Gut Reactions: Wild Card Round
By Aaron Nagler on Jan 05, 2013 with 93 Comments
- I’ll take it.
- I really want to go and Re-Tweet the hundreds of idiots who sent me “Webb makes the Vikings even MORE dangerous!” prior to the game.
- Really hope Jordy’s injury isn’t bad…
- That throw where Rodgers rolled to his right and hit Jordy inside the 5? No one makes that throw. No one.
- Clay Matthews did a much better job of not running himself out of plays this week. Last week he kept flying past the pocket – tonight, he kept himself in the play.
- The whole defense was much more disciplined in its contain. Great job all around.
- Hated the John Kuhn fullback dive. Loved his cut on the touchdown run out of the shotgun.
- Packers got away with one on Kuhn’s touchdown catch with TJ Lang well down-field.
- Barclay and Newhouse both played well in pass pro tonight.
- DuJuan Harris is the best running back on the Packers’ roster. And it’s not even close.
- Sam Shields is back.
- Don’t discount the work of BJ Raji and the defensive line. Not a lot of flash plays, but they balled out.
- The defense as a whole tackled much, much better.
- Hard to take too much away from this game. Webb is not an NFL quarterback.
- That said, proud as hell of this group getting a playoff win in Lambeau.
- I know I’m going to hear about the big, bad 49ers all week and how the Packers have no chance. Good. That’s when McCarthy does his best work.
- Go Pack Go.
Filed Under: Featured • Gut Reactions
When Wayne issued the “dagger” in the 3rd quarter, I didnt realize he was putting it to the Packers offense. They were bad after they got to 24-3. Too many 3 and outs. Yes, the game was essentially over, but need to finish teams off at this time of year.
I agree to a point, but another way of looking at it is why show anything flashy or special with the game locked up already?
Still tho, I’d really love to see this team just pound a team into dust, and if there’s a time to do it, it’s the playoffs.
I assume that they were limiting what they put on tape, especially in terms of beating cover two. Normally I hate it, but with a three-score lead and a QB who showed zero ability to move the ball, I was actually ok with it.
After the Vikings scored they bled the clock… No coincidence.
The game was over by halftime. The Packers don’t have the kind of running game to finish teams like that.
You all make good points, but we should have just gotten the first down to run the clock. Nothing flashy, just close out the game.
Totally agree–show nothing flashy but stop running between the tackles on first and second down and then throw for 40 yards on third where Rodgers gets knocked down hard. That part frustrates me
and if the Packers kept their “foot on the gas” in the 2nd half, maybe they could’ve justified resting Rodgers in the 4th quarter.
This time, let’s NOT start Jarrett Bush at CB when we play the 9ers.
Understatement of the year.
Was more than that…
But…
Bush is as big a liability in coverage as there is in the NFL. He’s just flat out terrible. I’ve never seen a CB as incompetent as him past 5 yards from the LOS.
But hey, if it was about sending a message to Shields and if he got it…
Or have Nick Perry in coverage.
Since he’s injured, I guess I mean AJ Hawk.
This. Please for the love of god no linebackers on recievers.
Not on the same level. With Ponder there might’ve been a game, but alas…
Waiting to cash in on that bet. EASY MONEY.
I do like Webb as a QB, but it’s clear they’re not developing him in the least.
Game’s too complicated for him at this stage. Physical tools are there, but I’ve never seen him make a 2nd read throw. Him throwing the ball up in the air with guys around him only added to that notion… That’s not lack of development. That’s lack of football IQ.
Good luck collecting on the bet, RS. The unmentionable obscenity to whom I believe you are referring has probably already traded in his 28 jersey for something that says Kapernick on it.
He’s good.
http://jerseyal.com/GBP/2013/0.....ent-253363
No mention of Peterson under 100 yards? What? I had to laugh when Dungy said the Vikes would run a spread offense(when they did’t even know who would start until an hour before the game)
The only thing I didn’t like is that the offense shut it down way too early in this game.
agreed
Ponder would of stunk it up to. The def was fired up and ready to play.
