Since I did not travel to Detroit’s Ford Field for the Packers Thanksgiving Day game with the Lions, I’ll offer my detailed, real-time observations from the comfort of a sofa in front of a large-screen television.   You’ll be reading them after the fact, so this does not constitute live play-by-play on this blog.  I find it good to stay on the right side of the NFL media policies…although I’m on the left side of the couch (as it faces the TV), for whatever that’s worth.

1ST QUARTER

11:34 AM:    As the Fox cameras pan the stadium, plenty of empty seats are visible for a game billed as a sellout.

11:35 AM:   First of what will be many references to Matthew Stafford’s toughness by the Fox announcing crew.

11:35 AM:   Jordy Nelson returns opening kick and fumbles.   Fox cameras with a nice reaction shot of an incredulous Mike McCarthy.

11:39 AM:   A blow to the head of Stafford by Clay Matthews results in a penalty.

11:42 AM:   Stafford hits Calvin Johnson on a back shoulder pass into the end zone.   Surprisingly, no Fox broadcaster references to the toughness of either, but the production crew shows a nice reaction shot of Matt Flynn offering support to Jordy Nelson on the sidelines.

11:43 AM:  First “Jimmy Football” commercial…quite possibly the worst ad campaign foisted upon the beer-drinking public.  Unfortunately, no reaction shots of the brain wizards of the ad agency who dreamed this up, nor a glimpse into the Anheuser-Busch conference room where the brand managers of Bud Light approved the campaign.

11:46 AM:   Jordy Nelson does not fumble 2nd kick return, but Quinn Johnson is penalized for a block in the back.

11:47 AM:   Ryan Grant rushes for 15 yards….1st positive play for Green Bay.

11:49 AM:   Aaron Rodgers, with all day to throw, finds Donald Lee for a 10 yard gain on 3rd & 6….2nd positive play for Green Bay.  Who are these gentlemen playing offensive line for the Packers?

11:51 AM:    A toss sweep to Brandon Jackson results in another 3rd down conversion–a new addition to the Packers playbook?

11:53 AM:  Rodgers to Driver on 3rd down, 3rd 3rd down conversion on this drive.  More positive plays…

11:56 AM:   Mason Crosby misses 42-yard field goal, begins thinking about ad agency career.

12:02 PM:   Packers defense bails out special teams as Nick Collins intercepts Stafford, after some pressure is applied by the GB d-line…the pick stops a promising drive by the Lions on the GB 26.

12:07 PM:   Rodgers has all day to throw, counts to six California, and then chucks a 67-yard bomb to Donald Driver on the final play of the quarter.

2ND QUARTER

12:10 PM:   Rodgers throws a tight end screen to Donald Lee, who dives into the end zone.  Another new addition to the Green Bay playbook?

12:11 PM:   Replay of long bomb to Driver, one angle shows sideline videographer in perfect position for a great shot, but his camera is on the ground….that videographer CANNOT be happy about that turn of events.

12:16 PM:   Johnny Jolly bats down Stafford pass.  Having bashed Jolly in a previous blog for a bad personal foul penalty versus the VIkings, I’m compelled to point out that he may be the most consistent performer on the GB D-line.

12:18 PM:   Jarrett Bush undercuts route, but Dennis Northcutt drops pass.   Packers fans exhale.  Jarrett Bush haters scream and throw objects at TV.

12:19 PM:    Good news: Jordy Nelson does not fumble punt return.   Bad news: he runs laterally, is tackled at the 8 after a return of 0-1 yards.   More bad news: Brandon Underwood is penalized for a block in the back.  Good news for Brandon Underwood: Fox replay shows that Atari Bigby was actually the guilty party.   No news: no reaction shot of special teams coach Shawn Slocum updating his resume on the sidelines so he can send it to the ad agency that created the “Jimmy Football” spots.

12:20 PM:   1st MasterCard commercial featuring Peyton Manning…reasonably amusing.  “Jimmy Football” creators are hopefully paying attention.

12:24 PM:    1st Brett Favre reference of the broadcast, as well as the first mention of Aaron Rodgers having “eye discipline.”   I am still waiting for a reference that a player has good “eye-black discipline.”

