehow? No. The good news is Cam Newton can’t get the ball out as quickly as Phyllis Rivers and Peyton Manning’s corpse.
Changing of the guard?
Maybe you noticed that rookie Jake Ryan got a little time on defense. That came after the Packers pulled Nate Palmer. Palmer blew a coverage and that earned him a little time on the pine. The Packers did put Palmer back into the game, but let’s be honest here. This guy isn’t distinguishing himself in any way. When is the last time you said, “Oh, great play, Nate Palmer!” I’ll answer that for you. Never is the last time you said that. Maybe it’s time to give the rookie a shot.
Plenty of no shows
I’m talking about the Packers defense, which seemed to have a lot of guys who were still on vacation. Where was Julius Peppers? How about B.J. Raji, Mike Daniels or Letroy Guion? Oh, and Morgan Burnett returned to the field. Did you notice? Those five guys I just mentioned combined for eight total tackles. That’s an interesting stat line considering three of those guys are supposed to be team leaders and primary playmakers.
What to do about the passing game
I don’t have the answer, but here’s how pathetic it has become. As you know, Aaron Rodgers threw for only 77 yards. The Packers had a net of 50 yards passing when you factor in the three sacks and yardage lost. The Packers’ leading receiver was Randall Cobb with six catches (not bad) for 27 yards (awful). Only two other players caught more than one pass — Richard Rodgers and James Starks, both of whom caught two balls. Only one guy other than Cobb gained more than 10 yards receiving. That was Rodgers with 16, but considering it took him two catches to gain those yards, that’s also pathetic. Davante Adams — the guy who was supposed to open up the Packers offense — had one catch for eight yards. This might work better if the Packers committed to the running game, but they refuse to do that, so we’ll probably be getting more of the same for a while.
39 Comments
god forbid they go to a quick, short passing game with a few slants…and man, we need a good TE…..
I can’t think of any one thing to fix, this was a shit storm nestled snugly inside of a dumpster fire. I’m just going to blame the mile-high air. If I choose to believe this is how we will play every week, then I’m better off finding a productive hobby and make good use of my Sundays.
This is what I see with Aaron rodgers right now. I see a guy, that is having trust issues with everything. The pass protection was better than it looked for the most part. He looked skittish and seemed to panic a bit early back there. And it doesnt seem like he has much trust in his receivers at the moment. He isn’t being aggressive with the ball or attempting to push it down the field. He isn’t trusting his receivers to make a play on the ball, and isn’t throwing it to them if there is any chance of the pass being contested. That is going to have to stop if they have any shot at all of winning games. This stuff isn’t going to pass. I think there needs to be a focus on getting these players in a position to succeed. Idk if it is an effect of McCarthy not being as involved with the offense or what, but whatever the case, there needs to be an adjustment.
Now is not the time to panic and suggest crazy bullshit. Like firing people, trading clay Matthews for jj watt, and suggesting that a grown ass man soon to be 32 is distracted by his girlfriend. He isn’t 12 years old. Stop with the bullshit. And btw how is that Texans defense doing with JJ watt? Didn’t they give up 35 points in a little over 16 minutes to the dolphins with him on the field?
Unless she is prego/knocked up, that will fuck with you…
People are missing the point. It’s not that losing this game mattered, it’s HOW they lost the game, which was horrific. And nobody is expecting them to go 16-0, but it’s also unrealistic all the people suggesting they won’t even make the playoffs. The answer is in the middle–they’re simply just not as good as the media have led you to believe. It just feels like the last few years. They’ll get into the playoffs, maybe even with a bye, but they’ll face a good team and THAT #12 will show up. Who wants to see that shit in the super bowl? Nobody. Please go out and find a WR and a TE. I get draft and develop in order to stay relevant year after year, but if we get through the career of a guy who is supposedly God’s gift to the QB position and do nothing but fall short, that will be really sad.
Well, thanks for saving me time coming up with a comment. You said it ALL.
A fucking men, saved me time also
Do NOTHING? Isn’t Arodge already in possession of as many SB rings as BF? just maybe he gets lucky and gets one more which displaces the retired no. 4 with no. 12 as the greatest GB QB since Starr?
