Man overboard - Cedric Benson arrested

While we at Packergeeks are firm supporters of beer/other beverage intake in general, we are not supportive of drinking a ton of alcohol and then using vehicles. Last Saturday night, Cedric Benson was allegedly hammered driving around some 15 people on a boat in Texas when he was arrested after a random safety inspection. Having watched with delight the Bears’ many questionable personnel moves over the years (thinking Grossman/Orton aren’t horrible, wasting a #4 overall pick on Benson when they had a talented RB already), this is my guess re what their personnel staff is thinking after this incident:

“Well, when he resisted arrest, at least he showed some decisiveness and held to his conviction. He took one for the team…of party-goers. The image of him being dragged ashore after being pepper sprayed - that’s the kind of pugnacity that only a warrior could have! This is just the kind of leadership we like in our players, especially our QBs. Why don’t we have Lovie make him QB and just start Grossman at RB.”

Jared Allen to Vikings

The Vikes took the plunge yesterday - wow. Read here about how the Vikes gave away their #17, #73 and #82 picks in the draft for Allen. My gut reaction here is that they gave up too much. I had written the other day about how I thought the Packers should make a play for Allen, giving up perhaps our 1st round pick and a third round pick. It would have been a bit easier for us to do that considering we don’t pick until #30, but judging from this trade, the Chiefs wouldn’t have gone for that. Again, I think Allen is a great player and his addition to the Vikes scares me as a Packer fan. But giving up 3 of the 1st 82 picks in the draft is a pretty steep price (not to mention the giant contract).

Allen will join a fairly talented group on the Viking’s D-Line (the Williams duo, Ray Edwards, Erasmus “always hurt” James). This acquisition will make their defense quite a bit scarier. I suppose their thinking was that they already stuff the run well with the Williams duo, why not take the pass away too with one of best pass rushers in the NFL. This trade makes me suddenly fear the Vikes a bit more. Their defense has become more than legit now that they have at least 4-5 players who could easily be pro-bowl players (both Williams, Allen, EJ Henderson, and the toughest short guy in the NFL, Antione Winfield). While brother Steve probably still rests easy because the offense starts with Tarvaris, I happen to think the potential he has coupled with the clear talent that Peterson, Taylor and Rice have, makes them a team to watch. I still think the Packers are better overall, but if the Vikes added a quality tight end somehow, they could really contend for the division title.

Jared Allen and Aaron Kampman?

Read here for more on how Jared Allen will apparently visit the Vikings and the TB Bucs due to continued frustration with the Chiefs for franchising him. This is suddenly a serious option.

I know he’s a great pass rusher who plays defensive end and I think he plays on the right side. Imagine the Packers having Kampman and Allen on the ends. That would be absolutely disastrous to try to contain for the opposition. I could play nose tackle between those two and the line would still dominate.

While I’ll stop short of posting this with the sole intent of spreading a rumor, this seems like the kind of sneaky splash TT might make in free agency (kind of like he did with Woodson a couple years ago). I know how TT is with draft picks and giving up 2 first rounders is probably something he’d struggle with big-time. But we have the money, TT likes to build defenses and Harris and Woodson are getting older so bolstering our pass rush might actually help those two prolong their careers. Also, Jenkins was mediocre last year, after Cletidusing on us, as it were, so moving him inside or to the bench wouldn’t be catastrophic.

Really, a great GM looks for ways to make a solid team into a dominant team and I think picking up Allen would get us there in a hurry. OK, I’ve talked myself into making this an official rumor spreading effort - the Packers ought to pick up Jared Allen.

Ron Wolf: Holmgren “pig-headed” in 1998 Super Bowl

READ THIS ARTICLE!!!