12:27 & 12:29 PM:  Consecutive penalties committed by Lions defenders on pass completions to Jermichael Finley, something you don’t see in every NFL game.

12:29, 12:31, & 12:33 PM:  Packers playbook stuck on Quick Pass To Receiver page…interesting play calls, to say the least.

12:33 PM:  Crosby barely sneaks 20-yard FG attempt inside left upright…runs to sideline, instructs team managers to photocopy his resume and then scatter the copies around downtown Detroit.

12:38 PM:   B.J. Raji obliterates running back Kevin Smith for 4-yard loss.  Somewhere, Ted Thompson suppresses a smile.   Ted Thompson-haters still screaming about Jarrett Bush, and posting on message boards that TT and MM must be fired for allowing BF to leave GB.

12:39 PM:   Pressure from GB defensive front forces a bad throw by Stafford, which is picked by Tramon Williams.  Officials miss a blatant hold on a rushing Brady Poppinga, which was more like a wrestling move.

12:48 PM:   2nd Brett Favre reference by announcing crew.

12:48 PM:   2nd & goal from the Lions 9, and the play call is an off tackle run by Brandon Jackson.  Really?

12:51 PM:   Crosby boots 25-yard field goal, starts re-thinking career change to advertising, decides to stick with placekicking for now.

12:54 PM:   Charles Woodson makes a tremendous (if unnoticed by the announcers) play, by stopping a Lions screen pass for a gain of 7 yards when it could have gone for 20+ yards.  A typical Woodson play.

12:55 PM:  Okay, so Woodson’s not perfect, he commits a 15-yard facemask penalty.

12:56 PM:  But he’s still the best playmaker on the GB defense: Woodson sacks Stafford and strips the ball away, but the QB is ruled down.

12:58 PM:   A somewhat veiled reference by the Fox announcers about Stafford’s toughness.

12:50 PM:   On final play of the half, Stafford scrambles around, and then gets drilled by hustling Clay Matthews.

12:50 PM:  I leave the TV to get a few things done around the house, including putting the dogs in the back yard for some exercise.

3RD QUARTER

1:20 PM:   I miss the start of the 3rd quarter because my neighbor is at my front door with my black lab, Otis, who somehow wedged his large head through the fence, and then broke through, so he could visit Max, the neighbor’s chocolate lab.   I drag Otis inside, go outside to investigate the fence break, and why Buddy, my chocolate lab, chose to merely bark non-stop rather than make a run for it to visit Max.

1:29 PM:  Packers go for it on 4th down, a good call, considering how Crosby has been kicking field goals.  Unfortunately, the real Green Bay offensive line returns, and Rodgers is sacked, fumbles, and the LIons take over.

1:36 PM:   Rodgers, from his own 10, chucks a 47-yard bomb to Driver.

1:38 PM:   Rodgers throws a dart to Nelson, who atones (somewhat) for his fumble by making a nice grab along the sideline.

1:40 PM:   Rodgers throws another dart, this time to Driver in the end zone.  After three replays, I’m still trying to figure out how the pass got there.

1:44 PM:   The versatile Spencer Havner makes a key tackle that prevents a long Lions kick return…somewhere in the Ford Field pressbox, at least one member of the Packers media makes a note to ask Mike McCarthy about “lane integrity.” 

1:45 PM:  A.J. Hawk and B.J. Raji combine to emphatically stuff a run by the Lions…TT haters announce a 10-second moratorium of bashing the Packers GM on message boards.

1:51 PM:  Jarrett Bush drops interception, although replays show Lions TE Casey Fitzsimmons actually made a nice play to knock the ball away.  The replay, however, is not shown quickly enough to prevent Bush-haters and TT-haters from posting on message boards.

1:53 PM:  After scrambling away from pressure, Rodgers flips the ball sideways to Ryan Grant, who takes it for a 27-yard gain.  Instead of gushing over the play by the QB (as some may have had that pass been thrown by a former GB QB now playing in Minnesota), Fox analyst Troy Aikman points out that the Detroit defense appears to be getting tired.

