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Hayward was a candidate for 2012 Defensive Rookie of the Year

Many of us are surely still feeling the sting after how the 2012 Green Bay Packers season ended.  It comes with the territory:  one of the most successful franchises in all of pro sports, a recent history of winning and the expectations of winning, perennial postseason appearances and a constantly bright future.

It has been suggested that maybe we have become too spoiled and perhaps have forgotten, a bit, how to stop and appreciate what this team does accomplish each year.

In keeping with that spirit, it’s time to take a brief pause from the “what if’s” and “why not’s” and acknowledge a few of the bright spots from this past year’s team.

On Saturday, the NFL held its annual Honors Awards show and announced the winners of such prestigious categories as Most Valuable Player, NFL Offensive/Defensive Rookie of the Year and Comeback Player of the Year, to name a few.

The Green Bay Packers had representation in two categories as cornerback Casey Hayward was nominated for Defensive Rookie of the Year and the fake field goal/touchdown play in the week two win vs. the Chicago Bears was nominated for Best Play.  Each warrants a closer look at how it became one of the NFL’s best this season.

Casey Hayward

Hayward was the team’s third draft pick in 2012 and their second selection in the second round.  General Manager Ted Thompson traded up to snag Hayward and while his potential was sky-high, the early expectations for his immediate contributions to a crowded secondary were tempered.  Read more... (659 words + 3 images, estimated 2:38 mins reading time)

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The Packers defense, grinding out another win on Sunday night. (Photo from Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Like many of you who are reading this, I had to go out and shovel snow before the Packers game on Sunday night.

Notice how I said shovel. Not blow or push with a skid loader. Shovel.

I refuse to get a snow blower. I’m 31 years old. I’m more than capable of operating a shovel. I see way too many men under the age of 35 using snow blowers and skid loaders for snow removal these days. Further evidence of the downfall of society, I say.

A shovel is reliable. You don’t need to worry about it not starting after a blizzard.

A shovel is low maintenance. You don’t have to worry about filling it with gas, changing its oil or taking it in for a tune-up.

A shovel is inexpensive. You can pick up a good snow shovel for a couple bucks at just about any store.

A shovel is a great teaching tool. If you have kids, making them shovel snow builds character.

A shovel can be used as a weapon if someone attacks you, or if a Bears fan starts talking trash.

The Packers are a team of shovels right now. We all want them to be the latest fancy model of snow blower, but they’re not. And that’s just fine.  Read more... (665 words + 1 image, estimated 2:40 mins reading time)

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We all knew it was going to happen; with Randall Cobb the Packers got a swiss army knife, he returns kicks, he catches passes, he runs the ball, he slices, dices and even juliennes!  At some point, you knew that “Wild Cobb” was going to show up somewhere and the Packers were going to get him to lob the ball (I know they did this last year, but that was more of an option pass).  Well apparently the Vikings were the team to get the first shot at some Cobb trickeration and the results were pretty comical at best, but what exactly happened and what went wrong?

The Situation: It’s the 3rd quarter with 6:19 left on the clock and the Vikings are desperately holding onto a 1 point lead.  It’s second and five after a five yard Alex Green run and the Packers need to get a touchdown or get into field goal range (though who knows what qualifies for field goal range for Mason Crosby at the moment) in order to keep the game the game close.

The Formation: The Packers come out in a 2-2-1 formation (2WR-2TE-1RB) with WR Greg Jennings (85) split right and WR James Jones (89) in the left slot, TE Tom Crabtree (83) and TE DJ Williams (84) are also aligned in the left slot forming a trips bunch look with WR Jones.  On the offensive line, with TJ Lang out, undrafted rookie Don Barclay (67) is out at right tackle, followed by RG Josh Sitton (71), C Jeff Saturday (63), LG Evan Dietrich-Smith (62) and LT Marshall Newhouse (74).  Read more... (866 words + 8 images, estimated 3:28 mins reading time)

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So in an effort to forget about the Packers dismal showing against the Giants, I instead decided to analyze something completely different, namely the first and only pass that one Graham Harrell has thrown in the National Football League.  Some of you might know but Harrell was the only backup quarterback in the NFL who had never thrown a pass in a game (though it has to be said that Saint’s backup quarterback Chase Daniel had one pass under his name).  Also throw in Harrell’s disastrous first outing where he fumbled a handoff to running back Cedric Benson in the red zone that resulted in a touchdown for ironically the Saints as well.

