Brats & Beer

Packers Go For Two

2-0: Atari Bigby's number says it all

The glorious weekend is upon us once again with another double-shot of football revelry in store, and I am riding high on a wave of vanquished Vikings optimism. Yes, despite my recent post rummaging through the detritus of past Packer failures in the unholy confines of Ford Field, I am indeed confident that come Sunday evening Green Bay will be one of a handful of 2-0 teams in the league. It is the NFL and you can’t look past any opponent, of course, but really the Lions have no chance this weekend.

The Packer defense is going to have a good showing on Sunday, shutting down the run early and allowing the offense to build a comfortable lead. When Jon Kitna is forced to go to the air, the line will pin their ears back and really let it rip: Aaron Kampman will get his second (and maybe third) sack of the season, hopefully KGB will finally get his first.

On offense I hope to see some sustained drives — eight, nine, 12 plays for a touchdown — featuring some hard running by Ryan Grant and/or Brandon Jackson, whoever is cleared to go. That was the one thing missing from Monday’s victory over Minnesota and it would be good to see Aaron Rodgers get into a rhythm leading a clock-grinding march. (On a side note: Chuckie Hacks observes that ex-Packer Paris Lenon is still the starting MLB for Detroit, and that’s about all you need to know about the talent level on that defense.)

I am tempering my expectations for the final score, though, just because I don’t want to set the bar too high this early in the season. So while I agree in principle with Cheesehead Aaron, I’ll say it’ll be a little closer of a game, and by closer I mean the Packers will hold a 17 or 20 point lead at halftime as opposed to 30.