Lineup:

the Badgers are looking strong at the right time

• Chris Dennis
• Adam “Big A” Maritato
• Brian Peoplis
• Greg “Grego” Boulanger

Topics: (segment duration)

1. Big Ten and Big East basketball conference tournament preview (Beginning – 11:05)
2. Packers Free Agency:  has the Packer’s front office been smart or complacent (11:20 – 23:05)
3. Bucks basketball: Where can the Bucks end up come play-off time (23:20 – 33:40)
4. Convince Me! Brewers:  Do the Brewers have enough to reach the post season? Shout Outs! (34:00 – End)

As a resident of Pittsburgh and a native of Wisconsin, I have been indoctrinated as both a fan of the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Luckily for me, these two teams play in different conferences and rarely meet, so I can almost always root for both teams without much contradiction. They have only played each other 26 times dating back to 1940, and the game on Sunday, December 20th, will be only their second regular season match-up in 10 years.

But in my relatively unique situation, I have come to realize how similar these two franchises have become in 2009. In fact, the Packers have much to owe Pittsburgh for their recent success, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

So even though the game at Heinz Field on Sunday will get a lot of hype due to the current Wildcard prospects for both teams, there is a lot more to this story than meets the eye.

FROM “TITLETOWN” TO “SIXBURGH”

When you look at the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers, it’s hard not to think about their reputations as championship teams. After all, both teams have set some historic precedents with their past dynasties.

The Green Bay Packers of the 1960′s won five NFL championships over a seven year period under legendary head coach Vince Lombardi. These five titles concluded with the wins in Super Bowls I and II. From this success was eventually born the nickname “Titletown, USA,” which the city of Green Bay boasts on its official seal. Additionally, the Super Bowl trophy awarded to winning teams was renamed to commemorate Vince Lombardi after his sudden death in 1970.

Meanwhile, the 1970′s Pittsburgh Steelers under head coach Chuck Noll became the first team to win more than two Super Bowls, as well as the only team to win four Super Bowls in six years. Along with the championship successes of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Pitt Panthers, the Steelers helped define Pittsburgh as the “City of Champions” during that decade.

Now, after winning Super Bowl XLIII, the Pittsburgh Steelers lay claim to the most Vince Lombardi Trophies, with six. This, of course, prompted the nickname “Sixburgh” to boast their new NFL record. The Packers, meanwhile, continue to hold the record for the most national football championships of any team, with nine NFL Championships and three Super Bowls wins.

Both teams will be looking to defend their historic reputations in this week’s match-up. The Packers are currently riding a five-game winning streak, while the Steelers are looking to break their five-game losing streak. And each of them will have something to prove on Sunday.

HOMEWARD BOUND

Since Mike McCarthy became the head coach of the Green Bay Packers in 2006, he has professed his desire to make the team tougher and more physical. That type of philosophy is not rare in the NFL by any stretch; however, it seems very fitting for a man who calls Pittsburgh his home.

In 1963, Mike McCarthy was born in Greenfield, PA, as one of five children to a man who made his career as a firefighter and police office. Needless to say, McCarthy learned discipline and pragmatism at an early age. His father, Joe, also owned a bar near a Pittsburgh steel mill, where McCarthy worked odd jobs as a teen.

According to his biography on Packers.com , “it was interacting with the hard-working tavern clientele while also watching a father in uniform dedicated to public service that helped make McCarthy proud of where he came from.”

After serving as the graduate assistant coach at Fort Hays State (1987-1988), Mike McCarthy was hired to work under Paul Hackett at the University of Pittsburgh, where he served as quarterbacks coach (1989-1991) before coaching wide receivers during the 1992 season. His NFL career began when he followed Hackett to the Kansas City Chiefs as a quality control assistant.

Perhaps it comes as no surprise, then, that McCarthy prompted a switch to the 3-4 defense and hired Dom Capers as defensive coordinator. He grew up during the era of the “Steel Curtain” and was leaving his tenure at Pitt when the “Blitzburgh” defense was just beginning to roll. Who could have picked a better team to show him the importance of a hard-nosed, dominating defense than the Steelers?

So when Mike McCarthy takes his team into the Steel City on Sunday, he will get a chance to show his hometown the football lessons he’s taken with him. For as he stated after the Ravens game in Week 13, “It starts with our defense. That’s the face of our football team.”

