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While reviewing the game book and watching the film of the Green Bay Packers’ 24-15 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, I noticed something strange. Well, it’s not strange from a football standpoint, but it is very much out of the ordinary for Mike McCarthy’s offenses. He added backup C/G Evan Dietrich-Smith as a sixth offensive lineman on four running plays.

Someone will have to let me know if he’s done this before, but I don’t ever remember McCarthy adding an offensive lineman as an eligible receiver for the running attack. He came to this team with the idea of implementing the zone blocking scheme, and it’s been nothing but a point of contention among fans ever since. Our fearless leader, “Jersey” Al, pointed out the fact that he’s been pulling guards lately, making this new development a rather interesting expansion of the running game.

Here are the four plays where Evan Dietrich-Smith (#62) reported as eligible against the Jaguars:

This is the only time in the first half where EDS plays as eligible. My guess would be that, before going back to it, McCarthy wanted to get a look at not only the execution, but also how the Jaguars would respond to it.

In this instance, the Packers are lined up in a Unit Wing formation before EDS motions left and puts them into a formation that I’m not sure what to call. He’s playing a wingback role, but lined up inside behind the tackle and guard.  Read more... (950 words + 1 image, estimated 3:48 mins reading time)

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There’s nothing worse than missing a game where the Green Bay Packers lose. Yes, it saves some heartache and keeps the remote control from flying across the room, but it’s disheartening to know that, when I go back and watch it, I’m only going to be disappointed. The one silver lining, however, is that the emotion has taken its course, and I can look at things a little more objectively.

With this in mind, I already knew what to look for when the Green Bay Packers dropped an 18-point halftime lead over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. I had to figure out what changed between the two halves of play and why things started going south. A lot of blame was passed around in the 24 hours following the loss, but I wanted to draw my own conclusions with the tape to back up my claims.

And what did I find? While I agree with “Jersey” Al that the offense deserves a lot of the heat, I don’t think I can point my finger directly at the play calling. And though Adam Czech is correct in pointing out the missed scoring opportunity at the end of the first half, I think there’s more to it than that. In fact, what I discovered was a lot of little things that added up to big problems. There was no one consistent failure, but multiple mistakes and drive-killers that allowed the Colts to make an historic comeback.

Dropped Passes by the Usual Suspects  Read more... (1472 words + 1 image, estimated 5:53 mins reading time)

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The Packers must find the quickest route to get back on their winning ways

In most any situation in life, be it a movie, fight, game, etc.,  there is a turning point.  At five games into this season and with two tough road games coming up, the Green Bay Packers face just that.  Some may say it’s too early to see it that way, but this sport is about momentum and the Pack need to shift it in the positive direction now.   If this isn’t THE turning point, it’s the beginning of it.

A 2-3 record is hardly a “game over” scenario.  Even if they aren’t able to overtake the Houston Texans  next week, there is still plenty of time for this team to make good on the 2012 season.

That said, it won’t come by continuing some of the things this team has done through five games.  It bears repeating that the definition of insanity is continuing to do the same thing and expecting a different outcome.  The Pack need to realistically consider some different options to help turn this thing in the right direction.

There were many takeaways from this game but a few that really stood out:

Pass Rush

Dom Capers likes to put the defense in the zone coverage when the Pack get a healthy lead and opponents start throwing a lot.  It’s sometimes referred to as the ‘bend but don’t break’ defense.  Well, it’s broken.   Even when the Packers blitzed in the 2^nd half today, they couldn’t get there.  They had some success in the first half but seemingly ran out of gas and were sending only four rushers at the end of the game.  Read more... (909 words + 3 images, estimated 3:38 mins reading time)

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The Green Bay Packers receivers may not have room for one more.

Earlier in the offseason, I examined a couple ways the Green Bay Packers could shuffle around the 53-man roster to make room for six wide receivers. Both Diondre Borel and Tori Gurley are making a strong push to make the final cut, and the possibility is certainly there. Today, however, I’m going to play the Devil’s advocate and present a few reasons why the Packers won’t even decide to keep that extra receiver.

