Did they also name you NFC Strawman Creator of the Month?
Nope. They named me the NFC Tiger Jabber of the Month. 
I’m kinda glad you didn’t go with “Packer Jabber”, because that sounds vaguely sexual and very troubling.
Aaron Rodgers was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month. Figured someone should mention that…
Sounds like he was lucky. lol. 
But he only had a passer rating of 121.5. 
I wonder how many more years playing at the level he’s playing at now before he’s a HOF lock.
And Casey Hayward (CB, Packers) is NFC Defensive Rookie of the Month. Good month for the division!
I think there is a halfway decent shot the NFC North could go 4-0 this weekend, but I think 3-1 is much more likely. The Bears get another creampuff in the Titans, who have the second worst point differential in the entire NFL. I think they should bottle up CJ(I wish it was still)2K and take advantage of the second worst scoring defense in the league for yet another win. The Lions get the 1-6 Jacksonville Jaguars (2nd worst point differential & 5th worst scoring defense). Megatron is a bit gimpy and the Lions are one of the least disciplined, stupidest, and most likely to beat themselves teams in the league, so it could be worse, but the Jags are simply a bad NFL team. Both these games are on the road, though, and the NFL is damn hard to predict week to week. While I would enjoy watching the Bears and/or the Lions take a loss, I just don’t see it happening.
The Packers get the reeling Cardinals at home in a game that should be another win for the Pack. The Cardinal’s O line is horrible, especially at the tackle position, so the Claymaker could have a big game. But this is the same secondary that made Blaine Gabbert look like a real NFL QB and the Cardinals defense is 4th in the NFL in scoring, so I don’t think it will be an easy win at all. I can only hope that the Packers not only get a win, but also don’t lose any more players to injury.
Finally, the Vikings have to go to Seattle and take on a tough defensive team. The Vikings are a tough team to figure out, but so are the Seahawks. I’m not sure what to make of this game, but I do think the Vikings aren’t a pushover any more. I like the Vikings in an upset.
These fucking injuries. Three more starters Jordy Nelson, Brian Bulaga, and the amazing Clay Matthews, left Sunday’s game because of injuries. It’s getting fucking ridiculous. Thank God for the bye week, and here’s hoping these injuries are minor.
As an aside, I’d love to see the Bears lose Peppers, Urlacher, Tillman, Marshall, Melton, Jennnings, Roach, and McClellan for games at a time. But, nope, they’re all healthy and beating up bad teams.
The thing, the ONLY thing that makes this less frustrating is the Packers’ 2010 Super Bowl run, where they lost a bunch of players to injury and still went on to win the Super Bowl (beating the Bears in Chicago on the way!), so there is precedent for a nice run. But I’m not sure they can do that again.
In other news, the Bears are bumslayers again, the Lions too beat a bad team (hey look! A running game!), the Packers beat the Cardinals and suffer more injuries, and the Vikings need to worry about their QB position after a bad loss to Seattle. Ponder has regressed of late, and that’s not good.
Next week is a bye week for the Pack, so hopefully they’ll get healthier and enjoy a week of rest. The Vikings and Lions go head to head against each other, which should be an interesting game. The Vikings are sliding, the Lions seemingly have righted the ship (against bad teams), but since it is in Minnesota, it could be a close game. Should be fun to watch.
And finally, FINALLY, we get to see the Bears play a good team not named the Packers. It will be interesting to see whether or not the Bears have taken a step up into the elite of the NFL, or if that 7-1 record is a bit of an illusion. I think it’s a bit of both. There’s no doubt that defense is elite, it has been for awhile, but that offense, and Jay Cutler, still have a lot to prove. I’ve long thought Lovie Smith and the Bears are built to take advantage of the mistakes of the opposition, but they’ll never win a Super Bowl against an elite team. This could be their year to prove me wrong.
Hamlet, you seem to throw out a lot of old stereotypes about the Lions based on last season’s performance. For example:
You always allude to how undisciplined they are. Well they had one game this season where they had like 18 penalties (inexcusable) but other than that they’ve been pretty good at staying disciplined. Even with that one outlier game, they only average 0.1 penalties more per game than the Bears.
The Lions have been able to run the ball most of the season. This is one of the first weeks they’ve committed to it.
I feel like in past weeks you’ve bashed the OL. Well the Lions OL has been easily a top 10 and arguably a top 5 OL this season. Stafford’s had all day to throw most weeks, which is what makes his intermittent struggles all the more troubling.
Also in past weeks you’ve bashed the secondary a lot, where even through a ton of injuries, the Lions secondary has held up remarkably well. Sixth round pick Jonte Green has turned into a very good starter next to Chris Houston who is playing lights out. Undrafted rookie Ricardo Silva, who has shone in camp for 2 years now, was brought up from the practice squad and also looks excellent. Should either Delmas or Spievey come back the secondary will actually be a strength.
