Week Sixteen in Review

Let's hear it for a shitty NFC North! Special thanks to Jay Cutler and Matthew Stafford. We couldn't have done it without you guys. Jim Schwartz. I just cannot say enough about Jim Schwartz. The guy has been here through it all, and nobody (I mean NOBODY) has done more for our playoff hopes than him. His commitment to the Green Bay Packers franchise has meant the world to us. Consistently unspectacular play throughout the division has set the Packers and Bears on a collision course at Soldier Field that is sure to be packed with incompletions, missed assignments, poor clock management, and all the other trappings of mediocrity. This one is gonna hinge on a timely botched snap, I can just feel it. At the end of the day we've been gifted a chance to make the playoffs, and get to watch at least one more meaningful game of Packer football this year. I'm still excited. Here's what I liked and didn't like about that shit sandwich yesterday that was trumped only by the stinkier shit sandwiches in Detroit and Philadelphia:

What I Liked:

Eddie Lacy (again): Played through pain to record two touchdowns and 84 yards on just 15 carries. He has an uncanny ability to turn a horribly blocked play going nowhere into three or four yards. Let's face it, that's a skill you need to produce as a runner behind this line. He's a 'whatever it takes' type back that clearly loves contact. He'll bring the fight to you whether you like it or not. Nobody was stopping him from scoring on his first run, a play in which the designed running lane never appeared. He had the vision to cut it back side, the speed to get the edge, and the power to blast through a tackle to score. He's got it all.

Pass Defense: I know we gave up 38 points, and I know we gave up 104 yards to Antonio Brown, and I know we only had one sack, but I'm chalking this up as a win for the pass defense. Roethlisberger gained just 5.58 yards per passing play. That is a really low number. So low that it would have been good for 30th in the league last year among starting quarterbacks. Antonio Brown was the only player to have more than 30 receiving yards yesterday, but he's AVERAGING 99.46 yards per game. He's third in the league behind only Megatron and the seemingly unstoppable Josh Gordon (side note - Imagine if Josh Gordon played for a team that had a quarterback. He's got 1564 receiving yards in 15 games, and he plays for the Browns!). So Antonio Brown is gonna get his. The 30 yard pass on the fake punt hurt, but that's on Shawn Slocum and the special teams unit, not the secondary or the pass rush. Overall a good day for the pass defense and something to build off of.

Micah Hyde: He added another big day to his already impressive rookie campaign. He was both solid and electrifying on special teams, recording 167 yards on five kick returns, including the timely 70 yarder that the offense couldn't finish. He also fielded every punt cleanly on a day when the frozen tundra lived up to it's name. That's no simple task. Six tackles and a nice pass break-up certainly earned him some more playing time on defense next week. This is one guy that I'm very excited about, and I could see him developing into a big time player. So far he's proven to be an excellent pick by Ted Thompson.

What I Didn't Like:

Matt Flynn: I know I was calling for the front office to bring him back, and I stand by that opinion. He's clearly better than Scoots Tolzien, but that doesn't mean he's good. There are things to like about him (accuracy on short routes, rapport with certain receivers, knowledge of the offense, ability to run the no-huddle), but there are also some glaring holes in his game (inability to throw the deep ball, tendency to lock onto his first option, total lack of pocket presence, etc.). Complaining about a decent back-up is a bit like complaining that the chick you met on Craigslist has a c-section scar and a dead tooth, but he's obviously nothing more than a back-up. 5.2 yards per passing play is terrible, and 7 for 20 in the second half including a fumble and a pick six is worse. I'll be happy to keep him around going forward, but I just won't feel confident if he's forced into extended action. One or two games is great, but half a season ain't gonna work.

Run Defense: For all the hype surrounding Le'Veon Bell coming into the game yesterday, he was only averaging 3.3 yards per carry. That's not terrible, but he wasn't a back worth talking about. Naturally the Packers' defense went ahead and surrendered 4.8 yards per carry to the rookie and made him look better than he is. It was pretty clear to me that the front seven was really missing Johnny Jolly, and he ain't coming back this year. Somebody is going to have to step up and be a leader in the trenches or this season will be over real soon. CALLING B.J. RAJI!

Penalties: Nine penalties for 90 yards is too many. It's not the worst I've ever seen, but the off-sides on the field goal attempt was inexcusable. Offensive holding penalties are drive killers, and we committed six of them. You can't expect a back-up quarterback to overcome unfavorable down-and-distances.

Extra Points:

- A.J. Hawk is now just five tackles away from being the Packers' all time leader in tackles. Let's give him some credit already god dammit! All he does is show up, produce, and keep his mouth shut. We could use more players like him.

- At 1112 yards, Eddie Lacy has already set the Packers' franchise record for rushing yards by a rookie, beating out John Brockington's 1105 in 1971.

- Brandon Bostick and Johnny Jolly have been placed on injured reserve.

- The Packers have sent a player in motion ONE time in 128 total passing attempts by Matt Flynn. That's weird. A player in motion helps the quarterback determine if the coverage is man or zone before the snap, which is obviously helpful information to have. I have to wonder why they're almost completely neglecting this tactic.

**BONUS QUOTE OF THE WEEK**

"The memory of oppressed people is one thing that cannot be taken away, and for such people, with such memories, revolt is always an inch below the surface."

- Howard Zinn

**WHAT WAS I DRINKING**

Four Brothers' Prodigal Son. It's a local brewery that specializes in 'blended beers,' this one happens to be an IPA blended with a cream ale. I was expecting something a bit more hoppy, but it was tasty and highly drinkable.