Penalties and other debris

The topic of ongoing penalties by the Packers under head coach Mike McCarthy's tenure is a topic of much discussion among Packer fans and sports pundits. Some of those thoughts were related in yesterday's post, including links to yet other articles about the topic.

Today, the online edition of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has a poll about the subject. At the time of this posting, here are the results:

Does Mike McCarthy show enough concern over the number of Packers penalties?

• Yes (8%)
• No (92%)

Total Responses: 1,788

Guess, coach, fans aren't buying the old song and dance that "we'll get it cleaned up." We've heard that for the last few years and the Packers are still among the most penalized teams in the league. And then, refs begin looking for chances to throw the flags. You think they aren't eyeballing Chad Clifton every time he goes to the line of scrimmage to see if he is actually on the line of scrimmage?

Coach McCarthy also got a bit testy during his news conference yesterday when he was pressed on the subject of penalties. It doesn't really get conveyed in the transcript, but if you listen to the audio you should be able to sense his growing unease talking about the subject. Just go here and then click on coach McCarthy's press conference from Oct. 19.

Flashback or flash forward?
Reports out of Green Bay yesterday are that the Packers had RB Ahman Green in for a tryout yesterday. Whaaaaaaa...??? Yep. Ahman Green. Great. About 10 years ago, that is. Was cut by Houston in February after two seasons of ongoing injuries. At age 32, should he even be considered as a backup? And that's what we're talking here. But isn't it a reflection on personnel and/or coaching decisions when this is where things are at in regards to that position after just five games?

Let's review, shall we?

The decision was to keep Brandon Jackson and DeShawn Wynn as the backups to Ryan Grant. Jackson is serviceable when healthy, which he hasn't been yet this season, being active for the first time against the Lions. Wynn has shown flashes on rare occasions when he's been healthy; his problem, however, is that he has never been healthy -- or willing play through minor injuries -- since he's been in the NFL.

As for the starter, Grant has been a non-factor in any form this season. He finally got off his longest run of the season -- 22 yards -- late in the game Sunday when the Lions had already been beaten. Not entirely his fault. The problems with the offensive line extend beyond giving up a league-leading sack count; there also just haven't been many holes to run through. (One wonders if even a back like Adrian Peterson could do anything given this current line. )

But back to personnel decisions. The Packers kept three fullbacks, which raised eyebrows at the time and perhaps is now coming back to haunt the team. Although this past Sunday, the team was down to only John Kuhn as both Korey Hall and rookie Quinn Johnson were out. But if the Pack had kept their leading rusher of the preseason, undrafted free agent Tyrell Sutton, the team might not now have to be looking at such alternatives as bringing in Ahman Green and Dominic Rhodes, another old-timer (age 30), as help in the running back department. Granted, Sutton might not have been the answer either. But at least he was fast and had fresh legs.

You can read more about this development here. Be sure to especially check out the reader comments afterward. Some priceless feedback.

Game Day Weather Link
In a continuing effort to provide at least some useful tools to Packer fans, I've recently added a "Packers 2009 Home & Away Weather Forecast" link in, appropriately enough, the "Links" section in the righthand column. Check it out there. Or here.

Pack vs. Cards preview

The Pack goes to the Arizona desert tonight where the temperature today is supposed to be 114 degrees. But it's a dry heat.

Luckily, the game will be played indoors, where the temp will be modified juuuuusssst a bit.

What Packer fans are interested in seeing, though, is the temperature of the team. The third preseason game is typically viewed as the real final warm up before the regular season starts. Sure, there is one final preseason game. But some starters won't see any action at all in that game, or perhaps only a few tune up snaps. Don't want to risk injury, of course. Generally, that last game is a chance for the team to make their final determinations on bubble players. You know, those rookies, free agents and even veterans that just might not fit the Packers' plans, or find a spot on a highly competitive roster.

But back to tonight. Fans want to know whether or not the starting defense is for real. They haven't allowed a point in two preseason games while they have been on the field as a unit. OK, they've played the Browns and Bills, but still...

