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Clay Matthews sacks Jay Cutler

To quote the Black Knight from Monty Python, “It’s only a flesh wound.”

The Green Bay Packers (and to an extent their fans) took one right in the chops during the season opener last Sunday at Lambeau, losing to the San Francisco 49ers 30-22.  The Packers made a game of it late in the second half, but thanks once again to putrid play by the Packer defense and some assists from the replacement officials, the Packers start the season 0-1 for the first time since Mike McCarthy’s rookie year as head coach in 2006.

Thankfully, the time for licking wounds and taking heat from rival NFC North fans is very brief this week as the Packers face their archrival Chicago Bears Thursday night at Lambeau Field. The Bears are 1-0 after a 41-21 blowout win over the Indianapolis Colts at Soldier Field.  They are currently tied with the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions at 1-0 atop the NFC North.

While no Week 2 game is truly a “do or die” proposition, starting 0-2 with two conference losses and one loss to a divisional foe is not a hole the Packers want to be in. With the Lions already dangerous and the Bears showing marked offensive improvement, the last thing the Packers want is to play a game of catch-up when their defense is already suspect.

Let’s take a look at the Bears

Scouting the Bears  Read more... (1294 words + 1 image, estimated 5:11 mins reading time)

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When the news broke about the arrest of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson this past weekend, it got me thinking about some things.

Despite not knowing most of the facts about the situation, many fans greeted the news of his arrest with jeers and snickers.  I get it, it’s what fans do.  Whenever a member of a rival team (especially a hated rival team like the Vikings) does something stupid and gets in trouble, it’s natural for fans of the other team or teams to poke fun at the situation.

Look at all the trouble members of the Detroit Lions have been in.  It was obvious Jim Schwartz was leading a team that had many clowns on it last year after the Suh stomping incident, but this offseason has just confirmed it.   It’s despicable and a sign of a bad culture inside that locker room.  The criticism Schwartz and the Lions have been receiving is deserved.

However, Peterson’s incident (which at the moment sounds incredibly sketchy) deserves no such wrath of fans.  Despite playing for “the purple team,” Peterson has been an upright citizen since coming into the NFL and has done nothing wrong previously to earn such scorn from fans.

The only “wrong” he has done is that he made the Packers defense look foolish multiple times and that’s obviously why Packer fans greeted the news with such venom.  That reason however is not an excuse to celebrate a guy going to jail who has previously been squeaky clean.  Read more... (1411 words + 1 image, estimated 5:39 mins reading time)

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Packers vs. Bears

After giving their fans a lump of coal last week in Kansas City, the Green Bay Packers look to make amends and stuff Packer Nation’s stockings with home field advantage for the playoffs as well as beating their despised archrival.

A week after suffering their first loss of the season, the Packers return to the friendly confines of Lambeau Field to take on the Chicago Bears Christmas night on national television.   Should the San Francisco 49ers lose on Saturday to the Seattle Seahawks, the Packers will have home field wrapped up before they take the field and there is the possibility Mike McCarthy could rest his starters.

Should the 49ers win, the Packers can secure the NFC number one seed with a win over the Bears.  The game plan could go one of two ways depending on Saturday’s outcome.

Regardless, the Packers come into the game with a battered offensive line.  Bryan Bulaga is out this week with an ankle injury and Derek Sherrod, Bulaga’s replacement, broke his leg in gruesome fashion and is out for the remainder of the year.  Throw in an off day by Aaron Rodgers and his receivers in Kansas City, and the Packers have plenty of motivation to play well even if they have the top seed locked down.  Read more... (1282 words + 1 image, estimated 5:08 mins reading time)

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Yes, it’s the first Bear Week for the 2011 season.  The chance to once again rub salt in the wounds of Bears fans whilst polishing the Lombardi Trophy at the same time.  Life could not be any better if you are a Cheesehead.

That said, let’s stop picking on the infidels and focus on the game between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears this Sunday at poorly renovated Soldier Field.

The Packers enter this game 2-0 after surviving a much tougher than expected battle with the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte.  The win was costly however as Pro Bowl safety Nick Collins was lost for the season (and perhaps longer) with a neck injury.  Running back James Starks continued to make his case to be the Packers featured back and despite the loss of Collins, the defense once again held tough when it counted and cornerback Charles Woodson intercepted two of rookie quarterback Cam Newton’s passes.

