This entry concludes my diary of the Packers 2009 season. Almost a year later, much has changed on the field and off for both me and the Packers. The Packers continued their improvement in pass protection and Aaron Rodgers has made progress in not taking so many sacks. The passing attack is formidable.
The Farve led Vikings brief domination of the Packers resoundingly ended this year, but the scrappy Bears have a one game lead. The Packers lose games they have no business losing so they are a work in progress.
The Packers can't run the ball and the debate is on as to how much is coaching and play calling, and how much is player talent. How much is the offensive line to blame and are any of these running back pick up short yardage? I'm of the opinion that all these factors are in the mix, but I haven't watched enough to have a strong opinion on the allocation of blame.
Poor old Brett threw another game ending pick in the playoffs last year. Despite having a great year with the Vikings last year, you can see how injuries and age are taking their toll this season. I think if the Vikings had Randy Moss last year, they would have gone all the way. That would be a fun debate to get McGinn, Christl, et al. to comment on. I'm bias and haven't made a detailed comparison, but some day I want to look at the 2009 Vikings vs. the 2007 Packers.
A few of our old favorites may have played their last game for the Packers. Al Harris who played with a torn spleen is on the IR as is Mark Tauscher who saved the offensive line and last season from disaster. Meanwhile, Clay Matthews has become the most exciting defensive player since Reggie White.
On a personal note, I have secured safe harbor on the job front at least for now. The current austerity craze is making unemployment worse. Some people act like we have the highest taxes in the world and are oblivious over the where the wealth has gone. Many academic economists say that the money has gone up the food chain, and my personal observations also support this.
Government is not “just like your household budget”. The world is more complex than that. Yet it seems to me that many people want to buy into explanations of the economy that are less complex than football games. Friday’s job report showing unemployment up from 9.6% to 9.8% with the public sector continuing to shed jobs, should tell us something. Whatever conclusions you come to, make sure you challenge your assumptions and listen to smart people who are not being paid for their opinion.
Thank you for reading this and good luck to you and the 2010 Green Bay Packers.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
End of Blog: Packers 2009
This entry concludes my diary of the Packers 2009 season. Almost a year later, much has changed on the field and off for both me and the Packers. The Packers continued their improvement in pass protection and Aaron Rodgers has made progress in not taking so many sacks. The passing attack is formidable.
The Farve led Vikings brief domination of the Packers resoundingly ended this year, but the scrappy Bears have a one game lead. The Packers lose games they have no business lossing so they are a work in progress.
The Packers can't run the ball and the debate is on as to how much is coaching and play calling, and how much is player talent. How much is the offensive line to blame and are any of these running back pick up short yardage? I'm of the opinion that all these factors are in the mix, but I haven't watched enough to have a strong opinion on the allocation of blame.
Poor old Brett threw another game ending pick in the playoffs last year. Despite having a great year with the Vikings last year, you can see how injuries and age are taking their toll this season. I think if the Vikings had Randy Moss last year, they would have gone all the way. That would be a fun debate to get McGinn, Christl, et al. to comment on. I'm bias and haven't made a detailed comparison, but some day I want to look at the 2009 Vikings vs. the 2007 Packers
On a personal note, I have secured safe harbor on the job front at least for now. I think the current austerity craze is making unemployment worse. People act like we have the highest taxes in the world and are oblivious over the where the wealth has gone. Many academic economists say that the money has gone up the food chain, and my personal observations also support this.
Many people think that our wealth has gone to China because of their boom in manufacturing. That doesn't explain the real estate bubble, sub-prime lending, mortgage backed security, credit default swaps, and the looming student loan bubble. China is a nation state actor and we are in an age of "global capital". Somebody somewhere is cracking the whip for great returns on investment. Like football the game is played in quarters. I go to the root and ask if the bottom line is corporate governance. Corporations are creates of the state. We give them "limited liablity" for the risks they take, but we ask them to obey laws and pay taxes like people. These are low expectations for our lives and this is not just the pre-season.
Thank you for reading this and good luck to you and the 2010 Green Bay Packers.
The Farve led Vikings brief domination of the Packers resoundingly ended this year, but the scrappy Bears have a one game lead. The Packers lose games they have no business lossing so they are a work in progress.
The Packers can't run the ball and the debate is on as to how much is coaching and play calling, and how much is player talent. How much is the offensive line to blame and are any of these running back pick up short yardage? I'm of the opinion that all these factors are in the mix, but I haven't watched enough to have a strong opinion on the allocation of blame.