The situation: The Packers aren’t doing too well, down 38 to 10 with only a couple minutes left in the game.  Head coach Mike McCarthy has already thrown in the towel by pulling out starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers and has inserted his back up Graham Harrell.  After a slew of running plays, McCarthy finally gives Harrell the green light to chuck the ball.

The formation: The Packers are in a 2-1-2 personel (2WR-1TE-2RB) in a classic I-formation with WR James Jones (89) split out wide to the left, WR Jordy Nelson (87)  split out to the right and TE Tom Crabtree (83) inline with the right tackle.  In the backfield, FB John Kuhn (30) is lined 5 yards directly behind the ball with RB James Starks (44) directly behind FB Kuhn.  Under center is QB Graham Harrell (6), while the offensive line is composed of LT Marshall Newhouse (74), LG Evan Dietrich-Smith (62), C Jeff Saturday (63), RG Josh Sitton (71) and RT TJ Lang (70).

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Packers TE Tom Crabtree hauls in a 72-yard touchdown against the Cardinals

The NFL season never unfolds how we think it will. The same can be said about the Packers 2012 season.Who could have predicted the following?

• Tom Crabtree having more long touchdown catches than any wide receiver.
• 10 starters missing time with injuries.
• Special teams being a bright spot despite Mason Crosby going into a funk.
• James Jones being the team’s best wide receiver.
• Erik Walden having a solid season (Jersey Al actually nailed this one).

Rising

James Jones
Is James Jones the runner-up for Packers first-half MVP (behind Aaron Rodgers)? I’d probably put him behind Clay Matthews, but a case could be made that Jones has been the second most valuable player through nine games. Jones has not only made the routine catches, he’s now developed a knack for catching spectacular touchdowns like his grab before halftime on Sunday.  Read more... (809 words + 1 image, estimated 3:14 mins reading time)

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Packers WR Randall Cobb had another big game on Sunday against the Cardinals.

As Packers players kept limping off the field Sunday, Aaron Rodgers kept his team moving forward. Well, for the most part, anyway.

There were some frustrating moments, and more failed opportunities to bury a team before the fourth quarter, but given all the injuries, Sunday’s win over the Cardinals was a good one.

As the Packers added Clay Matthews and Bryan Bulaga to their multi-page list of injured players, they also added another notch in the win column. The Packers are now 6-3 heading into the bye and need the week off to heal and come back as strong as possible for the stretch run.

Will the injuries keep mounting and derail the season? Or will players heal and be well-rested come December and January?

Here’s hoping for the latter.

I’m filling in for Kris Burke on this week’s Game Balls and Lame Calls. Kris has a combination of SARS, the bird flu and mad cow disease (actually I think it’s the regular flu and a sinus infection), so he’s also on the injury report, too.

Here’s who stood out and who didn’t in the Packers win over the Cardinals.

Game Balls  Read more... (717 words + 1 image, estimated 2:52 mins reading time)

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The Packers honored those who serve our country in the military before Sunday’s game against the Cardinals. A big thank you to all who serve, and have served, from all of us at ALLGBP.com.

Green Bay Packers vs. Arizona Cardinals:

Adam Czech here in place of Jersey Al for this week’s first impressions. Al is still dealing with the fallout from Superstorm Sandy and has ordered me to climb down off my deer stand, watch this week’s game, and write about it.

I said, “Yes sir!” So, here is my unfitered game day running blog post of comments, observations and first impressions.

Inactive for Packers today: CB Sam Shields, WR Greg Jennings, S Charles Woodson, LB Frank Zombo, RB John Kuhn, DL Jerel Worthy, LB Nick Perry.

Inactive for Cardinals today: QB Kevin Kolb, WR LaRon Byrd, CB Greg Toler, LB Jamaal Westerman, G Senio Kelemete, G Adam Snyder, TE Todd Heap.

Game Notes:

Welcome back, Jordy Nelson.

Rich Ohrnberger is starting for Adam Snyder at guard for the second game in a row. Snyder is not good and I can’t imagine Ohrnberger is any better. Not good news for a Cardinals’ o-line that is one of the worst in the league.

Aaron Rodgers told Pam Oliver before the game that last week’s “flat” win over the Jags was good for the Packers and hopefully gets the team to up their energy. We shall see.

Packers vs. Cardinals – First Impressions – First Half:

Great kickoff by Crosby, using the sideline to pin the Cards inside their own 20.  Read more... (1124 words + 1 image, estimated 4:30 mins reading time)

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