Packers 26 - Da Bearz 7; Favre Bye Bye???

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Well, Packer fans, the Pack spanked Da Bearz on New Year's Eve, 26-7. That enabled the team to finish at 8-8, a surprising finish after winning four in a row. The Pack unfortunately finished out of the running for the last wildcard spot as the NY Giants did something uncharacteristic of their recent play and beat the Redskins. Drats!!! Still, you have to be pleased with the way this young team improved and came together over the course of the season. That's a good sign for next year.

What perhaps isn't such a good sign was QB Brett Favre's tearful on-field post-game interview. When you hear Brett say, "What a way to go out. Chicago's obviously a great football team. I wasn't too optimistic but here we are with a win. I couldn't ask for a better way to go out." That's...not good. A lot of the speculation recently -- including here -- has seemed to be leaning toward Brett coming back. Now? Hmmmm...

As John Madden pointed out late in the game, he took it as a good sign that Brett would return because he had ankle surgery scheduled for today. Madden opined that he didn't think Favre would be having that so soon unless he planned on returning. Well, guess what? According to reports, Brett has postponed the surgery and no date has been rescheduled.

So, perhaps we saw the last of Brett the Great last evening. But what could be more fitting than beating Da Bearz in Chicago? OK, beating Da Bearz at Lambeau, but you know what I mean.

Brett, legions of fans hope you return next year. Ya still got it, kid. C'mon...how 'bout one more for old time's sake? But if not, thanks for the ride. It's been unforgettable. See you in Canton.

Packers Win! Yowza!!!

Well, Packer fans, it wasn't pretty that's for sure. NFL Network announcer Chris Collinsworth even made the comment that if this was Brett Favre's last game at Lambeau Field he didn't think he'd be watching replays of this one with his grandkids one day. Despite outgaining the ViQueens 319 yards to 104 and limiting them to a franchise-low three first downs, the Pack was down 7-6 in the second half until about a minute-and-half left in the game when rookie kicker Dave Rayner booted the game-winning 44-yard field goal. Love those kickers!

The Pack led 6-0 at half, but went down 7-6 when one of Favre's 50 passes was picked off and returned for a touchdown; it appeared as if there was an incorrect route run by rookie Greg Jennings. The Pack again shot themselves in the foot when Bubba Franks fumbled the ball as he was fighting to get into the end zone with about 8-1/2 minutes remaining. Oh Bubba...

But the Packers defense played inspired football once again. They were aided by the play of the 'Queens rookie QB who played like, well, a rookie.

So, at 7-8, and on a three-game winning streak, the Pack is still alive in the playoff hunt believe it or not. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel compiled the following info to show who we should be rooting for and against going down to the last weekends of play. Of course, we still have to beat Da Bearz to close out the season and keep it all alive.

"You want:

* New Orleans to beat the New York Giants
* Washington to beat St. Louis
* Carolina to beat Atlanta
* Seattle to beat San Diego

There are a number of scenarios in which the Packers (7-8) can get into the playoffs, including ones where they wind up in a three-way tie with teams from other divisions and win tiebreakers because of a superior conference record. But it's all predicated on them beating Chicago in their season finale next Sunday at Soldier Field.

The scenario that seems most likely should the Packers beat the Bears would be the New York Giants losing twice, the St. Louis Rams and Atlanta Falcons losing once and the Seattle Seahawks winning once.

If you really want to pore over the possibilities, here are a couple of links to help you: the detailed breakdown on the NFL conference standings and the NFL tie-breaking procedures."

Packers 30 - 49ers 19

The Packers played like at least some thought they might be capable of playing: pretty well. Not perfect. The defense gave up three explosive plays. There was some sloppy special teams coverage in the fourth quarter. There were at least two occasions on which the Packers offense were inside the opponent's 10-yard line and could only come away with field goals.

But...the defense played with more fire than they did over the past several games, coming up with three turnovers, including a late key interception in the endzone by rookie LB, A. J. Hawk. Donald Driver had another spectacular game, going over 1,000 receiving yards for the third straight year. Greg Jennings played through his bum ankle and had several good catches as well. And there was a semblence of a ground game today, with Ahman Green and Vernand Morency combining for 136 yards rushing.

So, with three games left, the Packers have exceeded their win total for all of last year, going to 5-8 on the season. And Brett Favre looks like he's having fun again. That's always a good thing. The Packers now return home for two games, against Detroit and the ViQueens, before finishing the season on New Year's Eve day in Chicago. The Pack are now 4-3 on the road and 1-5 at home. Let's just hope the team can use this game as a springboard to close the season out strong, beginning with a win next weekend against Detroit. Sweeping the ViQueens would be sweet. And nothing would be finer than ruining Da Bearz'  New Year's Eve party. Ah...with this win...we can still dream!