The Bears face their archrivals with a record of 1-1 after being beaten down by the New Orleans Saints 30-13.  Bears quarterback Jay Cutler once again was thrown around like a rag doll after being sacked five times behind a very leaky offensive line.   The Bears are also suffering a bought of injuries with tackler Gabe Carimi and wide receiver Earl Bennett missing practice time while receiver Roy Williams  and safety Chris Harris had limited participation this week.

Breaking down Da Bears

On offense, you have to start with their beleaguered field general.  Read more... (1304 words + 1 image, estimated 5:13 mins reading time)

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Here’s how the NFC North fared in Week 1 of the NFL season:

Bears (1-0), beat Atlanta Falcons, 30-12

All summer we heard how the Bears were destined for collapse in the 2011. Publications and respected sports writers from across the country picked Chicago to hover somewhere around or below .500 and willingly hand over their division crown to the Packers.

There were boat load of reasons, both legitimate and phony.

The offensive line can’t protect the quarterback. Jay Cutler lost the locker room’s respect after the NFC Championship game loss. The defensive stars are aging. Their luck will run out.

Then actual football was played, and the Bears put the majority of those worries to bed. Remember, this is the team that won the NFC North last season and hosted the conference’s title game. It was only one week, but they made idiots out of a lot of people who buried them this season before a single down of meaningful football was played.

The Bears beat up on the Atlanta Falcons, who went 13-3 last season and was the NFC’s No. 1 seed going into the playoffs, to the tune of 30-13. The “aging” defense smothered quarterback Matt Ryan, sacking him five times and forcing two Ryan turnovers—one on an interception from Brian Urlacher and the other a fumble as Ryan was under duress. Urlacher returned that fumble for a touchdown that put the Bears up 30-6 in the second half.  Read more... (1424 words + 5 images, estimated 5:42 mins reading time)

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The Green Bay Packers defeated the New York Giants 45-17 last Sunday to set up what is basically a “win or go home” game against the Chicago Bears this Sunday at Lambeau Field.

The Packers can still make the playoffs with a Giants loss to the Redskins and a Buccaneers loss to the Saints if they lose to the Bears, but the Packers and their fans know the best way for them to take care of business is do beat their arch rivals and not rely on other teams for help.

The Bears, meanwhile, have wrapped up at least the No. 2 seed and in theory could get home field advantage should the Saints and Falcons both lose and they beat the Packers. Atlanta plays the Panthers, so that scenario is incredibly unlikely but again “any given Sunday.” You never know.

Breaking down Da Bears

The big, no HUGE, question is how long Bears coach Lovie Smith will play his starters. If he is anything like mentor Tony Dungy, the odds are they will play very little in a meaningless game. That said, when Smith took the Bears job he swore that beating the Packers would be his number one priority so the Packers could see the Bears first unit for a good chunk of if not the entire game.  Read more... (1300 words + 1 image, estimated 5:12 mins reading time)

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We sure are lucky to be Green Bay Packers fans, aren’t we? How many other teams have given their fans two extra playoff games before the actual playoffs even start? To hell with the Patriots, Falcons and Bears! Clinching playoff berths before week 17 is boring! We want excitement!

This is what I keep telling myself, anyway. The Packers survived the first round of the playoffs. Can they survive round two and make it to the real version of the postseason? Here is some news, notes, and thoughts heading into the season finale against the Bears.  Read more... (533 words + 1 image, estimated 2:08 mins reading time)

• Remember how the Packers struggled to score touchdowns on long drives in the season’s first 12 games? Well, they have improved in this area somewhat. In their last three games, the Packers have scored three touchdowns on nine drives that lasted nine plays or more. Scoring quickly was fun against the Giants, but the Packers will need to finish long drives with touchdowns if they want to beat the Bears and that cover-2 defense.
• The James Starks debate flared up again this week. With Sam Shields nursing a sore knee, Starks may be active and could get a chance to return kicks. As the season wears on, I have become more and more convinced that the coaching staff’s main goal with the running game is to not fumble. Does Brandon Jackson ever run without covering up the ball with both hands at all times? I don’t think Mike McCarthy fully trusts a back as inexperienced as Starks to protect the ball in important late-season games. I can’t say I disagree with him.

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