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Packers CB Jarrett Bush has stuck with the team since 2006.

The pitchforks were out and the torches were lit after the 2009 season. Packers fans wanted cornerback Jarrett Bush off the team.

I admit that I was one of those Packers fans holding a torch high in one hand and a pitchfork in the other. I was sick of seeing Bush stumbling three yards behind a receiver after a double move left him in the dust and led to another touchdown against the Packers.

Ted Thompson has never paid much attention to the pitchfork- and torch-wielding sector of the Packers’ fanbase, and he held true to that philosophy with Bush. Now the undrafted free agent out of Utah St. and claimed by the Packers off waivers from Carolina is one of the longest-tenured Packers, a good special teams player and, dare I say it, somewhat beloved by fans.

I say “somewhat” because if Bush ever ends up playing significantly as a defensive back again, it will probably get ugly and fans will turn on him again. But as long as he remains the blue-collar, hard-working leader of the special teams unit, the love for Bush will only get stronger.

Admit it: When Bush picked off Ben Roethlisberger in the Super Bowl, you slapped yourself and wondered aloud if you just watched Jarrett Bush intercept a pass in the Super Bowl. For the Green Bay Packers. In January of 2011.  Read more... (538 words + 1 image, estimated 2:09 mins reading time)

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WR Terrell Owens’ clutch catch was the dagger in the heart of the Mike Holmgren era in Green Bay

The Green Bay Packers and the San Francisco 49ers face off Saturday night in an NFC Divisional Playoff game which will be the sixth time since January 1996 that the two teams have faced each other in the playoffs.

The Packers and 49ers became quite familiar opponents in the 1990s as they played each other in the playoffs each year from 1996-1999 (note I am going by the year the playoff games were played, not the year of the ‘season’).   It was a rivalry for the ages as the Packers won the first three games and the 49ers won the fourth in dramatic fashion.

Even though the four games included an NFC Championship which the Packers won en route to Super Bowl XXXII, it’s the first and the fourth of the 1990s contests that have the highest historical importance.

They almost serve as bookends for the Mike Holmgren era.  The Packers’ 27-17 victory over San Francisco at Candlestick Park on January 6, 1996 served notice to the entire NFL that Green Bay was now one of the league’s elite teams.  The Packers lost to the Dallas Cowboys the following week in the NFC Championship, but the win over the 49ers served as a springboard for the great 1996 season.  Read more... (1254 words + 1 image, estimated 5:01 mins reading time)

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It’s not exactly the hair of the dog that bit you, but maybe a jog down memory lane will help us cure our “Super Bowl expectations that feel short” hangover that we have all been experiencing since the Green Bay Packers’ season ended three weeks ago.

There have been a lot of memorable moments in the five Super Bowls the Packers have played in, so narrowing the list to five moments was a daunting task.  This is by no means a definitive list, so you may have something else in mind. That’s fine. This was meant to be a fun post, not necessarily one for totally serious debate.

Keep in mind I am 28, so Super Bowls XXXI and XLV will be fresh in my head.  I have seen highlights of the first two Super Bowls but never viewed them in their entirety.

That said, here’s my top five:

5. Max McGee’s performance in Super Bowl I

Paul Hornung went down and McGee came in. Problem is McGee was hungover.

Thinking he wasn’t going to play much, McGee skipped curfew the night before the game and went out drinking. Personally, I would not have between so stupid with Lombardi around but it is what it is I guess.

McGee ended up catching 140 yards and likely would have been Super Bowl MVP had Bart Starr not had his great performance.

4. Vince Lombardi’s final ride

It’s an image engrained in every Packer fan’s head.  Read more... (736 words, estimated 2:57 mins reading time)

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Marshall Newhouse auditioning for 3rd RB role

Welcome to the Week 16 Packers Stock Report.

Those of you familiar with the stock report here on AllGreenBayPackers.com may notice that this week’s report looks different than all the others from this season.

Changes include:

• No Aaron Rodgers in the rising category. Last week I left Rodgers out because I was sick of trying to think of new ways to highlight how great he is. This week I left him out because he played poorly. That hasn’t happened before.
• There are three Packers in the falling category. When the Packers win, I reserve the final spot in the falling category to mock and ridicule a player or coach from the opposing team. Since the Chiefs outplayed the Packers on Sunday, there is no mocking and ridiculing this week.
• Only two players in the rising category. Normally I have to whittle down a long list of rising players to only three. Not this week. I suppose I could have bumped up Scott Wells from the steady category to rising, but I chose not to.
• This is the first stock report following a Packers loss. The comments section could get a little negative. Remember Packers fans: Your team is 13-1. The Packers chances of winning the Super Bowl are still rising.

Rising  Read more... (689 words + 1 image, estimated 2:45 mins reading time)

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1) Introduction: A former second round pick in 2008, Packers receiver Jordy Nelson has turned in a few productive yet unspectacular seasons during his first two years in Green Bay. Nelson averaged just over 27 catches and 343 yards per season from 2008-2009—numbers un-befitting a top 40 draft selection.

Heading into the 2010 season, one could have than made the argument that Nelson was the fourth, or maybe fifth, target in the Green Bay Packers passing game. With injuries to both Donald Driver and Jermichael Finley, however, Nelson began to emerge as a potential threat and had a breakout postseason.

2) Profile:

Jordy Ray Nelson

Position: WR
Height: 6-3    Weight: 215 lbs.

Born: May 31, 1985 in Manhattan, KS
College: Kansas State (school history)    (Nelson college stats)
Drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the 2nd round (36th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft.

3) Expectations coming into the season for that player: Somewhat low, but also unsure. Nelson started the season buried on the depth chart behind Greg Jennings, Driver and James Jones, and Finley was sure to become a focal point of the offense. Still, everyone knew that Nelson was capable of being a play-maker, but his lack of production in two previous seasons tempered any lofty expectations for 2010.

4) Player’s highlights/lowlights: Nelson had plenty of highlights during the season, and he capped it off with an impressive performance in the Super Bowl (9 receptions, 140 yards, 1 TD). Against the Steelers, Nelson caught the game’s first touchdown (29 yards) and set up the Packers final points with a catch-and-run play of 38 yards.  Read more... (668 words + 1 image, estimated 2:40 mins reading time)

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You may not have known it from casually watching the game or reading the stat sheet, but Clay Matthews III (CM3) was the focal point of the Super Bowl. When Matthews was on the field, both the Steelers’ and the Packers’ strategies revolved directly around Clay Matthews.

As I went back and watched the TV broadcast for the first time (I had only seen the game live previously), I decided to focus in on Matthews. All the post game talk had been about how Matthews was used by the Packers, but I was also curious about what the Steelers did to counteract the potential descriptiveness of Matthews.

I’ll discuss the Steelers’ strategy and then  move on to Dom Capers evil plan for CM3. But first, here’s a tally of what Matthews did on each play.

Matthews Tracking Summary:

16: Running plays AT CM3

4:  Running plays AWAY FROM CM3

23:   Controlled Blitzes: (comes and then pulls up – making sure Roethlisberger didn’t have an escape route to his side)

10: Real Blitzes: (CM3 coming all out after the QB)

6:  Drops in coverage

8:  Plays “I Spy” with Roethlisberger.

Pittsburgh Steelers:

The next time someone criticizes Clay Matthews for not having a sack or making any big plays in a game, remember this; one way or another, opposing teams must structure their entire game plan to account for Clay Matthews.  Read more... (4159 words + 3 images, estimated 16:38 mins reading time)

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