January 29, 2012

Packers’ 2011 season one for the record books

By Kareem Copeland, Green Bay Press-Gazette

The Green Bay Packers’ offense was lauded for its brilliance and record-setting performances this season. But plenty of attention also was directed at a defense that will go down as one of the all-time sieves.

The offensive highs and defensive lows will forever mark the 2011 season, which started with great promise but ended with a disheartening home playoff defeat.

A 13-0 Packers start drew talk of an undefeated season and comparisons to the 1972 Dolphins. That ended with a 19-14 loss in Kansas City in Week 15. Still, a 2011 season that was supposed to be about a second consecutive Super Bowl ended with a pile of records and a 37-20 NFC divisional round loss to the New York Giants.

The Packers’ offense was the most prolific in franchise history. The team record was set with 560 points — 99 more than the previous high in 2009. Fans at Lambeau Field were treated to 40.1 points a game, which broke the 1942 record of 38.0.

The focal point of it all was quarterback Aaron Rodgers and his likely MVP performance. No. 12 set the NFL record with a 122.5 passer rating to surpass Peyton Manning’s 2004 mark of 121.1. He also broke Brett Favre’s 1996 passing touchdown record (39) with 45. Rodgers’ 4,643 passing yards set the franchise record and he became the first 4,000-yard passer in NFL history to throw six or fewer interceptions in the same season.

“His decision making is clearly at the highest level that I’ve personally been a part of,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said earlier in the season. “Just his command of the offense, going away from the defense; if the defense tilts one way, he goes away from it.

“We have the firepower to give them options and he’s just been very disciplined with the ball placement. I think his decision making is top notch.”

Rodgers was asked if all the records mean anything to him.

“Super Bowls do,” he replied.

On the flip side, the defense ranked last in the league in yards allowed and passing yards allowed. Those numbers equated to one of the worst defenses in NFL history.

The 4,796 passing yards allowed were the most in league history. The Atlanta Falcons held the previous record with 4,541 given up in 1995.

The Packers gave up 6,585 total net yards in 2011. That ranked second all-time behind the Baltimore Colts’ 6,793 yards allowed in 1981. The 2008 Detroit Lions, the only team in NFL history to go 0-16, rank No. 3 with 6,470 yards allowed.

“What we have to do is get those sack numbers and pressures back up,” defensive coordinator Dom Capers said after the season. “And then in accordance to that, we’ve got to be able to not give people big plays. Because our No. 1 goal is always to give up as few of points as possible because that gives you the best chance of winning games.

“When you give up big plays it’s going to end up on the scoreboard and that’s just been the case too much.”

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January 10, 2012

Packers Team Report

INSIDE SLANT

If all goes well for the Packers the next two weeks and they snag a berth in Super Bowl XLVI, their travel distance this postseason will be all of the 400 miles that separates Green Bay from Indianapolis.The conveniently short journey from the upper Midwest to the lower Midwest, however, could be comparable from an opposition standpoint to the thousands of frequent-flyer miles the team amassed in the course of winning the Super Bowl last season.

The playoffs for the Packers again start with playing a team from the NFC East. The conference’s No. 1 team will host the New York Giants on Sunday in the divisional round, a year after sixth-seeded Green Bay traveled to Philadelphia and knocked off the Eagles in a wild-card game.

The Packers went to Atlanta the following week and embarrassed the top-seeded Falcons in a divisional matchup. If heavily favored Green Bay can avoid being upset by the surging Giants, it will remain home at Lambeau Field for the NFC Championship on Jan. 22, potentially against the New Orleans Saints, who, like the Falcons, are from the NFC South.

Win the NFC, the Packers are back in the Super Bowl to defend their league title – and they can take delight en route to Indy as they fly over Chicago, where Green Bay completed its three-game road sweep of conference opponents in last year’s postseason by ousting the division-rival Bears.

“Taking the show on the road last year, so to speak, was huge for our confidence as a team, as a young team, knowing that we can do it on the road. We got it done on the road,” receiver Greg Jennings said. “And, now, there’s a quiet confidence that we don’t have to go through that this year. We can sit back and kind of not relax but take it all in and let our home crowd experience what we were able to deliver last year.

“So, hopefully again, we want the same result but (taking a) different path of getting there. This is the preferred path, like (head coach) Mike (McCarthy) has mentioned, and we’ll see what happens.”

–Authorities in Oshkosh, Wis., confirmed Tuesday morning the body that was pulled from the icy Fox River there Monday afternoon was that of Michael Philbin, the 21-year-old son of Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin.

A missing person report had been filed Sunday night for Michael Philbin, who was last heard from in the early morning Sunday. Philbin, a student at nearby Ripon College, was visiting friends at University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh during the weekend.  

Cause of death hasn’t been determined.

Michael was the second oldest of Joe and Diane Philbin’s six children.

Packers general manager Ted Thompson issued a statement on behalf of the organization later Tuesday: “The Packers family was saddened to learn of the passing of Michael Philbin, son of offensive coordinator Joe Philbin. Our thoughts and prayers are with Joe, his wife, Diane, and the Philbin family as they cope with their loss. This is an emotional and difficult time for them, and we ask that everyone respect their privacy. All of us in the Packers family share in their grief.”

Joe Philbin has been on Green Bay’s coaching staff since 2003 and the offensive coordinator under McCarthy the last five years. McCarthy calls the plays on game day for the Packers, but Philbin has been instrumental in the game planning for the Packers’ highly productive offense.

