Packers still defending champs!

Yes, it's true. At least until about 9 p.m. (CT) tonight, the Green Bay Packers are still the reigning Super Bowl Champions. Then they will become last season's champion. (Sigh)

This isn't the way it was supposed to go this season was it, Packer fans? Nope. Not when you go 15-1. Not when you have one of the most explosive offenses in the history of the league. Not when you have the league's Most Valuable Player (awarded last evening, by the way), QB Aaron Rodgers, throwing to arguably the best receiving corps in the league. Unfortunately, the worst-ranked defense in the league finally did the Pack in. And the rest, as we know, is history. The team with the best record this season is sitting home watching the big game just like the rest of us.

So, kudos to Mr. Rodgers on his MVP season. Unfortunately, there was no one on the defensive side of the ball this year that could help carry things the way Rodgers and company did offensively. Let's hope GM Ted Thompson addresses that matter in the offseason. You have to believe so. The Packers are still a young-enough team to have a window for competing for the Super Bowl each season, as long as they don't let it slip away as they did this year. Lessons learned. We hope.

Now, as to the game today between the Patriots and the Giants, what do things look like? Well, frankly, I could care less which team wins. Really. I'll watch, of course. But it matters not a whit to me which team takes home the Lombardi Trophy. Don't care for the Pats and for the second time in the last four or five years the Giants have left a really bad taste in my mouth after sending our beloved Packers down to defeat...at Lambeau Field no less. So, if the game could end in a tie through some cosmic hocus pocus, that would be great. Even better if they could both lose. But the probability of that happening is of such a metaphysically minute nature as to make it not even worthwhile to consider...I hate it when that happens!

But, anyway, what's my call for the outcome? The Pats are favored by 3 points. But the Giants have the momentum, much as the Packers did going into the game against the Steelers last year. So, as much as it pains me to do so, I have to conclude that the Giants will win tonight's game.

Don't have a score prediction because, well, I just don't care. I'll be watching mainly for the commercials.

Packers vs. Bears: A Christmas Gift

As fans of the Green Bay Packers, all we want for Christmas today is a Packers' win. Well, that and a total beat down of the Chicago Bears...oh, and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Is that too much to ask? Naaaaaahhhhh.

One of the other things readers of this blog may want today is a brief preview. Frankly, that's what this writer wants, as well. Let's make both our wishes come true, shall we?

The weather at Lambeau Field for tonight's game will be balmy for this time of year, in the low 30's. Field conditions will be good, relatively speaking. It is winter, after all. The spread on the game is anywhere from 11-1/2 to 12-1/2 points depending upon who are you looking at, and the over/under is set at 42 points.

The challenge for the Packers tonight will be keeping a very good Bears defensive line from wreaking havoc on a patchwork offensive line for the Packers. If Da Bearz have any chance tonight it is getting penetration on the line, disrupting the running game and pressuring the quarterback. They may very well do that now and then throughout the game. But can Da Bearz decimated offense score any points? Not many.

I always give Da Bearz 10 points for a defensive turnover leading to a touchdown, plus a special teams play leading to a field goal. Will they score any more with new old QB Josh McCown under center this week for the first time? Not likely. He's got nobody to throw to and nobody to hand off to.

Will the Packers score more than 10 points. You bet. The Pack was embarrassed in Kansas City last weekened when they sleep-walked through the game. I had said in that preview the only way the Packers would lose against the Chiefs was if they didn't show up; they didn't. Think that will happen two weeks in a row? Not a chance. No doubt head coach Mike McCarthy ripped his team a new one all week long after they let the possibility of a perfect season slip through their fingers. But now they can focus on the main goal: securing home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a win tonight. A return to the Super Bowl is in sight. Last season, the Packers started to peak at the right time, following a loss at New England. Perhaps this loss at KC will be the same kick-start the team needs to begin its repeat run to the Lombardi Trophy.

So, what's my score prediction? I'm calling it 27-10 Packers.

Go Pack Go!!!

And in the spirit of Christmas...Ho Ho Ho!!!

Packers set 2011 roster and practice squad

Saturday was the day the Green Bay Packers decided on the 53 players that will take them back to the Super Bowl. In the process, 27 players were either cut, traded or put on injured reserve. Today, Sunday, was the day some of those players got a reprieve by clearing waivers and getting signed to the Packers' practice squad.