REAL MEN OF (DEFENSIVE) GENIUS

One of the top stories for this weekend will undoubtedly be the reunion of defensive masterminds Dom Capers and Dick LeBeau. In 1992, these two coaches joined forces with Bill Cowher and Marvin Lewis in Pittsburgh to blaze the trail for arguably the most dominant defense in the past two decades.

Even though Bill Cowher and the Steelers’ defensive staff did not invent the basic 3-4 scheme, they made it their own. LeBeau was tasked with finalizing the product that would be given to the players, and it was his “zone blitz” stamp of success that became the icing on the cake.

Dick LeBeau, however, is no stranger to the Green Bay Packers team, despite coaching primarily the AFC’s Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals, where he first invented the zone blitz. LeBeau spent his 14-year NFL playing career as a defensive back for the Detroit Lions (1959-1972). In that time span, he made 62 career interceptions for 762 return yards and 3 touchdowns, and holds the NFL record for consecutive game appearances for a cornerback with 171. As of 2009, LeBeau is a nominee for seniors’ spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2010.

But LeBeau had a little more to do with the Packers than just playing against them for 14 years. From 1976-1979, he served as the defensive backfield coach for Green Bay under head coach and future Pro Football Hall of Fame QB Bart Starr. In his first season Willie Buchanon, Johnnie Gray, Steve Luke and Steve Perry combined for 10 interceptions.

Fast forward 30 years later and Dom Capers is the man behind the Green Bay Packers defense. To say that he has been successful in transitioning the unit to a 3-4 defensive scheme is an understatement. After only 13 regular season games, the Packers allow an average of 272.0 total yards per game (2nd), 187.0 passing yards per game (3rd), 85.0 rushing yards per game (2nd), and lead the league in turnover differential (+18).

The Packers also have one more ace up their sleeve this year with outside linebackers coach Kevin Greene on the staff. After starting his heralded career with the Los Angeles Rams, Greene signed a 3-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1993. Known for his fiery, aggressive play, Greene earned two Pro Bowl selections while with the Steelers and played in Super Bowl XXX against the Dallas Cowboys. In 1996, Greene followed Capers to the Carolina Panthers, where he lost the NFC Championship Game to the Packers. Now, as a coach for Green Bay, he has been instilling in his players the same fire he once had on the field.

Out of all the teams in the NFL to employ the 3-4 defense, the only other team to employ the Cowher/LeBeau/Capers system is the Arizona Cardinals, which makes the bond between the Steelers and the Packers defenses this year even stronger. Green Bay definitely owes “Blitzburgh” a lot of credit for how far they have come this season, especially considering the quick turn-around from last year’s miserable performances.

SACKING THE CRITICS

It should come as no surprise to Steelers or Packers fans that Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers currently lead the league in sacks at 38 and 47, respectively. And while many people can point to the weak offensive line play on both of these teams, there is one other reason for these numbers that both quarterbacks are guilty of:

Holding on to the football to try to extend plays.

Recently, “Big Ben” Roethlisberger has taken more heat for this after his eight-sack day at Cleveland last week, but earlier in the season, Aaron Rodgers was the undisputed king of making his offensive line work overtime.

Through the first eight games of the season, Rodgers averaged 4.6 sacks per game. His worst game in that time span was at Minnesota with eight sacks. His best game? Zero sacks at Cleveland in Week 7. Since the game at Tampa Bay, however, Rodgers has only averaged two sacks per game – a clear improvement.

Roethlisberger, on the other hand, is a little more consistent with his sacks. Since Week 1, he has averaged 3.2 sacks per game. Only twice has he been sacked in a game only once – never going without a sack in any game so far. But only once has he been sacked more than 4 times in a single game: at Cleveland in Week 14.

Some have argued that the ability to successfully extend the play has saved drives more than they have killed them. Other would argue that taking sacks on such plays has been more detrimental to the offense.

Either way, it is hard to dispute the mobility of these two quarterbacks and their successes outside the pocket when they can escape the pressure. In this respect, these two young quarterbacks are fairly similar in their approach to the passing play.