Just like the EODs in college (chicks who were good looking seemingly Every Other Day), McGinn keeps up with his EOAs (has one great article, then one highly questionable one and then another great article etc). Considering his season summary overall was poor, McGinn redeems himself with this one. A fascinating article this morning at jsonline.com re what some Packer insiders (apparently some assistant coaches and some players) really thought of the 1998 Super Bowl game against Denver. I gathered that Holmgren and Wolf may have seen their relationship sour when Holmgren left for Seattle, but judging from this article, seems likely to me there was significant tension well before Holmgren left.

Wow - I continue reading this article and I’m kind of blown away. I had no idea. Wolf laying the blame squarely on Holmgren, Holmgren blaming it on Favre and Chmura and Butler both blaming Holmgren too. Some Lovat guy I’m not sure I even knew was a coach for the Packers defending Holmgren. Like a mini Packers soap opera!

And, we learn again why we love Leroy Butler so much: “At halftime, we made no adjustments. We just sat there and drank Kool-Aid, and they bitched at us for a while”.

And while I’m not a huge Chmura fan anymore, this is money: “The last call of the game was maybe the dumbest ever” referring to the 4th and 6 play call.

And of course the memorable Wolf quote: “We’re a one-year wonder, just a fart in the wind.”

Really, take a minute to read this article - well done McGinn.

Packer Fans, Unhinged

Check out this postgame rant from the guy who runs Packernet.com.

Brett, don’t go away mad, just go away. It is clear you can’t carry a team any longer, you are no Joe Montana, you are no John Elway, you are just a chucker who should have won more championships than you did. I’m done with the Packers and you should be too. Game over. Please do not respond to this entry. In fact, go away and leave me alone. No more to come…

Judging from his bizarre posts today, that was not intended to be as funny as it was. It was for people like this that I decided to make the basic points about Favre that I made here. I won’t waste your time by reprinting here all of his feculent nonsense, but check out these lines for some flavor. He seems to have calmed down a bit at first: “OK, maybe it wasn’t all Favre’s fault…” Wow, that’s a big concession. But then he’s back at it.

“The bottom line is the Packers have so many holes to fill on both sides of the ball that trading Favre and going with Aaron Rodgers just makes the most sense…Losing to Eli Manning at home is huge embarrassment. Right up there with the Michael Vick debacle.”

The Michael Vick debacle? Mmmmmm, right. On the one hand, a Hall of Fame Quarterback who has been the most consistent quarterback in the league for nearly two decades, loses in the NFC Championship game. On the other, a thug who kills dogs for fun. Same thing. No doubt.

The rant continued: “I also have to wonder about the timing of the contract extension for Mike McCarthy as well. Shouldn’t he have been worrying about the Giants last week and not a new contract.”

This is where it helps to know what you’re talking about before you write. McCarthy was worried about the Giants last week and not his contract. In fact, he was so consumed with game preparation and so unconcerned with his contract that after his agent hammered out the details with the Packers, McCarthy set the whole thing aside. Here was the lede in one national newspaper late last week: “Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy has agreed to a five-year deal worth $4 million per season, but said he will not sign the contract until after the season because it could be a distraction.” Ah, details. Why concern yourself with pesky things like facts when you can smack around the coach?

By Monday night, this guy had reached wit’s end…with people who would question his stark mad ravings.

“I’m sorry. The Packers are great. They have great depth and a great quarterback. The defense is fantastic. I think they could win the next ten Super Bowls. The coaching staff is great, the front office is great. I can’t see any flaws anywhere in the organization. I don’t know what I was thinking. From now on I will shed not one bad word about the greatest team in the league - the Green Bay Packers. Go Pack go! Have a great 2008 season.”

I have gone to Packernet.com for a couple years now because the site aggregates Packers-related news from many sites around the internet. It’s been quite an asset. But I regret that during all of that time I somehow missed the humorous content of his blog. Count me in as a new reader.

UPDATE: Don’t take my word for it on Brett Favre. Here is Greg Jennings on his brief conversation with Favre on retirement. Note especially the last two sentences:

“I said, ‘You going to give me one more year?’ He just giggled,” Jennings said. “I did the same thing last year and he said, ‘We’ll see,’ and he was back. Who knows? Hopefully he’s back but if not, we have to move on. But I’d like to see him back in that locker one more time. I think everybody around here is hoping he comes back. Obviously we accomplished what we accomplished because of him. His leadership is most valuable to this team.”

