Rocket Hawk
Cheesehead
Also I'll make one final point about attacking the Hawks' defense. It seems like everyone assumes that the Hawks have a fearsome pass rush. They don't. It's not bad mind you, better than Dallas' pass rush. Their QB sacks is pretty modest, Avril is their top guy for sacks and hurries. They are up there in QB hurries, but not near the top. Yet many are expecting that Rodgers is going to be under all sorts of pressure. That ignores how much the Packers OL has improved, especially in pass protection.
A smart game plan combining Lacy running, quick passes and play actions could keep the Hawks defense off balance enough not to let them get to Rodgers very much.
I don't like screens at all against Seattle, they're so fast on defense. They don't have a crazy blitzing line and the linebackers flow to the ball better than anybody. we might get one or 2, but i just think they're too fast along the line and in the 2nd level to expect that to gain much. a WR screen? I like that idea better
Eddie needs to find the crease and hit it quickly, no dance. You hit that nail on the head. I think Starks and Lacy are going to be used a lot in this game. As long as Rodgers is upright and somewhat mobile, I think we'll be able to move the ball. It's going to come down to penalties and turnovers again on offense. If we play cleanly, I like our chances. If not, well good luck.
on Defense, they run and run and run and the score is always close and they always have a lead. Then later in the game the defense gambles, rush and wilson scrambles and hits the big play. We need an early lead, and the defense needs to play with Discipline when he breaks contain.
Quoted both of you for TRUTH.
SEA pass rush is all about speed around the edges and occasionally stunts from those same fast guys. Michael Bennett is the only guy who gets regularly double teamed, but he is worthy of it on every play. Carroll wants the ball, and he feels like a QB under pressure throwing into his ultra-talented secondary is the way to that. But as stated above somewhere, long down and distance i.e. from a sack or penalty is where SEA tastes blood in the water.
The short passing game is the way to attack Seattle, but - and this is a big one: those guys need to get down after the catch. Seattle has a habit of standing up the receiver and trying to beat the ball off of them like a piñata. They are absolutely trained to do that. It causes 3 things: 1- fumbles, 2- injuries/concussions, 3- most important the receivers start to think twice about the next catch over the middle. Whether they want to or not, after you have been drilled by a missile in your kidney, you might just have a twinge of doubt about that next catch. So take what you can and get down.
Obviously if you can get runs up the gut of the D, that get you 5 yards on 1st down you can beat them that way, but that is true of every team in the NFL, even the #1 defense. This is usually a coaching thing, if GB is getting 4-5 ypc on first down, MM needs to stick with it. We see all too often coaches outsmarting themselves and even though their team covered 35 yards on 7 plays, they throw 2 incompletions in a row, and end up 3rd and long against SEA which is really hard to convert.
Regarding screens, yeah - don't do them. They are too fast for the screen game, but WR screens can work if you make that first block. RS#25 is a really good tackler, so the blocking needs to be there if you go his way.
SEA has the deepest roster in the NFL, thanks to John Schneider. BUT they CAN be beat in several ways, just less ways than every other team.