Wife was barking at me to shut up.. that the players couldn’t hear me shout at them. It was my second run around getting insanely irritated at Palmer and Hayward and the lack of containment on the edge. A few bootlegs later by Manning, wide open TE’s doing crossing routes, the 15 yard run into the endzone that reminded me of watching the Packers lose the Super Bowl to the Broncos RB Davis (inside the Stadium) and I was done.
I turned off the TV.
My Ex-Wife used to say that to me all the time. No big surprise she is my ex.
If she doesnt understand your passion for the game, she doesnt really understand you, or men for that matter. You are in trouble dude.
Sorry for the bad news.
Oh for fucks sake get over yourselves. No team is the same team in the postseason as they are in week 9 of the regular season. Take 2012 baltimore ravens for example. They lost 34-17 to the Broncos in the regular season, and turned around and beat them in 2OT in the playoffs. They were also thoroughly embarrassed by the Texans that year and flacco played awful. What happened? Flacco and the defense got hot and they went on to win the super bowl
uh, didn’t they (the Ravens) fire their OC mid-season that year?
just sayin’…
Embarrassing. Just plain embarrassing. There was absolutely no emotion in that team last night. None!!!! Just
Let’s hope that the week off before the bye was actually spent getting ready the Panthers game. Lose that game and the Super Bowl is basically out of reach and the best thing the Pack can do in 2015 is keep the Vikings from winning the division.
My 5 thoughts
1. Casey Hayward is garbage, the guy didn’t even look like he belonged on the field last night.
2. When is TT going to get us a franchise left tackle? Bahkitari isn’t too undersized and weak. I don’t know how many times I watched 34 year old Demarcus Ware push him back into the pocket.
3. We need someone who is a threat over the middle, we should consider trading for a quality TE. I mean look at how much Gronk opens up NE’s offense.
4. Where the fuck was our receivers last night? There was one play when ARod was sitting in the pocket for 8 seconds! 8 seconds and no one could get any separation. That was an embarrassment.
5. ARod isn’t looking like a leader to me, his whole demeanor last night seemed juvineille. Look at TBrady or any of the other elites. They are on the sideline talking to players, getting them fired up. ARod just sat there and moped on the bench.
I really hope we can get it together, I knew we would lose this one but I didn’t think it would be this lopsided.
Excellent post. Couldnt agree more about Bahkitari. If you rewatch the games he has actually been getting pushed around all year.
Arodge checked out in the early part of the 3rd quarter. Like you said, a real leader doesnt do that. Not sure what that was all about but it worries me.
No way in hell Bak is over 300 pounds. Id bet my balls that he is 285/290 and playing left tackle in the NFL at that weight, you might as well just bury your ass into a grave. TEs suck, when you start hearing, “isn’t Quarless due back soon” that usually means the TE cupboard is bare. I seriously would make a service call to Crabtree right now if I knew he didn’t spend all his days drinking beer and twittering.
I liked Mathews making plays and just get on and disliked Raji pointing his finger when he was in the vincinity of a play.
I agree with all these points.
I don’t pretend to know the reason why, but our receivers don’t seem to be able to get any separation. And I’m not talking just about the Denver game. Meanwhile, Manning was able to throw downfield in that 12-20 yard range to WIDE OPEN receivers. I feel like that’s what I’ve been watching for three or four weeks now. What the hell is happening? Is Jordy Nelson that crucial to an Aaron Rodgers led offense? I confess I don’t recognize any part of our passsing game in recent games. Does McCarthy need to be his own OC again?
“Ted needs to draft a franchise level LT.” Do you have any idea how hard that is to do? Have you not followed the nfl at all? Jake long Eric fischer, Luke joekel, ect. What do all those guys have in common? All were highly regarded LT prospects coming out of college, and drafted in the top 5. And they have all struggled. Even guys like Matt kahlil have struggled recently after having early success. It isn’t that easy to find a Joe Thomas out there. It is about as hard to evaluate LT talent as it is qb talent. Fucking christ you people act like GMs can waive a magic fucking wand and proof there is a top left tackle. Especially when you are drafting at the bottom of the first round year in and year out. I swear I hate GB fans more than any other fans
All of those names you listed for left tackle have all been better than Bahktiari. TT refuses to use a 1st round pick on one, he’d rather settle on having a 4th rounder protect his franchise QB’s blindside. D Bahktiari is a liability in pass protection and doesn’t have enough strength to be a factor in the run game. TT also refuses to draft any corners bigger than 5’10. We need a big corner to shut down big receivers. Or cut Shields and sign a bigger corner, Shields id a No. 2 at best and can’t match up against big receivers like the rest of our secondary. We can only cover fast guys not big.
