The Divisional Playoff round is here and among us. The Green Bay Packers will be facing the San Fransisco 49ers in the Bay Area this Saturday and the only thing that matters is who comes away with the victory.

These two teams met in week 1 and the two teams are completely different from the first meeting. Both these teams have been through strange seasons, from the “Fail Mary” the Packers have overcame, to the tie the 49ers had with the St. Louis Rams; not to mention they almost tied them the second meeting. Yet somehow the two teams found paths that cross in the playoffs.

The Packers are 4-1 against the 49ers in the postseason and quite honestly I think they will extend it to 5-1. I have a gut feeling this is going to be a game where the Packers come out and dominate and win 35-20, so I’m going to say that is my gut prediction because you are always supposed to go with your gut.

While this is a blog though, let me use my head to break this game down for us. My head says the Packers will win the game, but it will be a close one, like 31-27. That’s what my head is going with. Now I’m not using this type of thing to cover my butt, though it will surely have the chance to do so, but for the sake of this blog having some content and knowledge for you the readers.

The game is going to boil down to two players.

First is San Fransisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. If Kaepernick plays well, they will have a chance to win. If he does not play well, I don’t see how they win. First year starters do not always have the best luck winning in the playoffs their first time through and yes there are exceptions to every rule, but I don’t see Kaepernick being one of those. Now, he could play extremely well and help lead the 49ers to the victory this week, but I anticipate him faltering at some point this postseason run.

Second player is quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Both these players are fairly obvious due to their position, but it means even more with Kaepernick being a first year starter and Rodgers being the only quarterback in the NFC playoffs with a playoff win before the Wild Card Playoff round.

Rodgers is great in the postseason and even better in the postseason while on the road. Rodgers is 3-1 on the road during the playoffs and with his next road win, if it comes this weekend, will tie the NFL record of consecutive playoff road wins. If he gets the win he’ll be tied for second with five different quarterbacks with the most road playoff wins at four and be behind Eli Manning of the New York Giants, who has a record of 5-1 on the road.

This game is going to come down to the quarterback position and I have a hunch whoever has the least amount of mistakes, their team will come away with the win and I think my head and gut would both go with Aaron Rodgers. So sit back, grab a drink and enjoy some great football this weekend, but I have a feeling this will not be my last Packers preview blog this season.

First off I would like to apologize for my absence on this blog, the past few weeks have been crazy and I have missed some games, but I’m back.

While I am back, so are the Green Bay Packers, which we saw on Saturday Night. The Minnesota Vikings with a back-up quarterback may not be the toughest test, the Packers showed they are a dangerous team this postseason.

The Packers known for their stellar passing attack with quarterback Aaron Rodgers and dangerous wide receivers in Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson, James Jones and Randall Cobb, but this is not the type of offense we have seen lately like we did in 2011. This Packers offense is balanced and capable of running the football and grinding out victories, which is exactly what we saw this season and Saturday.

Running backs DuJuan Harris and John Kuhn combined for 27 of the Packers 54 offensive touches, which if you do the math and math can be pretty hard, is half of the offensive touches. They also accounted for all three of the Packers touchdowns in the 24-10 win. The Packers are showing they are not afraid to run the ball or get the ball to the open receiver, which is something Rodgers is great at doing. We have watched this Packers team evolve over the season from a high powered passing attack to a balanced grind you out type team, a team that is better then 2011′s 15-1 team, a team that is tested and hungry.

I state this team is hungry and it is partially because of the chip they constantly have on their shoulders. This past week against the Vikings it was they couldn’t stop running back Adrian Peterson, and quite frankly no one could this year and he should be the NFL MVP, but the Packers did just that Saturday. The Packers held Peterson to 99 yards on 22 carries and zero touchdowns. They answered the questions and backed their talk.

This week it will be can they go on the road and beat a team in San Fransisco who beat them 30-22 in Lambeau Field week one. I think they can, but more importantly the Packers believe they can. They are a better team then they were in week one, but now it’s time for them to show the world that as well.

