It was, of course, a loss at home for literally the first time in a generation to the then 1-7 Detroit Lions that was the tip of the Frozen Tundra iceberg. Last Sunday, the Pack was able to get a win in Minnesota. Fans thought the ship was righted.
(Photo: William Glasheen/P-G Media/@wmgl)
Then came Thanksgiving. And other than the thanks given for seeing Brett Favre's number 4 retired to the Ring of Honor inside Lambeau Field, and the return of Packer legend Bart Starr to the field for what likely is the last time, there wasn't much to be thankful for. Another lackluster performance by the offense saw the Pack lose to the arch-rival Chicago Bears despite a flurry of the usual last minute bluster that has put the Pack in position to win in the closing seconds...but...not.
The Packers, who for a few short days sat atop the NFC North by virtue of the tiebreaker with the ViQueens, now find themselves in second place with a 7-4 record, losing four of their last five games after starting the season 6-0.
As the late, great Vince Lombardi would definitely say (among other things, no doubt), "What the heck is going on out here!?".
That's what coaches, players and fans are trying to figure out. QB Aaron Rodgers' completion percentage and quarterback rating has taken a nose dive during this stretch. Some of that is on him. But a great deal of that is on his receivers who continually are dropping passes that they should be catching, who are running routes that are not on the same page of the playbook as the one Rodgers is apparently using, or who simply are unable to get separation from defenders. It's not the plays being called it's the players not executing the plays called that seems to be at the heart of the offensive woes.
The Packers defense has been playing well enough to win. The Packers offense hasn't. If things don't get turned around soon, say this coming Thursday night in Detroit, the season is definitely in peril. Perhaps it already is. Imagine losing this upcoming game to the Lions. It could happen. Detroit has won three games in a row now, starting with the win over the Packers. Trendline: up. Packers, again, have lost four out of five. Trendline: down.
That's the state of things as of today.
We'll be back with a preview/prediction for the Detroit game a bit closer to the actual game. For now, we must still try to wrap our heads around this underperforming group known as the 2015 Green Bay Packers.