23-20. Season Over.

What to say? It’s tempting to talk about what a wonderful year the Packers had, how they achieved so much more than anyone expected, how they played their hearts out, etcetera.

There’s an entire off-season for that. So we’ll focus on this game.

The Packers got beat. It would have been extraordinary had they won despite the performance by the Giants. The Packers were outplayed and, much as I like Mike McCarthy, thoroughly outcoached. The Giants ended up with nearly at 2-to-1 time-of-posession advantage, 40 minutes to 22 and change. The Packer defense could barely stand up at the end of the game — a fact evidenced by the numerous missed tackles at the end of regulation, some of which (the ones on the Ahmed Bradshaw screen) contributed to the final outcome.

The playcalling down the stretch was simply awful. The coach who has said that the perfect game would be 50 rushes just refused to run the ball. It is certainly true that the Packers had limited success on the ground tonight. But Ryan Grant finally broke a couple of runs and then we stopped running altogether. Even if we had to settle for 2-yard gains, at the end of the game that would have been worth it. We just needed to keep our defense off the field.

I think we saw some old Brett Favre tonight, too. Not only on the interception that would determine the outcome of the game, but also on the throw to James Jones, when Favre threw into triple coverage in order to move the ball down the field. On the interceptions in overtime, Favre had Ryan Grant, his checkdown, wide open with nobody in front of him. This has been Favre’s best season, in my view, but he pressed tonight and it cost us.

Two closing ironies: The Packers, who not only found a running game during the second half of the season but found a dominant running game, failed to run the ball. And on September 15, I made a $25 future bet that the Packers would win the NFC Championship. I didn’t mention it because I didn’t want to jinx myself. Oh well.

We’ll have lots more in the coming days about the game, the playcalling, the future and the draft.  Stay tuned.

And one more irony: I will be in Arizona for four days to cover the Super Bowl. Nice.

UPDATE: Let me add that I think the Giants played very well, other than the two missed field goals. As poor as the Packer playcalling was, the Giants playcalling was excellent. Kevin Gilbride kept the Packer defense guessing all day and when the Packers failed to make adjustments to the Giants’ first-half gameplan, the Giants pressed on with great success. Congratulations to the Giants.

Note from A (Reasonable) Giants Fan

Here is a note from a Giants fan who is a friend of mine:

I’m not buying that they’ve been doing “this all year long.” I watch the games pretty closely and they strike me as about as dirty as the average team - there were definitely some extra cheap shots in the first game against the Pack, but I wouldn’t say that is the rule, rather it was the exception. So, as a Pack fan I would say you have something to complain about, but over the course of the season the Giants were one of the least penalized teams in football and I think that says something about their style of play.

You watch a Titans, Broncos, Raiders, Ravens, Pats, or Cowgirls game closely this season and there is really no comparison. The Titans are and have been the dirtiest team I’ve seen in a long time. And the Broncos invented knee-busting blocking.

You are right though that the NY press is milking this for all its worth…

And that article you linked to…quoting Rodney Harrison about dirty play? Are you f’in kidding me? As the author notes, Harrison is notorious for being one of the dirtiest players in recent NFL history. His word is meaningless.

I don’t have any reasons to quarrel with his assessment that the Giant-Packer was the exception, not the rule. I saw a few Giants games the rest of the year and while I saw a few extra shots, there are certainly teams were worse. (He names most of them. I’d add the Eagles, who should always be included on any such list. Jon Runyan still plays for them, after all.) I think Greg Bedard’s original description is still apt: “tough, physical football that approaches the line of dirty play.”