1:55 PM:   Rodgers eludes rush, finds James Jones for a touchdown pass.   No gushing by announcers about Rodgers play-making abilities.

1:56 – 1:57 PM:  More Brett Favre references by announcing crew.

1:58 PM:  Even more Favre references.

1:59 PM:   End of 3rd quarter…I abandon the couch for the kitchen and a snack (cheese, crackers, turkey, and an iced tea)

4TH QUARTER

2:06 PM:   Fox announcers begin talking about their fantasy football league, while I resist the temptation to jam my TV remote control into my eye socket.

2:06 PM:  Fox announcers make no mention of Rodgers’ elusiveness to avoid a rush, bounce off a would-be tackle, and deliver a pass, choosing instead to speculate if Matt Flynn will play today.

2:07 PM:   The Lions; Dennis Northcutt, on a punt return, chooses to run out of bounds rather than take on a charging Brady Poppinga…a move that goes under the category of “smart.”

2:09 PM:   Northcutt burns Jarrett Bush, but Fox announcers choose to avoid talking about either a) the move by Northcutt, or b) the bad coverage by Bush, to continue a 3-minute discussion of what Matthew Stafford means to the Lions now and in the future.

2:12 PM:   Bush atones for previous gaffes by breaking up a 3rd-down pass on the goal line

2:12 PM:   Packers defense comes up with a goal-line stand, thanks to a blitz by Atari Bigby which forces Stafford to throw the ball out of the back of the end zone.

2:13 PM:   2nd “Jimmy Football” commercial…I run screaming from the rec room, choosing instead to run to the kitchen again, this time to put the dirty plate & glass in the dishwasher.

2:16 PM:   Grant is stuffed in the end zone, hits the turf, the ball pops loose, and somehow, the officials rule it a fumble, recovered by the Lions for a TD.   It’s as if the zebras were mere puppets being operated from the Fox Network headquarters, where the brain wizards there were begging to do something to keep this game interesting.   Mike McCarthy challenges the call.

2:18 PM:  Steve Young, who I’ve generally always liked as a player and an analyst, appears in a commercial wearing a black V-neck sweater & white t-shirt (always a good combo for casual dress), but under a hideous Century 21-like pale yellow blazer with an odd-looking Pro Football Hall of Fame crest.

2:19 PM:   Packers “win” challenge, but the result is a safety & 2 points for the Lions.   The Fox production crew has a great sideline shot of Grant having a heated conversation with Quinn Johnson, who appeared to not do much lead-blocking on the run that resulted in a safety….while the FOX announcers point out (or root, if you will) that the game still isn’t over.   Good thing Joe Buck and Troy Aikman aren’t in sales…

2:21 PM:   Daunte Culpepper story line emerges on the broadcast…Buck & Aikman are clearly onto page three of their game notes.

2:21 PM:   Northcutt returns punt for 33 yards…rest of Green Bay media in pressbox makes note to ask about “lane integrity.”

2:22 PM:  Fox announcers talk about Sunday games, making sure to not say “the Minnesota Vikings,” but “Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings.”

2:26 PM:   Charles Woodson with blanket coverage on Calvin Johnson,  albeit a hobbled Johnson, but still…saying Woodson is playing at a Pro Bowl-level does not give the guy enough credit.

2:31 PM:   After a Jason Hanson FG, the Lions inexplicably kick the ball deep, whereupon Charles Woodson (who else) fields it and takes it out of bounds without incident.

2:33 PM:  Fox shows video of the 1962 game when the Packers lost to the Lions in Detroit, a game in which Bart Starr was sacked 11 times.   TT-haters see the video, grab their computers, start posting on message boards that it was Ted Thompson’s fault.

2:35 PM:  I mute the TV audio, run upstairs to crank up the radio broadcast audio on the stereo, in hopes of hearing either Wayne Larrivee say in a complete deadpan voice, “And there…is…your…dagger…”, or else Larry McCarren groan in total disdain.

