2018 NFL Week 17 - Packers vs. Lions Preview & Prediction

Here we are, Packers fans...the end of the season for our Green Bay Packers. Today's game at Lambeau Field will bring a merciful end to a forgettable 100th year of Packers football. At a mediocre 6-8-1 going into today's game vs. the 5-10 Detroit Lions, the Pack will finish the season with a losing record and out of the playoffs for the second straight year. Oy.

If you're wondering where things went off the rails, I highly commend to your reading pleasure (a questionable term in this regard, granted) the article by sports writer Pete Dougherty from yesterday's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel entitled The day Aaron Rodgers' split with Mike McCarthy became clear. Quite a compelling analysis of the point early in this season where then-head coach Mike McCarthy lost his QB (that would be one Aaron Rodgers for those unaware) and with him, effectively, the locker room and team...and, ultimately, his head coaching job after 13 years. It was all downhill from there.

Now, to be fair, the Packers were yet once again -- how does this keep happening year after year??? -- plagued by injuries across the board, including a banged up Rodgers in the very first game (Da Bearz!) that seemed to linger in various forms throughout the season. The injuries depleted an already thin talent pool in terms of depth, which revealed that former GM Ted Thompson's last few drafts weren't all that great after all.

Prior to the season, many, including yours truly, predicted the Pack would likely win the NFC North with an 11-5 record and be one of the favorites to contend for the Super Bowl. As good ol' Maxwell Smart would say, "Missed it by that much". (Ancient cultural reference for those who might pick up on that.) So we are where we are in today's season finale.

Packers WR Davante Adams was in sight of setting two franchise records today.
But he is listed as inactive. A great season for Adams regardless.
(Photo: RIck Wood, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

The Prediction

With a game like today, that doesn't mean anything in the scheme of things...Packers will finish in third place in the division ahead of Detroit win or lose...expect Rodgers to start, but this fan hopes they get him out of the game as quickly as possible. Absolutely no need to expose him to injury. He will be without his top receiver, Davante Adams, who was declared inactive for today's game. Adams was in sight of breaking Sterling Sharpe's franchise record for number of receptions in a season and Jody Nelson's record for receiving yards in a season; but both of those will have to wait for another year.

Expect to see what may be the last appearances by some veteran Packers in a Green Bay uniform: LB Clay Matthews and WR Randall Cobb, in particular, are long-time standouts whose contracts and performances point to likely exits in free agency. Thank you, gentlemen, for your great contributions to the Packers over the years. You may be gone next year, but you won't be forgotten.

Because there may well be limited playing time for Rodgers and others, and expanded playing time for younger and more inexperienced members of the team today, it's hard to tell exactly what to expect. It feels like a preseason game in many respects. Still, the Packers are favored by 8 points.

We haven't said much, actually, anything, at all about the Lions. Their season has been more of a train wreck than that of the Packers. While they've won a couple in a row against the Packers -- hard to believe -- we can't imagine that happening today. While both teams supposedly will be playing for nothing more than pride today, that carries a bit more weight when playing at home.

We're calling this game Packers 27 - Lions 20.

Go Pack Go!!!

Boy, are we spoiled, Packer fans

You'd think that after a win -- a win at home, a win against a divisional opponent, a win that is a shutout -- that we Packer fans would be reveling in yesterday's victory. Well, yes and no.

Definitely, it's always a good thing to get a "W" (political references aside, please). So why the kvetching (look it up)? Just review the posts from yesterday as the game went on: penalties, sacks, missed opportunities, redzone failures, no running game. We'll get back to all this in a moment.

Let's not forget the positives:

• Donald Driver becoming the all-time Packers leader in receptions, surpassing Sterling Sharpe. Not bad for a 7th round draft pick who caught a grand total of 3 passes in his first season. Congratulations, Donald. Packers Hall of Fame here you come!


• Aaron Rodgers passing for 358 yards.


• Clay Matthews getting his first start at linebacker and making big plays in the process.


• Aaron Kampman working occasionally from the down linemen position and looking like his old sack-meister self.


