Devastating Loss

That loss may go down as the most devastating of the season. That loss may well be the difference between 9-7 and 8-8, between a wildcard playoff berth and a bubble team eliminated in the final two weeks. It's not as if we played THAT awfully; every aspect of the game other than the offensive line and special teams performed respectably. we doubled their total yards, had 4 long TD drives to their 1 (their 4 others were set up by big special teams/defense). But all great teams must find wways to win those close games late, and all good teams should be able to beat the Buccaneers, even on the road. We could play the Bucs the next 10 weeks and win every one of them, but that's not what happened on Sunday and we can't get that game back.

That doesn't mean we should give up on the season. We are 4-4, and still have 5 home games left. The remainder of our schedule is full of "either way" games, the kind you wouldn't want to bet one way or the other on because we could definetly win but could also definetly lose. The rest of our schedule featues the Cowboys, 49ers, Lions, Ravens, Bears, Steelers, Seahawks, and Cardinals. That features way fewer cakewalk games than our first half, and it is easy to envision us finishing with a losing record. However I don't see any games on that schedule which we couldn't win.

If we are to win any of them, we must fix the o-line. 6 more sacks on Rodgers yesterday and far more hurries. Tauscher reinjured his knee, Clifton wasn't particularly effective in his return, and Spitz is now out for the season. I don't know how to do it, but if we can't block the Buccaneers we sure as hell can't block Demarcus Ware without serious improvement. Until that's fixed I'd advise Rodgers/McCarthy to stop looking downfeild so much and start to do some quick, short passes. This could utilize our excellent WR core by allowing for more YAC opportunities, make the o-line not have to hold their blocks for so long, eliminate long down-and-distance plays, stretch the feild horizontally to allow more up the gut rushing, and protect Rodgers from the wear and tear of 5+ sacks a game. If we can't pass block, that, Grant, and our defense may be the keys to Sunday's showdown.

If we win, our season is right back on track and we have a signature victory to build on. If not, we'll have lost 3 straight, be 4-5 with tough games coming up, and the best team we'll have beated would be the Bears. This is another make or break game on Sunday.