Poor old Brett threw another game ending pick in the playoffs last year. Despite having a great year with the Vikings last year, you can see how injuries and age are taking their toll this season. I think if the Vikings had Randy Moss last year, they would have gone all the way. That would be a fun debate to get McGinn, Christl, et al. to comment on. I'm bias and haven't made a detailed comparison, but some day I want to look at the 2009 Vikings vs. the 2007 Packers
On a personal note, I have secured safe harbor on the job front at least for now. I think the current austerity craze is making unemployment worse. People act like we have the highest taxes in the world and are oblivious over the where the wealth has gone. Many academic economists say that the money has gone up the food chain, and my personal observations also support this.
Many people think that our wealth has gone to China because of their boom in manufacturing. That doesn't explain the real estate bubble, sub-prime lending, mortgage backed security, credit default swaps, and the looming student loan bubble. China is a nation state actor and we are in an age of "global capital". Somebody somewhere is cracking the whip for great returns on investment. Like football the game is played in quarters. I go to the root and ask if the bottom line is corporate governance. Corporations are creates of the state. We give them "limited liablity" for the risks they take, but we ask them to obey laws and pay taxes like people. These are low expectations for our lives and this is not just the pre-season.
Thank you for reading this and good luck to you and the 2010 Green Bay Packers.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Packers Lose Game But Show Heart
Spotting the Cardinals 17 had me thinking the the awful loss to the Rams in 2001. But the Packers came back and got the game into OT. True losers don't fight back like that. This was a memorable team. Have a good year folks.
Good luck also to the rest of you fighting for your jobs and your lives.
Good luck also to the rest of you fighting for your jobs and your lives.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Offensive Line Turns Things Around
The line turned things around in the second half of the season. Now they have earned the right to show us they can play playoff football too!
Week 16 - Packers at Cardinals
Despite getting notice my job would evaporate in 12 months, I finished strong enough to earn an
"A" in the class I was taking. The holidays gave me some time to regroup and relax with some cover letters sent in for some promising positions. I also got the interview suit nailed down and recovered from the flu. I can't say I caught up on the five Packer games I missed, but they look like a different team now.
Like my grandfather use to say, "you've got to give credit where credit is due." The Packers offensive line has avoiding setting a new record in surrendering sacks. My hats off to Mark Tauscher and T.J. Lang along with the rest the starters. They looked great vs. the Cardinals today. That was quite a hole they were in so they really deserve a pat on the back.
The other area that I have tried to focus on in this blog has been defensive line play. The Packers have become the #1 defense vs. the run without Ryan Pickett, and he will be back next week. That's along way from where the DL was last year and the first half of this year. I thought B. J. Raji looked good today. I noticed some hard hitting and tackling today from the likes of A.J. Hawk and Atari Bigsby.
With an array of offensive weapons and an Aaron Rodgers who looks more Bart Starr than Brett Favre, the Packers have some reason to think they might win some playoff games. But I think Tony Dungey, has a point when he says that the Cardinals will be a different and rested team next week. But that doesn't mean the Packers shouldn't delight in crushing them this week.
So the Packers could be one & done this year or they might shock the Cardinals at home. We will see, but it was a season of improvement for the Packers either way. So there is a lot to be happy about for Packer fans.
Happy New Year's folks, and let's try to make it better than 2009. And let's cheer this team on and see what they can do in the playoffs!
Go Pack!
"A" in the class I was taking. The holidays gave me some time to regroup and relax with some cover letters sent in for some promising positions. I also got the interview suit nailed down and recovered from the flu. I can't say I caught up on the five Packer games I missed, but they look like a different team now.
Like my grandfather use to say, "you've got to give credit where credit is due." The Packers offensive line has avoiding setting a new record in surrendering sacks. My hats off to Mark Tauscher and T.J. Lang along with the rest the starters. They looked great vs. the Cardinals today. That was quite a hole they were in so they really deserve a pat on the back.
The other area that I have tried to focus on in this blog has been defensive line play. The Packers have become the #1 defense vs. the run without Ryan Pickett, and he will be back next week. That's along way from where the DL was last year and the first half of this year. I thought B. J. Raji looked good today. I noticed some hard hitting and tackling today from the likes of A.J. Hawk and Atari Bigsby.