In case you haven't already seen the roster elsewhere, here is the 53-man roster that GM Ted Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy are going to war with this season. It has a familiar look in many respects to the team that brought the Lombardi Trophy back to Lambeau Field following last season's campaign.

• QBs: Aaron Rodgers and Matt Flynn
• RBs: Ryan Grant, James Starks, John Kuhn and Alex Green
• TEs: Jermichael Finley, Andrew Quarless, Tom Crabtree, Ryan Taylor and D.J. Williams
• WRs: Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, Jordy Nelson, James Jones and Randall Cobb
• OL: Chad Clifton, T.J. Lang, Scott Wells, Josh Sitton, Bryan Bulaga, Marshall Newhouse, Derek Sherrod and Evan Dietrich Smith.
• DL: B.J. Raji, Ryan Pickett, Mike Neal, Howard Green, Jarius Wynn and C.J. Wilson
• LBs: Clay Matthews, Desmond Bishop, A.J. Hawk, Erik Walden, Frank Zombo, Vic So'oto, Jamari Lattimore, Brad Jones, Robert Francois and D.J. Smith.
• DBs: Charles Woodson, Tramon Williams, Nick Collins, Morgan Burnett, Sam Shields, Jarrett Bush, Pat Lee, Charlie Peprah, M.D. Jennings and Davon House.
• K: Mason Crosby
• P: Tim Masthay
• Long Snapper: Brett Goode

Undrafted rookie wide receiver/returner Shaky Smithson and rookie defensive end Lawrence Guy were placed on injured reserve.

Quick takes on this roster: long on linebackers, defensive backs and tight ends, a bit light on offensive linemen and running backs.

Practice Squad
Going into the season with only eight offensive linemen doesn't allows too much room for error...or injury. Perhaps that's why the Packers re-signed a couple of the offensive linemen they cut to the practice squad. And speaking of same, here are the practice squad signings of today:

• QB: Graham Harrell
• WRs: Chastin West, Tori Gurley and Diondre Borel
• RB: Brandon Saine
• OGs: Ray Dominguez and Sampson Genus
• CB: Brandian Ross

Still, having two unproven rookies as your only O-line backups for depth leads many in the sports world to believe that Ted Thompson will pick up a veteran, perhaps before the season opener against the Saints on Thursday.

I and many others are likely of the view that having Harrell, West, Gurley and Saine on the practice squad gives the coaches a bit of security and flexibility they were hoping to have available as the season commences. Both Harrell and West have been on the practice squad, and West certainly demonstrated this preseason the ability to be a good number five receiver should one of the other receivers go down. The Packers were also intrigued by Gurley's potential and probably gave a sigh of relief that he wasn't claimed on waivers. To a certain degree, they may have felt the same about rookie OG Ray Dominguez who, while raw, has the attitude and talent potential to play on the O-line, given a little seasoning, of course.

Turning coal into diamonds
Another observation I'd like to pass along, and which is attributable to Bill Huber's fine article at Packer Report, is that more than half of the Packers current roster is comprised of players found in the sixth round, seventh round or who weren't drafted at all. That's right: 27 of the 53 players on this season's roster were found by GM Ted Thompson and his scouts near the bottom of the draft, or even as undrafted free agents. Can you say "Value!"?

Huber has a few other choice tidbits for you, so I encourage you to hop over there and check out his article.

For now, let's just close by saying that the Packers escaped the preseason without any significant injuries. They have key players returning to the practice field today who were on injured reserve last season. A talented team with an explosive offense and disruptive defense is set to go after another Lombardi Trophy.

As coach McCarthy says: the Packers aren't defending anything; they are hunting for another Super Bowl win. You bet. It's great to be a Packer fan!

Go Pack Go!!!

Packer Fans: Are You Ready for Some Football?!

Silly question, isn't it? Of course fans of the Green Bay Packers are ready for football. We were ready for more football as soon as the Pack won Super Bowl XLV and brought the Lobmardi Trophy back to Green Bay. When you are a Super Bowl champ (or even a fan thereof) you can't wait to get back in the mode of winning another. And, oh, by the way, in case you haven't heard, the Packers are favored by many prognosticators to play in this season's Super Bowl versus the Patriots. There's even some analysis out there -- you can find it if you look hard enough, trust me -- that the Packers are a team, if not the team, best positioned to dominate over the next several years. Looking at the management, the coaching staff and the roster you'd be hard pressed to find a a better organization anywhere in football. Yes, I'm a homer and readily admit it. But there are plenty of folks out there besides yours truly saying the same thing. So there.

