Packers 24, Seahawks, 34

Another loss for the Pack. Everyone kind of expected them to lose this game anyway, but still. They gave it away in the second half. They were hanging in there for a good majority of the game. And it was an awesome game to watch with the snow. It was at Seattle, but it was the Packers kind of weather. Too bad they didn't come out of there with a win.

Negatives:

1. There were 3 interceptions in the first half and the Packers failed to score any points on 2 of them. When you are playing a good team, you have to be able to capitialize on turnovers.
2. Ahman Green couldn't run again. I think the O-line is struggling without Mark Tauscher. That was pretty evident again this week.
3. The run defense wasn't great either. Granted you are playing against the team with the league MVP running back from last year, but still. Shaun Alexander ended up gaining 201 rushing yards.
4. The official's roughing the passer call on Cullen Jenkins. You know the one. I'm not normally one to complain about officials, especially because I worked for and around officials a few years ago. They do get a bad rap. But this call seemed a little over the top. And of course, the timing of it is what really hurt. The Seahawks were driving and it was 3rd and 9. The penalty was an automatic first down and gave them 15 yards. This really gave the momentum to the Seahawks for good. There's been quite a bit of controversary about that call. Check it out here or here.
5. Favre's interceptions. He had really done a good job of keeping the game in control this season. On Monday night, he was back to trying to force things and put the game on his shoulders. I do think that part of it was that he's playing with some rookie receivers.

Positives:

1. Donald Driver's 48 yard TD run. Man, he sure has been the big playmaker this year. If he doesn't go to the Pro Bowl, I think there will be a lot of upset fans.
2. The play of the defensive backs. Charles Woodson had 2 INTs and Al Harris had one.
3. Abdul Hodge: here's a rookie, starting in his first game for Nick Barnett, and he did a pretty decent job. He intercepted a pass and ran it back for a TD.
4. A.J. Hawk: he has pretty well lived up to his first round pick worthiness. He is leading the team with 113 tackles. 15 of those came in this game.

Next week: Packers (4-7) vs. Jets (6-5)

Packers 0, Patriots 35

OUCH! Another shut-out for the Packers this year at Lambeau Field. This is the only time in team history that this has happened twice in the same season. The Lambeau mystique is long gone folks.

It was pretty much just a miserable game all around. In fact, I'm hard-pressed to come up with any positives. Therefore, I'll start with the negatives:

Negatives:

1. Another blown coverage leads to another wide-open receiver and a TD. I'm beginning to sound like a broken record on this one, aren't I?
2. Favre got hurt. They say he'll be fine for this week and I believe that, but he was hurt enough to not play a single down in the second half. It didn't much matter because Favre was really off anyway. Before he went down, he only threw for 70 some yards, half of which came on one play to Donald Driver.
3. Nick Barnett getting juked out of his jock. That's kind of harsh but it's true. Those of you who saw it know what I'm talking about. Then we later find out that he broke his hand. No worries, he'll play with the club hand like so many players do. But I heard a funny quote on sports talk radio this morning. One of the callers said he must have broke his hand trying to pick up his jock after getting completely juked.
4. No running game. Now, the Patriots have a good run defense, but come on. They couldn't get anything going. It's too bad because the offensive line really seemed to be improving in recent games. I would say they took a step back on Sunday.
5. Aaron Rodgers, the heir-apparent at quarterback breaks his foot while in for Favre and is done for the year. So much for being able to get a read on whether he'll be any good or not.

Positives:

1. Hey, I thought of one. Getting to see Aaron Rodgers play. Oh wait, he got hurt...that's right. Ay yi yi

Next week: Packers (4-6) vs. Seahawks (6-4) on Monday Night Football

Packers 23, Vikings 17

I guess I missed a week - sorry about that. Last weekend was pretty hectic and the Packers lost to the Bills anyway. Moon summed it up well in the comments on my previous post. Positive - they played well enough to win the game. Negative - they gave the game away and lost.

However, this week was much better. I didn't get to see much of this game though (we were dress shopping for Dean and Amber's wedding!), so I don't really have any in-depth analysis to offer. Here are a few things that I was able to gather from reading and sports-radio listening:

Negatives:

• Another busted coverage lead to a TD. The secondary has got to communicate better. I think that's about 4 or 5 scores that have happened that way.

Positives:

• Donald Driver: he had a career game yesterday. 6 catches for 191 yards, including a long 82-yard TD leading into halftime.
• Brett Favre: No INTs, 24 for 42 for 347 yards and 2 TDs. A lot of that credit should go to...
• The Offensive Line: The pass protection was outstanding, allowing Favre plenty of time to throw and not allowing a single sack.
• The Defense: As a whole, they did a good job, sacking Brad Johnson 4 times.

What's next? Well, the Packers sit at 4 and 5, good enough for second place in the NFC North. Definitely in the muddled middle that is the NFC. They've got a big game next week against New England and then a night game coming up against Seattle.

Next week: Packers (4-5) vs. Patriots (6-3)