You also commonly allude to how overrated the DL is. Well that’s only because you’re going by an outdated statement. The Lions DL is not great. The Lions DTs are great, possibly the best in football. But the DEs suck. While you and others bash the secondary, it’s actually Avril’s disappearing act and KVB’s age that holds back the defense. The DTs, LBs, and most of the secondary has been quite good.
Remember, if not for giving up 2 return TDs in each of the Vikings and Titans games, the Lions would be 6-2, and you’d all be singing a different tune about them.
The offense also looks way more explosive now that old man Burleson is done for the season and we now feature CJ/Young/Broyles along with Pettigrew/Scheffler and Leshoure/Bell. That’s a ton of talent to cover. If Stafford stays consistent and accurate, it’s on.
They’ve been very inconsistent and for all I know they’ll fall on their face again soon. But they have a lot of talent on offense and a very underrated defense.
Their upcoming schedule is brutal though. Really cost themselves by blowing the Titans game. This week vs. the Vikings is huge.
Go Lions!
Detroit is the 6th most penalized team in the NFL. And, in the games I’ve seen, they’ve made crucial mistakes. Like the beginning of the Seattle game, where Detroit had a illegal formation call that nullified a punt and led to a field goal. Or on the next Seattle drive where they gave up a 41 yard DPI that led to a touchdown. Or the previous game against the Bears, where they turned the ball over 4 times (including one of the most stupid lunges for the end zone I’ve ever seen). Or the game before that against the Eagles with the 16 penalties. Or the game before that, where Pettigrew and Megatron dropped TD passes. Add in the 7 arrests in the 2012 offseason and the suspension for Leshoure to start the season and, to me, those are indications of discipline issues. YMMV.
That was my point, that Schwartz had not committed to the running game, not that they weren’t doing it very well.
The Lions O Line has been better than I thought, but they’re currently 18th in QB hits allowed, 11th in sacks allowed, and 15th in ypc. That’s good, especially considering the other NFC North O lines, but top 5? Not even close.
Like the O Line, maybe I am misunderestimating the Detroit secondary. While they’re the 11th worst passing defense by opposing QB passer efficiency and they only have 5 interceptions (making them the 8th worst NFL team), they are only allowing 214 ypg, which is 8th best in the league.
How do we know this? Outside of hype and draft position, I mean. With first rounders Suh and Fairley, the Lions certainly have the reputation, but what makes you think they’re the best in the NFL? Suh, for as hyped as he is, has 3.5 sacks, which is what? in the 6-10 range of NFL DT’s. But Suh also has only 13 tackles and no forced fumbles. Fairley only has 1.5 sacks through 8 games with 8 tackles, which isn’t really impressive. And the Lions are 20th in ypc and 14th in ypg. Surely they are good, but best in the NFL? I’m not so sure.
I admit to not seeing all of their games, so you may be right. But the Lions are the 11th worst scoring defense in the NFL, and I’m not so sure all of the blame on that belongs on VandenBosch and Avril.
If they played better, yes, we’d think they were better. And they only beat the Rams by 4, the Eagles by 3, and Seattle by 4, so if a play or two goes the other way in those (I’m looking at you Michael Vick!), they’d be 2-6 or 1-7. That’s NFL football.
The Lions are not a bad team. But they are also not a team without issues, including things like their lack of turnovers in the secondary, their penchant for stupid plays and penalties, and issues in play calling.
Part of my problem has been both my distaste for their coach, and the pre-season expectations. The Lions showed a ton of promise last year, and then, at the start of this year, they’ve been inconsistent. Maybe they will put it all together and put all that “talent” to good use, but so far, in the easy part of their schedule, they’ve been unimpressive to me. Sure, they may be better than I’ve given them credit for, but they also need to show it on the field.
Warning: Way Too Early Wild Card Speculation
The Lions/Vikings game is crucial to the Lion’s playoff hopes as the 2nd Wild Card team. Detroit currently has the tie-breakers with Seattle and Philadelphia and faces Arizona Week 15. Beating the Vikings would put the Lions in the driver’s seat for the final Wild Card slot (Detroit also has the edge on Tampa Bay based on conference winning percentage).
The good news if Detroit beats Minnesota: 5 of the final 7 games are at home
The bad news is that it includes: Atlanta, Houston, Chicago, Green Bay, and Indy [which are a combined 33-8!]
If Detroit loses to Minnesota: goodbye playoffs
Also, I agree with Hamlet’s analysis of the Lions with the exception of the distaste of Schwartz. The Lions have underwhelmed me this year and while they looked good against Jacksonville…it’s Jacksonville. They make everyone look good.
