The Green Bay Packers are red hot. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Yesterday’s demolition of the now 7-3 Eagles showed the league the Packers are inching back to elite status in the NFC. It also confirmed the Packers are dominant in the friendly confines of Lambeau Field. Home field advantage in the playoffs would be huge for the Packers.
Like the Bears the week before, the Eagles had no chance to win the game. It was essentially over by halftime with usual suspects, Aaron Rodgers, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Eddie Lacy having another field day on offense. Even special teams pitched in with a Micah Hyde punt return for a touchdown.
The biggest question going into the game was could the Packers’ defense stop the Eagles high-powered offense? Did they ever. They picked off Mark Sanchez twice, sacked him three times and recovered two fumbles. They had interception and fumble returns for a touchdown and generally made life miserable for Sanchez and the Eagles.
With Julius Peppers adding a new element to the defense, they are getting better and better, that New Orleans game notwithstanding. And now with Clay Matthews lining up all over the field, the Packers have their two biggest playmakers making big plays. If the Packers advance farther in the playoffs this year it will likely be because of Peppers and Matthews. No offense to guys like Tramon Williams, Sam Shields or even the re-energized Morgan Burnett, but the life blood of this defense is the linebackers.
On offense one cannot emphasize enough how important the addition of running back Eddie Lacy has been to the team. Last year Lacy single handedly kept the Packers in the playoff hunt. This year, with Rodgers back, his presence in the backfield on all three downs has opened up the offense to a new level.
Now that Lacy is emerging as a threat in the passing game, teams have to account for him on every play. No more bringing in a blocking back on third down, Lacy is capable of protecting Rodgers and then finding a open spot for Rodgers to throw to him.
The Packers now must take their show on the road for a week in a trap game if I ever saw one. After visiting the Vikings this weekend the Packers have the Patriots in Lambeau. The Vikings may not be very good but if the Packers are caught looking ahead the Vikings can certainly win the game.
Fortunately I don’t think the Packers’ defense would ever take anybody lightly, considering they are trying to erase the notion they are the team’s weak link. My early feeling is the Packers won’t score 50 points next week, but should still have enough to beat the Vikings. More on that later, let’s enjoy this signature win for a little while first.