ODDS AND ENDS

Here are a few miscellaneous facts about some of the bonds between the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh:

• Towards the beginning of the 2008 season, ESPN released its “NFL Fan Base Rankings .” The top two teams on the list? You guessed it: the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers.
• Darren Perry , current safeties coach for the Green Bay Packers, began his NFL career when the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted him as an eighth round pick (203rd overall) in 1992. Perry played as a Safety for the Steelers until 1998, and was their first rookie since 1955 to lead the team in interceptions. His 32 career interceptions from those seven years are tied for seventh in Pittsburgh history. Prior to joining the coaching staff at Green Bay, Perry also served as defensive backs coach for Pittsburgh from 2004-2006.
• Scott McCurley , current defensive quality control coach for the Green Bay Packers, was born in New Castle, PA, and went to high school in Bessemer, which lies not far from the city of Pittsburgh. While McCurley never had any affiliation with the Steelers organization, he did enjoy a lengthy playing and coaching career at the University of Pittsburgh. After playing as linebacker from 1999-2002, McCurley remained with the program as a defensive graduate assistant.
• Packers FB John Kuhn was signed to the Steelers’ practice squad on November 30, 2005, which earned him a Super Bowl ring after the Steelers beat the Seahawks in Super bowl XL. He was re-signed for the following season but was cut after training camp. He was eventually signed to the Steelers’ active roster on October 31, 2006, and appeared in nine games for them. The Green Bay Packers signed Kuhn the day after being released by the Steelers in 2007.
• Steelers TE Sean McHugh made his NFL debut with the Packers in their 2004 game at Carolina, but only played that one game for them. He signed next with the Detroit Lions, who later released him at the end of their 2008 training camp – the same season they went 0-16. Ironically, the Steelers signed McHugh that same season, and he ended up with a ring for their Super Bowl XL victory.

After taking a look at the relationship between these two teams at this point in their storied histories, the game on Sunday should be that much more exciting. Their past together as franchises might be lacking, but in 2009, the current members of these organizations will make this a game to remember.

• The Offensive Line is playing more cohesively as a unit. Even without T.J. Lang, who I believe will be a good starter for years, the Big Guys up front continue to improve. Tackles Chad Clifton and Mark Tauscher are anchoring the line as they have for a decade (yes, they were both drafted in 2000 – ain’t that some shit!?). The running lanes between the tackles are staying open noticeably longer, which is allowing Ryan Grant and now Ahman Green, who has run and blocked very well in limited time, to have more patience behind the line.  Sure, it didn’t hurt the Packers that All-Worlders S Ed Reed and OLB Terrell Suggs were inactive last night. But you can’t help but be impressed with how much this once horrible Offensive Line has improved in the second half of the season.

• The Packers have rediscovered their bread and butter:  the West Coast offense. After straying from their dangerous short passing game for several weeks in the second quarter of the season, the Packers are back at it. The five-yard slants are once again the staple of this offense, which means teams are going to have a hard time stopping the Pack in December. Armed with two of the most dangerous receivers after the catch in the league, Greg Jennings and Donald Driver, the Packers are better off letting their playmakers turn slants into big plays than forcing big plays downfield.
• But the Playmakers need to catch the ball first! While the Packers’ receivers have shown on a weekly basis that they have one of the deepest corps in the league, they have been dropping the ball too much. It seems that Jennings, Driver and crew often forget that they have to catch the ball before they rack up the YAC. (Jermichael Finley, I love you, but this applies to you more than anyone). And the Ravens game is not the only game the Packers receiving corps has had “Troy Williamson Moments” – there have been several “say whaaa” drops in each of the past five games. I know it sounds like I’m nitpicking here, but come January an easy drop in the second quarter could end up spelling the end of the season.

• At times, Jermichael Finley looks like a Pro Bowl playmaking tight end. But other times he looks like a second
  

  Once Finley becomes more consistent...watch out!

  year player who is still adjusting to the fact that linebackers can actually run with him at this level. While Jerry-Mike has the occasional drop and the occasional missed block, he is only a second year player who was drafted out of Texas with the future in mind. As he continues to improve his blocking, the sky is the limit for Finley in this offense (think Mark Chmura pre-high school graduation party). Every game you can see the immense potential this athletic tight end has, and in two years I think GerMickey will be one of the top receiving tight ends in the league.