Right now, I think there are two viable MVP candidates in the NFC North, Aaron Rodgers and Charles Tillman. I do not think Tillman would win, but I think a compelling argument can be made. Rodgers is Rodgers, 25 TDs, 5 INTs, 107.4 Passer Rating, no rushing game, injured receivers. In my mind only Peyton Manning has matched Rodgers this season, but the sports pundits seem to love Matt Ryan, despite the Falcons playing a cupcake schedule and the tools he has at his disposal.
I am totally a Tillman mark but I think it would be an uphill battle for him to get MVP. I’d love to see it, of course, but that MVP is typically reserved for a QB. He may get defensive player of the year if he keeps producing those turnovers.
Another week of learning in the old NFC North. We learned that Adrian Peterson’s powers of healing are only surpassed by his awesomeness at running the ball. We learned that home field advantage in the tough NFC North matters against divisional foes. We learned that it’s still too early to call Cristian Ponder a “bust”. We learned that NFL officials will actually call crackback blocking. We learned the Lions are woefully inconsistent. We learned that Jay Cutler sure is tough, finishing out the first half despite a concussion (we also may have learned the Bears need better concussion protocols). We learned that the best thing to happen to Jay Cutler is to be compared to Caleb Hanie. We learned that the Bears defense can only do so much against good teams, they do need help. We learned that the best play for Tim Jennings is to stand there and wait for the receiver to slip on the turf at Soldier Field. We learned that Kellen Davis cannot, in fact, do everything that great tight ends do, despite Lovie’s protestations. We learned that Brandon Marshall can make QB’s look better than they are.
This are going to get more interesting in the NFC North from here on out.
I’m about done with that guy. I’ve been a fan of his for the past couple years, the dude is huge and fairly athletic and he’s made a few good catches here and there in the past. This year he looks like he forgot how to play tight end or something. He had an awful game yesterday.
The Vikings are 6-4 going into a bye week. My thoughts a few weeks ago were that they could split with GB and Chicago (winning at home, losing on the road), but maybe just maybe they can beat Chicago at Solider Field. The Vikings have a week off, and the Bears have a Monday night game in San Francisco coming off last night’s tough game. The way Peterson is running right now, anything’s possible. On the other hand, the Bears defense feasts on qbs making bad throws.
Injuries a big part of this week, with the Packers losing even more starters and first round picks as Brian Bulaga and Nick Price are lost for the year, Clay Matthews is already declared out for Sunday’s game, and Charles Woodson and Greg Jennings still iffy.
Meanwhile, Jay Cutler suffers a concussion on a cheap shot by a douchebag and, given the lack of honesty and clarity from Halas Hall, we have no idea how bad it is. My money is on him starting, but it was a wicked hit and I wouldn’t be surprised if he missed this week. Additionally, his supporters now have yet another excuse for his poor play.
Detroit’s secondary may still be in shambles with Delmas and Spivey still suffering. They’ve lost their top 3 safeties and top 2 CB’s so they went out and signed ex NFC North CB Pat Lee, a second round pick of the Packers. Megatron is still sitting out practices, but I expect he’ll be playing.
And the Vikings have a bye week to get Percy Harvin back healthy.
Meanwhile this weekend, we have the Packers going to Detroit to play a desperate Lions team. The Packers, as mentioned, will be without their best defensive player, their second best defensive player, and will have a re-shuffled offensive line. We also get to see Evan Dietrich Smith go against Suh after last years’ stomp. The pressure will be on Aaron Rodgers to take advantage of that secondary, on Dezmon Moses (yet another undrafted free agent who shone in camps) to try and minimize the loss of Matthews, and on that O Line. The Lions are at home, in desperate need of a win, and the Pack are a MASH unit, but the Packers are still a 3.5 favorite. If Rodgers throws this team on his back (he can) and the Lions are not focused, the Packers can win, but I don’t feel good about this game.
The Bears get the 49ers on Monday Night. It’s another game I’ve been looking forward to, but last week’s concussions of Cutler and Smith take some of the shine off. I do expect both to start, but I’m guessing this game will be a defensive battle. The Bears are best in the league in scoring by the defense, but the 49ers are very good at protecting the ball (7th in the NFL). I expect if Smith plays, the Niners should be able to control the Bears, but who knows. It should be a good game to watch though.
I’m thinking that Cutler will be out this week. The media around here has been all about Jason Campbell getting the reps in practice and the Bears re-signed Josh McCown, so I think Jay will be out for at least this week, but I don’t imagine much more than that.
I think Smith practiced this week, so he may be OK. I think the Bears could win this game, but they’ll need their offense to get a few TDs and the defense to continue to play like they have been. Alshon Jeffery is supposed to return this game, so that gives a good 2nd receiver for Campbell to throw to.
The Bears just never seem to shine in prime time lately. I am going with the Niners.