You nailed it in both posts, Clay. Hayward, Bak,
Tight End, lack of separation–all true. So is
your point about short corners. You only missed
on Nate Palmer–totally inadequate, and the Broncos exploited it to the hilt. But Ted Thompson is a cheapskate. You’re
seeing TT sticking with his “bargains” and his
draft and develop picks-even when they don’t
develop because his own judgement is on the line. TT refuses to trade or pay to plug the holes.
You don’t win the Super Bowl with Nate Palmer
at MLB. You do win the Super Bowl with CJ Mosley
at MLB, but TT refused to do what was necessary
to draft Mosley 2 years ago-he’d rather have his
cheap, lower picks where he can prove HIS
prowess. TT is a real strange duck (just
watch his video appearances). THAT is the
essential problem.
Thank you, i’m glad we are seeing the same thing and I agree with TT being a cheapskate and very weird. He’s like socially awkward ha. Palmer was and is a huge liability, I’m glad you brought that up because I forgot to mention how wide open the middle of the field was for them. I also forgot to mention Hyde keeps looking like he is regressing. I’ve noticed him getting burned by TE the last few weeks. Yes he is smaller than them so I don’t expect him to be able to jam a TE at the line but he keeps getting burned.
Um no? Fischer doesn’t even start on a team with a terrible offensive line. Joekel has struggled.
TT drafted a LT in 2011 in the first round. His name was Derek Sherrod. After 2011 the packers had the worst defense in the league, and so 1st round pick was used on Nick Perry, who after a couple injury plagued years, has been very solid and will likely get a second contract from the team. Sherrod on the other hand, suffered a horrific injury from which he could never come back from, not Thompson’s fault. And Thompson is not going to to draft a tackle every single year, and waiting for one to stick, that’s how a team is ruined. Draft the best player available, not for need. Bahktiari is not bad. He is just an average starter. He struggles from time to time, but the majority of starting nfl left tackles struggle from time to time. He had troubles this last game because the packers quickly got down three scores forcing them to be one dimensional and the Broncos pass rushers could tee off on rodgers. Not to mention Rodgers is one of the hardest qbs to block for because his mobility and his unpredictability as to where he is scrambling.
Elite nfl left tackles don’t grow on trees, and the ones that do come to the nfl are almost always gone in the first 10-15 picks
And Josh Sitton was a 4th rounder. TJ Lang? 4th round. Sure, they’re guards, but they typically perform at an extremely high level.
Good post, Kano.
I think Green Bay was paid off.
However, the tackle position has been fairly soft so far this year. Hopefully they can turn it around. We all know about Bulaga’s MCL, but does Bahk have a lingering injury that he sustained in the preseason?
Yes he has gotten lucky with 4th round interior lineman picks but not any on the edge. And Bak has not been average he has been one of the worst if not the worst left tackle in the league, check PFF if you think I’m wrong. well maybe we should trade up and get one then? Or trade up to get someone elite instead of waiting for them to “fall in our laps”. If ARod had gotten drafted by another team then TT would look like a dumbass by “waiting” for him to fall
What happens if you trade up for who you think is an “elite LT” and they fall flat on their face? The success rate on drafting LTs in the first round isn’t exactly high, do your research. Robert gallery, remember him? If anything I can remember more LT busts in the early first round than successes. Many of them end up converting to right tackle. If you want to take the risk and trade up for one of those guys, you will have to trade up into the top ten, and that will cost multiple draft picks. I love armchair GMs…..