With the Packers on a scheduled off day Tuesday, it’s unclear whether Philbin will rejoin the team later this week and fulfill his coaching duties in the coaches’ box for the game Sunday.

McCarthy said Monday he has contingency plans for his staff this week in the event Philbin would be away for an extended period.
NOTES, QUOTES

–Six weeks after eking out a 38-35 win on a last-second field goal in New Jersey, the Packers will get a rematch with the New York Giants.The Giants continued their late-season roll with a 24-2 knockout of the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the NFC playoffs Sunday. Many of the Green Bay coaches and players watched the game on TV with the No. 1-seeded Packers’ having a bye on the opening weekend of the postseason.

“I thought the Giants had a very decisive victory against the Falcons,” Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said Monday. “I think it really started up front on both sides of the ball.

“That’s the best film that I’ve seen of the Giants prior to our game six weeks ago and from what I’ve seen so far since our game.”

Green Bay, which was 11-0 at the time, used a long drive of 68 yards negotiated by quarterback Aaron Rodgers with four straight completions in less than a minute to set up Mason Crosby for his game-winning 30-yard field goal as time expired against the Giants on Dec. 4.

The three-point margin was the closest of the Packers’ victories in their team-record 15-1 regular season.

The Giants won their final two regular-season games to claim the NFC East title with a 9-7 record.

After the conquest of the Falcons, New York defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul guaranteed a win by the Giants when they play the Packers in the divisional round Sunday at Lambeau Field.

“One hundred percent, we’re going to win … because we’re the best,” Pierre-Paul proclaimed.

McCarthy, the only representative from the Packers made available to reporters Monday on a day when offensive coordinator Joe Philbin’s son was reported missing since early Sunday morning, didn’t take exception to Pierre-Paul’s declaration.

“I would expect a team that is playing in the divisional playoff round to think they should win the game,” McCarthy said. “We fully expect to win the game. We’re going to prepare throughout the week to win the game, and we’ll be ready to go Sunday.

“That stuff, what are they supposed to say – they’re going to lose? I think a guy should expect to win. That’s the National Football League.”

–McCarthy on Monday didn’t reveal anything specific about the health status of his few injured players, among them Pro Bowl receiver Greg Jennings and running back James Starks.

“We’ll give you an injury report Wednesday, but we’re very healthy right now,” McCarthy said.

Jennings, who missed the last three games of the regular season because of a torn MCL in his left knee, figures to play Sunday. He was on the field last week, when the team held practice Wednesday and Thursday before the players were excused for an extended weekend for the bye.

Right tackle Bryan Bulaga also practiced after missing the previous two games because of a knee sprain, as did rookie receiver/kick returner Randall Cobb, who was held out of the regular-season finale with a groin injury.

Starks, who had a team-high 578 rushing yards, was considered the only player iffy at the end of the bye week. He didn’t practice after missing the Jan. 1 regular-season finale because of a bruised right ankle.

The Packers’ first practice this week won’t be until Wednesday. The players are off Tuesday.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

PLAYER NOTES–WR Greg Jennings is expected to be OK to play in the NFC divisional playoffs game against the New York Giants on Sunday at Lambeau Field. Jennings went through both practices the Packers held last week during their bye for the first round. Jennings, a Pro Bowl selection this season, missed the final three games of the regular season because of a torn MCL in his left knee.

–RB James Starks, who didn’t practice last week, seemingly is the only question mark this week among the few injured casualties Green Bay had at the end of the regular season. Starks, the team’s top rusher, didn’t play in the regular-season finale because of a bruised right ankle.

–LT Chad Clifton is penciled in as the starter for Sunday’s game. The 12th-year veteran practiced last week after returning to game action for just 25 snaps in the Jan. 1 game to end the regular season. Clifton missed the previous 10 games because of a torn hamstring and a back injury.

–RT Bryan Bulaga should be good to return to the starting lineup Sunday. Bulaga, who also practiced last week, missed the previous two games because of a sprained left knee.

–QB Aaron Rodgers goes into Sunday’s game with a 4-1 record and 112.6 passer rating in five postseason starts – all on the road – for the Packers since the 2009 season. Rodgers has thrown 13 touchdowns with only three interceptions in the playoffs.

REPORT CARD ENTERING PLAYOFFS

PASSING OFFENSE: A-minus – Matt Flynn goes back to the bench after his record-setting performance of 480 yards and six touchdowns through the air in the comeback win over the Detroit Lions to end the regular season. In steps Aaron Rodgers again with a convenient three weeks of rest from game action and in the midst of one of the more sensational seasons by a quarterback in NFL history. Rodgers’ litany of regular-season milestones included a passer rating of 122.5 (league best), 4,643 passing yards and 45 touchdown throws (both team bests). While he was accomplishing all of that, the likely league MVP had a career-low six interceptions as he completed 68.3 percent of his 502 passes in his fourth season as a starter. Green Bay’s third-rated passing attack featured a breakthrough season by fourth-year pro Jordy Nelson, who had team highs for catches (68), receiving yards (1,263) and touchdowns (15). He ranked third in league for the TDs and was second with a big-play average of 18.6 yards per catch. Greg Jennings, a Pro Bowl selection along with Rodgers, had 67 receptions for 949 yards and nine touchdowns despite missing the last three games because of a torn MCL – he is back practicing and should play in Sunday’s divisional-round game. Green Bay’s five wideouts each had at least 25 catches for the first time in team history. Throw in tight end Jermichael Finley, who has held up for the entire season and contributed career highs with 55 receptions for 767 yards and eight TDs. Finley, however, has been the poster player with at least a dozen for an inordinate amount of drops by the receiving corps that bogged down the occasionally unstoppable aerial show in a few games. Green Bay’s pass blocking also has been up and down since early in the season, due in great part to losing veteran left tackle Chad Clifton for 10 games and also right tackle Bryan Bulaga and right guard Josh Sitton for a total of seven games. Rodgers was sacked 36 times – second highest in his starting tenure.