• Mason Crosby nailing 4 field goals (OK, that was the Pack settling but give credit where it's due).


• The entire defensive unit staying focused and pitching a shutout.

So, lots of good things. Really. So why so dissatisfied with this win? Rather than reprise my rants from yesterday, why not take a look at what sports reporter Jay Sorgi of 620WTMJ radio in Milwaukee has to say. He entitles his article, "Analysis: Worst 26-Point Win EVER." Hmmm...wonder how he really feels? Read it for yourself here and find out. Pretty scathing. And pretty on target.

And if that doesn't do you in, check out Bill Michaels' blog, also at 620WTMJ. He takes on the Packers' sloppiness, penalties in particular, as now a multi-year problem under head coach Mike McCarthy. Check out this tidbit: "Mike McCarthy’s 'We’ll clean that up' phrase has now fallen upon deaf ears. To be honest, I’m beginning to question McCarthy’s capabilities as a head coach. There have been numerous moments that bring me to this more definitive doubt today but an undisciplined team, coming out of a break in which there was supposed to be a staunch concentration on 'cleaning up' the mental errors, leads me to believe that Mike McCarthy doesn’t have the ability, discipline capability or respect to fix the problems that have plagued this team for the last few years." Ouch! Check out the rest of what Michaels has to say here.

The Pack may get away with this kind of sloppiness against their next opponent, Cleveland. However, making these same bonehead mistakes against the next team to visit Lambeau -- that would be the ViQueens and Ol' #4 (as a popular T-shirt says, "We'll never forget you, Brent") -- will be a sure formula for a loss.

So, be happy with the victory. And pray for improvement.

What to do on bye week Sunday?

As every green-n-gold-blooded Packers fan knows, there is no game this weekend. Sigh. What to do? There is a void in our day when the bye occurs. On the one hand, we're happy for the players who need the time to heal and get ready for the second half of the season. On the other hand, many of us are faced with the dreaded prospect of actually having to engage with other family members, do those Fall chores that we've been putting off, or actually do something productive for a change. Chilling thoughts, one and all. One might think, depending upon where one lives, that we could savor watching Da Bearz or ViQueens go down in defeat this weekend. Nope. They also have byes. The Lions play Washington...but does anyone really care?

So, we need to turn to the flagship radio station of the Packers, 620WTMJ-AM in Milwaukee, for our Packers fix. Each year during the bye weekend WTMJ airs a classic game of years gone by. This weekend, it is airing The Instant Replay Game. You know what I'm talking about: that 1989 game at Lambeau Field during which the Packers beat Da Bearz in the last minute of the game on Don Majkowski's pass on 4th-and-goal from the 14-yard line to Sterling Sharpe in the south endzone. You know, the game where the zebras originally said Majik was over the line of scrimmage when he threw the ball. The game where the refs then tossed it up to the replay booth. The game where it took the zebras seemingly forever to review the tape and finally declare, "We have a reversal...touchdown."

It was a heckuva game. This writer had the privilege of attending this classic game in person. I know, I know, there are perhaps as many people who now say they were at this game as attended the Ice Bowl game. But yours truly was indeed there. In fact, some friends and I were sitting in that very south endzone and the pass to Sharpe occurred directly in front of us. I can still see Majik scrambling and then drilling the pass to Sharpe. The crowd erupted! Then it seemed like the longest delay you'd ever experience as the officials tried to get it right. They did, of course. (Naturally, if you're a fan of Da Bearz you might have a different opinion...in fact, I think this loss is designated in Chicago's annals with an asterisk as they still can't accept the reality of the defeat. Deal with it!) That decision then gave all of us a second chance to celebrate all over again. And, as I think back, it seemed even sweeter the second time. That's because Da Bearz had initially thought they had won the game based on the official's initial call. They had been celebrating. And then...ohhhhhhhhhh...snap! "We have a reversal...". That just had to rip the heart right out of 'em. Gives me a warm feeling even now.

