Buh BYE

The 'Reach' by Damarious Randall

The bye week couldn't come at a better time for many reasons, but as it refers to me, since everything revolves around me, I don't think I could watch a game this week after that disgraceful performance by the seemingly resurgent Packer defense against the Chargers Sunday afternoon.

 

Up front I will implore everyone to vote for cornerback Damarious Randall as Defensive Rookie of the Week. If he isn't nominated then write in his name.

 

The other good thing that came out of the Chargers game, except for the win, of course, is that the x-rays on wide receiver Ty Montgomery's ankle were negative although it looked like he would be lost for the season when he was carried off the field. It seems the good that came out of this game, besides the win, was something that might not be as bad as it could have be.

 

Now for the bad. Defensive coordinator Dom Capers brief bout of competence lasted all of two weeks in addition to three quarters against the Seahawks and two against the Chiefs.

Keenan Allen caught everything

The kitchen sieve popularly known as the Packers secondary was flowing full force against Phillip Rivers. 43 completions for 503 yards. How embarrassing is that? Don't answer that question it was rhetorical. Allowing one receiver - Keenan Allen - to roam free like Elsa the lioness (unless a certain Minnesota dentist is lurking nearby - you know how those Minnesotans like shooting things like themselves in the foot for example or shooting off their mouths) to catch 14 of 15 passes thrown his way. Thank goodness he got hurt (don't jump on me for that you know what I mean) or I think the outcome might have been different.

 

The hallmark of the previous four weeks has been constant pressure on the quarterback through a blend of blitzes and front three or two pressure and a ball hawk secondary that had at least one interception in each game until Sunday, but to be fair Sam Shields should have had an interception, but dropped it.

 

Rivers overflowed his banks Sunday

Rivers was allowed to stand back and observe all game long. No blitzes until late when Julius Peppers was credited with a sack when Rivers actually just fell down. It's as if Capers sat up in his lonely room all week worrying that the masterminds of the Chargers would figure out how to stop the Packers blitzes, so he would just help them by changing the scheme that was working so well and quit blitzing. I guess Capers never heard of, "if it ain't broke don't fix it." I think it's time to revive my well-worn phrase, "FIRE HIS ASS!!!!!!!!"

 

The secondary was three steps behind almost every receiver all through the game until the final play. Randall made the play of the season knocking down that pass in the right front corner of the end zone to preserve the victory.

 

Coach Mike McCarthy seemed delusional in his post-game interview, "That was a fun one. That's for sure. It was a great game and a great atmosphere..it was an excellent game..it was fun to be part of." What game was he watching? The game I saw was not fun to watch.

 

The defense was totally pathetic despite giving up just 20 points and saving the game on the last play. I guess the best you can say is that the defense was clutch.

 

Capers also found a silver lining saying the winners find a way to win and he was happy how the defense played in the red zone holding the Chargers to just two touchdowns in six trips inside the 20.

 

Giving up a record-setting 503 yards passing is an embarrassment. Giving up passes of 50, 38, 25, 21 and 19 is an embarrassment. Giving up 32 first downs is an embarrassment. Giving up a 50% success rate on third down is an embarrassment. Giving up 38 minutes in time of possession is an embarrassment. I don't think this was an excellent game by any stretch of McCarthy's or Capers' imagination.

 

The offense was good and bad. The good: 27 points and 370 total yards. I don't know if you noticed, but James Starks started the game against the Chargers. It was the first time Eddie Lacy was a healthy scratch from the starting unit and only the second time he has not started a game since he missed a game his rookie season with a concussion. For Starks it was only the fifth start in his career and his first since that game in 2013. Starks did his usual great job with 112 yards rushing, including a 65-yard touchdown run. He also caught a 5-yard shuttle touchdown pass.

 

Jeff Janis escorting James Starks into the end zone

Jeff Janis also did a great job with two catches for 79 yards, including a 46-yarder that set up a field goal in the second quarter. He also was a force in downfield blocking, including on Starks' touchdown run.

 

The bad: Eddie Lacy basically being benched with only 3 yards on 4 carries and 2 catches for 17 yards and a fumble. Take away the 65-yard run by Starks and the run game is still struggling for the second week in a row.

 

The starting offensive line being together for the first time all season except for a few plays last week before right guard T. J. Lang got hurt didn't open the holes for both the running backs and Aaron Rodgers and didn't give Rodgers a heck of a lot of time to pass. Not a good performance from supposedly the best offensive line in recent Packer memory and one of the best in the league.

 

More bad: The wide receivers not getting open. This is getting worse each week. I don't know if anyone noticed, but it seems Janis was playing more than James Jones from the very beginning. I was told Jones has a hamstring issue. Not good at all. It also seemed Janis was lining up more as a tight end than a wide out. I guess that was an effort to slow down the pass rush and to block for the running game. It didn't work.

 

I can use a break. RC and the TITs will counter with the Packers are 6-0, so quit your bitching. I will admit it does bode well that the Packers are winning those games instead of losing them, but we're lucky to be 6-0 and the chickens are going to come home to roost with the next two games after the bye against the other undefeated teams with Broncos owning the best defense in the league and the Panthers having one of the best offenses. Something has to change or our winning streak might come to an end in a few weeks.