Packers/NFC North Preseason Preview

It is about that time! The NFL season is just around the corner! Throughout the season, I will be covering the NFL season with predictions, scores, news, and even provide some sizzling hot takes. Each week I will also dive into different areas of the NFL and get perspectives of fans of various NFL teams and check in on how everyone is doing. The NFL season can be a long season. I look forward to taking everyone along for the ride as this season looks to be another epic one!

For some preseason team predictions, let us start with the Green Bay Packers. Wow. What a crazy roller-coaster of an off-season it has been for one of the iconic franchises in American sports. I never like to revisit this day, but losing in yet another NFC Championship game in dramatic fashion, this time to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers felt like another big gut punch. The Green and Gold were down 8 with just over two minutes to go when Packers Head Coach, Matt LaFluer decided to pull the offense off the field and bring on the special teams unit to kick a field goal. The field goal was successful, as Mason Crosby racked up three points on the board. Even though the kick was good, the Packers needed more than three points to tie the game and had very little time or opportunities to do so. Instead of going for an easy three, it would have been a gamble, but the Packers needed to get eight points as quickly as possible. This could have been done by keeping the offense on the field. Do not get me wrong, the Buccaneers defense is good, but they are no match for Aaron Rodgers and his notorious and clutch two-minute drills when the Packers need to convert with the game coming down to the end. “He’s a baaaaaaaaaaaad man!” as Stephen A. Smith from ESPN has been known to say about Rodgers. When you really break it down and think about it, Matt LaFluer decided to take last year’s league MVP off the field. Aaron Rodgers was in the zone that day. That is straight up insulting to take the ball out of his hands like that. Rodgers deserved better. I mean even I felt like I had lost a couple years off of my life watching the Packers suddenly collapse that day after such a promising season. Unfortunately, I have gotten used to this feeling of heartbreak though, as the Packers have become notable chokers every year they have made the playoffs after they last won the Super Bowl in the 2010 season. Just cannot seem to finish the job.

Side note- I have come to the conclusion that Tom Brady must be some sort of robot or some kind of immortal being because he has become unstoppable no matter which team he has gone to. Whether it was the New England Patriots, or now the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the man finds ways to win big games and has so many rings to show for it. I cannot wait until he retires (if he ever does).

Anyway, moving on to this season.. As hard as it was to get over last year’s NFC Championship game, I am coming into this season feeling optimistic about the Packers. Rodgers is coming off another season, where he was named Most Valuable Player in the entire National Football League! Now despite the fact that he was the league MVP, over the off-season, Rodgers said that he wanted OUT of Green Bay, as the front office management of the franchise has only done little to help build a successful team around him. This news came right before the NFL draft. As Rodgers announced his frustrations with the team, this made the Packers shake up their draft strategy. In my own personal opinion, the Packers drafted decently, as they improved the team in some aspects, however, they still could have done better in others. For example, they waited until the third round instead of drafting in the either the first or second round to pick up another wide receiver target for Rodgers to throw to. After the draft was over, Rodgers was still unhappy, which led to a majority of the fanbase going up in flames as well. For about three months, no one knew the status of Rodgers and whether or not he was going to back out of the season. This whole fiasco is a whole different story itself. Thankfully in late July, Rodgers came back and he brough back an old face as well, in Randall Cobb, who was acquired via trade. Cobb is not the same player that he used to be, but I am a fan of the move because he knows the Packers system well and has a great connection with Rodgers after being teammates for so long. Now that the Packers have Cobb, Davante Adams, and MVS, who has also shown signs of improvement, I think they’re in a good spot heading into the season.

As we inch closer to the 2021 NFL season, I asked my buddy Noah, a die-hard Packer fan, as well as play-by-play announcer for the UW-Madison student radio station to weigh in and provide a few of his predictions. Noah believes that the big story for the Packers is whether or not they can get over the hump this season. Here’s what he had to say:

“Over the last 10 years, the Packers have found themselves in the hunt for a Super Bowl but every year it ends in heartbreak. 2021 now looks like an “all in” mode bringing back almost everyone to their team with the addition of some new guys on the team from free agency and the draft. One returning player to watch on offense this year is AJ Dillon. With Jamal Williams leaving for Detroit, the Packers need another bell cow back and Dillon will fill that role perfectly for them. One of the things I saw in camp was his improvement in the passing game, his pass-catching along with his pass blocking could be a huge boost for the offense. A returning player on the defense this year is Rashan Gary. Gary improved last year for the Packers and could have a much larger role in the Packers pass rush this year. Alongside the Smith brothers, expect Gary to be a possible 3 down player on the defensive side of the ball. And finally, a rookie to watch for this year for the packers this year will be Amari Rodgers, the wide receiver out of Clemson. Rodgers did not make much noise in the preseason but expect him to be a factor once the season gets rolling. Looking into the schedule for this year, the packers have a brutal schedule for this year playing eight playoff teams including the last two MVPs in Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, but with Aaron Rodgers anything is possible. I expect this team to be in the playoffs this year, but it could be a rough road for them to get back to the NFC championship and finish what they started. Expect a lot of highs and lows from this team during the season.”

In addition to Noah’s thoughts and season outlook for the Packers, we went over the division outlook for the NFC North. The Packers should seem to have another solid chance at once retaining the “Kings of The North” title. Once the Packers get out to a decent lead in the division every year, there is almost no turning back. The Minnesota Vikings seem to usually put-up good fights but can never follow through. The Chicago Bears on the other hand cannot seem to figure out their quarterback situation as they drafted a good quarterback for once in Justin Fields from Ohio State, and everyone in Chicago has expected him to be their “chosen one” to end their Super Bowl drought. However, the Bears' coaching staff has decided to name washed-up Andy Dalton as their starting quarterback, leaving everyone questioning their logic. Lastly, we have the Detroit Lions. Let's face it, there’s not much to talk about with them. Another year in the basement of the NFC North. That is all.

GO. PACK. GO!!!

(Photo cred: Green Bay Packers/Facebook)