The Green Bay Packers continued their division dominance this past Sunday against the Chicago Bears in Solider Field.

Before I get too far into the blog here I would like to apologize for not being able to get up a preview blog, my Internet was not allowing me to gain access on this website Sunday morning before the game.

Anyways, the Packers took care of business as I had expected. I felt the Packers are just the better, more complete team and it once again showed Sunday.

Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Clay Matthews (52) celebrates his fourth quarter sack of Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) to the amusement of his teammates Casey Hayward (29) and Dezman Moses (54).

The Bears offense is the same two player show with Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall. The problem for Bears fans is that Cutler is horrible against the Packers. His two worst games this year came this past Sunday and in week two against the Pack.

Another reason Cutler has to despise seeing the Packers twice a year, Clay Matthews. In his return after missing four weeks with a hamstring injury, Matthews continued to dominate. He recorded two sacks, one pass defensed and I recall multiple other plays where he was in the backfield upsetting the running game for the Bears. Matthews makes this Packers defense look completely different, there has to be excitement with the return of Charles Woodson next weekend.

While the Bears spiral downward and potentially out of the playoffs, the Packers continue to find ways to win; as they have won eight of their last nine games. The thing about the Packers is their defense looks to be in place with the return of Matthews, Woodson and Sam Shields, more on him in a bit, but the offense has yet to fire at full strength. Look for Aaron Rodgers and the offense to get things figured out with the return of Jordy Neslon and two favorable match-ups with the Tennessee Titans and Minnesota Vikings.

Green Bay Packers' Sam Shields breaks up a 3rd-quarter pass in the end zone against Chicago Bears' Alshon Jeffery at Soldier Field in Chicago. Shields coverage has helped solidify the Packers secondary this season.

Now back to a guy who has been having one of the best seasons for the Packers, Shields. Yes, rookie Casey Hayward is deserving of being defensive rookie of the year as he continues to find the football and provide solid coverage, but Shields returning from his injury has solidified this secondary and it showed Sunday.

Shields was covering Alshon Jeffery for the majority of the game and on Jeffery’s four targets, none of them were completed. Shields was blanketing him in coverage, so much he drew three offensive pass interferences on Jeffery and also knocked down the fourth down attempt to end the game. Shields along with Hayward, Tramon Williams and Davon House provide a bright future for the Packers secondary. It has been a nice surprise for the season, especially because it keeps Jarrett Bush on the bench.

The game last Sunday at Lambeau Field was the definition of a game in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The snow was falling, the weather was dropping and football was to be had on the Frozen Tundra. The Green Bay Packers took advantage of the home field and beat the Detroit Lions 27-20.

The Lions offense early and often ran the ball and controlled the clock in the first half. They took an early two touchdown lead but after a Mason Crosby field goal things started to turn around for the Packers and once again it came from an unexpected player.

Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford lost his grip on the ball and rookie defensive lineman Mike Daniels make a risky play to pick up the ball rather then pouncing on it, but in the end it worked out. Daniels scooped the ball up and ran 43 yards for the score bringing the Packers within four before half.

Defensive lineman Mike Daniels 43 yard fumble return for a touchdown helped fuel a Green Bay Packers comeback victory over the Detroit Lions in snowy Lambeau Field.

Injuries have been a theme for this team so seeing a guy like Daniels making plays is nothing out of the ordinary for the Packers this season. With these players being injured others have had to step up until the Packers get healthy.

One of the players who returned from injury was defensive back Sam Shields and it did not take him long to earn his starting spot back from Davon House as he had two passes defensed as well as a timely interception before half.

In the second half the Packers used the legs, not the arm, of quarterback Aaron Rodgers to help take the lead against the Lions. Rodgers 27 yard touchdown scamper put the Packers up 17-14. The run by Rodgers was the longest touchdown run by a Packers quarterback since a guy named Brett Favre had one in 1998.

