My Take -> Week 14

Greetings, G-Force.

6-6. The record is level. There’s an infusion of positive energy inside the Packers program with the pending return of Aaron Rodgers. Oddly, we are living in a time when some die-hard of Packers fans struggle with their emotions surrounding this franchise. Packers fans are conflicted with the tug-of-war between wanting change within the organization and wanting the team to win. Personally, it’s tough for me to imagine a scenario in which I’m not thrilled after a Packers victory. Wins feel good for the soul – regardless of the fashion. I’m not a frontrunner. I don’t believe in the consolation of playing well, but still losing. The Pittsburgh loss didn’t feel good. Yes, it was ugly, but the victory over Tampa was a positive step for this franchise. We faced adversity. We left victorious.

Since 2001, in some format, I’ve dug-in on a weekly basis and fought to find the time to sit down to write this blog. Admittedly, time has become harder for me to find. And, thus, the blog has become more of a work project and less fun. Further, I’ve lost nearly 85% of my readers over the last year. With that said, I’m not certain that the blog will stay in his current format for much longer. I hope to. I can’t guarantee it.

As I write, I listen to the Dirty Heads “Swim Team” album. While the album as a whole is my least favorite of the Dirty Heads albums, “So Glad You Made It” is arguable my favorite new release by any artist. Love the beat. Love the rhythm. So smooth. The energy of the tune brings goodness to my soul. If you don’t know it, vibe in. You’ll enjoy.

Here are my quick vibes over the last week:

Mike McCarthy. He lost his starting QB, who is NFL Royalty. He’s been crippled by an awful QB, whom he wrongly assessed. He’s had a Guard playing Tackle for most of the year. He’s been without his top 2 RB’s for portions of the year. His high-priced FA quit on his team. And, the Packers have what is arguable the softest secondary in the NFL. Still, McCarthy has kept the team together. They’re right in the thick of things. The locker room remains strong.

One down. Four to go!

Brett Hundley. Mark it down as one of the more uninspiring QB performances in Green Bay in my lifetime. He brought the offense to boredom. He was unable to hit open WR’s. He held onto the ball and walked into sacks. He didn’t look off safeties. He was predictable. He was terrible. But, when the season was on the line and the Packers needed point, Hundley turned to his feet to get the Packers into FG range to equalize. And, then, in OT, Hundley, once again, used his feet. Because of it, the Packers are back to even in the standings.

Aaron Jones! Great vision. Fantastic burst. A thrilling finish to an otherwise dull game.

Jamaal Williams. NFL Ground Player of the Week. A terrific game for the rookie. He ran hard. He was powerful. He had desire. His 1-yard TD run was sheer willpower. He’s enjoyable to watch. Williams is a good buzz. He’s a WiFi mojo hotspot for this team. He keeps things light with his playful nature. He’s easy to cheer for. One of those dudes you’re happy to see have success.

Jason Spriggs is quietly improving. He’s still not perfect, but he’s improving and he isn’t a total liability. He needs to continue to work on his footwork and his balance, which oddly I felt were his strengths at the college level. But, there’s reason to feel cautious optimism that the game has slowed down for Spriggs and that he could possibly be an option for the Packers as the future RT. With Bulaga’s injury history, the Packers need Spriggs to become that guy after a significant trade investment in him in the 2016 NFL Draft.

David Bakhtiari is a stud.

Great game from Lane Taylor. He manned up.

Feels like Jahri Evans’ game has diminished over the last month. Wondering if he’s hitting a wall, but we need a rejuvenation from him.

Corey Linsley is having a solid year. He’s going to command big-time money in FA this year.

Brett Hundley + Mike McCarthy have to get the ball into Randall Cobb’s hands. There’s no excuse for him not to touch the ball.

Davante Adams continues to impress. At times, it’s seemed as though he can’t be guarded.

It’s easy to criticize Hundley. But, take a step back for a second. He was booed as he walked off the field in regulation. Still, he had the composure to take the ball in OT and to lead us to victory in heroic fashion. I give him credit for the way he’s kept his confidence when it would’ve been easy for him to fold. He stayed calm with the season on the line and because of it, the Packers left with a win.

The jumbo package continues to frustrate me. With Hundley at QB, the Packers need to have confusion on offense. When we drop back and play teams straight up, we don’t win. When we keep defenses guessing and we’re dictating the tempo, McCarthy has seen modest success moving the football. McCarthy needs to stick with motion, disguise and misdirection.

