Four and Oh!
I doubt it's missed anyone's attention (anyone that reads this blog, anyway) that the Packers have managed to start off this season with four straight wins. I have to admit, I'm impressed with the way they're playing. The defense has allowed quite a few yards (they're roughly in the middle of the pack for total yardage allowed), but their points allowed is excellent - giving up 16.5 points per game. That puts them in 9th place in the NFL in terms of points allowed.
So good for the defense. They certainly have room for improvement - as evidenced last weekend against the Vikings, the Packers aren't that solid against the run game and after the two top corners, Harris and Woodson, the secondary gets awfully thin in a hurry. Jarret Bush proved this weekend that he's simply not ready to be a starting corner.
The offense will simply go as far as Brett Favre can take them and, given the way he's played through the last three games, that may be a long way. The Packers have all but given up on their running game and replaced it with an all-out passing attack that features a lot of short slots, crosses, and screens. Favre has a 97.3 QB rating this season through four games (12th in the league) and a very nice 8:2 TD:Int ratio. Favre can also boast more pass attempts this season than any other QB in the league - even Carson Palmer on the pass-happy Bengals comes up 10 attempts shy of Favre's 170 attempts. That's 42.5 attempts per game.
And that, of course, is the big concern. Just how far can the Packers go without a running game? The Packers have thrown the ball 170 times and run 70 times (disregarding the 9 times Favre has run, which have been almost entirely designed passes that broke down). That means the Packers are passing nearly 2.5 times more than they run.
Lambeau gets cold in the winter. Cold weather means cold hands. Cold hands means dropped passes and more 3rd and longs. One thing Favre hasn't had to deal with much this season is dropped passes. His receivers are really doing an exceptional job making grabs. But how well will they continue as the temperature drops?
And just how easy is it to win in January without a running game? The last three Super Bown winners have ranked 18th, 12th, and 7th, respectively, in offensive rushing. After four games, the Packers rank 32nd - dead last - at a miserable 54.3 yards per game. Obviously, the Packers are finding ways to win and I applaude them for that, but they need to find a running game. When you repeatedly call passes on 3rd and inches, it only goes to show what little faith this team has with their running game.
Will the Packers make the playoffs? I suspect so. At 4-0, the Packers have a great jump on the division and the conference, as a whole. Right now, they could finish the season 6-6 and still have double-digit wins come playoff time. Given than it looks like 8-8 may very well make the playoffs this year in the NFC, I'd say the Pack has a very legitimate shot at the playoffs. How far into the playoffs do they go? Unless they can find a running game, I'm afraid not very far.
So good for the defense. They certainly have room for improvement - as evidenced last weekend against the Vikings, the Packers aren't that solid against the run game and after the two top corners, Harris and Woodson, the secondary gets awfully thin in a hurry. Jarret Bush proved this weekend that he's simply not ready to be a starting corner.
The offense will simply go as far as Brett Favre can take them and, given the way he's played through the last three games, that may be a long way. The Packers have all but given up on their running game and replaced it with an all-out passing attack that features a lot of short slots, crosses, and screens. Favre has a 97.3 QB rating this season through four games (12th in the league) and a very nice 8:2 TD:Int ratio. Favre can also boast more pass attempts this season than any other QB in the league - even Carson Palmer on the pass-happy Bengals comes up 10 attempts shy of Favre's 170 attempts. That's 42.5 attempts per game.
And that, of course, is the big concern. Just how far can the Packers go without a running game? The Packers have thrown the ball 170 times and run 70 times (disregarding the 9 times Favre has run, which have been almost entirely designed passes that broke down). That means the Packers are passing nearly 2.5 times more than they run.
Lambeau gets cold in the winter. Cold weather means cold hands. Cold hands means dropped passes and more 3rd and longs. One thing Favre hasn't had to deal with much this season is dropped passes. His receivers are really doing an exceptional job making grabs. But how well will they continue as the temperature drops?
And just how easy is it to win in January without a running game? The last three Super Bown winners have ranked 18th, 12th, and 7th, respectively, in offensive rushing. After four games, the Packers rank 32nd - dead last - at a miserable 54.3 yards per game. Obviously, the Packers are finding ways to win and I applaude them for that, but they need to find a running game. When you repeatedly call passes on 3rd and inches, it only goes to show what little faith this team has with their running game.
Will the Packers make the playoffs? I suspect so. At 4-0, the Packers have a great jump on the division and the conference, as a whole. Right now, they could finish the season 6-6 and still have double-digit wins come playoff time. Given than it looks like 8-8 may very well make the playoffs this year in the NFC, I'd say the Pack has a very legitimate shot at the playoffs. How far into the playoffs do they go? Unless they can find a running game, I'm afraid not very far.
posted by MC at
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
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