AllGreenBayPackers.Com

Are the Packers still elite?

Remember when the Green Bay Packers were legitimately thought of as elite and the next NFL dynasty? All the ingredients were there: A great quarterback. Talented receivers. Young defenders on the rise. A Super Bowl win. Playoff chops. A smart coaching staff and front office.

Then the Giants and 49ers manhandled the Packers in playoff losses and all that dynasty talk seems like so long ago.

Forget dynasty. Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press Gazette says the Packers are no longer even an elite team.

Vandermause gets a little carried away early in the column when he says that Colin Kapernick is now a more feared player than Aaron Rodgers (ridiculous). But for the most part, I see where Vandermause is going. He thinks the 49ers have a lot more talent than the Packers. After watching these two teams play each other twice this season, it’s hard to argue with him.

Can a team fall from potential dynasty to less-than-elite in about one year? Sure, these last two playoff losses sting, but do they really mean the Packers are no longer elite? I can see both sides of the argument:

Packers are no longer elite  Read more... (687 words + 1 image, estimated 2:45 mins reading time)

• Did you watch the game on Saturday? There is no way to use the words “elite” and “Packers” in the same sentence after that ass whooping.
• That’s two straight playoff losses where the Packers were dominated by a bigger, stronger and more physical team. Elite teams don’t get pushed around like that.

---- Get AddToAny

Are Dom Capers’ days in Green Bay over?

Before you read further, I want to make one thing clear: This post is not a defense of Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers. After the Packers got shredded for almost 600 yards on Saturday night, Capers cannot be defended.

Go ahead and call for Capers’ firing and criticize him all you want. He deserves it.

However, Green Bay’s problems on defense go much deeper than Capers. I don’t think there was any magical scheme that Capers could have come up with that would have stopped the 49ers from winning Saturday. San Francisco was bigger, stronger, faster and tougher than the Packers. It’s too simple to just pin that performance solely on the guy with weird hair who sits in a booth high above the field.

Look at the Packers’ linebackers. Brad Jones, Erik Walden and A.J. Hawk are no match for a team like the 49ers. An elite offensive line combined with an athletic quarterback, bruising running back, and talented tight ends? The 49ers had to be salivating all week while watching film and preparing to face that unfearsome trio.

The Packers are built to take a lead, then play aggressive defense that relies on blitzes and creating turnovers. They’re not the type of team that is able to stand toe-to-toe against physical teams and out-tough them. That’s extremely frustrating, but true.  Read more... (430 words + 1 image, estimated 1:43 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Once is a coincidence.  Twice in three years should raise some eyebrows.

Once again, the Packers seem to be the team in the NFL that has been most decimated by injuries.  The Packers heading into the bye have three linebackers on injured reserve and a fourth in Clay Matthews that could miss a few weeks with a hamstring injury.

Add in injured wide receivers Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson plus injuries to starting running back Cedric Benson and offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga and the Packers once again find themselves behind the eight ball and looking up at the Bears in the NFC North.

If this script sounds familiar, it should.  The Packers put 15 players on injured reserve in 2010 on their way to Super Bowl XLV and their fourth Super Bowl championship.  They also were chasing the Bears all season in the NFC North.  Could lightning strike again for the Packers?

The odds of pulling another rabbit out of the hat seem long, but Packer fans seem to be optimistic given the roster GM Ted Thompson has put together.

That may all be well and good, but there’s still one big question that remains unanswered—why do these injuries keep happening?

Could it be practices are too intense?  Packers coach Mike McCarthy has had to change his practice schedule a bit with the new CBA the NFL and NFLPA agreed on last year, but that was written to lower injuries and the Packers seem to be the only team impacted so severely.  This isn’t likely it.  Read more... (487 words + 1 image, estimated 1:57 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Green Bay Packers rookie LB Nick Perry is out for the rest of the 2012 season with a wrist injury.

The Green Bay Packers have announced that the team hasactivated tight end Andrew Quarless from the physically unable to perform (PUP) list and have placed rookie linebacker Nick Perry on season-ending injured reserve for a wrist injury.

Perry reportedly sought a second opinion on the wrist he injured earlier this season and apparently opted for surgery that will cost him the remainder of what was a promising rookie campaign.   With D.J. Smith and Desmond Bishop already out for the season and Clay Matthews dealing with a hamstring injury that could keep him out for a few weeks, the Packers find themselves dangerously thin at linebacker.   Rookie Dezman Moses will likely get a chance to prove that fans’ excitement over his potential is warranted.

