Stacking successes is what Packers’ head coach Mike McCarthy always preaches. Sunday’s win over the Seahawks that put the Packers in the playoffs has to be considered one of the greater successes he has stacked. I know the Packers haven’t accomplished anything yet, but at least now they have a chance.After losing a heartbreaker to the Steelers a week before the Packers jumped on Seattle early even though the Packers appeared to be playing like dung. It was the easiest 14-0 lead a team could possibly get. The Packers dominated from start to finish just as they should have and continued their excellent play of the second half of the season. A win in Arizona would put them 7-1 since the debacle in Tampa Bay.
The possibility of playing the Cardinals two weeks in a row adds a ton of intrigue to this matchup of two teams that have nothing to play for. The Cardinals may have the No. 2 seed in the NFC to play for but that would take a Festivus Miracle to occur. Either way Arizona won’t know until game time or later if they have a chance at a bye, which ought to be a nice distraction for them. Do we play hard or do we rest?I still think the Cardinals are the lessor of the three evils – the Eagles and Cowboys being the other two possibilities. I just don’t like our chances in Philly or Dallas. Neither the Cardinals, Cowboys or Eagles would stand a chance in Lambeau, but it didn’t work out that way. I also still think that game in Pittsburgh could end up helping the Packers just as much as the loss in Tampa Bay did. That was a great fourth-quarter comeback against an excellent team that just came up three seconds short.
As far as me personally, yes, getting to the playoffs this soon post-Favre means a ton. Aaron Rodgers gets better every week and getting a playoff game or two under his belt is huge. The Packers are meticulously building a winner that is not a one-year-and-done outfit like so many teams these days try to do by spending big bucks. The Packers took their lumps last year and rebounded to make the playoffs this year. I don’t expect the Packers to win the Super Bowl, in fact it will be hard for them to go on the road and win playoff game no matter where they go, but this is a great experience regardless.
I’m not saying the Packers can’t make a move in the playoffs, but it certainly would be unexpected. But the case can be made that the only team hotter than the Packers right now is the San Diego Chargers, who have won 10 in a row. In the NFC the Packers are the hottest team having won six of seven. I have no idea what to expect this week. All I know is they can’t take us out of the playoffs.