After a Jason Hanson field goal for the Lions they tied the game up at 17. Putting the ball back in the hands of the Packers. The two teams exchanged possessions a couple of times before the Packers would take control of the game.

After Hanson missed a 51 yard field goal attempt the Packers took to the field.

As stated before injuries have forced players to step up and make plays for the Packers and two players who did just that against the Lions were running back DuJuan Harris and offensive lineman Don Barclay; both helping produce one of the most impressive drives of the season for the Packers.

Running back DuJuan Harris might be exactly what the Green Bay Packers rushing game needed as he celebrates his 14 yard touchdown.

The Packers would go on a seven play, all of which were running plays, drive and capitalize on a 14 yard touchdown run by Harris. Harris did not shoulder the load alone on the drive, in fact, he was the finisher. Fellow running backs Alex Green and Ryan Grant, who saw his first action since signing on the previous Monday, started the drive.

Green had four straight carries before Grant came in for his only carry, which was an impressive run to the left for 13 yards, before Harris came in to finish the drive with two carries.

The Packers ended up giving up a late field goal to have the final be 27-20.

The win was ugly as Rodgers posted his lowest season total of yards passing and did not find the endzone through the air, but the way the Packers won may have helped them for the future.

If the Packers can consistently run the ball like they did against the Lions, it is not out of the question to see the passing game start to take off. Add in the fact the Packers expect and hope to get defensive back Charles Woodson, linebacker Clay Matthews and wide receiver Jordy Nelson back this week against the Chicago Bears with a chance to clinch the division for the second straight year. Things could be looking up for the Packers postseason run.

The Green Bay Packers face the Detroit Lions in Lambeau Field and it is going to be a snowy one folks. There is not much more you can ask for.

Now normally I like to have more content to my blogs, but I was lucky to land last minute tickets to the game, so it’s going to be quick.

The Packers should win this game. Protect Aaron Rodgers, and they’ll win.

Packers win 38-23 over the Lions.

The Green Bay Packers came away with a 23-14 win against the Minnesota Vikings and pretty much ended the Vikings playoff hopes as well.

While the game was not pretty, the Packers came away with a win; which has seemingly been a trend this season.

The Packers defense could not stop running back Adrian Peterson or tight end Kyle Rudolph, but they literally stopped everyone else until the fourth quarter, holding the Vikings receivers to zero catches till the fourth.

While the lack of stopping the running game is concerning, it was Peterson, who is an absolute beast and pretty much the best running back in the NFL today, so it is something which can be slightly overlooked.

The defensive player of the game had to have been defensive back Morgan Burnett who came up with two huge interceptions of quarterback Christian Ponder.

Both interceptions came in Green Bay territory, including one in the endzone. These interceptions were two of the biggest plays in the game.

With Burnett on defense, the offensive MVP had to be, well the running game, not one player. Running backs Alex Green and James Starks ran the ball effectively behind the Packers offensive line, one which included undrafted rookie Don Barclay.

The Packers ran often behind Barclay and Josh Sitton and it proved to be very affective againt the Vikings and pretty much helped the Pack run the clock out in the fourth quarter on their drive to seal the game. That drive took up 11 minutes and gave the Vikings the ball back with roughly five minutes, down two scores.

So, while the team continues to battle injuries, they continue to find ways to win the game and that is what counts. It will be interesting to see what happens when starters start returning from injuries and if the Packers can finally take off for a Super Bowl run.

It’s pretty simple for the Green Bay Packers this week. They need to get back on track and prove they are a legitimate Super Bowl team and have a strong showing at home against the Minnesota Vikings.
The Packers will be facing the Vikings without their second best player in wide receiver Percy Harvin, so it comes down to stopping running back Adrian Peterson. He is the type of player who single handed can take over and win a game with his running. If the Packers do not stop him, do not expect a win.
The Packers offense is desperate to get back on track and the return of wide receiver Greg Jennings could not have came at a better time. Look for the Packers to use Jennings early and often Sunday with short slant route to help buy Aaron Rodgers some time and protection after being physically beaten last weekend.
The main thing about this game is it is at home in Lambeau Field and I do not see the Packers losing this one. Do I think the team gets back on track and looks dominate in the win? Not really, but I feel it’s a good building block win to a potential Super Bowl run. Packers 38-20 over the Vikings.