Anyway, 620WTMJ will be re-airing this game at 11 a.m. Central time this Sunday. Those within broadcast range or whose local stations are part of the Packers radio network can tune in. It's unclear whether they will be streaming the audio over the Internet, but they may very well be. You'll have to check in to their site Sunday to see if that's available. In the meantime, you can get a review and preview all in one by going here.

Hang in there, Packer fans...the Pack will be back...next weekend!

A 1992 flashback

No...not that kind of flashback. This one came courtesy tonight of The NFL Network: the Sept. 20, 1992 game between the Pack and Bengals in which Wisconsin's own Tim Krumrie crunched then-starting QB Don Majkowski's left ankle allowing a 2nd-year player by the name of Brett Favre to enter the game. (I know, that was a long sentence...take a breath and start reading again when ready...)

This game marked Brett's first win and first game-winning comeback all rolled into one. It was also Mike Holmgren's first victory as Packers' head coach.

One of the interesting comments made by the NBC announcers (Jim Lampley and Ahmad Rashad) was that "You live and die with somebody like Brett Favre" after he fumbled inside the Pack's own 30, down 10-3 late in the third quarter. That statement applied as well in that first game as it did in the last. But we wouldn't have had it any other way.

Another interesting aspect of this game were some of the names involved: Edgar Bennett, Jackie Harris, Bryce Paup, Terrell Buckley (who, characteristically, dropped a sure interception...but, to be fair, he also had a punt return for a TD...but then also, characteristically, fumbled a punt at a critical time in the game), Ken Ruettgers, Robert Brooks, Johnny Holland, Vince Workman, Brian Noble, LeRoy Butler, Sterling Sharpe (who caught Brett's first NFL TD pass), John Jurkovic, Harry Sydney, Tony Bennett, Ed West, Chris Jacke, Tootie Robbins, and Sanjay Beach (who goes down in football history as being the receiver who caught Brett's first pass...other than the deflected one which Brett caught himself, of course.)

It was also fascinating to see just how bad Brett looked for much of that game...lots of fumbles, lots of sacks, lots of missed throws, lots of "What the heck is going on out there?!" (to quote the late, great Vince Lombardi). But you also saw those flashes of what would make Brett the greatest QB the game ever saw: a rocket arm, a never-give-up attitude, and a guy that could take a pounding and still keep coming back.

It was an interesting glimpse back in Packers history...and at the start of a legendary career.

Oh yeah...if you recall, the Pack won 24-23 with 13 seconds to go on a bomb down the right sideline from Brett to Kitrick Taylor, and a PAT by Jacke. The throw was a classic. And so was Brett's response: just as he did in his Super Bowl win, Brett took his helmet off and ran around like a little kid. Wow. It was the first of many "Wows" we had as Packer fans with Brett at the helm.

You can read more about this legendary game here.

Freeman Signed -- to Retire

Remember Antonio Freeman? The guy with the fifth most catches in Packers history? The guy who played a good chunk of the 1996 championship with a cast on his broken left forearm? The guy who made that miraculous catch on his back, in the rain, on Monday Night Football at Lambeau in 2000 to win the game in overtime against the ViQueens? The guy most of us thought was already retired?

Yeah, that Antonio Freeman.

Freeman was last signed in 2004 by Miami but was released during training camp. Other than the Dolphins (no playing time) and playing for the Eagles in 2002 before one last year with the Pack in 2003, Freeman was always a Packer...is a Packer. And that's why he wanted to retire as one. The Packers signed Freeman yesterday to make that happen.

Freeman was not always the fastest receiver on the field, but he was one of the most sure-handed, reliable, and wiliest receivers the team has ever had, as evidenced by catching 431 passes in his eight years with the Pack, making him number five on the team's all-time receptions list. "Free" was also Brett Favre's favorite receiver during the mid-90s Super Bowl runs, and led the Packers in receiving from 1996-99.

Glad to have you back, "Free." Even if it is only so you can retire. Next stop for Freeman will be the Packers Hall of Fame, where he will then become part of a fine quintet of the Packers' all-time reception leaders along with Sterling Sharpe, James Lofton, Don Hutson and Boyd Dowler. Now that's fantasy football!