Tag Archives: Seattle Seahawks

Something’s Gotta Give

January 7, 2015 – 6:45 pm

While it’s not the proverbial “irresistible force meeting immovable object”, a streak will end on Sunday at Lambeau Field. The Cowboys roll into town having posted a perfect 8-0 road record this season, pitted against the Packers on perfect showing in home games. Someone has to lose, thus ending their streak. Vegas likes the Pack, as do I, but it should still be an exciting game between two of the better teams in the NFC.

The real interesting game will be the one between the Seahawks and the Panthers. A Carolina win coupled with a victory for Green Bay would mean the NFC Championship Game will be held on the Frozen Tundra. We can always hope.

By andylwellman | Posted in Andy Wellman, Green Bay Packers | Also tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

NFC North Division Championship Game…

December 23, 2014 – 1:57 am

…AGAIN!

For the second time in as many years, the NFC North crown will go to the winner of a head-to-head match up in the last game of the regular season. And once again, the Green Bay Packers will be playing in that game. Last year it was against the Bears at Soldier field, where the Pack prevailed in what is arguably one of the greatest comebacks in the Aaron Rodgers era. This year, it comes down to a single game at Lambeau Field against the Detroit Lions, a team that beat us earlier this season. In that game, the offense wasn’t particularly sharp, much like they haven’t been in the last two weeks while going 1-1. The games weren’t blowouts by any means, with our defense keeping us within winning distance each time.

But that has been against some pretty bad offenses, and when we faced a formidable defense in Buffalo, we lost. Detroit is similarly good on that side of the ball. Yesterday, Rodgers started the game already under the weather while also taking some painful shots from Buccaneer defenders. Hopefully he will be able to get healed up this week, as much as can be expected this time of year anyway, and playing before the home crowd with the offense put up the kind of numbers we saw against the Bears, Eagles and Falcons.

For while both teams are already in the post season, this game comes down to the difference between a first round by and at least one playoff game at home, or going on the road in round one. Personally, I wouldn’t be that disappointed with the wildcard berth, except that would mean that the Lion’s would get their first win in Wisconsin since 1992, because when Green Bay won their last Superbowl they were on the road throughout the playoffs, and I’m still disappointed with how the team handled the last time they had a first round bye.

Regardless of the outcome of this game though, the road to Superbowl would appear to run through Seattle, a daunting task for any team right now.

By andylwellman | Posted in Andy Wellman, Green Bay Packers | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (2)

Which Is More Important?

March 4, 2014 – 3:01 pm

After last week’s “Fiasco by the Bay”, in which what was thought to be a rather competent franchise tried to “trade” their highly successful head coach to Cleveland Browns, I thought I’d weigh in. Now, whether this is a reflection of Jim Harbaugh’s inability to get along with management, a reputation that’s been earned since his earliest days in the college ranks, or not, he has still taken the 49er’s to three straight NFC Championship games and a berth in the Superbowl. This in turn sparked a debate on local sports radio of which is more important; the GM or the head coach. And who would you rather trade, Ted Thompson or Mike McCarthy?

I’d like to begin by starting with my recollections of the arrival of these two men to the Green Bay Packer’s franchise. When Ted Thompson was hired, the divide between those who were in favor and those who were not was sharp and very deep. Even though he had helped put together a Superbowl worthy team in Seattle, and was a Ron Wolf protégé, many were still unhappy with his hire. Many were backers of the man that he replaced as GM, Mike Sherman, and in retrospect, it would seem some of the anger could even be traced back to his perceived sexual orientation.

When Mike McCarthy was hired, not only did he receive the additional wrath of the Mike Sherman fans, but he was coming from San Francisco as the Offensive Coordinator of the worst offense in the league. All of this also combined to give more ammo to the Ted Thompson haters. Of course, the only thing the two of them have done since then is deliver a 15-1 season, several Division titles and a fourth Lombardi Trophy to Green Bay. Now, neither man has been perfect. From Ted’s numerous first round strike outs to Mike’s home playoff losses, there is still some room for criticism. But then again, we are not the aforementioned Cleveland Browns.

So, who would I rather trade away, or conversely, keep? Ted Thompson. I have always been in the school of thought that successful franchises are run from the top down. The GM hires the Head Coach that he wants, and then provides him with the best players possible. It is much easier for a mediocre coach to be successful with top end talent than it is for a great coach to succeed with middle of the road players. And one needs look no further than Ted Thompson’s former employer, the reigning Superbowl champion Seattle Seahawks. Even with all of the recent praise being heaped on Pete Carroll, you can not deny that his NFL career up to this point has been at best mediocre. You can even argue that his success at the college level only came with a significant bending of the rules.

What Seahawks General Manager John Schneider did was supply Carroll with some of the best players at their position in the league. Through the draft and savvy use of the free agent market, he put together a championship caliber team. In particular a defense that even in the hands of a less than stellar coach, went out and dominated one of the most prolific offenses in NFL history in the biggest game of the season.

By andylwellman | Posted in Andy Wellman | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)