Post-Game Analysis: The Offense - The Hog Report

The Packers out-gained the Patriots 406 total yards to 211 (133 yards rushing vs. 94) and finished with 23 first downs compared to just 14 for the cheaters from the northeast. As anyone who knows football the offensive line is where every play begins and the Packers played three versions during its first exhibition game.

 

The First Stringers ready to go

The starting unit of (left to right) David Bakhtiari, Josh Sitton, Corey Linsley, T.J. Lang and Brian Bulaga played for three drives. The first drive started on the Packers 20 with Bakhtiari giving up a sack on the first play. Aaron Rodgers shook that off and drove all the way down to the Patriots 2 before giving up the ball on fourth down.

 

The 15-play drive consisted of nine passes (8 from the shotgun) and six runs. Eddie Lacy behind Lang for 15, James Starks behind Sitton for no gain, Starks behind Bakhtiar for 3, Lacy behind Sitton for 15, Lacy behind Linsley for 5 and Lacy behind Sitton for 3.

 

Post-Game Analysis: The Big Picture

My first impression of the Packers-Patriots pre-season game was same old, same old. A big deal was made of Coach Mike McCarthy not calling the offensive plays and it was evident because for the first time since he became head coach we got to see his face during a game instead of just his eyes and the hat as he hid behind the play sheet to make sure no one could read his lips as he called the plays.

 

Mike McCarthy and his Beard

I never understood why he was so worried about it because without reading his lips I predicted almost every play he called in the second halves of game for the past five or six years, at least. It was no mystery to anyone with half a brain (Rush Limbaugh) that the Packer offense would go into slumber mode and would be punting more often than make first downs and adding to their advantage.

 

It seems McCarthy got used to having his lower face covered and decided to grow a beard to obscure his mouth. Maybe the refs won't notice and ignore him when he calls for a replay. Oops, I forgot. He asked for a replay and won on a first-down or fourth-down issue. Let's hope that doesn't fall back to the same old, some old, and he wins more than he loses or throws the red flag on the strangest of calls.

 

However, I regress on an old, but satisfying rant, so let's get back to Tom Clements and his inaugural play calling duties. The first drive was a great example of the acorn not falling far from the tree. Like has been the situation over the past two seasons the Packer offense bogs down in the red zone. My thoughts on the problem has been the lack of a play-making tight end is, at least, part of the problem, but the major problem being uninspired play calling.

 

Brett Favre had Mark Chmura and Bubba Franks as prime end zone targets and Aaron Rodgers had the much maligned Jermichael Finley, but Andrew Quarless and Richard Rodgers are no Chmura, Franks and Finley (to steal a phrase from former Vice Presidential candidate Lloyd Bentsen). Quarless and Rodgers haven't progressed as much as I would like him to.

CHEATERS NEVER WIN UNTIL THEY DO

I'm going to step out of my Packers in-dept analysis mode for a day and address "Deflategate". Normally, I couldn't care a hoot about what's going on outside of Lambeau Field, but driving through town I caught the Sean Hannity Show on the radio and, while I never listen to that cretin because he gripes my butt.............All Things Considered wasn't on yet and he wasn't taking shots at Democrats like he does every single minute or every single day and he was talking about "Deflategate".

 

Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen

Hannity's point was Tom Brady would never be fined or suspended because the report didn't exactly say he did anything and to a lesser point Brady is good for the game, so the NFL would never sanction him because in essence he is too big to fail, which, ironically, Hannity is against if somehow it hurts the Democrats and he always seems to find a way to turn anything that happens into something to hurt the Democrats. But not today.