But first, we need the lockout to end. And, as I suggested here in my last post, I thought a deal would definitely get done by the end of this month. I'm sticking with that. The deal may come, as rumored, as soon as this weekend. Let's hope so. The Packers sure seem to think so: they're reportedly getting Ray Nitschke Field -- the Pack's training facility -- prepared for action. And St. Norbert College in De Pere, home going back to the 1950s for the Packers' training camp, is also making preparations as if camp will be starting on time.

So, let's be optimistic. There's too much money to be lost if this drags on. And when push comes to shove, that's usually what will get a deal done...the loss of real dollars in the bank account not dollars merely on paper.

What a week!

As I write this, ESPN is announcing that the NFL Players Association has just decertified. And so, the negotiations between the NFL owners and players now goes to the courts. The NFLPA is dissolved and the union no longer exists; it is now a trade association. Players can individually file antitrust lawsuits. If the NFL locks out players, players can file lawsuits to block the lockouts. Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are expected to be among the lead plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit against the league. Basically, nothing can happen business-wise with players who are currently in the league once this hits the courts. The NFL Draft supposedly can take place as usual because those players are obviously not yet in the NFL, although I heard one report indicate that, depending upon how the judge rules, the Draft could be out the window, too.

So, after a week's extension of time to negotiate...nada. Now it's gonna get nasty. There's a lockout coming, Packer fans. Just a matter of how long it will last.

Hard to image that these folks can't figure out how to negotiate a win-win situation when there's $9 billion-plus to be had. Can you say "greed"? Even kids learn that it's good to share. These folks must have missed that day in kindergarten.

Other happenings

Head coach Mike McCarthy's contract extension was finalized. He and GM Ted Thompson will be leading the Green Bay Packers' field deployment through 2015 (if memory serves). Both are being rewarded well for bringing the Lombardi Trophy home to Titletown.

The Packers put some tenders on a few players: James Jones, Daryn Colledge, Atari Bigby and John Kuhn (am I missing anyone?). Basically, they are more defensive maneauvers than anything, especially since the entire collective bargaining deal with the NFL Players Association is out the window...no one knows at this point now whether these players will be restricted or unrestricted free agents as there is now no collective bargaining agreement that defines that.

LB Nick Barnett may be the odd man out of the inside linebackers (interesting grammatical construction there but I think you get the drift). Coach McCarthy told reporters that A. J. Hawk (recently re-signed to a new big dollar deal) and Desmond Bishop (big deal signed before end of the season) are his starting inside linebackers. Barnett, coming off his second season-ending injury in the last three seasons, may or may not be back with the Pack if and when football is next played. Consensus among fans, if you can gauge such things from the comments about the various stories and scenarios related to this topic, seems to be that Barnett will be gone and the Packers will be looking to pick up new and younger and healthier linebacker help in the upcoming draft.

Natural and man-made disasters

We awoke this morning to the sad and terrible news of the earthquake (now quakes) in Japan and the ensuing tsunami which has killed hundreds of people and destroyed much property in Japan. A damaged nuclear reactor is also in the mix and is a major concern not only within Japan but from a global perspective. We need to keep the people of Japan and other affected areas in our thoughts and prayers. If you wish to support relief efforts, text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation, or go here to donate online.

Finally, while it's a matter that I generally try to keep out of this blog, the happenings of the last weeks and days in the state of Wisconsin regarding the collective bargaining rights of public employees and the state budget came to a head when the governor, newly-elected Republican Scott Walker, signed into law this morning the bill passed by the Republican-controlled legislature. Anyone who has tuned into any of the news shows -- or even Comedy Central's Daily Show and Colbert Report for that matter -- are aware of this matter. Regardless of one's political persuasion, this event has nationwide implications either positive or negative depending upon your view. The state senate majority leader told Fox News the real reason for banning these collective bargaining rights; you can view the video and decide for yourself whether it was about the state budget or something else. Events are scheduled at the Wisconsin state capitol building in Madison for Saturday, March 12. But unscheduled events are just as likely to occur for a long time to come.

For a current list of events in Madison and around the state in support of workers' rights, see here. You can also take a stand for workers in Wisconsin and elsewhere where rights are similarly threatened by going here. And if you use Twitter -- to follow this blog at @packfasnunited no doubt! -- you can see all the various posts related to this situation by using the #wiunion hashtag.