Best game I've seen Brett play in years. Him and the scheme on offense were the differences today. So long as Brett is willing to throw to the TEs and RBs, the Packers can win a lot of games.
QB: What can ya say? Brett looked like outstanding out there today. He got time to throw the ball, was accurate on those 5-10 yard passes and I didn't count any forced throws. Awesome job.
RB: Not much you can do when there isn't a hole to run through. The DEs lived in the backfield and Pierce was a force. What they did do well was catch the ball out of the backfield and made for safe check downs for Brett. Not a lot of big plays, but enough to keep the defense relatively honest. In terms of running, I'm not a huge fan of Jackson yet. He dances before he gets to the line, whereas Green used hit the hole with everything he has. Wynn should have won the job with today's effort. Looked like another 42, John Brockington. Once he's in full game shape he might be an answer at halfback.
WR: Brett didn't really go up the field much, and if you know me you know how much I appreciated it. Dink and dunk. Maybe it's boring and conservative but I liked it. I thought they should have kept up with it even into late in the fourth. Jones had some nice catches, not just on the 40 yarder. He's got some great hands and when he grabs the ball he looks to get upfield. Driver was his usual sure-handed self and was able to get pretty open when he went underneath the coverage.
TE: Maybe the stars of the game. No drops, made the tough catches in traffic and caught two tough TDs with defenders draped all over them. I think they can be effective in this system. No, they won't ever be deep, explosive threats. But if they can catch the ball underneath the coverage they'll be good for Brett. He needs safe options, not excuses to throw the ball 30 yards up the field.
OL: Well, they gave Brett all day today, not that he needed it. Still didn't get ANY lanes open on the run but it wasn't as horrendous as last week. With a runner that hit the holes harder I think the run blocking is more effective (Wynn). I thought the fact that they kept Brett upright all day was a HUGE story of the game.
DL: Didn't get the pass-rush that they did last week but they still collapsed the packed well. I thought their depth was very apparent. At the end of the game when the Giants were looking tired on their D-Line, ours was looking better than they did in the first half. Whoever said that the Packers would be a 4th quarter team was right. You have to love the depth on that line.
LB: Solid, not spectacular. At time I think they looked more like thugs that didn't know fundamentals rather than technicians that did the little things right. Hawk was sloppy in coverage and Barnett played out of control on occasion. At the end of the game I thought they played more on emotion and tried to intimidate the beaten Giants than finish playing smart football. The trash talking could have stayed in Green Bay.
DBs: Good job all around IMO. Woodson had the ugly fall down and mis-tackle, but considering the explosiveness of Shockey and Burress, they did a nice job containing both. Story of the day with these guys was bend but not break. Had the Giants made a few plays they maybe should have, this could have been a different game. But they didn't and the DB's made them pay for it with a lot of swarming tackles.
Special teams: Not much you can say for Crosby or Ryan. We didn't punt a lot and Mason missed his only attempt. Coverage, again, was excellent though and again, they jarred the ball lose on a return. I LOVE seeing that.
Great win. Congrats Brett on #149!