RUSHING OFFENSE: C-minus – No trivial source of concern for the Packers going into the postseason, especially when it may be incumbent on the offense to try to run the football if the abnormally mild January conditions in Green Bay thus far turn nefarious this weekend and perhaps the following weekend. Green Bay finished the regular season without one game of having an individual 100-yard rusher and ranked 27th in the league with an average of 97.4 yards per game. Second-year James Starks missed three of the last four games because of an assortment of knee and ankle injuries but still led the team in rushing with 578 yards – just 38th best in the league and the worst club-leading total for the regular season since the obscure Darick Holmes had 386 in 1998. Starks (133) and Ryan Grant (134), who missed one game in Week 4 because of a kidney injury, were even with the carries in the two-back rotation employed when both were healthy. Grant mustered just 559 yards in his comeback from playing in only one game in 2010 (ruptured ankle), but the fifth-year veteran might have rediscovered his explosiveness in recent weeks with a 47-yard touchdown run in the Dec. 11 rout of the Oakland Raiders and an 80-yard burst to paydirt on a screen pass from Flynn the last time out. Versatile fullback John Kuhn earned his first Pro Bowl selection but averaged only 2.6 yards in situational carries, though he had a team-high four touchdowns on the ground. Rodgers’ mobility and fearlessness to take off on broken pass players resulted in 257 yards – he also had three touchdowns. The Packers lost promising rookie Alex Green to a season-ending knee injury in Week 7. The injuries across the line also affected the effectiveness of the run blocking, but center Scott Wells remained a rock and notched a Pro Bowl nod for the first time.

PASS DEFENSE: C-minus – The Packers led the league with 31 interceptions, the team’s highest output since 1962, and returned four of those for touchdowns. The penchant for takeaways helped mitigate what otherwise has been an atrocious showing by the pass defense since the start of the season. Green Bay was never higher than 30th in the 32-team league for passing yards allowed in any week and finished the regular season at rock bottom, allowing a league-record 4,796 net passing yards (average of 299.8 per game). Opponents exploited a secondary that was without Pro Bowl safety Nick Collins, who suffered a career-threatening neck injury in Week 2, and capitalized on an insufficient pass rush (29 sacks) to burn the Packers deep for by the team count was 76 pass plays of at least 20 yards – second highest in the league. Outside linebacker Clay Matthews, picked to the Pro Bowl for the third time in as many pro seasons, has played well this season but managed just six sacks to lead the team with no help on the other side to draw extra attention from him. Veteran cornerback Charles Woodson, also a repeat Pro Bowl honoree, continued to set the tone for the team’s NFL-high-tying 38 takeaways with seven interceptions to sit atop the league list.

RUSH DEFENSE: C – Green Bay was solid gold against the run three weeks into the season, leading the league after giving up a total of only 165 yards, including a stingy 13 against Matt Forte and the Chicago Bears. From that point, however, it was a gradual descent for the Packers to almost the middle of the league pack. Opponents cracked the century mark in 10 of the final 13 games, topped by the Minnesota Vikings’ 218 in Week 7 and the Forte-less Bears’ 199 in the Week 16 rematch, and Green Bay finished 14th in the league rankings with an average of 111.8 yards allowed per game. Besides losing the hard-hitting Collins for the long term, the Packers had to cope without their tackles-heavy tandem of Desmond Bishop (team-leading 142) and A.J. Hawk (104) at inside linebacker for a brief stretch in late November/early December because of calf injuries and run-stuffing defensive lineman Ryan Pickett for two games late in the regular season because of a concussion. All three players are healthy for the playoffs. The Packers will need better production in the playoffs from talented nose tackle B.J. Raji, who had only 43 tackles but was named to his first Pro Bowl a season after he had a career-high 66 tackles.

SPECIAL TEAMS: A-minus – An Achilles’ heel for the Packers in recent years has turned out to be integral to their nearly impeccable season heretofore. Mason Crosby, who came in with a subpar field-goal percentage of 78.1 his first four regular seasons in the league, connected on 24 of his 28 attempts for a career-best mark of 85.7 percent. He tied his own team record with a 56-yard field goal in Week 5 at Atlanta and then broke it two weeks later with a 58-yard boot in the dome at Minnesota. Crosby benefited from the potent offense with a league-high 68 extra points and finished with 140 points (fourth in league), one short of his team record in his 2007 rookie season. Crosby and punter Tim Masthay, supported by better coverage units, more often than not tilted field position in Green Bay’s favor. Crosby swung away for 49 touchbacks (third in league). Masthay, whose 55 punts were the fewest for the team in a 16-game schedule, overcame a slow start in his second pro season and set team records for gross average (45.6 yards) and net average (38.6 yards). He placed 19 of his 34 punts in the last 10 games inside the opponent’s 20-yard line and had a career-long 71-yard punt in Week 15 at Kansas City. Randall Cobb, the team’s second-round draft pick in 2011, provided a spark for the once-pedestrian return units from opening night with a league-record-tying 108-yard kickoff runback for a touchdown in the shootout win over the New Orleans Saints and later scoring on an 80-yard punt return in Week 10 against the Vikings. Cobb averaged 27.7 and 11.3 yards on kickoffs and punts, respectively. However, the rookie has been prone to literally dropping the ball on fielding kicks with three fumbles, including two in punt situations. Opponents averaged 12.7 yards on punt returns, a number inflated by Darren Sproles’ 72-yard touchdown for the Saints in Week 1.

