What does Pack need to get back to Super Bowl?
I watched both the NFC and AFC championship football games Sunday. Afterward, I was more convinced than ever that Milwaukee Journal Sentinel sportswriter Bob McGinn was on target with his analysis in Sunday’s Gazette. The Packers are too soft. They need to get more physical to compete with the National Football League’s elite teams.
After the San Francisco 49ers dismantled the Packers, it appears obvious. The Packers need to upgrade their talent on both the offensive and defensive lines. The Pack can’t run the ball consistently enough, nor can the offensive line provide star quarterback Aaron Rodgers adequate pass protection. Absent the aforementioned weak running game, defenders pin their ears back rushing Rodgers. He’s a great player, but one more concussion might spell a premature end to his career. With just one Super Bowl victory, that would be a sad waste of talent.
San Francisco’s quarterback Colin Kaepernick might be a rising star, but he looked like a world beater against the Packers. When our lone viable pass rusher, Clay Matthews, went inside, Kaepernick slipped around him and was off to the races. When Matthews later held his corner as Kaepernick went back to pass, the interior linemen couldn’t get penetration and the 49ers’ second-year QB picked the Pack's secondary apart.
So what do you see as the Packers’ key off-season needs?
Word has it that Donald Driver has seen his last game as a Packer, and as little as he played this season, that’s no surprise. Their salary demands may mean defenders A.J. Hawk and Charles Woodson, wide receiver Greg Jennings and tight end Jermichael Finley have played their last games in Green Bay, as well.
Which of those five would you like to see the team retain? I’d like to see them keep Jennings the most. He has the deep speed to truly stretch the defense. Age is catching up with Driver and Woodson. Hawk makes a lot of tackles but doesn’t have the speed you’d like. Finley still drops too many passes and seems to be a head case—he never has reached expectations, and he runs too much at the mouth.
Are better linemen the answer to upgrading the rushing game, or does the team need to finally use a high draft pick to get a top-flight running back?
Greg Peck can be reached at (608) 755-8278 or gpeck@gazettextra.com. Or follow him on Twitter or Facebook
Jan 23, 2013 at 3:05 p.m.
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They need "poobah's infinite wisdom........
Jan 23, 2013 at 8:49 a.m.
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Get in a different division than DA BEARS! One of two things is happening.....1. Beating up on the bears every year leads them to a false sense of security. 2. Getting beaten up by the bears (no matter the score) leaves them weak and weary.
Jan 23, 2013 at 6:45 a.m.
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Tickets
Jan 22, 2013 at 9:09 a.m.
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It should help some to get the Colts OFF their schedule. :)
Jan 22, 2013 at 7:49 a.m.
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The two teams that are in the Super Bowl are very balanced teams, good running games, great defenses, solid QB's, Green Bay has one of those. Rodgers has been carrying this team for a few years now, he is outstanding but until those other issues are addressed it could be awhile until the Pack gets back to the Super Bowl. The coaching of Dom Capers on Defense hasn't helped either, for some reason a guy who was arguably the number one defensive mind in the 90's and 2000's can't make adjustments and figure out offenses anymore, dare I say the game may have passed him by?
Jan 22, 2013 at 5:59 a.m.
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They need to win more games.
Jan 22, 2013 at 5:40 a.m.
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They need a GOOD Defensive Cordinator....Time has passed up Dom Capers.....They also need better conditioning trainers,,,,,way to many injuries
Jan 22, 2013 at 3:38 a.m.
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they only play them once every 4 years so that probably isn't too big of a deal.
Jan 21, 2013 at 10:46 p.m.
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They need professional referees all year long. They lost a game because of a bad call by the replacement ref's this past season, and that call may have changed the outcome of the entire season.
Jan 21, 2013 at 10:14 p.m.
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Beg Favre to come back,on your knees!!
Jan 21, 2013 at 4:02 p.m.
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Apparently they need a Harbaugh.
Jan 21, 2013 at 2:20 p.m.
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Hey Gary, No kidding!! But they cannot do it with the way things are as Greg is describing. I agree that Jennings needs to be kept but along with that, I almost felt as if the whole team defense and offense were a little on the laid back side this year. Perhaps a buckle down during practices and a little more hard work would bring the team back together again. Too many mistakes will beat you before another team will and I think the Packers beat themselves in many games this season.
Jan 21, 2013 at 12:26 p.m.
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They need to win more football games!
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