With an array of offensive weapons and an Aaron Rodgers who looks more Bart Starr than Brett Favre, the Packers have some reason to think they might win some playoff games. But I think Tony Dungey, has a point when he says that the Cardinals will be a different and rested team next week. But that doesn't mean the Packers shouldn't delight in crushing them this week.
So the Packers could be one & done this year or they might shock the Cardinals at home. We will see, but it was a season of improvement for the Packers either way. So there is a lot to be happy about for Packer fans.
Happy New Year's folks, and let's try to make it better than 2009. And let's cheer this team on and see what they can do in the playoffs!
Go Pack!
Friday, December 11, 2009
Blog Suspended Indefinately
I am suspending this blog indefinitely. Due to the State of Illinois' inability to manage its budget and/or choke down a minor income tax increase, I have to find a new job.
If you live in Wisconsin, you have a great University system. Keep it.
If you live in Illinois, write your elective officials and tell them to leave the Universities alone.
If you don't like public universities, write your own damn blog and have fun trying to pay for the Northwestern or the University of Chicago... oh never mind. If you are in this category, you are not smart enough to get into any of these places.
Go Pack!
If you live in Wisconsin, you have a great University system. Keep it.
If you live in Illinois, write your elective officials and tell them to leave the Universities alone.
If you don't like public universities, write your own damn blog and have fun trying to pay for the Northwestern or the University of Chicago... oh never mind. If you are in this category, you are not smart enough to get into any of these places.
Go Pack!
Monday, November 16, 2009
D-Line Wins Game Within Game
This year the Packer defensive line fight the Cowboys big line and won more than they lost. When the Packers were on defense, I tried to watch the first 2 seconds of the play and draw a composite line of where Packers defenders and Cowboys offensive linemen were in relation to the line of scrimmage. More often than not the Packers were pushing the pocket in, not getting locked up and engulfed.
The cast wasn't much different except for the addition of BJ Raji and having the ball 8+ minutes longer than they did last year (36-28). They can thank Charles Woodson for that. Raji also seemed to help. "Their defense brought it to us today, pure and simple," receiver Patrick Crayton said in Monday's Dallas Morning News.
You had to enjoyed watching the Hawk / Barnett twists run at full speed. The blitz on the Woodson sack - "unreviewable play" was something to behold. It was as the refs added style points by awarding the Packers the ball at the 3 yard line.
The Cowboys were getting their bells rung, and were not prepared for a "playoff intensity" game. Romo and his OL looked cornered in the late third quarter. They kept trying for that BIG play that would get them off the field.
The fans in the media who were ready to run this gang out of town if they "laid another egg" with half-hearted play were given voice by fan favorite, Donald Driver. This was a good time & place for fans to draw the line in the sand.
In 2008 they were soft, giving up 218 yards on 34 carries to Barber / Jones. Yesterday it's 32 yards on just 8 carries. Talk about abandoning the run!
This is still a team that lost decisively twice to the division leading Vikings. All the Packers have to do to nullify this victory is lose one of the next two games. The Packers were as good against Dallas as they were bad against Tampa. Wild card chase team seems like an authentic identity for the 2009 Packers. Let's see if they can settle on that and enjoy the turn of fortune against the Cowboys for now.
The cast wasn't much different except for the addition of BJ Raji and having the ball 8+ minutes longer than they did last year (36-28). They can thank Charles Woodson for that. Raji also seemed to help. "Their defense brought it to us today, pure and simple," receiver Patrick Crayton said in Monday's Dallas Morning News.
You had to enjoyed watching the Hawk / Barnett twists run at full speed. The blitz on the Woodson sack - "unreviewable play" was something to behold. It was as the refs added style points by awarding the Packers the ball at the 3 yard line.
The Cowboys were getting their bells rung, and were not prepared for a "playoff intensity" game. Romo and his OL looked cornered in the late third quarter. They kept trying for that BIG play that would get them off the field.
The fans in the media who were ready to run this gang out of town if they "laid another egg" with half-hearted play were given voice by fan favorite, Donald Driver. This was a good time & place for fans to draw the line in the sand.
In 2008 they were soft, giving up 218 yards on 34 carries to Barber / Jones. Yesterday it's 32 yards on just 8 carries. Talk about abandoning the run!
This is still a team that lost decisively twice to the division leading Vikings. All the Packers have to do to nullify this victory is lose one of the next two games. The Packers were as good against Dallas as they were bad against Tampa. Wild card chase team seems like an authentic identity for the 2009 Packers. Let's see if they can settle on that and enjoy the turn of fortune against the Cowboys for now.
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