COACHING: B – Mike McCarthy is just the sixth coach in NFL lore to lead a team to a record of no worse than 15-1 in the 34 years of having a 16-game schedule. The most prolific regular season in 93 seasons of professional football in Green Bay included a 13-0 start. The Packers also racked up a team-record 560 points (second highest in NFL history) for a league-leading average of 35 points per game this season. While McCarthy was the play caller for the league’s No. 3 offense (average of 405.1 yards per game), coordinator Dom Capers has the dubious distinction of being at the controls of the league’s worst defense (average of 411.6 total yards allowed per contest). Green Bay’s ability to advance the next two weeks and return to the Super Bowl to vie for a second straight title will likely hinge on whether Capers and his staff can coax better results from their unit. What has been top notch for the Packers across the board has been their discipline – 76 penalties (tied for the league low) and 591 penalty yards (No. 2 in the league) are the fewest by the team in a 16-game season.

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January 8, 2012

Packers will need to bring lunch pails Sunday

By Tom Silverstein, Journal Sentinel

Green Bay – It was a workmanlike effort Sunday that allowed the New York Giants to grind out a 24-2 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in a wild-card game at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

And the Green Bay Packers can expect the exact same thing when the Giants come to Lambeau Field next Sunday as 10-point underdogs.

The Giants ground out 172 yards rushing against the Falcons behind the two-headed attack of Brandon Jacobs (14 for 92) and Ahmad Bradshaw (13 for 60) and on defense limited the Falcons to 247 yards, stopping them on two fourth-and-1 quarterback sneaks inside Giants territory that changed the complexion of the game.

When the Packers and Giants met on Dec. 4, it was a shootout.

The two teams gained nearly the same amount of yards (Giants 449, Packers 447), most of which was through the air (Giants 360, Packers 347), and it came down to a five-play, 68-yard field-goal drive in the final 58 seconds for the Packers to come away with a 38-35 victory.

On that day, the Giants were without starting C David Baas, WR Mario Manningham and DE Osi Umenyiora due to injury. Also, RB Ahmad Bradshaw was making his first appearance since injuring his foot and was limited in his playing time.

The Giants still rushed 20 times for 100 yards.

The Packers were not at full strength either.

Inside linebackers Desmond Bishop and A.J. Hawk both were out with calf injuries. Rookie D.J. Smith and Robert Francois started in the middle.

Also, right guardJosh Sitton was out with a knee injury and was replaced by Evan Dietrich-Smith.

The line did a nice job protecting QB Aaron Rodgers, who was sacked twice and completed 28 of 46 passes for 369 yards and four touchdowns with one interception.

No receiver had 100 yards, but WRs Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson each had 94 yards and TE Jermichael Finley had six catches for 87 yards and a touchdown.

One player who could present huge problems for the Packers is WR Hakeem Nicks, who despite not being 100%, had seven catches for 88 yards and two touchdowns against them. Against the Falcons, he had six catches for 115 yards and two touchdowns.

One player who might not be available for the Giants is starting CB Aaron Ross, who was knocked out of the Atlanta game with a concussion. He did not return and his status will be closely watched all week long.

The Packers will have all of their receivers available Sunday and against the Giants, they created a lot of pressure in the secondary even with Ross there. Rookie Prince Amukamara had to cover Nelson and when he couldn’t do the job, former Packers CB Will Blackmon had to take over.

Nelson made his big 27-yard catch on the final drive on Blackmon.

Whatever, the case, the Packers know their opponent and they will have to beat a Giants team that just four years ago marched into Lambeau Field and beat the favored Packers in the NFC Championship game. The Packers have won twice against the Giants in a little over a year and will have a chance to make it three times Sunday.

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January 1, 2012

Flynn’s record-setting day carries Packers past Lions

Associated Press

Green Bay, WI - Backup quarterback Matt Flynn threw a touchdown pass to Jermichael Finley with 1:10 left, giving the Green Bay Packers a 45-41 victory over the Detroit Lions in a wild regular-season finale in cold and windy conditions at Lambeau Field on Sunday.

With Aaron Rodgers resting for the playoffs, Flynn set Packers franchise records with 480 yards passing and six touchdowns. It was an ideal afternoon for the Packers (15-1) who got to rest Rodgers and several other big-name players without losing playoff momentum.

Flynn, subbing for the inactive Aaron Rodgers, barely got the Packers past Matthew Stafford, who threw for 520 yards with five touchdowns and two interceptions for the Lions (10-6). Detroit has lost 21 straight road games to the Packers, including the postseason.

