Countdown to Seahawks

The dreaded Seahawks are coming to town to play on NBC's Sunday Night Football and besides having to play a team that seems to have the Packers' number lately (Failed Mary, the opening season 36-16 loss the next year and the worst collapse in NFL playoff history in terms of time it took) we have to suffer through the over-bloviations (I know that's an over exaggeration of the term which means to discourse at length in a pompous or boastful manner) of Chris Collinsworth, who has never seen a player on either team at any position that wasn't the best in football. I live in Southern Illinois and can't get any other play-by-play that isn't somehow ahead of the TV or behind the TV by a few seconds. I am doomed to suffer the slings and arrows of not only Collinsworth, but, I fear, another loss to the pompous and boastful Seahawks.

Winning TD over Tramon Williams in the playoffs

The Packers are coming off an uneven effort against the Bears, which if they had played another team that didn't have Cutler on it probably would have lost. Take that Ask Vic. In your eye with an apple pie. It gripes my butt (and I have a thing on it I'm about will have removed to prove it) to be scolded by insecure fans when us (I've been a Packer Backer since 1965) who have been through the Wilderness Years and didn't jump ship point out the deficiencies of the current Ted Thompson teams (yes, I said it, you Trust in Ted sycophants).

A good example of the TIT crowd is RC Packer Fan, who put this post up on September 16 at 2:10 pm: 'As a fan of the Packers' If this part is true. List 5 positive things about this 2015 team. If your truly a Packer fan you should be able to list at least 5 positive things about this team without 1 negative comment.

I'll take the challenge, here are my five: 1. I love the G on the helmet. 2. I love the Packers' colors. 3. I love Lambeau Field. 4. I love Eddie Lacy. 5. I love B.J. Raji.

Take that RC and I didn't blow a gasket thinking those up. There are at least 10 more. Now, nobody, who seems to be so far Thompson's ass you haven't seen daylight in 10 years (and now that I think about were you spouting the same you're either with me or you're against me" crap when Mike Sherman was coach and general manager or Ray Rhodes, Lindy Infante, Forrest Gregg, Bart Starr, Dan Devine and Phil Bengston?) has the right to question anyone's bonafides as a Packer Backer. I was a Packer fan during those eras too and here I am and will not take this shit from Johnny Come Latelys like you. But, of course, I will fight to the death for you to have the right to call me a fake Packer fan, but I don't have to like having my Packer loyalty questioned by the likes of you.

SPOLIER ALERT: Negative comment coming. Only once since Thompson took over did the Packers have a complete team and that was late in the 2010 season leading to our fourth Super Bowl title. The following year the Packers had one of the worse defenses in the league, but Aaron Rodgers' offense made up for it week after week until the first playoff game, which we lost to the 84-million Man Eli Manning. I guess saying that makes me a closet Bears fan.

Since then the Packers have had suspect defenses under the tutelage of Dom Capers and ever more terrible special teams under Shawn Slocum. Capers is still around (so I think he must have incriminating pictures of Mike McCarthy to still have a job) while Slocum's assistant Ron Zook and the aforementioned McCarthy is now in charge of the special teams.

Now that I got that off my chest back to the Seahawks. There is one plus coming into the game on offense and that is the continued absence of the leader of the Legion of Boom safety Kam Chancellor. The Seahawks are coming off an overtime 34-31 loss to the St. Louis Rams (no NFL powerhouse).

The 2015 Seahawks have issues on defense and on offense, but on only one of those issues do the Packers have a better answer than the Rams did and that is Mr. Rodgers and his receivers. With a reserve at safety the Packers should be able to complete passes down the middle and behind the defensive backs.

However, we now have a problem on offense and it has nothing to do with Jordy Nelson being on the sidelines (thank you James Jones). Right tackle Bryan Bulaga is out with a left knee sprain. Hey, RC, I guess we don't have that problem. Despite the struggles Don Barclay had in the pre-season playing for David Bakhtiari at left tackle, I have more confidence in him playing right tackle. He played well when he replaced Bulaga two years ago and I hope he will again.

Don Barclay at right tackle

The other issue the Seahawks have is a patchwork offensive line, but here the Rams have one of the best, if not the best, defensive line (4-man line) in the NFL (and I'm not channeling Collinsworth here) and the Packers do not. Because of that that negative will end up being a wash at best.

The Rams took away the run on the whole (3.9 yards per carry on 124 yards) with four carries of a loss and made Russell Wilson earn his millions and throw the ball more than he normally does during a game. Wilson threw 41 passes, completing 32 for only 251 yards with one touchdown and one interception. His first two seasons Wilson averaged 25 pass attempts a game and last year he averaged 28. This should be a plus for the Packers, but we have to remember he threw touchdown passes to beat us in the two infamous losses to Northwest Blowhards.

The Packers have three glaring defensive problems coming into the game. First, Sam Shields was beaten several times on the outside by Cutler. He has to play better. Second, the Packers can't stop the run. Last week Matt Forte had 105 yards (6.6 yards a carry) at the half. Hey, RC, I guess that didn't happen. With Marshawn Lynch coming in with a chip on his shoulder Capers better find a solution to the run stopping problem, especially with inside linebacker Sam Barrington out for the season. David Palmer played the majority of the game against the Bears and did fine. But he is not a run-stopper. Hey, RC, I guess we don't have that problem. Maybe it's time to see if Jake Ryan is a player. Just a thought.

Jake Ryan stopping the run

The third problem is covering the tight end, either by a linebacker or a safety. Hey, RC, I guess we don't have that problem. Last week Martellus Bennett was tied for the lead in catches for the Bears with five and a touchdown. The Seahawks have Jimmy Graham, who is arguably the best tight end in the game (I swear I'm not channeling Collinsworth). Last week Graham caught six passes for a touchdown. Coming off last week's performance Capers better find a solution to the tight end coverage problem. Hey, RC, I guess we don't have that problem.

Jimmy Graham can't wait to face the Packer defense

The defense also has a lesser problem of putting pressure on the quarterback and once he breaks out stopping the quarterback on scrambles. Hey, RC, I guess we don't have that problem. Capers better figure that out, too.

With the history of our recent games against the Seahawks and some glaring deficiencies on defense the best we can hope for is a 35-32 win or a 42-35 loss. I was worried going into the Bears and we were able to pull it out, but the Bears are nowhere near the caliber of the Seahawks. I am worried once again, very worried.

According to RC if I don't bet on the Packers every week then I am not truly a Packer fan. I really hope he puts his money where his big, fat mouth is each and every game. I pick games as part of my job during football season and I don't let me being a graduate of one of the schools I pick sway me on whether they might win on any particular week. We are now in the fourth week of the high school football season and I have picked against my alma mater three times already (they lost all three times) and again this week. So ---- you RC and the horse you rode in on.