Packers vs Giants Game Keys

1) Packers will win this game because the Giants will try to run it constantly early on and this will fail. Then, Eli will need to start throwing and that will fail. If the Giants open up with some early passing and a balanced attack, the GB defense could be in for a difficult first half anyway. But most likely, the Giants will try to overpower the Packers on the ground and this strategy will not work. Eli will struggle to be effective because he’ll be intimidated by Lambeau and a lively secondary. Look for LOTS of incomplete passes and loser faces.

2) Special Teams - The flow of this game could be interesting as lots could happen in the beginning as each team tries to set the tone. It’s likely both teams open up with a score, but then a Packers special teams return will change the game. The Packers special teams unit has gotten virtually no attention at all as experts analyze this game. It will be special teams that helps give the Pack the early lead, which will be critical in this game.

3) Pack receivers on Giants secondary. The Giants secondary would have trouble with just Driver, Lee and Jennings, not to mention Robinson, Jones, Martin, Grant and the big surprise Sunday - Korey Hall. If Favre is able to throw the ball at all (I was just outside and it’s 10 degrees and windy and miserable), the Pack could have their way with the Giants.

4) Grant being more involved in the screen game. This would help counter the pass rush of the Giants, especially when they get extra aggressive and blitz linebackers/safeties.

5) Field position - punting. Hopefully Jon Ryan has a big day because getting first downs might prove to be difficult. Feagles is one player who could be severely affected by the cold weather - just imagine your grandpa out there trying to punt. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say he either has a shank or a blocked punt or something like that as frigid weather is particularly tough on osteoperosis.

6) Coaching - McCarthy’s team came out fired up last week, but promptly went down 14-0. There is no way McCarthy will let that happen in this game. No way. This team will score very early in the game and McCarthy will be insistent on grabbing the early lead. Coughlin may have a trick or two up his sleeve, but it likely won’t work out. McCarthy also may be aggressive and try a memorable trick play, but given the weather, it too, likely won’t work.

6.5) Weather - the younger team will deal better with the weather - advantage Packers.

7) The most important key: Favre is not alone this year. Over the past 10 years, Favre has placed the burden of winning largely on his shoulders. But he finally has a coach who has effectively reassured Favre, and the rest of the team, that there are 44 other players who can AND will contribute. If Favre screws up, the defense can get the ball back with a nice turnover play or special teams can provide decent field position or Grant can break an 80 yard run, or Driver (Jennings, Jones, Martin, Robinson or Lee) can break 3 tackles to get in the end zone or a rookie kicker can make a 50 yard field goal. This may be the key of the season - less pressure on Favre.

To Hell with the New York media

Until last night, I was going into this Packers/Giants game just excited that two teams playing well would meet for an important game. Now, this game has taken on new meaning. Last night on local news coverage and also in several other stories, I learned that the New York sports talk media have been going off on Favre - saying they’re sick of him and he gets way too much attention (implying in their comments that Favre is not deserving of this kind of attention). If the statement were simply that Favre gets too much attention, I’d agree. He is very important to the NFL as a league and they do oversell him, no question (and I could see how people supporting teams quarterbacked by losers like Eli Manning would be frustrated by this.) But it was the vitriol, the pure anger these people had when making these comments that ticked me off. I find this reaction by the New York media, of all people, totally unacceptable. All year long the entire country has New York Yankee BS shoved down our throats, are incessantly told about the problems with Knick basketball, and in the general media, we’re all bombarded by everything New York from dumb sit-coms to lame coming-of-age movies. New York, for once, shut up and let the rest of us have our day. Just shut up.

(By the way, I’m enjoying having the time to think about my comments and then to write them out at my own pace. If I were saying these things as a caller to a New York sports talk show, I’m sure I’d be subjected to the East Coast Shot Clock = having 3 seconds to say what I want to say before being interrupted).

Possibly significant Eli statistic

From the NY Daily News:

“According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Eli Manning has a quarterback rating under 60 and a completion rate under 50% when the temperature is 39 degrees or below.”

Local forecasts are saying that temperatures at Lambeau are likely to be around 5 degrees at gametime Sunday.