But against the NFC representative to last year's Super Bowl, it will be a bit different. The Pack's defense won't be a surprise to the Cardinals, as both the head coach and their running game coordinator come from the Steelers, where the 3-4 scheme arguably originated. And let's not forget the Cards starting QB is a grizzled veteran by the name of Kurt Warner, who has seen a few things in his day. Including regularly facing the 3-4 in practice.

So, this will be a good test of whether the defense is really as together as it has seemed to be, or whether they are pretenders at this point. Should be interesting.

As to the offensive side of things, head coach Mike McCarthy named his starting five linemen earlier this week. From left to right: Chad Clifton, Daryn Colledge, Jason Spitz, Josh Sitton, and Allen Barbre. McCarthy wants some continuity there, rather than the shuffling that has gone on the last few seasons. He also wants some size. While still focused on the zone running scheme, the staff has apparently recognized they also need some power blocking...particularly when the majority of the running backs are primarily "north-south" type runners; rookie free agent Tyrell Sutton being the real lone exception to the rule (and a good reason to keep him on the roster!).

Back up QB Brian Brohm will once again see plenty of action tonight as #2 back up Matt Flynn will be sitting this one out with the shoulder sprain suffered in last week's game. Brohm needs to have a productive game to perhaps retain his roster spot. Rumors have been circulating that the Packers have an interest in Tampa Bay's back up, Luke McCown. Whether the Packers would go with just 2 QBs on the final roster or whether they'd release Brohm and try to pick up McCown we'll have to wait to see.

Should be an interesting game tonight. Especially with first cuts coming up soon.

Go Pack Go!!!

Pack beats Bills 31-21

First of all, the game was not anywhere as close as the final score might seem to indicate. The Packers starters and primary backups clearly dominated when they were in the game.

Even the Pack's back up defensive players didn't allow any points to the Bills until near the end of the 3rd quarter. And then from there, they gave up 3 TDs total. A bit sloppy, but again, these are guys that are down on the depth chart.

It took a while in the second half before the Pack started to generate any offense. QB Brian Brohm continued to be ineffective and was relieved along the way by the main backup QB, Matt Flynn. However, in the 4th quarter, Flynn was injured when he was blindsided on a throw, having his arm hit going forward as he was just about to release the ball. He was also driven down to the ground on the play. He was shown on the sidelines with his right shoulder wrapped in ice. Keep your fingers crossed that it is nothing serious. The Packers definitely do not need to lose Flynn at this time. Brohm then returned to the game and eventually engineered a nice drive, which was finished off on a 3-yard TD run by rookie free agent RB Tyrell Sutton, who continues to impress.

Another injury of the second half looked more serious. It appeared that rookie free agent TE Devin Frischknecht suffered a serious leg injury. An inflatable leg thingie (yes, that's the official medical term for it) was placed on his leg and he was carted off the field. He was a long shot to make the team, but you hate to see a young man's career postponed or ended before it even really begins.

So, the bottom line: lookin' good. Very good.

Pack vs. Bills Preview

The Buffalo Bills come to Lambeau Field tonight. Shouldn't two teams like this really match up in, say, December? Would be more fitting. Still, it will be interesting to see how the Pack deals with the Bills' no-huddle offense. Will be a pity fans can't boo Bills receiver Terrell Owens on the field, though. T.O.'s got a bad toe. Guess those present can still heckle him on the sidelines, of course. Not that I'd ever suggest that kind of behavior.

On the Packers side of things, it will be our first chance to see B. J. Raji in action. He still won't be in full game shape after only about six practices but it would be reasonable to assume he'd get a fair number of plays in. The Pack's other first round pick, LB Clay Matthews, is not expected to play; still nursing that hamstring injury that fellow poster "Winning is the Only Thing" mentioned yesterday.

A few other things to watch for:

• The return of Al Harris and Charles Woodson (although one wouldn't expect them to be used too much).


• The play of the offensive line as coaches still attempt to get the best five players on the field, especially at right tackle.