• Mike McCarthy must take pride in losing challenges.  OC Joe Philbin: “Mike, I’m positive that we didn’t catch that ball.” McCarthy: “You know this is my thing Joe. Losin’ another challenge, one game at a time.” It’s hard to blame Mike on some of his challenges. Some key plays are worth risking a timeout to be sure that they end in the Packers’ favor. But other challenges this year, like the Kelley Washington catch last night, have been flat-out stupid. The ESPN guys should be doing a whole “C’mon Man!” segment on McCarthy’s dumb challenges this year. If McCarthy throws out the red flag, then you know the chances of the Packers losing a timeout and wasting everybody’s time are prettttty pretttty pretttty good.

• The defensive line is playing really well. Cullen Jenkins, B.J. Raji, Ryan Pickett, Johnny Jolly, and the whole crew have had the trenches on lock down for several weeks. The D-linemen are putting some pressure on quarterbacks, but most importantly, they are commanding attention opening up lanes for stunts and linebacker blitzes. The negative: Pickett and Raji could miss a few games with injuries.

• Clay Matthews is going to be a pro-bowl linebacker for years to come. The guy just doesn’t quit. I geeked during the play when he literally ran in circles after Joe Flacco. The guy really plays with reckless abandon — he can take on blocks, make all the tackles in the running game, and already looks like a seasoned pass-rusher at times. As Clay continues to gain experience and master some of the nuances of the game that made his position coach Kevin Greene a pro-bowl pass rusher, he is only going to improve. Players with that kind of aggressiveness and intensity don’t fall by the wayside. They flourish.
  

  Clay Matthews has one hell of a future with the Packers

• Brad Jones looks like he has a bright future with the Packers. Size, speed, awareness — Brad Jones has it all. People are probably beginning to wonder how he dropped to the seventh round of the 2009 NFL draft. He seems to fit this defense very well and is starting to look like another seventh round steal for the Pack. His pass rushing ability fits our defensive scheme perfectly, and there is a reason why Brandon Chillar, Desmond Bishop, etc. are on the sideline — because this guy is damn good.

• HOLY COLUMBUS!!! Did A.J. Hawk just make a big play!? After being drafted by the Packers #5 overall in 2006, A.J. Hawk has done little to stand during his four years as a starter. While he is, for the most part, a solid “gap responsibility” linebacker, he hasn’t made nearly enough plays to warrant the #5 overall pick. Not only does Brady Quinn’s brother-in-law struggle shedding blockers, but his downfield coverage has been a weakness for years. With that said….A.J. made a big interception on Monday Night Football! And it was actually great coverage. Let’s not expect this often, but it was certainly nice to see a play out of Hawk.

It’s hard to believe a team with the NFL’s top-ranked defense and the 5th-ranked offense has to battle to make the playoffs with just five games remaining. While the Vikings have all but clinched a first-round bye in the playoffs, the Packers have to compete for a Wildcard spot with the likes of the Falcons, Eagles, Giants, and possibly the Cowboys.

Of those three NFC East teams, Dallas is in the best shape with an 8-3 record, and will likely win that division. They do, however, have a recent trend of poor late-season play. That leaves two available playoffs spots with four teams battling to live to see another day. Will the Pack be one of them? Here’s a list of things that must happen in the remaining five games:

• Stay healthy. The Al Harris injury is big, and the team cannot afford anymore injuries (especially on defense). Coach McCarthy did a good job of trying to rotate subs in against Detroit, but this is not a luxury the team will have against better teams.
• Step it up on special teams coverage. Green Bay ranks dead-last in punt coverage and 7th worst in kickoff coverage. We’ve seen how a big return can alter a game (i.e. vs. Minnesota and Tampa Bay), and even in the games we’ve won there hasn’t really been a great special teams performance yet. These numbers have to improve, or we will lose a game because of it.
• Beat good teams, not just garbage teams. The Pack really only has one quality win under their belt — Dallas. Other than that, they have played 5 games against the four worst teams in the league (Detroit twice, Cleveland, Tampa Bay, and St. Louis). In the final 5 games, the Packers play three good teams (Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Arizona), 1 mediocre team (Chicago), and 1 bad team (Seattle). The Monday Night game against the Ravens will be a real test.
• Mason Crosby, make your kicks. When Ted Thompson drafted Crosby out  of Colorado a few years back, he was supposed to be the kicker that could knock down the 50+ yard field goals and boot it into the endzone on kickoffs. He’s 1-5 on 50+’ers this year. There’s going to be a game (maybe in the playoffs) where he’s going to be counted on to make a long kick with little time left. He needs to improve — on field goals and on kickoffs.
• Keep Bringin’ the Blitz! After a slow start and some locker room grumbling about Defensive Coordinator Dom Capers not using the blitz enough, the Packers defense has entered a whole new stratosphere. Capers now feels comfortable bringing consistent pressure with the blitz (including Corner and Safety blitzes) and the Packers D now ranks #1 overall in the NFL. In particular, allowing Charles Woodson to play closer to the line of scrimmage has put him in position to make some big plays against the run and the pass. If Capers continues to bring the heat — and there should be no reason to stop now — the Packers’ new 3-4 defense just may have what it takes to make a serious run deep into the playoffs.
  

