State of the Union: Green Bay Packers

I like the Packers and this dog. Even their animals are dedicated in Wisconsin. My dog would have torn off that cheesehead in a second.

Everybody and their mother seems to be picking the Green Bay Packers to come out of the NFC North and Aaron Rodgers to be in the running for MVP. Looking at this team it's hard to disagree with them. They finished second overall in total defense and sixth overall in total offense, and that was a team that had to deal with all of the Favre to Minnesota drama and deal with the pressure of a loaded Vikings team. It was also a team where Rodgers ended up on his back on almost every play for the first half of the season, because he refused to get rid of the ball and he had a terrible line. The first problem seems to have sorted itself out and the second was addressed in the draft, so the sky is the limit for Green Bay.

I have been firmly entrenched on the Aaron Rodgers bandwagon ever since he came out of Cal with some of the sickest facial hair in the league. Rookies don't come in and put that kind of performance up. Then he turned out to be an elite quarterback and god damn I was sold. It's a shame that he had to end last season on a pick because his performance in Arizona was flat out incredible (hypocritical I know because I hate on Favre for the same thing but Rodgers hasn't turned into a Wrangler wearing ass who disrespects the fans that loved him). In the backfield, Ryan Grant's a good guy but I'm not completely sold on him as an every down back even though everyone else seems to be. I'll reiterate what announcers said a thousand times about Tre Newton during the Texas game against Rice: he seems to do everything well but nothing great. He's still a solid back and either way, with Greg Jennings, a revitalized Donald Driver, and a Jermichael Finley who is ready to be a pro bowl caliber tight end around Rodgers, this offense has enough to play in a shootout with anybody in the league even though they won't need to.

Green Bay's defense is the staple of the team even though their offense is explosive. They finished first in the league in takeaways but even without relying on the interception their total defense can play with anybody. Their pass defense isn't great, but if B.J. Raji can improve in year two as expected then there will be more of a pass rush which will lighten the load on elderly corner Charles Woodson and his companion Tramon Williams. Pass defense cost them against the Cardinals and it will continue to cost them if Favre plays as well as he did last season. They're emphasizing tackling fundamentals in camp and counting on emerging corners in order to counteract this problem, but if it doesn't work out then they won't win a championship. Their secondary is the biggest difference between them being a wild card team and them being an elite Super Bowl contender.

I'm going to go ahead and pick the Packers to come out of the NFC at the end of the year even though their offensive line and secondary are issues. They'll be counting on rookie first round pick Bryan Bulaga to protect Rodgers' left side but he should be up for the task and step in as immediate improvement. The Packers showed a lot in that loss to the Cardinals, and even though they didn't come through they made it clear that they can play a diverse game and perform in adverse conditions. The Packers are coming this year. Favre beware.