KENNY CLARK! I love Clark’s game. Although it was his least impressive performance against the run, he was a force on the pass rush. Nice to see him get home twice; including the game changing sack and forced fumble that led to the Lowry touchdown. The Packers needed someone to make a big play on defense. To change the tide. Clark did so.

Dean Lowry. NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Think you’d ever hear that? Neither did I. Many props to the big guy who gives maximum effort each and every play. He gobbles up OL. The next aspect of his game is to get his hands up and to disrupt passing lanes. I expected him to bring that Johnny Jolly pass defense component. Haven’t seen that out of him much. I think it’ll come. Get your hands up, big guy!

Mike Daniels didn’t have his best game, but he was still extremely active taking on double teams.

That was Blake Martinez’s worst game of the year. He looked slower. He didn’t show the instincts that we’ve seen out of him all year. It was interesting to note that in a game in which Clark and Daniels had trouble getting off blocks, Martinez was less active. The Clark/Daniels and Martinez combination is ideal. Clark and Daniels win with push. Martinez’s strength is his recognition, his intelligence and his vision. Clark and Daniels have allowed Martinez to run. And, with his freedom to roam, he’s been a tackling machine. He’s a stat sheet stuffer. In large part, that’s due to the yoeman’s work that Clark and Daniels have done in the trenches.

Clay Matthews was dominant. A difference maker. Dynamite game from our all-time leading sack master.

Kyler Fackrell! Massive blocked punt. Momentum changer!

Jermaine Whitehead was exposed. Badly.

Sad to see Kevin King go to IR. I had huge expectations for him. Terrible to see Demetri Goodson as his replacement. The Packers can’t win a Super Bowl with Goodson, Whitehead and Josh Hawkins in the rotation. I’m baffled as to why Lenzy Pipkins doesn’t play. He’s an athlete. He has the attitude. He has toughness. I’d rather see him on the field over Goodson, Whitehead and Hawkins. Goodson isn’t good enough. There’s no reason for him to be on the roster. Further, where’s Marwin Evans last week? I realize that he hasn’t been as active in the Regular Season as he has been in the preseason games, but man, there’s at least a glimmer of hope with him.

Jamies Winston, a QB, outmuscled Joe Thomas, our ILB, on a 50/50 ball that was fumbled. Winston was on a hobbled leg, scrambling for his footing. Thomas was blasting towards the football with leverage.

It’s clear that Davon House and Nick Perry are banged up. House limited Evans, but when Evans did catch the ball, House wasn’t overly aggressive to seek contact. Perry looks hobbled getting off of the ball.

Need more out of Josh Jones. Where’d he go? He offered so much hope early in the season. Makes me wonder if he’s not trained up at the Safety position? Did the Packers bank on him being an ILB. He’s looked more comfortable around the box than he has playing deep in space. Need Jones to show up with a turnover soon. He’s shown all of the traits that you look for in a premier defender. He has the wits, the speed, the desire, the mindset and the toughness. He needs to put it altogether.

Quinton Dial eats up space, but he can’t shed and make plays. He’s also losing the leverage battle lately. Need him to be more powerful.

Someday – I hope we learn to defend the screen.

THE CLAYMAKER! LOVED SEEING HIM AS A DIFFERENCE MAKER!

Trevor Davis needs to take the ball up the field on punts. 7-10 yards is better than no yards. Play the field position game. And, maybe, if you make once guy miss in the open field with a one-cut move, you can take it for a big gain. But, to start, you have to take the ball up the field.

I thought McCarthy should have asked for a spot prior to choosing a FG. Additionally, he had a challenge. And, timeouts. There was no reason to not challenge the spot. I thought Nelson was given a bad spot. Didn’t like McCarthy’s approach in that situation.

It’s Christmas season. And, once again, the Packers are relevant. Four more wins and we have a fighting chance to be playing into January.

Kenny Clark not only eats up blockers. But, he sheds blockers and makes plays. He allows Blake Martinez to roam freely behind him. Love Clark’s effort. He’s a fiery competitor and has brought significant toughness to the interior of the defense. The Daniels and Clark combination is the heart of this defense. It’s noteworthy that Clark displayed a pass rush at the college level. Fun to see him finally get to the QB at the pro level. He’s only 22 years old. There’s reason to hope that he can continue to develop that aspect of his game.

Mike McCarthy might not always be well-liked in Titletown, U.S.A., but his teams are 38-14 in December and January regular season games. I’d argue that he’s an extremely under-appreciated Head Coach.