In the third quarter, Stafford threw a 2-yard TD pass to Titus Young and another 5-yard scoring strike to Kevin Smith as the Lions took a 3-point lead into the final quarter at 34-31. Stafford also added a 2-point conversion pass to Tony Scheffler.

Flynn connected with Jordy Nelson on a 58-yard touchdown pass. It was Nelson’s third TD pass of the game.

Flynn threw a pair of touchdown passes in the second quarter. The first was an 80-yard screen pass to Ryan Grant, and the second was a 36-yard toss to Nelson with 3:37 remaining that put the Packers ahead 24-19.

Stafford threw a 13-yard TD pass to Calvin Johnson with 8:18 remaining in the first half, and Jason Hanson added a 30-yard field goal. Both teams missed field goals in the final 2 minutes of the half.

Flynn finished the half by completing 19 of 29 passes for 280 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. He hit Nelson on a 7-yard scoring pass with 16 seconds left in the first quarter to give the Packers their first lead at 10-9.

Stafford hit Young on an 8-yard touchdown pass to give Detroit a 7-0 lead.

The Lions made it 9-0 on the ensuing kickoff when Pat Lee mishandled the return and was called for a safety. 

Mason Crosby booted a 22-yard field goal to pull the Packers within 9-3 with 5:55 left in the opening quarter.

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December 18, 2011

Packers stumble on way to history

By Kevin Seifert, ESPN

KANSAS CITY — We have all week to discuss the Green Bay Packers’ injury-depleted offensive line. There is plenty of time to hash through their sudden case of the drops. I promise I’ll offer you an opportunity to debate whether coach Mike McCarthy should have challenged an apparent fourth-quarter fumble in Sunday’s 19-14 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. (Actually, I already have.)

For the moment, however, I think we should note just how tantalizingly close the Packers got to the most revered title imaginable: The greatest team of all time.

Their 19-game winning streak, which included a 13-0 start this season, had already placed them in the running. And if the Packers go on to win Super Bowl XLVI, perhaps we’ll still be able to make an argument on their behalf. But a 19-0 run through 2011 would have been unprecedented, as would have the corresponding 25-game winning streak. Whether they admit to it or not, the Packers know that opportunities to place yourself on that pedestal — objectively and indisputably — come around once in a lifetime.

“It would have been special, make no mistake,” cornerback Charles Woodson said in a rueful but hardly depressed Packers locker room. “When you have a shot to do something like that, you do it. We certainly felt like our chances were good to come in here and win today, and we didn’t get it done. … Guys would have loved to do it. We would have loved to do it.”

Said defensive lineman B.J. Raji: “You can’t underestimate the opportunity to chase history. It was definitely huge. We didn’t shy away from the topic. Our coach didn’t shy away from it. He addressed it. I can’t belittle the challenge to go 16-0, but obviously that’s behind us now.”

To be sure, many in the Packers’ locker room were in no way on edge as history loomed. In professional sports, the big picture rarely gets bigger than stringing together championships. Win or lose Sunday, the Packers were in better shape than any other NFL team to mount that sort of accomplishment.

Not everybody cares about the history book. But at some point in their lives, most members of the 2011 Packers would have appreciated looking back and realizing they were mathematically the most successful team ever over a two-year stretch. They had a chance to do something that New England Patriots of the 2000′s couldn’t, something the 1980s San Francisco 49ers fell short of, as did the 1970s Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers — not to mention the Packers of both Vince Lombardi and Curly Lambeau.

These Packers have nothing to be ashamed of, nor do they deserve an ounce of criticism. Only one team in history, the 2003-4 Patriots, won more than 19 consecutive games. No failure occurred here. Only a missed opportunity. As receiver Donald Driver said, “it was truly amazing to be able to win that many games in that long of a period.”

Driver added: “It hurts because that’s something special. We always talk about, if you get the perfect season, then you’re part of greatness. But you take it for what it’s worth. Right now, the only thing we can do is go 18-1. If that’s 18-1 and you’re the Super Bowl champs, I don’t think anyone cares about the perfect season after that.”

We saw some things Sunday from the Packers that might have you concerned. Now we know what happens when the Packers’ defense, which entered the game leading the NFL with 32 takeways, doesn’t get a turnover. A half-dozen or so drops reminded us how pristinely their offense has played for most of the season, and few teams are prepared to have their top two right tackles injured in the same game.

To be sure, as McCarthy noted, this wasn’t a fluke loss. “We were beaten today,” he said. “The Kansas City Chiefs outplayed us. We were beaten.”

At the same time, let’s not overreact and wonder if the Chiefs exposed the Packers’ flaws for the world to see. Let’s not be so spoiled by a 19-game winning streak that we forget the NFL’s always-true “Any Given Sunday” mantra.

In the bigger picture, the Packers know they can clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with their next victory, or by a San Francisco 49ers loss as early as Monday night. If they do it, they won’t play a game away from Lambeau Field — where they haven’t lost since October 17, 2010 — until the Super Bowl.

McCarthy said he has viewed an undefeated season “as really just gravy” on top of their more central goal of winning the Super Bowl. Perhaps he’ll feel differently in 10 years. Had the Packers been able to pull it off, and they fell five points shy of extending the run into another week, I think we would all have looked back on these past two years with a reverence reserved for the very best of all time. But for now, the Packers will settle for the best of 2011.

“Our goal has never been to set records or lead the league in statistics,” guard T.J. Lang said. “We care about getting wins and [getting home-field advantage and winning the Super Bowl], and fortunately we still have a couple of those in front of us that we can hit.”