The Green Bay Packers face a New York Giants team which has been struggling as of late, but will still be a tough test as always.
On the road the Packers need Aaron Rodgers to play well against this Giants team who will look to control the game with its rushing attack.
If the Packers can get ahead early and force Eli Manning and the Giants to be one dimensional the Packers should be able to take control.
I expect this game to be close, but the Packers find a way to win again 34-27.

The Green Bay Packers have been a team expected to repeat its historical offensive performance of 2011, but that has been a far cry from reality, but maybe it’s for the better.

The Packers came away with a 24-20 win in Detroit against the Lions to improve their record to 7-3, winning five straight.

Was it a pretty win? No, far from actually. In honesty, it would be an understatement to say the Packers offense played horrid against the Lions, who were in a patch work secondary. I’m not saying injuries cannot be overcame, as seen with this years Packers team, but the Lions do not have a General Manager like Ted Thompson running the show.

While it does not always look the best on the field, it is working. This Packers team is drawing comparisons to the team which won the Super Bowl in 2010.

Yes, I hate drawing comparisons, but it’s hard to deny this one. The team depleted with injuries, struggling early and often in the season and trying to find any rhythm, but has yet to play their best football. Scary isn’t it? Exciting isn’t it? I would have to agree, but let’s not get caught up in these comparisons, cause that’s all it is.

Jermichael Finley (No. 88) and Randall Cobb (No. 18) both clicking at the same time could give opposing defensives even more nightmares than they already have when facing the Green Bay Packers.

The best part about the win Sunday, the defense, which I am going to toot my own horn here, had five sacks, including two by linebacker Erik Walden. Yes, my bold prediction was spot on, but the three biggest plays of the game for the defense are the exciting part for Packers Nation.

The three biggest plays were made by three first or second year players, two of which were undrafted. The list includes second round defensive back Casey Hayward, who is making a strong case for defensive rookie of the year, linebacker Dezman Moses and defensive back M.D. Jennings.

Hayward was all over the field racking up one interception as well as five pass defensed, which is more then the rest of the team combined. Then “The Doctor” Jennings recorded the biggest play of the game with a 72-yard pick six to give the momentum to the Packers.

Moses earlier had made a huge play forcing a fumble on quarterback Matt Stafford after he avoided the rush of linebacker Brad Jones. The ball was then recovered another rookie in defensive lineman Mike Daniels.

All three of these plays were huge because they came when the Lions were in Packers territory and a threat to put up at least a field goal. When the offense has looked shaky, the defense has came through for the Packers so far this season, which is something about last years team you would not have been able to see.

The thing which I am going to remind you about is the Packers did not have linebacker Clay Matthews or defensive backs Charles Woodson and Sam Shields and guess what guys? You could barely noticed the difference. The Packers defense is getting better each week and once Matthews, Woodson and Shields come back, they will only get better.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers showed once again to the NFL, he's clutch, whether his resume has minimal fourth quarter comebacks on it or not.

While the offense struggled, the critics can once again, “Shhhhhh…” when it comes to quarterback Aaron Rodgers and not being clutch in crunch time.

First off, the man has a Super Bowl, a Super Bowl MVP and a regular season MVP, so the thought of this being brought up is flat out preposterous, but it has been. Rodgers does not have the fourth quarter comebacks on his resume, so what, the guy wins. It is not his fault he has the lead in the fourth quarter, that he wins the first three quarters and only needs to hold on in the fourth quarter.