  Capers needs to continue to put C-Wood in position to make plays a la LeRoy Butler in the '90s

First, the Packers need to take care of business in their remaining five games — starting with their Monday night battle against the Baltimore Ravens. If the Packers cut down on the penalties and continue to improve their consistency in all three phases of the game, they will find themselves playing football in January.

It’s a great time to be a Packers fan.  Three straight wins, a newly ranked #1 defense, and a pretty good chance of earning a wild card home game are all things to relish at the moment.

However, what the Packers need is a signature win to prove they can make a run in the playoffs.  Most people are quick to argue that the win over Dallas could be considered the biggest W of the year, but the Boys’ have proven to be a flash in the pan with a few lackluster performances since then, so unfortunately the win doesn’t look or sound as impressive as it might seem.

The good news is that the Packers have, in my humble opinion, two remaining games that could truly build momentum going into the playoffs. I’m talking about Baltimore on Monday night, and December 20th at Pittsburgh.

Yes, Baltimore and Pittsburgh are holding on for their playoff lives at this point.  But you can’t ever discount a defending Super Bowl champion at any point in the season, and winning a game at Heinz Field would be something that not even Minnesota could do.  If Pittsburgh remains in the playoff hunt until that game, it’ll be a showdown for the ages.

The Packers will face off against the two Rays on Monday Night Football

As for Baltimore, they looked solid in their win against Pittsburgh on Monday. The defense showed signs of life, albeit against a Dennis Dixon-led Steelers team (note: I’m not slamming D.D. at all. Dude can throw, showed some flash running the ball, and looked confident in the pocket. In fact, that one start could earn him millions this offseason).

Plus,  you can’t forget about the budding chemistry between Joe Flacco, Ray Rice, and their veteran receiving core.  These guys are legit, and the strong veteran leadership will make sure they don’t quit at any point in any remaining games.

The rest of the schedule consists of a trip to Chicago (sandwiched between the Baltimore & Pittsburgh games), home against Seattle, and a finale at Arizona.  You could make an argument about Arizona being a big game, but it’s only worthy of the “signature” status if a victory that day assured us a playoff spot. And with the wild card race shaping up as it is, I could very well see that happening.

Mike McCarthy has most likely saved his job by passing the win total from last season, but questions about his coaching will linger if we can’t get a truly big win this year.

If Mike McCarthy was feeling the heat after the Green Bay Packers lost to Tampa Bay in Week Nine, then he has certainly been taking the necessary steps to cool down his critics.

The offense seemed to be firing on all cylinders against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon. Not only did the Packers enter halftime with a 20-point lead, but they also ate up slightly over two-thirds of clock time (41:39). Clearly, they were in control of this game.

Even when the defense sputtered in the second half—partly due to critical injuries sustained by Al Harris and Aaron Kampman—the offense was able to leisurely walk the ball down the field on their last drive to close out the game and take the last five minutes and 56 seconds off the clock.

And this is all aside from the facts that Aaron Rodgers was only sacked twice while Ryan Grant ran the ball a stunning 129 total yards on only 21 carries. These two feats alone speak to the changes that have been made by Head Coach Mike McCarthy and the offensive staff.

Will Grant have a beastly December like 2007?