2:36 PM:   Woodson picks off a Stafford pass, runs it back for a TD, does a Heisman Trophy pose in the end zone, while Larrivee terms it “an exclamation point.”  I am underwhelmed by the call, but overwhelmed by Woodson’s play for yet another week.

2:37 PM:   Turn off TV & radio, head outside to fix fence.

 

Bottom line:  none of these three wins over the last 12 days was pretty, but they were wins.  The Packers are 7-4, and very much in the NFC playoff chase.

With that, it’s time to head to the future in-laws for Thanksgiving dinner.   I’d like to wish all of our readers a very happy holiday–hopefully, we can all take a moment (if not more) give thanks for the good things in our lives.

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

THIS WAY TO THE CEREMONIAL EXECUTION
I’ve been covering games at Lambeau Field for a fairly long time, and walking through the parking lot prior to kickoff, I perceived a distinct lack of “buzz” in the assembled crowd…even less than in your average preseason game.   Sure, the GB fans were still decked out in the green and gold clothing, they were still tailgating, but as they filed in to Lambeau Field, it was as if they were expecting another painful Packers loss before the game even started.  Suffice it to say, the faithful got a lot more vocal as the game went on.

BORING IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER
While some in the press box were grumbling about the lack of action in the first half, it didn’t bother me for several reasons: one, while I’m there, cutting highlights is not my responsibility.  Two, I’m not the type who feels “entitled” to be treated to a game full of offensive fireworks and big plays just because I’m on hand.  Three, I found it interesting that the Packers were putting themselves in a position to win the game–something I never thought would happen based on how Green Bay had been playing in the previous weeks.

CHARLES WOODSON IS GOOD
Enough said. 

NO, CHARLES WOODSON IS REALLY GOOD
There’s no question he is.   It’s hard to imagine one guy having more of an impact on a team’s defensive effort at key stretches of a game.   Woodson’s 2nd quarter strip of Roy Williams after a 42-yard pass completion completely turned the game’s momentum just as it was about to swing the Cowboys’ way.   In the 4th quarter, Woodson forced a fumble that led to Green Bay’s second touchdown, then came up with a red zone interception that effectively sealed the game.  Woodson’s final stat line: 9 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, and an interception.   Not bad at all…  Back when Green Bay signed Woodson as a free agent, I can recall some fans wondering about how a guy with Woodson’s “reputation” would fit in the Packers locker room.   I think he’s done just fine.  I don’t know the guy personally, but I’ve interviewed him a number of times, and have always found him to be a consumate professional.  Guys like that are always welcome in an NFL locker room.

NOT SPECIAL BUT GETTING BETTER
Let’s just say the Packers special teams are improving, how about that.   Mason Crosby missed a field goal attempt from 52 yards out, but connected on a 48-yarder.  Jeremy Kapinos’ stats look okay (7 punts, 43.7-yard average, 35.0-yard net, 1 downed inside the 20, with a long of 52), but special teams coach Shawn Slocum has gone on record saying Kapinos needs to punt much better.  Green Bay has shown in the past that the team will make roster changes at that position late in a season, so consider Kapinos on notice.  Whether that helps his production remains to be seen.  What was apparent is that the Packers special teams did a much better job covering punts and kicks as well as tackling.  Clearly, the emphasis on “lane integrity” is paying off.   Also, as was pointed out on the radio broadcast, having Korey Hall back on the coverage teams is a plus.

PAD LEVEL AND GAP CONTROL
We in the media tend to roll our eyes whenever Mike McCarthy spews out these cliches, but like all cliches, there’s an element of truth to them.   The Packers won their share of 1-on-1 battles on the offensive and defensive lines, and a lot of that comes back to basic fundamentals.   Defensively, Green Bay did a very good job of getting pressure from the 3-4 without giving up a whole lot of big plays…and when those plays were out there to be made, Dallas did its part by either dropping passes or overthrowing open receivers.

THIS WAY OVER THE RUBICON
Aaron Rodgers may never, ever quiet the Brett Favre loyalists, but each week, Rodgers shows that he has the potential to be an elite NFL quarterback…and based on what he’s done so far, he’s clearly in the upper half of league QB’s.  The 80-yard TD drive Rodgers led to close out the 3rd quarter and start the 4th was a model of efficiency.  It also included a dart of a 17-yard pass to Donald Lee on 3rd & 13, as well as a 7-yard toss to Jordy Nelson on a 3rd & 6.  