• The use of rookie RB Tyrell Sutton and whether he can repeat his excellent performance of last week.


• How the new 3-4 defensive scheme continues to evolve and how it responds to the no-huddle offense of the Bills.


• Whether 3rd string QB (and last year's 2nd round draft pick) Brian Brohm can do something to save his roster spot. Will GM Ted Thompson give up so quickly on a high pick? Some seem to think that to-date Brohm hasn't done much to warrant keeping. And backup Matt Flynn has done nothing but solidify his standing as #2 to Aaron Rodgers.

Favre makes his funky purple debut
In case anyone still cares, Ol' #4 donned the funky purple and horns (or whatever they are) last night for the first time. He was 1 for 4 for 4 yards against the Chiefs. Got hit a few times. Nothing extraordinary one way or the other. What do you expect after just a couple days of practice? Still, a pretty surreal image for Packers fans.

Pack beats Browns 17-0

The Packers possessed the ball for approximately 40 out of 60 minutes of tonight's game against Cleveland, prevailing by a score of 17-0. It was total domination on the both sides of the ball by the Pack. Aaron Rodgers threw for a 53-yard touchdown pass to Donald Driver on the first drive of the game. Ryan Grant scored on a short TD run on the next possession. The Packers got three more points in the second half courtesy of a 45-yard field goal by Mason Crosby. Crosby had missed a 60-yarder and 55-yarder in the first half.

The debut of Dom Capers' new 3-4 defensive scheme was a success. At least for a preseason game. It seemed to be able to generate pressure from a lot of angles, resulting in several sacks and four interceptions off Cleveland QBs.

The tone and pace of the game also favored the Packers. They seemed to be in better condition, played at a faster pace, and showed more intensity on both sides of the ball than the Browns.

One of the nice surprises of the second half was the play of rookie free agent running back Tyrell Sutton, who rushed for more than 90 yards on 17 carries. The team as a whole gained more than 200 yards rushing tonight.

An area of concern for the Packers so far in the preseason has been the punting game. They didn't really get a chance to evaluate much in tonight's game, punting only once.

The Packers weren't perfect. Backup QB Brian Brohm threw two interceptions, and the team had far too many penalties, primarily with the back ups on the field.

But for the first game, you had to like what you saw tonight. The Packers clearly have a lot of offensive weapons and plenty of manpower on defense. The catch for the Pack is that with the depth they have on both sides of the ball there will be some difficult cuts coming down the road. That's a good problem to have. And it bodes well for the season as a whole.

It's good to have that winning feeling...again.

Rootin' for the little guy

Apparently the status of rookie RB and free-agent signee Tyrell Sutton with the Packers isn't what we -- or at least I -- thought it was. Turns out, he is still on the roster. He's currently listed on the Packers depth chart. It was erroneously noted in a post here last evening that he was not offered a contract after this weekend's rookie orientation camp. Turns out, he had one before he got there. Sorry about that, folks.

But the question still remains whether he will be able to make the squad. It's hard enough for a small back to make it in the league under usual circumstances, all the various OTAs, minicamps, etc. The problem for Sutton -- and the Packers --is that he has complications caused by Northwestern University's class schedule. Sutton is a senior. As a result, according to an article about him in today's Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "He won't be allowed to rejoin the other rookies and veterans for the Packers' practices later this month and in June because classes and final exams extend into the second week of June. NFL rules prevent rookies from playing football until academic commitments are completed, except for three days after the draft." Yikes. The story continues, "Sutton's unique school obligation means he might make only the very last organized team activities practice on June 17. He then expects to attend the full mandatory minicamp June 22-24. If he and his agent can find any loopholes, he might try to scurry up to Green Bay for one of the earlier practices, but if not, he'll have to use the last weekend to make a lasting impression."

As noted in several posts here regarding the rookie camp, Sutton impressed head coach Mike McCarthy quite a bit. Seems as if they might try to find a way to get him on the squad. But it's still a long shot, especially given the school schedule complications.

But I'm rootin' for the little guy.

Read the article here to find out why.