Category Archives: Special Teams

Articles about the Green Bay Packers Football team – Special Teams

28

January

Alex Green: 2011 Green Bay Packers Evaluation and Report Card

Alex Green

Alex Green

1) Introduction: After limping through the 2010 season at running back, the Packers decided to use their third round pick last April on Hawaii’s Alex Green. A one-cut-and-go type runner with receiving skills, Green was seen as an ideal player to pick up on third downs where departed free agent Brandon Jackson left off.

 

2) Profile:

Alexander Denell Green

Position: RB
Height: 6-0
Weight: 225 lbs.
AGE: 23

Career Stats

 

3) Expectations coming into the season: The expectation when Green was drafted was that of a third down back who could block in pass protection and make a defender or two miss in the open field. Some optimistic observers even thought that Green could steal carries from Ryan Grant and/or make the veteran back expendable.

4) Player’s highlights/low-lights: The somewhat-lofty expectations for Green were never realized in Year 1. He was a healthy scratch in three of the first seven games, then blew out his knee on a kick return in Minnesota. Green did have one third down catch and conversion in Atlanta that eventually led to points. In seven games, Green had just three carries for 11 yards and one catch for six.

27

January

Andrew Quarless: 2011 Green Bay Packers Evaluations and Report Card

Andrew Quarless

Andrew Quarless

1) Introduction: When the Packers drafted Quarless in the fifth round of the 2010 draft, few thought his impact on the following season would be as profound as it ending up being. At the moment when Jermichael Finley tore up his knee in Week 5 at Washington, Quarless had exactly 12 career professional snaps. From that point on, Quarless played over 500 for a Packers team that ended up winning the Super Bowl.

2) Profile:

Andrew Christopher Quarless

Position: TE
Height: 6-4
Weight: 252 lbs.
AGE: 23

Career Stats

 

3) Expectations coming into the season: Some saw a mini-Finley in Quarless when he came out of Penn State, but there were never the flashes of elite athleticism from Quarless in 2010 like Finley showed during his rookie season. After an injury in camp and the drafting of both D.J. Williams and Ryan Taylor, a number of people thought that Quarless might not make the final roster. He made the 53, but expectations for the second-year tight end were low.

19

January

Green Bay Packers Free Agency: Rating the Packers 2012 FAs

C Scott Wells is one of eight free agents for the Packers in 2012.

It’s far from a Moneyball style stats movement, but the guys over at Pro Football Focus have slowly but surely put together one of the premier stat-organizing sites available for the NFL and its legion of fans. It’s not a fool-proof system, and I occasionally disagree with a rating or two from a given game. But PFF grades every player on every play for all 32 teams, so there’s no shortage of work these guys put into their grades and ratings.

With the 2011 season over in Green Bay, I used PFF’s ratings/grades to analyze the Packers’ eight free agents this offseason. If you’re not familiar with the ratings at PFF, don’t fret—a higher score indicates a better rating, and a negative score obviously isn’t what you’re looking for.

Also, for another look at the Packers’ free agents in 2012, check out this article from AllGBP’s own Adam Czech.

CB Jarrett Bush (-4.0, 321 snaps)

16

January

Packers vs. Giants: 5 Observations from Green Bay’s 37-20 Loss to New York

The Giants pointed their ship to the NFC Championship Game with a 37-20 win over the Packers. (Photo: Darron Cummings, GBPG)

The Green Bay Packers (15-2) picked an awful time to play their worst game of the 2011 season, and the New York Giants more than capitalized on it Sunday in knocking the defending champions out of the playoffs with a 37-20 win at Lambeau Field in the NFC Divisional Round.

Here are five observations from the game:

1. Capping a tough week

There was some this week, including Packers coach Mike McCarthy, who opined that the Packers could be more focused on Sunday in light of the terrible tragedy that struck that the Packers family early this week. But maybe those people underestimated how difficult the transition could be from a Friday funeral to a Sunday football game.