NOW WHAT?
If there’s anything to say about the 2009 Green Bay Packers, it’s that the team is unpredicable.   The Pack could go on a nice run to the playoffs, they could stay in the mix and fall just short, or they could go in the tank and miss out on the postseason.  None of these three scenarios is that hard to imagine.  A few weeks back, I said this on a blog entry:

 The Packers have three very winnable matchups (at TB, at DET, SEA), two tossups (SF, at AZ), and four contests where they’ll likely be the underdog (DAL, BAL, at CHI, at PIT). 

Since I wrote that, Green Bay lost a winnable matchup (at TB) and won a game in which the Packers were an underdog (DAL).  The home game at Baltimore may move into the tossup category, but nevertheless, the Pack can still finish this season strong. 

And if we know anything about Packers fans, they may not always look excited…but they’ll show up…and they’ll watch.

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

At some places, it’s become an event unto itself.  A high school athlete goes public and makes a decision about which college athletic program to join, by signing a letter of intent.   The media shows up for the staged event.

Some events in some places become big media events.  As an example, when current Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor was still in high school, he held a news conference (which was covered live by various television stations) to announce that he hadn’t yet made a decision (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M62U_gv4oy0), before holding another news conference to actually announce his final decision.

There was no live coverage when Eau Claire North’s Evan Anderson signed his letter of intent to play basketball at the University of Wisconsin.  Anderson signed at home, celebrated by giving both of his parents a hug, and then left for school.   Later that day, Anderson spoke with three members of the local media in the North H.S. gym…in front of a crowd that consisted of Huskies head coach Aric Carpenter and whatever members of the final hour gym class that were meandering through the Doghouse.

Anderson’s non-media event was similar in its lack of pretense to how his friend and former ECN teammate Tyler Brown handled his signing with Division I Central Michigan last year: Tyler took the papers over to former head coach Pat Hammond’s house and signed in the basement rec room.

Meanwhile, in Youngstown, Ohio, former Eau Claire Memorial hockey standout Jefferson Dahl perhaps set a precedent for all future hockey signees.   Dahl went to the Covelli Center, his current home rink as a member of the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms, and used the top of a goal in place of a desk to sign his Wisconsin Badgers letter of intent.

That same afternon, Jordyn Hubin of Chippewa Falls had a more traditional signing ceremony in the school’s library, complete with balloons, family, friends, and faculty.  Unfortunately, I missed that because I was talking with Evan Anderson, but I was able to catch up with Hubin shortly after her signing (and yes, she brought the balloons along for the on-camera interview).

Clearly, every athlete or an athlete’s family chooses to recognize this rite of passage in a different way.   The lack of media hype surrounding these three local signings has as much to do with the population of the local area (which dictates the size and scope of the local media) as it does with the complete lack of pretense on the part of high schoolers like Anderson, Dahl, and Hubin.   Still, the way the locals handle things is very refreshing to those of us who’ve lived in this area for a while. 

One final note: signing day is often tricky to cover, because we don’t have the resources to get to every single athlete in the area that’s signing with a Division I or Division II school.   Beyond that, not every school takes the time to notifiy us that they have an athlete or athletes signing.   The three signings News 18 covered Wednesday were among the four of which we were aware–the fourth was at Northwestern H.S. in Maple, where Donnie Hissa (baseball-Notre Dame) and Steve Tecker (basketball-South Dakota) signed their college letters of intent.

To all the high school athletes who are moving on to play college sports, I say congratulations and good luck.   If you have half the laughs that I did while playing baseball at Carleton College, you’ll have a very enjoyable collegiate athletic experience that will provide you with life-long friends and a multitude of recollections.

I’d write more about those days, but that’s a book…not a blog entry.  Anyone who’s been on the receiving end of those tales knows what I’m talking about.