Exactly. Ponder can’t win a game for them at this point. Best he can do is not lose it. Put him on a team without the best RB on the planet and he’s on the practice squad.
Aaron – Can’t O-line be up to 5 yards downfield of LOS on passing play?
Re-watched Kuhn’s TD catch and run. Ball was napped at 9…Lang at 4-5 yard line when ball was released.
Don’t think that’s the case. I’ll have to look it up though…
Nevermind…I think it’s actually 1 yard, which I don’t think is enforced very closely. 4-5 is a bit of a stretch for a non-call.
Loved the D! Waldo, Moses,Neal,BJ,Clay,Wood, aaaand Shields. I’m blown away at how well they played.! Go pack go!
W
Jordy. Hope he’s alright.
Rodgers made it sound like others got hurt… Anybody know who?
Playing Webb has to help a teeny bit with Kapernick (sp… Don’t care), I would think.
W
GBP 4 LIFE
Finely probably.
I think having Sir Charles back tonight was huge. New face mask and shoulder pads went a long way. Dude looked huge compared to his normal pads.
Personally I want to see Alex Green get in the game. Harris is a beast though and it shows.
I think Ponder could have gave Minnesota a better chance, but the Packers won so… bring on San Fran.
Go Pack!
Are they trying to roll back Grant’s career numbers or something? I agree get Green some touches. And +1 Woodson was far more badass in the new mask and pads. Dude was flying around all night. It’s like they didn’t even bother to block him on pass rush.
Looked like Woodson was a difference maker out there. All over the field, but mostly some nice blitzes and free runs at Webb. Did he come back a few pounds heavier and with bigger shoulder pads?
37-20 ’9ers.
BOOK.
IT.
You just won’t be happy until you’re right, will you?
hard to get excited about beating joe webb.
Seriously it’s hard to figure out who you actually root for. It’s obviously not the packers. Go to another forum please, it’s getting old.
Packers 100- cow42 an idiot… Book it!!!
*unsubscribe*
+1
I’m surprised you could put down your tear soaked Romo jersey long enough to write that. Thank you.
Agree with chip. And was anybody else jacked about the fact that Chuck had on the predator (as my friends n I call it) facemask? Fn sick!
Nimrod can u just wait till at least tomorrow to ruin the moment? This is a better packer team than week one. Better run game and developd rookies on d. This will be a sweet game n u know it.
choo choo!
a freight train is coming!
Go lay in front of it.
that’s pretty funny, actually.
HA!!
+1
+1 “tu che”?
This guy has picked packers to lose almost every game this year. Which pretty much makes him 5-12! I like those odds. Just dont ever pick packers to win! Why do I get the feeling this turd talks smack about how much pack suck but wears our Jersey and brags when we win?
No reply at all. No reply at all. Anybody listening? Oh. There’s no reply at all.
I’ll admit, I was someone who was more afraid of Webb than Ponder. We just have been so bad against mobile QBs in the past, plus backups that we haven’t prepared for. The first couple drives my fears were coming true, but after that Frazier for some weird reason tried to make him a pocket passer. So….thanks for that Leslie!
Bring on the fuckinh niners!
I’M GOING DRINKING!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNm_LihEsn0
We finally discovered a screen game!! Still miss the slants, but I’ll take the screen to slow a good pass rush down…they did it well tonight.
9er’s look beatable.
How bout we all agree to simply not engage Cow at all…just DO NOT respond to him…let him argue with himself…worked with my ex wife and she was a way bigger pain in the ass than this clown.
Not just a screen game but Rodgers (finally) took full advantage of the dump off pass.
I LOVE me some DeJuan Harris.
9ers looked beatable recently but that was without Justin Smith. And Aldon Smith is playing injured, too. (Ok, every player at this point in the season is “injured”.)
If Justin Smith and Aldon Smith are ineffective the Packers will win.
We’re opening as 3 point dogs. Neutral field would be a pick-em. That’s about right.
We don’t have a great record recently against very physical teams. Here’s to hoping that they wear their big-boy pants next weekend.
True. Packers are a much more physical team now than earlier this year, though. May make the difference. If nothing else, playing against Peterson 2 weeks in a row has forced the D into physical, disciplined play. O line is moving people.