The Packers made their fair share of mental mistakes on the offensive side of the football—dropped passes, missed throws, back-breaking fumbles—that were very uncharacteristic of the Packers in 2011. Could that have partly been due to a week of grieving for the Philbin family and missing their offensive coordinator? Professional football players get paid a lot of money to separate the two, but these guys are human beings, not football robots.

15

January

Packers vs. Giants: 5 Things to Watch in NFC Divisional Round

Peprah was burned for a TD on the Giants' first offensive series.

The Green Bay Packers (15-1, NFC No. 1) host the New York Giants (10-7, NFC No. 4) Sunday in the NFC’s Divisional Round of the 2012 playoffs.

The basics 

When: 3:30 CST, Sunday, January 15, 2012.

Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay, WI.

TV: FOX; Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the call, Pam Oliver on the sidelines.

Radio: 620 AM WTMJ (Milwaukee); Packers Radio Network; NFL Sunday Drive; Westwood One.

Series: Packers lead, 31-23-2 (Giants won last playoff meeting, 23-20 (OT) on Jan. 20, 2008 in NFC Championship Game).

Five things to watch

1. Rookie factor

Not since Desmond Howard have the Packers had a special teams weapon that could routinely flip field position. They have one now in rookie Randall Cobb, and you better believe that teams are treating him as such. As the season wore on, more and more teams hedged their bets and kicked away from Cobb.

At the very least, Cobb can ensure the Packers aren’t playing offense from the shadow of their own goal posts Sunday. And if the Giants give him enough chances, Cobb can break that one big play that can turn the game.

31

December

Packers vs. Lions Preview: 5 Things to Watch

Packers QB Matt Flynn has a perfect stage in Week 17 for his looming free agent status.

The Green Bay Packers (14-1) and Detroit Lions (10-5) face off in Week 17 of the NFL season Sunday.

The basics 

When: 12:00 CST, Sunday, January 1, 2012.

Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay, WI.

TV: FOX; Thom Brennaman and Brian Billick with the call, Laura Okmin on the sidelines.

Radio: 620 AM WTMJ (Milwaukee); Packers Radio Network; NFL Sunday Drive.

Series: Packers lead, 92-65-7 (Packers won last regular season game, 27-17, on Nov. 24, 2011 at Ford Field.)

Five things to watch

1. Money to be made

Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Friday that he wants all three quarterbacks to play on Sunday, but the middle man in the group has a golden opportunity to bump up his price tag this summer. Matt Flynn, the Packers backup quarterback and a free agent after the season, will likely see the majority of the snaps against the Lions. Another solid performance on the big stage may propel a quarterback-needy team to give Flynn the opportunity to start for their franchise—and the money that goes with it—next season.

2. Who needs receivers?

30

December

McCarthy: As Expected, Packers Will Play it Safe vs. Lions on Sunday

McCarthy wants to see all three quarterbacks play on Sunday.

Despite giving a few signs earlier in the week that his team might go full throttle after 15-1, Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy confirmed Friday that the Packers will play it safe with a good chunk of his starters, including quarterback Aaron Rodgers, against the Detroit Lions.

Several key players dealing with lingering dings will be held out on Sunday.

Receiver/returner Randall Cobb (groin), running back James Starks (ankle) and receiver Greg Jennings (knee) were all ruled out for Sunday, and tackle Bryan Bulaga (knee) is doubtful.

Both Charles Woodson and Clay Matthews are questionable. The duo are both healthy, but each could be a scratch on Sunday to save them from any additional wear-and-tear. McCarthy said that both will be evaluated tomorrow morning regarding their playing status for Sunday.

On the issue of how much quarterback Aaron Rodgers will play, however, McCarthy was mostly mute. He said the decision to start Rodgers was still under review as of today. However, McCarthy did proclaim a want to play all three quarterbacks on Sunday, which gives credence to the idea that Rodgers won’t see much of the field. Matt Flynn should see extensive action, and Graham Harrell could get some late snaps.