He’s not Eli Manning, he does not need to clean up his own mess, Rodgers is the best in the NFL, he showed it last year. No quarterback has put the ball in the endzone like Rodgers and it’ll be hard pressed to find anyone else who does it the way he does. Rodgers is a once in a life time athlete at the quarterback position and we continue to watch greatness grow from the large shadow of Brett Favre.

So enjoy watching the guy, he’s having as much fun as the old gunslinger and is just as fun to watch, because the last drives to put the Packers in the lead and give them breathing room is something Rodgers could do from day one.

A few other notes, it’s hard to imagine the Packers offense being scarier then last seasons, but they have a shot to be even more terrifying when wide receiver Greg Jennings comes back.

Wide receiver Randall Cobb has been a stud this season and continues to do it all, with Jennings, Jordy Nelson and James Jones on the outsides and the potentially reemerging tight end Jermichael Finley all clicking; the NFL’s defenses better start worrying.

So as it stands this Packers team is comparing to the 2010 Super Bowl winners, but they are not that team, they’re better. They are more explosive on offense and have a better defense. It is up to them to get healthy and on the same page. Once that happens, they may be headed for a Super Bowl run.

The Green Bay Packers highly touted offense has been sub-par so far this season, well, compared to last year. That is besides the point though as the Packers offense still is potent and capable of going from zero to 60 like a Lamborghini Aventador at any point in time.

Coming off the bye week the Packers finally had a chance to get healthy and while they may have lost starters Nick Perry and Brian Bulaga for the season during the bye week, they are getting some players to return from injury.

That list will not include linebacker Clay Matthews, who was ruled out this weekend, or defensive back Sam Shields, who started practicing again this week. While Matthews has been ruled out, it is not a for sure thing that Shields will not be able to go on Sunday at this current time.

However the list does include wide receiver Jordy Nelson and defensive lineman Jerel Worthy. While the Packers receiving core has preformed well with the absence of Greg Jennings and Nelson, they will be ecstatic to have Nelson back in the lineup to help pressure the weak secondary of the Detroit Lions. On a side note Jennings has started running again and doing minimal work in practices, so his return looks to be in the near future.

Eric Walden should play a big role against the Detroit Lions with the absence of Clay Matthews

Even though Nelson has been the bigger impact this season, the Packers need Worthy to come back and make an impact with Matthews out. Worthy has been playing solid football, but he needs to become more consistent to become a dominate force in the trenches. If he can continue to grow at the end of this season, it will make the absence of Matthews much easier to handle.

His strong play started after his suspension he served for domestic battery charges he faced last year. Since he’s came back he has been playing solid football in and even stepped in to replace Perry once he went down with his knee injury. Walden has one sack and one interception on the season, but is capable of getting sack in bunches, just ask the Chicago Bears.

As for the game itself, it should be a good one. The Packers have almost a better record in domes then they do at Lambeau Field. They are also 12-1 in their last 13 meetings with the Lions, the one loss coming in 2010 when quarterback Aaron Rodgers was knocked out of the game with a concussion.

Aaron Rodgers normally has a big smile on his face, but he may have a bigger smile on his face this weekend as he heads to Ford Field to face the weak secondary of the Detroit Lions this Sunday

 The Lions defense is not anything special and their offense has had the roar of a cub named Simba from the Lion King. So on paper this game looks like a wash, but like the cliche says, “That’s why they play the game.”

The Packers are going to do what they do best and throw the ball. Expect there to be at least one trick type play with them coming off the bye week. I also fully expect wide receiver Randall Cobb to pick up where he left off and continue his pace for the NFL record of most all-purpose yards for the season.

Rodgers may have his best game of the season and get the Packers rolling towards the playoff push they desperately need. The Lions get captive in the cage known as Ford Field and lose this one to the Packers. The final score 38-20.

Bold Prediction: Packers continue to get after the opposing teams quarterbacks and have a four-plus sack game, yes, without Matthews. Lions new question should be, “Where’s Walden?”