Go, Pack, Go in 2009!

It's official: I am now REALLY excited about the Green Bay Packers' chances in the 2009 NFL season!

The third preseason game is apparently always theone that the Packers head coach Mike mcCarthy likes to trea as the "dress rehearsal", and as the above link showed, the starting line-up, on the field for the first half, made absolute mincemeat of the opposition, as they had done every time they were on the field the previous two warm-up games.

The biggest amount of talk about the Packers in the off-season was about the change from the more traditional 4-3 defensive strategy to the more innovative 3-4 strategy, introduced by Dom Capers, the new guy in charge of coaching Defense. Every time I listen or watch the playback of their games, I feel as though the D is giving up a lot of yards, but there is no arguing with the number of times they win the ball back for the Offense, and that is really exciting. There is also no arguing with the very low number of points that have been scored against the starting line-up in the three preseason games so far.

I'm always a little bit sceptical when a new coach comes in and there's a sudden leap in performance, because I have seen the "thrill of something new" factor come and go a number of times with other sports teams (for example, when the England soccer team appointed Sven Göran-Eriksson as Manager). But I believe that last year's performance was the "blip", and that this is just a return to winning ways after 2007's 13-3 regular season record (Wins-Losses, for those unfamiliar with US sports recording). The initial excitement that is generated by the aggressive playing style may wear off, but I think if these players are serious competitors (and the Packers seem to look for that a lot in the players they pick) then the thrill of making big plays won't.

Apart from a couple of high-profile draft picks this year, B.J. Raji and Clay Matthews III, there isn't a big change in the defensive line-up in terms of personnel, and although there were concerns about how various members of the first-choice players would cope with the shift (notably, the cornerbacks adjusting to a different style, and Defensive End Aaron Kampman adjusting to play Linebacker). I think that all the players concerned have shown that they have the tools to do the job.

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But what REALLY excites me is the Green Bay Offense. Despite the Packers having a losing record last season, they had looked good when they had the ball a lot of the time. They now look even better. It is now QB Aaron Rodgers' second season as the on-field leader of the team, and the experience shows compared to last year. The players around him also have a much better idea of how he plays and what he aims to do, and he's got a much better idea of what they aim to do. His years as understudy to Brett Favre have paid dividends as well, so this is a guy who can read the game and respond. As the article linked at the head of this post describes, he can throw the ball a long way with a lot of accuracy, and he can also run with the ball when he has to. Last season, Head Coach McCarthy said that they wanted him to be "a scrambling QB, not a running QB", so that Rodgers uses his running ability firstly just to stay on his feet long enough for a receiver to get open, but that if there is no one open, then he can pick up good distance carrying the ball himself. This is so effective that it seems each year that the comment-makers forget how good his legs are, and are surprised anew to find that Rodgers has this ability. But having watched the Packers over the past few seasons, I find myself quite familiar with how Rodgers likes to run around a bit!

Speaking of running, the other carry-over story from the 2007 season is Ryan Grant, the running back (he's the guy who usually carries the ball running, if Rodgers isn't throwing it). He had a poor 2008 season, partly affected by injury, but is coming roaring back now. Recently on the Packers website, there was some talk about how he's recovering the skills needed to make defenders miss and win an extra few yards every so often, that would make a big difference oevr a whole season to the distance he gains.

If that's not enough, there are a number of other talented guys challenging for the back-up running back spots. As well as previous draftees DeShawn Wynn and Brandon Jackson, two players who were signed as undrafted free agents (that is, they're guys nobody picked, but then the Pakers thought they might be worthwhile additions after all) have been doing really well. Kregg Lumpkin won a spot last year after being undrafted, by playing really well in preseason games. This year, Tyrell Sutton is doing the same thing. I liked Lumpkin just for his name (although his performances also helped!). Sutton, I like because as American Football players go, he's a real shortarse at just 5'8" tall! (He's also technically obese according to his official height/weight figures, with a BMI of over 32 and "obese" being over 30, which just goes to show how stupid such calculations are!) Sutton has already made some big plays, and one or two comments have been made that he gets them because he's small enough to run between the legs of defenders (he isn't really, of course, but his lack of height means that tacklers have that much further to bend in order to catch him).

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It's been too long since Packers players had their hands on a trophy that is, after all, named after a Packers Head Coach - but I dare to believe that that will change this year!