Quick, high-percentage passes along with screen plays and a better dedication to the running game have helped to take some of the heat off quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

To put it in perspective: Rodgers has completed 57 of 81 passes over the last two weeks, with zero interceptions. That gives him a 70.4 percent completion rate. Rodgers seems to have grown in his duties as a game manager, due perhaps to the coaches giving him more responsibility and freedom on the field. Either way, the results are showing.

All of this success has put the Packers in strong contention for a Wild Card spot. As long as the team remains consistent with their increased level of play, there should be no reason why they can’t win at least three of their final six games.

However, McCarthy might need more than just a winning season to save face with not only the Green Bay management, but with the fans.

The Green Bay Packers community as a whole will not likely settle for anything less than a shot in the playoffs.

In order for McCarthy to save himself, the team needs to see continual improvement over the rest of the season. The special teams play was once again exploited by the 49ers late in the game when Josh Morgan returned a kickoff for 76 yards, setting up a Vernon Davis touchdown.

Even the Pittsburgh Steelers, defending Super Bowl champions, have experienced first-hand how detrimental a weakness in special teams can be. They have given up four touchdown returns in the past five games, contributing to some of their recent losses.

In addition, the loss of Pro Bowlers Al Harris and Aaron Kampman have upset the defensive game plan. Mike McCarthy and Dom Capers will need to find quick solutions to this problem in order to remain successful. (The team has already signed former Denver CB Josh Bell to add some depth to the position.)

And finally, the offensive coaches need to remain committed to their current game plan, which is looking more and more like the West Coast offense the Packers have committed themselves to.

As it stands after two solid performances, Head Coach Mike McCarthy is beginning to climb his way back out of the hole he dug during the first half of the season. Unfortunately for him, it might be for naught should the Packers miss the playoffs. And even then, continued success in the postseason might also be necessary to secure not only his job, but improve his reputation.

A few months ago many Vikings fans thought Head Coach Brad Childress’ job was in jeopardy. Sure, the Vikings did win the NFC North last year with a 10-6 record. But they lost in the first round of the playoffs with a dominant defense and running game. Fan sentiment in the Twin Cities was that the Vikings needed a new Head Coach to get them over the hump of mediocrity.

Then a young whipper-snapper named Brett Favre came along. OK, maybe he’s not so young anymore. But 10 weeks into the NFL season, 40 year-old Brett Favre has the Vikings off to an 8-1 start and a commanding lead in the NFC North division.

Brad Childress’ ass four months ago:  Definitely on the Hot Seat

Brad Childress’ ass right now:  Quite Possibly on a Gold Toilet Seat

Financial terms have yet to be officially disclosed, but ESPN is reporting that the deal is between $4 and $5 million a year through the 2013 season (for the sake of comparison, the Packers’ Mike McCarthy is signed on through the 2012 season for about $4 million a year).

Why was Childress on the Hot Seat, you ask? Well, we could go for hours on that topic. But here is a microcosm of Vikings fans’ frustrations from the past few years under Childress:

3rd Down & 9.
Handoff to Adrian Peterson Off Tackle.
7-Yard Gain.
Vikings Punt.

Isn’t it funny what a good Quarterback can do for a Head Coach? Despite having one of the best defenses in the league (no question best defensive line) and easily the best Running Back in the league, the Vikings could only go so far without a decent Quarterback.

While frustration over Childress’ conservative offensive play-calling of years past is certainly understandable, it is also very misguided. What, besides the best Running Back tandem in the league (Chester Taylor would be starting for the Packers), is a coach supposed to lean on when he has no legitimate Quarterback?

Which brings me to my next question. How much of Childress’ new contract is he forking over to #4 for essentially saving his ass?

"Chili, give me your wife for one night and we'll call it even"

1. There was a whole new level of intensity brought by the Packers defense today. Aggressive blitzes. Aggressive plays on the ball. Aggressive fumble recoveries. Where was this Reckless Abandon last week against the Bucs?

2. Charles Woodson set the tone for the game. He was the best player on the field today and is consistently overlooked as one of the best Cornerbacks in the NFL. This is the year Charles Woodson’s name should come up in Defensive Player of the Year discussions. What a stud. Absolute stud.