I’m telling myself that going back2back with the queens is great for getting ready for the 9ers. Yep, that’s what I’m going with.
I actually feel like both teams are better than they were in week one. Hopefully Seattle and New England gave some good tape on how to crack that SF defense. I think it all hinges on how our Oline holds up.
If Justin Smith is out, they are EZ. The 9er’s have been crumbling badly lately. I thought they had something in Kaepernick, but he is wildly inconsistent. Reminds me of Vick that way. I’m telling myself we lost to the queens on purpose, so that we couldn’t draw the Seahawks until the championship round. Serve em up!
Raji and Woodson looked very good against the run.
DuJuan Harris = MJ-D, or Ray Rice?
He followed MJD down in Jville so ill say him but good question
Pretty lofty comparisons. Right now, I’m just happy DJH=DJH.
FYI – If DJH catches on… I want full credit… And royalties.
“I really want to go and Re-Tweet the hundreds of idiots who sent me “Webb makes the Vikings even MORE dangerous!” prior to the game.”
Haha, what?
“Joe Webb went into Philly a few year ago and played a great game in a big Vikings upset over the Eagles. This is no gimme.”
- @aaron_nagler 3:32 pm – 5 Jan 13
https://twitter.com/Aaron_Nagler/status/287703071813939202
Apparently the line between idiocy and reasonable concern is quite fine indeed.
OH-NO-YOU-DI’NT
Put Dungy on that idiot list.Harrison tried to bring him back to reality
Haha, yeah that was hilarious. I particularly liked Harrison’s line about how Dungy was only picking the Vikes because Frazier is Dungy’s BFF. Sometimes I get the impression that the “playful ribbing” that Harrison gives to Patrick and Dungy is actually somewhat less than playful.
It’s a pretty big jump from “no gimme” to “even MORE dangerous.”
Bravo!
As soon as I saw Webb toss up that pass as he was being dragged down, I knew the Packers would win in a walk. Dumbest thing I saw all year.
Nothing spectacular from GB, but the entire second-half was a matter of running out the clock. If their are no major injuries, I feel real good about the Packers chances next week.
Man, I hope you’re right. I’m envisioning a gut-wrenching/nail-biting game. I really do think we can take em, but all three phases have to BALL. This game is going to come down to one or two plays.
My view on the Packers 2012 campaign has been pretty much the same all year, and it hasn’t changed for the play offs-
The only thing this team has shown me is that they are capable of beating any team in the league, and they are just as capable of losing to any team in the league.
They are extremely talented, very young, and wholly inconsistent from week to week.
But there ain’t nobody they can’t beat.
Sooo… Do we win on Saturday Oppster? What does the Oppmeisters gut tell him? Be honest.
My heart says the Packers capture lightning in a bottle and find a way to win out the season, on the strength of the balance in all three phases this team is truly capable of.. An offense that can stretch the field if you play them one-high, patiently work the underneath and move the sticks by air and ground if you play them over the top, consistently control the field position game with their special teams units, and pinch the opposition with a talented, young multiple front defensive unit that has enough varied talent to allow for an extremely flexible scheme week to week.
My gut tells me I’ll be gaining ten pounds over the next month. Hmmmm, chicken wings.
Good call with Jordy, Aaron. Hope he can go.
This time around there will be no picking on #24. If Capers doesn’t give up huge cushions,I don’t see the 49ers having a good passing game at all. I love Tramon,Shields and Casey vs. Michael,Randy and Vernon.
Michael, Randy and Vernon? Who are they?
it’s Gore and Kaepernick I’m concerned about!
*Okay, I’m concerned about Vernon, too.
In my eyes,the Pack don’t have bad run-defense. They just aren’t consistent in containing their gaps and tackling. If they could stop or limit the 49ers’ running game like they did the Vikings,I expect a few INT’s from the ballhawks. A scrambling QB is a concern,but if we can get play from Walden like tonight you have to LOVE our chances.
Aaron,
I agree DeJuan Harris is looking great, but “He’s the best RB, and it’s not even close”?