This week – it’s the winless Browns. In Cleveland. In a dangerous game. If the Browns are going to win a game all year, this is the type of game they win. At home. Against a back-up QB. If the Packers can pull it off, we’ll be 7-6 and hopefully, Aaron Rodgers will be back for the remainder of the season. It’d be great to have Rodgers playing the role as savior. While the Browns are winless, they aren’t hopeless.

Offensively, the Browns have weapons. Josh Gordon is back. He’s as talented as it gets. Corey Coleman is a dangerous threat getting in and out of his breaks. Kenny Britt can still get down the field. Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson are both solid in the screen game and they like to attack the interior of the defensive line. Both areas are where the Packers have been weak. At TE, David Njoku is a budding star. At some point, he’ll be a Pro Bowl player. I have an odd feeling that there will be a time in which DeShone Kizer will be the back-up QB in Green Bay. Kizer has all of the gifts to be a star QB in this league. He just hasn’t put it all together yet. But, he’s highly capable. He’s mobile. He can make all of the throws. Much like Hundley, he’s had a massive learning curve and he’s struggled to read defenses. In turn, turnovers have consistently been a problem for Kizer. Those turnovers have often come in the Red Zone. At some point, the Packers are going to have to force Kizer into a bad decision. The interior of the Browns OL brings brute force. Look for the Browns to try and pound the ball behind Tretter, Zietler and Bitonio. I believe the Packers can win on the edges against Spencer Drango and Shon Coleman.

Defensively, the Browns are significantly better than their record indicates. The Browns aren’t winless because of their defense. In fact, their offense has only scored 20 points in one game all year. However, the Browns defense has given up 30+ points on 6 occasions. Myles Garrett is a freak. He’ll give the Packers tackles everything they can handle. Danny Shelton is a run stuffer, but he’s injured and his status is in question. Larry Ogunjobi is an athletic DT who can cause havoc as a pass rusher. Carl Nassib is a high effort edge performer. He isn’t overly talented, but he gives maximum effort on every play. Joe Schobert and Christian Kirksey have been solid performers for the Browns. They aren’t going to wow you with speed or power, but they’re going to be reliable game-in and game-out performers. They’re assignment sure and win with smarts rather than athleticism. The Cleveland secondary is banged up. They might be missing both Jabrill Peppers and Briean Boddy-Calhoun. Jamar Taylor and Jason McCourty are both experienced CB’s, but neither should be capable of slowing down Jordy Nelson or Davante Adams. Derrick Kindred is a capable Safety. He’ll plug the hole and he can run. He isn’t much of a playmaker and can be exposed in the passing game.

It’s no secret. The Browns are going to look to stop the run. Gregg Williams, the Browns DC, is a mean dude. He’s going to have the Browns defense possessed. He’ll have the ready. He’ll be in blitz mode. He’s going to try and punish Hundley after attempting to force the Packers into 3rd and long. He’ll give Hundley a wide variety of looks – similar to what the Ravens did. It’ll be important for McCarthy to try and dictate the tempo. He can’t let Williams get control of this game. McCarthy has to add the element of confusion. He has to give Williams looks that we haven’t seen this year. He has to show motion. The passing game should have a focus on the weak side of the field.

The Packers defense has to make strides to become tougher this weekend than we were against Tampa. We have to be the more physical trend. The infrastructure of the defense is built to compete up front with Daniels, Dial, Clark, Lowry, Matthews, Perry and Brooks. I’m hoping that Perry can play a situational role this week. But, I’m afraid his health might not allow it. Nonetheless, the defensive front has to come through and dominate the line of scrimmage. If not, we could see Duke Johnson and Isaiah Crowell pushing through the tackles for big chunks. That’ll open up play-action and big plays down the field. We can’t let Kizer get a sniff of confidence. We need to get in his face early and often. I’m banking on the Packers defensive front winning this game for us.

With the Browns beat up secondary, it’s possible that they’ll be left without a CB who can man the slot. Look for Cobb to be involved early.

Early in the game, the play action will be open. Expect McCarthy to take a shot deep down the field. This time, Hundley connects.

With the Packers beat up secondary, we’re going to be expecting Lenzy Pipkens, Damarious Randall and Josh Hawkins to be able to hold form. That’ll be a tough task against the talented Cleveland receivers. Thankfully, the Packers win the battle up front.

Two far-out predictions:

1.) Look for Jeff Janis to make a play on a reverse. I have a weird feeling that it’s happening this week.
2.) Lenzy Pipkins grabs an interception!

It’ll be tough to stomach, but it’ll be a win.

Packers 20.
Browns 16.

Go Pack Go!

Talkin’ S-Mac.
Talkins-mac.blogspot.com