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

I needed a full day to process what I saw Sunday…plus, I had some yard work to deal to take care of  Monday morning (football on Saturday and Sunday kept me from leaf detail). 

USE YOUR HEAD
By that, Johnny Jolly, we mean figuratively, not literally.   Head-butting Chester Taylor after a 3rd-down stop, effectively handing the Vikings four points, is just plain idiotic.   There was no excuse for it, but there’s even less of an excuse for trying to justify it afterward.   ”I’m playing on the edge, playing with one every game,” Jolly said. “They made the call. It was a call they could have called either way. It is what it is.”

Sorry, Johnny, it is not what it is.  It’s dumb.   In every sport, the instigator rarely gets penalized, but the retaliator does.  You retaliated and got nailed for a penalty and you cost your team.   If you wanted to get back at Chester Taylor, you could have tracked him down in a Lambeau Field corridor after the game and threatened to clock him over the head with your extra-large, diamond encrusted “J.J.” medallion you wear around your neck.   That may have cost you some $$$ in the form of an NFL fine, but at least it wouldn’t have given the Vikings a first down on their way into the end zone.  Better yet, how about this: tackle him when he has the ball.

SCHEMING TO CHANGE THE SCHEME
It’s interesting to note that no Packers players were questioning the effectiveness of the 3-4 defense after the 26-0 win over the Lions, nor after the 31-3 beatdown of the Browns.   Attention defensive players: Dom Capers was brought in as coordinator to install the 3-4 defense.   The Packers are not changing the scheme in midseason.  Here’s a thought: if you want to be more of a playmaker in this defense, how about making some more plays?  Tackling is a good first step.  Being in position is often helpful, as well. 

I OWE YOU WHAT?
There’s a long-standing tradition in football in which either a quarterback or running back buys dinner and/or gifts for his offensive linemen.  The way the Packers O-line has performed in two games vs. the Vikings, if Aaron Rodgers is handing over five unmade packages of ramen soup to his personal protectors, he’s spending too much money. 

FOUR-DOWN TERRITORY?
Exactly where on Lambeau Field does kicker Mason Crosby’s range extend?  Apparently, not as far as 50 yards.  Crosby’s miss from 51 yards out preceded the game-clinching drive by the Vikings.   Consider this crucial sequence of plays in the middle of the fourth quarter:

Green Bay Packers at 8:13

1-10-GB 19 (8:13) A.Rodgers pass short middle to J.Kuhn to GB 33 for 14 yards (C.Griffin). P18

1-10-GB 33 (7:33) (Shotgun) A.Rodgers Aborted. S.Wells FUMBLES at GB 27, recovered by GB-A.Rodgers at GB 27. A.Rodgers pass deep P19

left to D.Driver to 50 for 17 yards (A.Allen) [R.Edwards]. GB-D.Driver was injured during the play.

PENALTY on MIN-R.Edwards, Roughing the Passer, 15 yards, enforced at 50. X20

1-10-MIN 35 (7:05) (Shotgun) A.Rodgers pass short right to G.Jennings to MIN 28 for 7 yards (T.Johnson).

2-3-MIN 28 (6:26) (Shotgun) A.Rodgers sacked at MIN 33 for -5 yards (J.Allen).

3-8-MIN 33 (5:49) (Shotgun) A.Rodgers pass incomplete deep left to D.Driver (B.Sapp).

4-8-MIN 33 (5:43) M.Crosby 51 yard field goal is No Good, Wide Right, Center-B.Goode, Holder-M.Flynn.

Minnesota Vikings at 5:38

1-10-MIN 41 (5:38) B.Favre pass short left to A.Peterson to GB 15 for 44 yards (D.Bishop, A.Bigby). P18

1-10-GB 15 (4:49) A.Peterson left end to GB 15 for no gain (N.Barnett).

2-10-GB 15 (4:06) C.Taylor right guard to GB 16 for -1 yards (C.Matthews).

Timeout #3 by GB at 03:54.