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December 7, 2011

Fans aren’t only ones eager for stock-owner bragging rights

By Mike Vandermause, Green Bay Press-Gazette

Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Ryan Pickett had to take care of some important business after practice Wednesday afternoon.

Pickett had just received the paperwork to purchase Packers stock and said he was planning to buy shares for himself, his wife and five children, which works out to a cool $1,775.

“You know what, I’m about to sign,” Pickett said. “I’m about to go do it now.”

Count Packers players among the thousands who have gotten swept up in the craze to buy a piece of the team, even if the $250-per-share asking price, plus $25 handling fee, brings few tangible benefits.

Shares can’t be resold, there are no dividends and the value never will increase. Buyers are paying 275 bucks a pop for a fancy piece of paper that for all intents and purposes is worthless.

Yet there has been no hesitation on the part of Packers fans to display their allegiance by reaching deep into their pockets.

On the first day of the stock sale Tuesday, team President Mark Murphy said the Packers sold 28,000 shares in the first 2 hours and 20 minutes. That’s a whopping $7 million, or $50,000 per minute.

If that isn’t a license to print money, what is?

“Anywhere else I’d be surprised, but in Green Bay, no, I’m not surprised,” Pickett said. “This is how much fans love the team and want to be part of this great tradition, so I’m not surprised that it’s happening here.”

Receiver Greg Jennings said at a corporate luncheon Tuesday he wasn’t planning to buy stock, but when he returned home, his wife, Nicole, told him: “Babe, by the way, (we) bought three (shares)” — one for each of the couple’s three daughters.

“No tax write-offs or anything, you just kind of have taken one on the chin,” Jennings said with a wide smile.

But he now seems convinced it’s a good investment. “It’s great to be part of something special, obviously the history of this organization, this franchise,” Jennings said. “My daughters will have something that they can reflect on and have for a lifetime.”

That seems to be the sentiment motivating Packers backers around the country to plunk down serious cash for the privilege of being part of the only community-owned team in professional sports.

“It’s kind of like how we can travel anyplace in the country and we’ve got a ton of Packers fans at every venue,” said punter Tim Masthay, who along with his expectant wife is considering buying a share for their first child. “It’s just like that, there’s such a following and such a passion about the organization that it’s not surprising.”

Critics have accused stock buyers of being suckers, and the team of being greedy, but those arguments simply don’t hold water.

The Packers will use the money to expand and upgrade Lambeau Field, the most historic football venue in the country.

Stock owners, meanwhile, feel like they’re part of the team. All shareholders receive tickets to the annual meeting at the stadium, vote for the team’s board of directors and are privy to special “owner’s only” apparel.

Perhaps the greatest benefit is the bragging rights that a stock certificate will generate. That alone makes its value priceless.

 

— mvandermause@greenbaypressgazette.com and follow him on Twitter @MikeVandermause.

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December 5, 2011

Packers Team Report

By FoxSports.com

INSIDE SLANT

The timing couldn’t be better for the Packers to offer their fans a chance to own a piece of major sports’ only publicly operated franchise.Starting at 8 a.m. Central time Tuesday, the fifth stock sale in the team’s 92-year history – and the first since 1997 – will be under way. The Packers plan to initially sell 250,000 shares at a cost of $250 apiece with a limit of 200 shares per person (including those purchased in the last stock sale).

The latest stock offering, which is being held to raise money for a planned $143 million expansion of Lambeau Field, will be conducted online at www.packers.com and through the mail.

Making a quasi investment in the Packers would seem to be a hot buy right now, even though the shares have no real value. The NFL’s most storied club hasn’t fared any better than it has in the last calendar year, winning 18 straight games with a Super Bowl title thrown in for good measure.

The Packers are 12-0 this season. Green Bay clinched a spot in the playoffs and its first NFC North title since 2007 on Sunday, when it pulled out a scintillating 38-35 win at the New York Giants with a final-minute drive that ended with a Mason Crosby field goal as time expired.

Head coach Mike McCarthy doesn’t foresee complacency coming over his players in the final four weeks of the regular season because they have plenty more to accomplish – most notably, gaining home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs and possibly becoming only the second team to finish 16-0.

“Right now, our foot’s on the gas, and we’re going,” McCarthy said Monday. “We’re playing to win games.”

The Packers play three of their next four games at home, beginning with a visit from the Oakland Raiders on Sunday. Green Bay has a two-game lead over NFC West champion San Francisco (10-2) in the conference race.

While the team had a chance to savor the division title Monday, when commemorative T-shirts and hats were distributed in its Lambeau locker room, the focus quickly turned to the future.

“I’ve very impressed with what we’ve accomplished so far,” McCarthy said. “But, there’s so much more out there for us. Frankly, we just came off of a Super Bowl victory. We look at this as a step, we look at this as one of the mile markers on our journey to Indianapolis (for Super Bowl XLVI). We make no bones about it. Winning the Super Bowl is what this business is all about. Winning your division (and) home-field advantage is the best path to get you there. It’s the preferred path.”

NOTES, QUOTES

–Fresh off running their record to 12-0 and winning the NFC North title, the Packers are far from a picture of perfect health.Head coach Mike McCarthy announced Monday that second-year tight end Andrew Quarless would miss the rest of the season. Quarless suffered what presumably was a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee on kickoff coverage in the final minutes of Green Bay’s 38-35 win at the New York Giants on Sunday.