I suggest you go back and watch the last 4 or 5 games Alex Green played. You may still side with Harris- his burst is undeniable- but Green is right there, too.
His absence the last two weeks despite being medically cleared has me stumped. Perhaps he has shown a propensity for putting the cold, hard ball on the ground during outdoors practices in sub-freezing temps? Otherwise, I don’t get it, unless he’s got more than the concussion still lingering
“His absence the last two weeks despite being medically cleared has me stumped.
100% in agreement. I LOVE what DJH (trademarked, by Fitz INC.) has brought to this O, but I’d have to say Alex warrants playing time, if healthy. I gots me a feeler something has the coaches worried. No other explanation for him to get zero touches the last two weeks when he’s been cleared. Strange.
Oppy,
Trust me, there was no bigger Green fan than myself back in training camp. Love him as a runner. But there’s a reason they aren’t playing Green, even though he’s healthy. His vision has been suspect. He’s left yards on the field. That’s why they’re playing Grant in front of him. Even though Grant is old and slow, he sees things extremely well. Green doesn’t, not yet anyway.
Right now, its Harris and everyone else.
I would agree with that assessment of Green up until mid-season…
However, during the last half-to-quarter of the season his vision has been extremely good, his cuts have been sharp, his explosion has been closer to what he had during his rookie camp than they’ve been since the injury, and the yards left on the field have been more about shoestring tackles or tripped feet than poor decisions.
I don’t watch games more than once, so I must digress and assume that your assessment is based on studying Green’s last many games, whereas mine is more an impression based on real-time once overs. But I take an active interest in Green’s running, and to my eyes, he was really coming into his own, as though the knee was finally getting back to where it needs to be.. hence why I wonder if cold weather ball security has been an issue.
Love this win. Hey cow, packers superbowl. Book it. Harris got over a 100 yards just forgot to say it was gonna be combined
cow42 (Joe) where are you?
Absolutely loved finally seeing a screen pass to Harris. Worked like a charm. Should do that at least 2-3 times a game. You give Rodgers checkdown options against Cover 2 he will eat you alive. Wish he would have used that option more often in the second half oon third and 3 or 4 instead of trying a 20 yard pass. Get the first down MM!!!
“Packers got away with one on Kuhn’s touchdown catch with TJ Lang well down-field.”
I’d like to clarify this for you Aaron. The pass play was actually a screen pass. The ball was snapped at the 9 and a half yard line, not the 9 yard line. If you review the film, the side judge’s foot nearest the goalline was placed at the 9 and a half as was the placement of the ball. Kuhn caught the ball at the 9 1/2 yard line. Any ball that is caught at or behind the line of scrimmage permits the offensive line to go as far down field as they want and engage the defense immediately. Had he caught it forward of the LOS it would have been a penalty (if noticed that is). Lang should not have been flagged. If he would have been it would have been a gross error on the officials. Heads up play by Kuhn understanding where the LOS was.
This play also brings up the issue of the bubble screens/quick screens the Packers have been running lately. Aikman has created doubt in the viewer as to the legality of the Packer receivers blocking prior to possession of the ball by the catching receiver. That is a fair argument but again, just like Kuhn’s touchdown where are those bubbles/quicks being caught? Are they behind the line of scrimmage? If yes, then those receivers can engage in blocking immediately. I respect Troy as a color man (I know many Packer fans probably feel differently), but it annoys me to no end when rules of the game aren’t explained clearly.
Your right Paul, I do not respect Troy as a color man. Thanks for dissecting that, truly excellent.
Paul, you’re by far my favorite writer on this site. Football goes beyond simple observations that the other bloggers tend to point out. Thanks for the great insight!
Thanks much Paul. Funny that TJ himself said after the game that he should have been flagged.
this is why I read this comments section on this site. These little nuggets are what make football great.
… POC, Can u do a weekly editorial?
I’m pretty sure Fitz is on crack. Not because of his ideas, but because of his lingo. Haha I love it. If ANYBODY can beat the 9ers …..its the PACK! Go pack go!!
Don’t knock it til ya try it.