Official Week 2 Green Bay vs Atlanta Thread

Ill say this, this game has a lot of buzz and feels almost like a playoff game. Its been awhile that a week 2 game got me this fired up for. I think we will learn a lot sunday evening.
 
This is going to be an interesting test of the development of this team. We've had a few primetime games in recent memory when we've come out as a bit of a dud - last year @Minny in Week 2 and @Washington in Week 11, @Denver in 2015, etc. Our offense also didn't look particularly sharp in Week 1 (though we were playing Seattle).

I'd love for us to blow Atlanta out - a 45-10 shellacking or something - just to reassert our authority over that franchise.


The team coming out like a deer in headlights in big games/prime time games, especially on the road has always been a Mike McCarthy trademark.It's one of McCarthy's defining traits as an NFL head coach.
I first noticed this after the Monday night game against Favre and the Vikings way back 2009,huge game and the Packers came out flat,then responded in the re-match a month later by getting down 24-3 in the first qtr at Lambeau.

It doesn't happen every time, but I always get nervous that the Packers are going to come out like deer in headlights on the road in either a big game or a prime time game.
 
We might be in trouble if Bulaga and Bak can't play or play hurt. Thankfully Atlanta's D isn't as stout as Seattle's.
 
We might be in trouble if Bulaga and Bak can't play or play hurt. Thankfully Atlanta's D isn't as stout as Seattle's.

Both were out and their D looked a bit more stout. Bad combo. Result was a loss. Only 2nd game. 14 more to go.
 
Falcons 34 Packers 23 - My pick was Falcons 38, Packers 24. My reasons were simple. I thought that a 125 yards rushing between Freeman and Coleman would give the Falcons enough of a run game to force the Packers to play tighter on the line of scrimmage. They got 126 yards between them. I said that Jones and Sanu would be a problem. The reason? Because of the running game. They were. Over 180 yards receiving between them. The Falcons can score points, and you need to accept that fact. You just need to learn to score more to stay with them. Sound familiar? It should. It's the exact same thing the Packers have done with Rodgers, since the day he took the field as our starter. Put points on the board, and hope the other guy can't match it.

Despite the rah-rah about our tackles, it was a foregone conclusion that neither would play. Daniels should have been held out too, now his injury is probably worse. Brice is pretty much in the same situation. Causing injuries to worsen by playing guys that shouldn't be on the field is not the way you coach. Now we can add Jordy to the injury list, and I think we're going to find out he was already injured, and worsened it, by playing.

I'll give McCarthy a lot of credit for how they came out of the gate on offense. They did a lot to keep heat off Rodgers, until they fell two scores behind. The problem is, that abbreviated offense doesn't put up a lot of points, and quite honestly, our defense played fairly decently, considering the opposition, and injuries. What was scary is that the Packers offense became predictable during the second half, and Rodgers was a huge target, and took some pretty hard hits.

This was destined to be one of those games where you look back and evaluate what you gained from it. You have two OTs who may be part of the Packer future get playing time. They didn't do great, but they weren't totally owned either. They showed "potential." You need that as you move forward, because they'll work harder in practice, knowing they could get in games again, real soon. The team learned that without Daniels, even the blitz packages don't work. It's that inside pressure he offers, and the large number of double teams he takes on, that makes the rest work. We need someone who can move piles like him, when he's not on point.

Did anyone else see a change in Rodgers demeanor during the game? It's almost like he went into a Jay Cutler state of mind. Don't be fooled by that comeback at the end. It was all yardage handed to them by the Falcons. As for Martellus Bennett, he either starts hanging onto the ball, or give Kendricks that same shot.
 
Good assessment TW. My doom and gloom last night seems a bit better today. There are positives, as you point out, but these injuries could loom large as the season progresses.
 
Although I agree with your assessment of the game TW, Daniels went out with a hamstring. He didn't have a hamstring issue going into the game. It was reported as a hip issue. No way to know if they are related or the hip caused the hammy but I don't think that is the issue.
 
Although I agree with your assessment of the game TW, Daniels went out with a hamstring. He didn't have a hamstring issue going into the game. It was reported as a hip issue. No way to know if they are related or the hip caused the hammy but I don't think that is the issue.

Actually a high hamstring injury will manifest itself in the hip, not the leg. It can be misconstrued as a soft tissue hip injury. But, based on the details I had, and how Daniels plays, and his size, I was pretty certain it was a serious problem and he should have been held out. I hope it wasn't made worse, so he misses a lot of time. I remember how much time was lost by Matthews over the years.
 
When I saw all the injuries going in to the game, I didn't even watch it. Same thing every year and the Packers don't change a thing with their trainers and/or training methods. How many times do they have to go through this??? Figure it out already! It's only the 2nd game and half the team is hurt already! Ridiculous... bh(rant)DHH(
 
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