3-11-GB 16

 

(3:54) B.Favre pass short left to B.Berrian for 16 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Granted, hindsight is 20-20, but even as the Packers were driving, I thought that unless they got into chip-shot territory for Crosby, they were in 4-down territory once they crossed midfield.  They were getting awfully close to chip-shot territory when it was 2nd & 3 from the Vikings’ 28.  However, allowing Jared Allen to come through the line untouched for a sack was yet another inexplicable error made by the Packers.  Then, on 3rd & 8 from the 33, I would have rather seen the Pack run a play that gained some positive yards (draw play, screen pass, or some other short pass) and then make the decision on whether to attempt a FG or go for it on 4th down.  But, on Sunday, I was sitting with the rest of my media bretheren, and not in the coordinators coaching box…so it wasn’t my call.

DIFFERENCE-MAKERS
From what I’ve observed in two games between the Vikings and Packers, Minnesota has Adrian Peterson, Percy Harvin, and Jared Allen.   Green Bay has…Clay Matthews? Spencer Havner?

IF THE PACKERS WOULD HAVE KEPT BRETT FAVRE…
Sorry, I’m not finishing that sentence.   The Rubicon was crossed, the train left the station, and that’s that.   Maybe the Packers didn’t want Favre back.  Maybe he didn’t want to go back in Green Bay.  Maybe he figured that his chances of getting to a Super Bowl were better elsewhere…someplace where the gametime temperature of an NFC Championship game was ABOVE zero.

If you want gushing about Favre, I’m sure that you find that elsewhere in the blogosphere.  Yes, Favre’s 2009 performance through eight games has exceeded my expectations, but the season is far from over.   Yeah, sure, he’s an inspiration to all of us who’ve passed the age of 40, but then again, Favre exerts himself more cutting his grass in Mississippi than he does handing off to Adrian Peterson.   Furthermore, Deanna Favre could have thrown the screen pass to Peterson that wound up as a 44-yard gain in that aforementioned key sequence of 4th-quarter plays. 

For my friends west of the St. Croix River, and in the spirit of Brett, I’ll ask some questions of myself and then answer them.  Would the Vikings be 7-1 with Sage Rosenfels or Tarvaris Jackson at QB? Probably not…    Is Favre playing at a Pro Bowl level?  I guess….   Will Favre continue to play at a Pro Bowl level over the latter half of the season?  I don’t know…  If he’s voted in, will Favre go to play in the Pro Bowl?  No….

However, if you were to put Favre on the ’09 Packers, with Aaron Rodgers as the Vikings QB, I don’t think the outcomes of the two games change one bit.  Swap the O-lines, and we may have much different results; namely, two wins for the Pack.  Perhaps Green Bay splits the series with Adrian Peterson as its running back, while Ryan Grant plays for the purple.  Or, what about Harvin returning kicks for the Pack, with Ahman Green handling that chore for the Vikes? I think you get my drift…

MEANWHILE, IN A PARALLEL UNIVERSE
Ted Thompson is talking freely with the media about how he used free agency wisely to add talent to the Packers roster in recent years.

REMAIN CALM…ALL IS WELL
4-3 is not the end of the season.  Besides, Aaron Kampman told me so and I tend to believe him.  There’s no reason to leap off the top of the Lambeau Field pressbox just because the Vikings are 7-1 (unless you’re talking fantasy football ad nauseum–then go ahead and jump).

While we may be closer to conceding the NFC North Division title to our friends from Minnesota, that isn’t exactly the same as crowning them Super Bowl champions.   (see: recent NFL playoff history)   Still, the Packers may be destined to compete for a wild card spot.  As it stands now, excluding the Vikings and unbeaten Saints, the teams above .500 in the NFC are: Eagles & Cowboys (both 5-2), Giants (5-3), Packers, Bears, and Falcons (all 4-3).   

In their final nine games, the Packers have three very winnable matchups (at TB, at DET, SEA), two tossups (SF, at AZ), and four contests where they’ll likely be the underdog (DAL, BAL, at CHI, at PIT). 

So, 11-5 is not competely out of the question.  Or 10-6.  9-7 may not do it this season.  Maybe it will.  We shall see.  I don’t know…I keep flip-flopping on what to think of the 2009 Green Bay Packers.

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports