"Hail Rodgers"

I took last week off because I was busy at work and I really didn't know what to think about the Packers after dismantling the Lions in the 6h must-win in as many weeks. I felt the Lions were only downslide even though the Packers had failed to win the same game last year at Lambeau Field against the Vikings with the North title on the line.

That failure stuck in my mind heading into the game against the Giants as did the other two times Eli Manning faced the Packers at Lambeau in the playoffs and beat Brett Favre the first time and Aaron Rodgers the second.

However, this is a different Packers team facing an older and not better Eli with Aaron Rodgers at the top of his game and the Aaron Rodgers who was mired in a slump when he faced the Vikings last year.

Rodgers was great at the end of the first half and the second half when he was allowed to run the offense that got them there (quick hitters), instead of the offense that gave them a 4-6 record (sitting back in the pocket waiting for a receiver to get open and getting sacked).

The first 5 series were the latter. 1st: 3 and out from the 6 (Rodgers 1-for-2 and 7 yards); 2nd: 7 and out from the 23 (Rodgers 2-for-6 and 12 yards with an 11-yard sack); 3rd: 3 and out from the 45 (Rodgers 0-for-1 with a 15-yard sack); 4th: 4 and out from the 22 (Rodgers 1 for 3 and 13 yards); 5th: 4 and out from the NYG 38 (Rodgers 2-for-3 for 22 yards with a 0-yard sack and a 10-yard penalty for intentional grounding). For those of you in Minneapolis, Detroit and Chicago that's 6-of-15 for 54 yards with 3 sacks for 26 yards and a 10-yard penalty and 0 points.

With Mike McCarthy's shackles off Rodgers finished the first half 5-of-7 and 101 yards with 2 TDS. The second half Rodgers was 14-of-18 and 207 yards with 2 TDS and two other scoring drives. He was sacked 2 times for 5 yards.

After Rodgers (to borrow a phrase from the great icon Britney Spears), "Oops, I did it again" completed his 3rd Hail Mary since the "Miracle in Motor Town" to compel Troy Aikman right after and other talking heads after the game to proclaim as Rodgers drove out of sight, "Maybe, we should call it "Hail Rodgers"."

The second half started with the Packers going 3-and-out on the first series with Rodgers going 1-for-1 for 6 yards and a 1-yard sack and the ill-fated 4th-down fiasco when McCarthy went to his always bad play of off-tackle left for -1 on 4th-and-1 instead of letting Aaron Ripkowski gain that yard up the middle. (NOTE: Ripper gained 0 on the previous play going left guard, but his forte is up the middle over center). During that drive Rodgers went 1-for-1 and 5 yards. Rodgers and the Packers then finished the game by scoring on the last 4 drives.

Packers advance to the Divisional Round against the Cowboys, who are better than they have been for the past 10 years. There is no Tony Romo to make the crucial mistake at the absolutely wrong time and there is a rookie running back who seems to be unstoppable. That is not good.

However, again, the Cowboys are facing an Aaron Rodgers that is in the zone and a Packers offense that seems to be able to come up with the right player or right play at the right time, which is what happened Sunday against the Giants when Randall Cobb came off the injury list to replace Jordy Nelson. He tied a NFL record along with Sterling Sharpe (1993) with 100-plus receiving yards and 3-plus receiving TDs in a playoff game.

However, again and again, the loss of Nelson is very troublesome. He and Rodgers were one of the reasons, if not the main reason, the Packers won 6 in a row leading the offense that averaged 31.9 points a game during the winning streak.

Also helping the offensive explosion has been resurgence of the running back behind three players who weren't part of the equation at the beginning of the season.

The season began with a slimmer faster Eddie Lacy and a seasoned great No. 2 James Starks as the main running backs with second-year fullback Aaron Ripkowski taking over for Lambeau Legend John Kuhn. Lacy lasted five games before being shelved for the season. Starks crapped out early averaging just 1.8 yards a carry before being hurt himself and also being shelved.

"Ripper" was unused early just like Kuhn and every other Packer fullback in the last quarter century. But as the position was decimated has stepped up and became a credible rushing threat getting carries in 10 of the last 13 games culminated in leading the team in rushing against the Lions in the season finale with 61 yards on 9 carries with an average of 6.8 yards and a long of 15 yards. He has shown an ability to move the pile and not get knocked down until he has gained the last inch.

Also stepping up is converted wide receiver Ty Montgomery to lead the Packers in rushing with 457 yards and a 5.9 average for the season, including 162 yards on 16 carries and a 61-yard run, against the Bears. He's the 2016 version of Samkon Gado, who came out of nowhere to lead the Packers in rushing in 2005, Ted Thompson's first season as General Manager. Just a note Gado was as popular as Kuhn to the Faithful, but was traded after the first game the next season.

The Packers much maligned defense has been better of late. Over the first 10 games the Packers gave up an average of 27.6 points a game, including 38.25 during the 4-game losing streak, but during the 6-game winning streak the Packers gave up just 18.7.

I'm not sure why the turnaround. I still see the middle of the field open almost all the time on 2nd and 3rd and long. I still see just a 2-man line (Mike Daniels and Letroy Guion) that leads to huge runs up the middle. I still see a lack of a consistent pass rush, especially from Clay Matthews and Julius Peppers. I will say the last two games Matthews and Peppers have made very opportune sacks or plays, but the consistency is still not there.

Another reason the middle is open to runs and passes is the inside linebackers are lightweights. Joe Thomas,  Jake Ryan and Blake Martinez are smallish and get pushed around and/or blocked out. There are no backups to them, except for Matthews. Oh, I forgot there is another inside linebacker named Jordan Tripp, signed as a street free agent after being waived with an injury settlement by the Seahawks. He has not played from scrimmage.

The backfield should be a liability. 2nd year undrafted free agent LaDarius Gunter (or is it Gunner as Troy Aikman kept calling him Sunday?) and 2nd year No. 1 draft pick Damarius Randall, who was benched a few games back, have been beat on a regular basis this season. 2nd year No. 2 draft pick Quinten Rollins has been good in the slot, when he is healthy, but couldn't beat out Gunter to replace Sam Shields. The rest of the cornerbacks are all rookie undrafted free agents Josh Hawkins and Herb Waters, who up to 15 games ago was a wide receiver.

Micah Hyde is listed as a defensive back which means he is a hybrid corner/slot/safety. He is also better in the slot, but has played credible on the outside, but is not the answer out on the island.

The safeties have been solid for the most part. Free safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix had 5 interceptions and strong safety Morgan Burnett has had his best season playing closer to the line of scrimmage than being exposed in space.

However, for some reason either over-coaching by the opposition or whatever the secondary hasn't been as much of a problem as it should be.

It comes down to Defensive Coordinator Dom Capers. His love of "Soft Coverage" in the second half specifically and the whole game mostly is a major problem. He has lived off his reputation for way too long, but the play of the defense has improved as the offense exploded.

Capers will have to be on his game this week against the Cowboys, who ripped his defense apart in Week 5 giving up 30 points. Hopefully, that game and recent struggles by the Cowboy offense will give him some insight into how to slow them down.

But even if Capers defense craps out or not the Packers offense will still need to score over 30 points to win. If Head Coach Mike McCarthy doesn't over-coach and grounds the Packers offense himself and lets the offense do what it has been doing best, 1-2-3 throw, and not sitting back in the pocket waiting for a receiver to get open. That's what happened for the 1st five series against the Giants.

The Packers can't wait for a second half resurgence against the Cowboys and another miracle play. Rodgers and company has to score first and often to win the game. If Capers can come up with a plan and McCarthy stays out of it the Packers have a good chance to advance.