Quarless will undergo surgery at a later date. He had only three catches for 36 yards this season, getting limited opportunities on offense behind starter Jermichael Finley.

“Obviously, the other guys are going to have to step up,” said offensive coordinator Joe Philbin, pointing to Tom Crabtree and rookies D.J. Williams and Ryan Taylor in the deep position group.

Crabtree, Williams and Taylor have combined for just six catches for 38 yards in the shadow of Finley, who has 42 receptions for 600 yards and six touchdowns.

Quarless will be the third Green Bay player to go on injured reserve during the season. The Packers previously lost Pro Bowl safety Nick Collins after two games to a career-threatening neck injury and rookie running back Alex Green at midseason to a knee injury.

–Green Bay finished Sunday’s last-second victory without veteran cornerback Charles Woodson and halfback James Starks, its top ball carrier this season.

Starks aggravated an ankle sprain in the second quarter. Woodson suffered a concussion when he collided with Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw on a tackle attempt early in the fourth quarter.

“The medical staff feels good that he’ll probably play this week,” McCarthy said of Woodson, who will have to pass a series of league-mandated tests for players who suffer a head injury before he can be cleared to return to the field.

Starks’ status for the game Sunday at home against the Oakland Raiders is more uncertain.

“He’ll be challenged to go Wednesday (for practice),” McCarthy said. “We need to get him healthy. But, I don’t think this is a long-term issue.”

The Packers also will be trying to get right guard Josh Sitton and inside linebackers Desmond Bishop and A.J. Hawk back this week after the starters missed Sunday’s game for injury reasons.

“They’re getting better,” McCarthy said. “They’re getting close.”

–Watching the tape of Sunday’s game gave McCarthy a greater appreciation for the finest moment thus far of quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ MVP-worthy season.

Rodgers completed four straight passes to move the Packers from their 20-yard line to the Giants’ 12 in just 55 seconds, setting up Mason Crosby’s game-winning 30-yard field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter. New York had tied the score at 35-35 with an Eli Manning touchdown pass and two-point-conversion run with only 58 seconds left.

“That was as clean a two-minute drive that I think I’ve been a part of,” McCarthy said Monday.

McCarthy credited the route adjustments Rodgers facilitated before the snap for his completions of 24 and 27 yards to Finley and receiver Jordy Nelson, respectively, to start the rapid-fire drive.

“The game can unfold a bunch of ways,” Philbin said. “It was just the first one got us rolling, got us in good position, and then the second one really put us almost right there at the doorstep of field-goal range with Mason’s strong leg. Those were important plays and a great way for that drill to start.”

–The Packers were en route to Green Bay late Sunday night when they clinched the NFC North title, thanks to the Detroit Lions’ loss at the New Orleans Saints.

McCarthy related that football administration coordinator Matt Klein’s announcement about the division championship over the loud speaker on the plane as it taxied to the airport gate after landing in Green Bay didn’t elicit much of a reaction from the players.

“We didn’t celebrate,” McCarthy said. “I don’t think anybody blinked, to be honest with you. I don’t know if they were tired or they already knew.”

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

PLAYER NOTES–TE Andrew Quarless will be out the rest of the season because of a severely sprained right knee. The second-year player, who will need surgery in the near future, suffered the injury as he covered a kickoff late in the fourth quarter of the 38-35 win at the New York Giants on Sunday.

–CB Charles Woodson is expected to recover from a concussion that knocked him out of the game early in the fourth quarter and could play Sunday against his former team, the Oakland Raiders. Woodson will go through the league-mandated protocol for players who have a head injury this week.

–RB James Starks is questionable to get back on the field this week after he aggravated a sprained ankle in the second quarter of Sunday’s game. Starks is expected to be out through at least Wednesday, when the team will reconvene for practice.

–ILBs Desmond Bishop and A.J. Hawk will be put through more tests Wednesday before a determination is made on whether the starters can be cleared this week and possibly play against the Raiders. Both players missed Sunday’s game because of calf injuries.

–RG Josh Sitton also will have more testing done Wednesday as he tries to return to action this week after being out Sunday. The starter is recovering from a knee sprain.

REPORT CARD VS. GIANTS

PASSING OFFENSE: B – Clutch was the operative word for Aaron Rodgers and his top passing targets as the unbeaten Packers eked out their closest victory during their 18-game winning streak that extends back to last December. Rodgers added to his unsurpassed stardom this season by completing four passes in as many plays for 68 yards in an elapsed time of only 55 seconds to get Mason Crosby in position for his game-winning field goal as time expired. Tight end Jermichael Finley (six receptions, 87 yards, touchdown) started the decisive drive with a 24-yard catch-and-run up the right side. Wideouts Jordy Nelson (four catches, 94 yards) and Greg Jennings (seven catches, 94 yards, touchdown) then sandwiched critical plays of 27 and 18 yards around a one-yard loss by rookie back Brandon Saine on a checkdown – Nelson’s stop-and-go route against overmatched ex-Packers defensive back Will Blackmon and sensational grab near the sideline was the best of the bunch. Donald Driver, the graybeard of the receiving group, surfaced earlier with his first two-touchdown game in six years and was Nelson’s equal with the deft footwork at the boundary. A four-touchdown performance from Rodgers is old hat – he’s done it four times this season – but his season-high 46 pass attempts and 369 yards resulted in by his lofty standards just a “subpar” passer rating of 106.2. Rodgers completed only 28 passes, victimized by six drops (a seventh was wiped out by a Giants penalty) and his lone interception on a bad throw over the middle deep in Packers territory. Left tackle Marshall Newhouse had a poor outing against the relentless end Jason Pierre-Paul (two quarterback hits, two batted passes) as well as backup Dave Tollefson (sack).