3. Two rookie Linebackers, Clay Matthews and Brad Jones, looked terrific. The two rookie Linebackers combined for 8 tackles, a sack and 2 tackles for loss. Clay is what the Packers thought they were getting when they drafted A.J. Hawk #5 overall — an athletic playmaker who will not only make the plays that he should, but will also make your jaw drop once or twice a game. Clay is playing with a new level of intensity (probably because he is more familiar and comfortable with the defensive scheme) than the first 8 games. He may just be that Kevin Greene-like blitzing force (isn’t he lucky to have such a coach) to wreck havoc in the Packers new 3-4 defense for years to come.

Brad Jones, the rookie LB from Missouri, also looked like he belonged out there today. In fact, he played better, in some respects, than Aaron Kampman, who was out with a concussion. Unlike Kampman, Jones looked smooth dropping back into coverage and held his own at the point of attack on off-tackle running plays. I think the Pack may have found their 2 future stalwarts at OLB today.

Gotta Love the 'Stache

4.  Boring, maybe. But Aaron Rodgers did an excellent job of managing a physical, grind ‘em out game. Many Packers fans are criticizing Rodgers for holding the ball too long (which may be a contributing factor in some instances, but is preposterous as explanation by itself for the ungodly amount of sacks the Pack has given up). For those fans who criticize Rodgers for NOT taking more chances, I ask you this:

How many times have you seen the old Gunslinger get impatient in tight, grind ‘em out games, and launch an ill-advised missile between 2 defenders that was — well, intercepted. I can think of more than a few. And I, for one, am proud of Rodgers for hanging tough today and leading the Pack against a 6-2 division-leader with a menacing pass rush. And most importantly — NO INTERCEPTIONS. I can get used to this.

5. Call me a hater, but Ryan Grant has worse field vision than Hellen Keller. The Packers O-Line could open up a hole for a Mack Truck to run through (I know, doesn’t happen) and Ryan Grant would make it seem as though a ZipCar could not fit through it. In other words, Grant still struggles at finding the hole and making the right cut-back. Sure, he ran hard today — harder than I’ve seen him run all year — but I long for the days when the Pack can hand the ball off to a Running Back who can actually make something happen.

6.  Mike McCarthy can be a poor Gameday Coach. I have been saying this for awhile now, but it often seems like McCarthy is overwhelmed by the Gameday responsibilities of a Head Coach. I won’t get into the penalties (yes, they keep on comin’), but calling a Challenge in the 2nd half when you HAVE NONE LEFT is unacceptable. I mean, seriously, Mike? Since when did you get 3 challenges? Get your head out of your ass bruh.

7.  The Packers CAN establish a running game if the coaches commit to it. It was certainly nothing to write home about, but the Packers were finally able to establish a legitimate running game to balance our pass-heavy Offensive attack. Far too often, McCarthy has given up on the run after only a couple of failed series. If the Packers are going to compete for a Wild Card, they MUST establish a legitimate running game to take the pressure off of Rodgers and the pass protection. A little Ryan Grant explosion in the 2nd half a la 2007 would be prettttttty prettttttttty good.

The Samurai is Back in Full Force!

8.  Nick Barnett looks healthy and ready to bust out the Samurai on a regular basis. I got the impression during the first half of the season that Barnett was still favoring his knee and not quite playing with his usual Reckless Abandon. Today, that changed. The Samurai was flying around the field.

Packers Insiders have seen Barnett practicing the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique every Wednesday after practice. He could be preparing for that Chach Jay Cutler in Week 14.

9.  It never fails to amaze me how quickly the tides can turn. One week ago, the Packers’ season looked like a lost cause and fans were screaming for drastic changes. Now, momentum seems to have turned and fans are whispering playoffs again.

10.  The Packers have as good of a chance as anyone at an NFC Wild Card berth. The Pack got lucky today as Chicago, Atlanta, and Philadelphia all lost. In one week’s time, the Packers’ playoff chances went from seemingly nothing to pretttttttty good. Win the games that they should and a couple that they shouldn’t, and the Pack can grab that Wild Card fo’ sho.’

The Milwaukee crew is back with Chris, Big A, Grego “The Cop,” and Derek “City of” Watson. The crew breaks down the Packers-Bucs game and discusses the future of the team including Coach Mike McCarthy and GM Ted Thompson. WiscoSota creator Jerome Harrison calls in to vent some frustration over the current regime.

The crew also talks Milwaukee Bucks and rookie phenom Brandon Jennings and make their Week 10 NFL picks. Enjoy!