Well pretry much every team that has an elite QB has a good LT to protect their blindside. would you feel better if he picked a potential tackle in the first two rounds or would it make you feel better if we picked a tackle in the 4th-5th round? There is a reason why good tackles go early. I love people that argue just for the sake of the argument….
Big Gay Clay, you said that TT should have drafted an LT in the first round. Which LT should he have drafted, and which first round pick should he have not drafted?
MMK, you said, “They’ll get into the playoffs, maybe even with a bye, but they’ll face a good team and THAT #12 will show up. Who wants to see that shit in the super bowl? Nobody. Please go out and find a WR and a TE.”
Who is “THAT” #12? How did his defense play in those games? I’ve seen some games where #12 did not play up to his usual standards in the Playoffs, but the most glaring problem, I think, has been the defense getting blown up by assholes like Colin fucking Kaepernick. Last year, for example, #12 was playing on one leg, and although he did not have a good game, the Packers were in a position to win. That is, until the botched two point conversion, botched onside kick, and other non-offensive plays such as the interception that could have been returned for more yardage.
And who are the available receiver and tight end TT should go get? What should TT expect to give up in exchange for them?
I agree that last night’s game sucked, and the Packers looked terrible. I’m definitely concerned about the continued lack of production on both sides of the ball. I don’t know what the answer is, but I am skeptical that the answer lies here in this comments section. Let’s hope they get healthy (again) and can pull it together for the big game against the Panthers.
I have no idea why anyone is talking about the LT position. Bakhtiari wasn’t the problem last night. Ware had zero sacks against him. Ware pushed him back some. So what? As long as he stays between Ware and Rodgers, it don’t mean shit.
The Broncos had a reserve at LT last night.
The idea that the Packers should pick up a TE because look what Gronk does is like saying the Packers should pick up a RB because look what Todd Gurley does. Yeah, Gronk is arguably the most physically gifted TE in the history of the NFL. Unfortunately, a guy like him isn’t sitting on the trash heap.
Broncos just picked up Vernon Davis, who probably decided Sunday night that he’d rather go to Denver than Green Bay after that shit show they put on display
Monty,
You hit the nail right on the head.
Palmer has stunk it up all season. He’s slower than a lineman. Give the rookie a chance. Can’t get any worse.
We actually started the game ripping off big chunks of yards running. Then Rodgers took over and struggled. We can’t be afraid to run at the beginning of a game. If we have success, keep pounding the rock. It’s not that our receivers don’t have enough speed to get separation, it’s that they are having trouble fight off the grabs and our routes are predictable. The DB’s can read our route like a book. That’s on the OC. Rodgers and Clements look passive on the sideline when they should be working together to make adjustments. Phillips figured us out and we can’t adjust. Clements needs help.
The fact of the matter is that armchair GMs could do as well or better than Ted Thompson given the same resources and scouting department.
Picking players in a draft or acquiring them through Free Agency is always a crap shoot to some degree because you never know the outcome but I would never blame a real GM who at least tried his best to improve the roster.
And Shawn is the voice of reason as usual. Bahktiari held up real well considering he was facing one of the best pass rushers in nfl and the fact the packers were basically one dimensional from the midway point of the first quarter on. I love when people think they should be nfl GMs when they don’t have a fucking clue
So Kato and Shawn are content with the usual winning season and getting bounced out of the 1st or 2nd round when we have to play teams that are built better than us. Is no one else tired of seeing the same shit every season? I’m just saying we haven’t done much to push this team over the edge, we are almost there just need a few more “proven” players instead of drafting and waiting to see if they pan out. Wake up people we have been doing that for the last 5 years and what has it done for us?
^THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! All those saying its one loss blah blah blah, don’t you get it? You don’t turn a 180 from this shit and win the Superbowl. “Yeah but we almost made it last year..”, yeah but we didn’t. The same shit we saw against the Saints the Pack puled in the last 5 minutes of the NFC Championship. Can’t play defense to save our lives all of a sudden and offense stalls. Sound familiar? Same scenario on Sunday. If we fight for every game and give it our all, it wasn’t meant to be and I can live with that. Year after year winning enough games to make the playoffs and suffering bad losses where the same mistakes happen again and again and then to lay down and die in the first or second round of the playoffs gets old.