1. Offensively Useless

First and foremost, there simply isn’t room for a sixth wide receiver in the offense. The maximum number of receivers you can have in a given play is five, and it’s highly doubtful Mike McCarthy would line up Borel or Gurley in place of one of the “Top 5.” He’s going to put the best talent on the field, and that’s not going to include numero seis on the depth chart. Plus, according to the “Football Outsiders Almanac 2012,” the Packers offense lined up in a 4+ WR set on just 7% of their snaps.

Some might counter that having a sixth receiver provides good depth if someone were to get injured; however, we have to remember that tight ends also play a factor. Jermichael Finley and perhaps even D.J. Williams make the issue of depth a little moot. On top of that, the practice squad is always there in case of dire emergencies.

2. Special Teams Factor  Read more... (928 words + 1 image, estimated 3:43 mins reading time)

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Packers Tight End DJ Williams

The Packers have been practicing since Thursday of last week, and while it’s far too early to start shaping the final roster, a handful of players have people raising their eyebrows.

Can these three guys keep it going? Or will they wash out like so many other players who were superstars in late July, but duds in September?

D.J. Williams, TE

Instead of just lifting weights and doing cardio, Clay Matthews stepped outside of the box to get bigger and better after his rookie season. Matthews took up mixed martial arts training and went on to have a breakout second season. Apparently, Williams stepped outside the box this offseason, too…and into the cow pasture. The second-year TE says he’s gotten stronger thanks to an offseason cow-wrestling regimen back in his home state of Arkansas. Williams seems serious about it too, describing his technique in detail and talking about how he just tries to “not get hurt or die” when showing these cows who is the superior grappler. Well, Williams has always been known more as a receiver than a blocker. If suplexing ‘Ol Bessie rounds out his game a little, cool. Just keep him away from Aaron Rodgers. I don’t want No. 12 getting any goofy ideas about how he should spend his next offseason.  Read more... (693 words + 1 image, estimated 2:46 mins reading time)

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Aaron Rodgers in Packers Training Camp

The Packers held another early morning (8:15AM)  practice this morning, this time in the Don Hutson Center. Thanks to some heavy train during the night, the Packers moved the practice indoors, much to the dismay of fans who had come hoping to watch the activities.

Desmond Bishop was confirmed to have a calf strain suffered last weekend, but exactly how is still a mystery. First reports were that it happened in a training session, but there is new speculation he may have hurt it while participating in a golf tournament last weekend. Wherever it happened, it’s an injury that can be hard to completely shake and could cause him problems during the season, as it did last year.

Jermichael Finley did not participate in drills today, having suffered a mild concussion in yesterday’s practice. It had been reported that he suffered it on a hit by Tramon Williams as he was catching a low pass. My question is, what kind of hitting are DFBs/WRs doing while they’re just in shells? Seems strange to me.

Jarrett Bush was still at starting cornerback ahead of Sam Shields, eliciting a flood of debate on twitter, with some blasting this move and others coming to Bush’s defense.  The topic was covered very nicely today from all angles over at AcmePackingCompany.  Read more... (907 words + 3 images, estimated 3:38 mins reading time)

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Packers RB Brandon Saine

Packers running back Ryan Grant is set to hit the open market and, in my opinion, likely won’t return to Green Bay. Once Grant signs elsewhere, get ready for a segment of Packers fans to start clamoring for Ted Thompson to sign or draft Grant’s replacement.

If a RB high on Thompson’s draft board is out there, he very well could draft him, but don’t expect Thompson to reach for a RB based on a perceived need. And if you’re holding your breath that Thompson will sign a name free agent RB or trade for one, exhale now. If a RB comes to the Packers from a different team, it’ll be a guy that nobody has heard of, like Grant was.

Don’t be surprised if Thompson rolls with the RBs currently on the roster. If he chooses that route, it shouldn’t worry Packers fans at all.

James Starks had a disappointing and injury-filled 2011, but he showed he had the talent to be a competent every-down back if he can stay on the field. Hopefully a full offseason builds Starks’s endurance and makes him a stronger player. It’d be nice if he learned to be a little more decisive, too.

Brandon Saine’s main job was catching swing/screen passes, building a head of steam, and plowing forward after initial contact. The undrafted rookie seems versatile and able to do a variety of things out of the backfield, sort of like Grant. We know way too little about Saine to declare him anything but a longshot, but with some seasoning in pass protection, I could see him as a third-down back.  Read more... (636 words + 1 image, estimated 2:33 mins reading time)

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