RUSHING OFFENSE: D – Rodgers also had to carry Green Bay’s anemic run game, leading the team on the ground for the first time this season with 32 yards in four scrambles (long of 13). The loss of James Starks for the rest of the game with an aggravated ankle sprain in the second quarter exacerbated the woes. Not counting Rodgers’ improvised output, the Packers managed all of 57 yards in 24 rushing attempts for a horrendous average of 2.4 yards. The committee of four backs had five runs for negative yards, three by starter Ryan Grant (13 carries, 29 yards). He ran into fullback John Kuhn on one play and tripped over the left leg of Newhouse on another – both resulting in losses. Green Bay struggled mightily to generate anything outside the tackles, save for an eight-yard run by a patient Grant in the final quarter as he set up his blocks on the perimeter before turning back inside.

PASS DEFENSE: C-minus – After turning things around 180 degrees in the Thanksgiving win at Detroit, the Packers defense reverted to its troubling habit of giving up big pass plays. Eli Manning attacked the porous secondary with several deep shots and capitalized with four passes of more than 20 yards, highlighted by tight end Travis Beckum’s stunning 67-yard catch-and-run touchdown on the third play of the game. Beckum blazed past Charlie Peprah to get open for the catch in Packers territory, and the former Wisconsin standout made Peprah and fellow safety Morgan Burnett look silly by eluding their lax tackle attempts the last 35 yards. Cornerbacks Tramon Williams and Charles Woodson have had better days. Williams gave up downfield completions of 51 and 42 yards to Hakeem Nicks (seven catches, 88 yards, two touchdowns) and Victory Cruz (seven catches, 119 yards), respectively. Woodson committed two contact penalties (including roughing the passer) in a span of four plays in the second quarter, was helpless on a short fade to Nicks in the back of the end zone and later left the game with a concussion. Replacement Jarrett Bush fell down in coverage as Cruz picked up 22 yards on a pass during the Giants’ score-tying drive toward the end. Outside linebacker Clay Matthews enabled Green Bay to save some face against Manning (23-of-40, 347 yards, three touchdowns). Matthews jumped in front of back Ahmad Bradshaw in the flat as blitzing inside linebacker D.J. Smith forced the Manning throw that Matthews returned 38 yards for a touchdown to start the second quarter. Shortly before halftime, Matthews knocked the football out of Manning’s hand as he set up to throw, resulting in a sack and a fumble that nose tackle B.J. Raji casually recovered amid the confusion of the call.

RUSH DEFENSE: C-minus – Green Bay allowed 100 rushing yards (this time on the nose) for the fourth straight game and the sixth time in the last seven outings. The Giants, buoyed by the return of lead back Ahmad Bradshaw after a lengthy absence because of a foot injury, averaged a solid five yards per carry. Bradshaw (11 carries, 38 yards) had some success early in the game. The imposing Jacobs came on late in the first quarter and inflicted the most damage with eight carries for 59 yards (7.4 average). He rumbled to runs of 11 and 14 yards his first two attempts – the latter had the makings of a 75-yard touchdown as Jacobs cleared the second level before Burnett reached in to make an ankle tackle. Jacobs also had an explosive run of 18 yards and scored from a yard out. Situational back D.J. Ware made it to the end zone with ease on a draw play up the middle out of shotgun formation for the two-point conversion that tied the score with the fateful 58 seconds left.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B – Crosby’s 30-yard game-winner, his first since he kicked the Packers to a three-point win over Philadelphia in his pro debut on opening day 2007, made amends for the 43-yard attempt he pushed wide right on the final play of the first half Sunday. Crosby also made a tackle on Blackmon on one of a few sizable kickoff returns by the Giants. New York, however, didn’t have any punt-return yards as Tim Masthay extended his recent stretch of tremendous punting. Masthay averaged 44.2 yards in five kicks (long of 55) and placed four inside the Giants’ 20, including one that hit at the 5 and took a favorable bounce that Bush downed at the 1. Randall Cobb had a ho-hum day on returns for the Packers, averaging 25.3 yards on kickoffs and only three yards on punts. Yet, he heeded the instruction from the sideline to take a knee in the end zone on the Giants’ kickoff after they tied the score and thus give the offense the full 58 seconds to drive most of the field and win the game in regulation.

COACHING: B-minus – Warts and all in this game, particularly the big plays allowed by the defense and the rash of dropped passes on offense, the Packers prevailed in their most challenging game to date. For that, they are NFC North champions for the first time in four years, heading back to the playoffs and still on their unbeaten roll at 12-0. Head coach/play caller Mike McCarthy made a more concerted effort to run the football, but he should know better that it’s wishful thinking to get any kind of meaningful production from the collection of unspectacular backs on the roster. Defensive coordinator Dom Capers made do with a short-handed lineup, but not having inside linebackers Desmond Bishop and A.J. Hawk seemed to limit the pressure Capers probably would have liked to have put on Manning and possibly cut down on his frequent downfield opportunities.

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