As for Quarless, this is a moment many have been waiting for since he went down last December with a knee injury.  He was not ready for training camp so the Packers put him on the PUP list until this week.  It’s unclear how large of a role Quarless will immediately have, but if Jermichael Finley continues to struggle then it’s possible Quarless could earn some playing time along with Tom Crabtree.

Kris Burke is a freelance sports writer currently residing in Wisconsin. His work has been linked to by sites such as National Football Post and CBSSports.com. Follow @KrisLBurke

——————

---- Get AddToAny

Packers OLB Nick Perry

Just one day after head coach Mike McCarthy said the Packers may be without Clay Matthews for a couple weeks, the team appears to have lost outside linebacker Nick Perry for the rest of the season.

After the Packers selected Perry with the 28th overall pick in the 2012 draft, he entered training camp as the team’s starting left outside linebacker. Perry recorded two sacks in five games for the Packers before being injured.

Perry underwent surgery to repair his wrist, but he also injured his knee in week five at Indianapolis. The rookie outside linebacker reportedly had surgery on Tuesday.

Lance Allan, of WTMJ4 in Milwaukee, tweeted that Perry will likely wind up on the Injured Reserve.

While the Packers are now thin at the position, Erik Walden is quietly enjoying the best season of his career. Fellow outside linebacker Frank Zombo was just activated from the PUP list, and undrafted rookie Dezman Moses has made the most of limited playing time so far this season.

Moses is someone to keep an eye on. He impressed the coaching staff since the moment he arrived in Green Bay and was taking snaps with the second-team as early as June.

With the immediate future of 2011 first-round pick Derek Sherrod in doubt, the loss of Perry would mean the Packers’ last two first-round selections will have combined for very little impact in 2012.  Read more... (263 words + 2 images, estimated 1:03 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Packers LB Clay Matthews could be out “a couple weeks” with a hamstring injury.

Packers coach Mike McCarthy provided an update on all the injuries Monday, and the news wasn’t very very positive.

• Clay Matthews could miss “a couple weeks” with his hamstring injury, McCarthy said. With the Packers on a bye this week, I suppose there’s a chance Matthews could be back for the Lions game on Nov. 18, but I wouldn’t count on it. We will likely see more of Dezman Moses if Matthews misses games.
• Bryan Bulaga is going to see a specialist about his injured hip. That doesn’ sound promising. If he’s out, T.J. Lang will play right tackle and Evan Dietrich-Smith will play left guard. That leaves the Packers dangerously thin on the line, especially if Derek Sherrod goes on injured reserve.
• Jordy Nelson sprained his ankle and should be fine, McCarthy said. *Sigh of relief*
• Nick Perry is gong for a second opinion on his injured knee, which means the knee probably hasn’t improved like he and the Packers hoped it would. If Perry remains out, look for the fragile Frank Zombo to backup Erik Walden.

For more on the Packers injuries, check out Jason Wilde’s blog at ESPNMilwaukee.com.

Yes, this update isn’t exactly positive. But remember: As long as Aaron Rodgers is healthy, the Packers have a shot.

Now quit worrying about the Packers and go vote.  Read more... (303 words + 1 image, estimated 1:13 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Packers WR Jordy Nelson will test his injured hamstring on Friday. He remains questionable for Sunday.

Here’s a quick update on the Packers injury situation before you sit down for dinner:

The following players did not practice today: WR Jordy Nelson (hamstring); FB John Kuhn (hamstring); LB Nick Perry (knee); CB Sam Shields (shin/knee); DE Jerel Worthy (concussion); DE Mike Neal (ankle); WR Greg Jennings (groin); CB Charles Woodson (shoulder).

Coach Mike McCarthy said that Nelson will test his hamstring on Friday and that Jennings re-scheduled his surgery, but might not be in Philadelphia yet because of the storm.

Obviously, Jennings and Woodson will not play Sunday against Arizona.

My gut tells me all the other guys will be out as well. We’ll see.

All the injured players won’t matter if the Packers offensive line doesn’t come to play against the Cardinals. Arizona has an active front four and can make life miserable for Aaron Rodgers if the offensive line struggles early.

Adam Czech is a freelance reporter and a Packers fan living in the Twin Cities. Follow Adam on Twitter. Read more of Adam's writing on the Packers here.

——————

---- Get AddToAny