WEBVTT - #343 Packers Unscripted: Keys to victory 0:00:00.760 --> 0:00:20.680 Hi, everyone, Welcome to Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com. 0:00:20.760 --> 0:00:23.799 I am Mike Spofford, joined as always by my trusted 0:00:23.840 --> 0:00:26.800 colleague West Hodkuits. We're coming to you here from our 0:00:26.840 --> 0:00:29.440 studios at lambeau Field West. It is our Friday show, 0:00:29.480 --> 0:00:31.400 our last show of the week, and I actually should 0:00:31.400 --> 0:00:34.320 begin this show with a little programming note. With the 0:00:34.360 --> 0:00:37.680 Packers going on their bye week after the Monday night 0:00:37.720 --> 0:00:40.880 game against the San Francisco forty Niners, we are going 0:00:40.920 --> 0:00:43.199 to go dark for about a week because West has 0:00:43.240 --> 0:00:45.519 some time off, I have some time off, and instead 0:00:45.520 --> 0:00:47.640 of having one of us sit here at the desk 0:00:47.680 --> 0:00:49.760 and talk to the camera, we're just gonna take a 0:00:49.760 --> 0:00:51.919 bit of a break and we will be back with 0:00:51.960 --> 0:00:56.080 more Packers Unscripted after the bye weekend. So all of 0:00:56.120 --> 0:00:57.920 that out of the way, West, there is a game 0:00:57.960 --> 0:01:00.520 Monday night at lambeau Field Packers again, it's the forty 0:01:00.640 --> 0:01:03.360 Niners and it's our Keys to Victory show. So where 0:01:03.360 --> 0:01:04.880 do you want to start with this one? I'm gonna 0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:06.800 go to something that we talked about it this week, 0:01:06.800 --> 0:01:09.679 but I thought Kyle Shanahan had his conference call with 0:01:09.720 --> 0:01:12.720 Packers reporters on Thursday and to be honest with you, Mike, 0:01:12.800 --> 0:01:14.840 and and I've been doing this now for six seven, 0:01:14.880 --> 0:01:17.320 eight years with these conference calls, it was probably one 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:18.720 of the best I think I've been a part of 0:01:18.800 --> 0:01:21.600 in terms of an opposing coach. He hit it right 0:01:21.600 --> 0:01:23.560 on the head. It comes down to takeaways, and it 0:01:23.600 --> 0:01:26.280 comes down to giveaways and right now, that is what's 0:01:26.280 --> 0:01:29.319 really hurting his football team. Now, it would be really easy, 0:01:29.360 --> 0:01:31.360 as he said, you know, they look at the situation 0:01:31.360 --> 0:01:34.040 they're in. They lose Jerick McKinnon, they lose Jimmy Garoppolo. 0:01:34.120 --> 0:01:36.000 They don't know if they're gonna have that breeder this week. 0:01:36.760 --> 0:01:39.200 But the fact is they have to protect the football 0:01:39.200 --> 0:01:40.560 and they have not done a good job of that 0:01:40.680 --> 0:01:42.679 the last couple of weeks. Minus eight and termin over 0:01:42.680 --> 0:01:46.800 differential after that loss against Arizona played a big role 0:01:46.840 --> 0:01:49.600 in then falling behind and and losing that game. And 0:01:49.640 --> 0:01:51.920 on the same token, the Green Bay Packers, Mike McCarthy 0:01:51.920 --> 0:01:53.760 talked about it all week. They have to do a 0:01:53.760 --> 0:01:56.720 better job of protecting the football. It's the number one 0:01:56.760 --> 0:01:59.400 thing in this matchup. Who is the team that wins 0:01:59.440 --> 0:02:02.160 the turnover margin, wins the turnover battle. I think that's 0:02:02.160 --> 0:02:04.240 a team that leaves landbou Field with the victory. Yeah. 0:02:04.240 --> 0:02:06.080 I think that's what it comes down to as well, 0:02:06.120 --> 0:02:08.720 based on what these two teams are now focusing on, 0:02:08.840 --> 0:02:11.359 and with the Packers, it's not only protecting the football, 0:02:11.400 --> 0:02:15.400 but it's finding some more ways to take the football away. 0:02:15.440 --> 0:02:18.079 On defense, now, you can get yourself in trouble a 0:02:18.160 --> 0:02:20.320 little bit. You know. I talked to Tremont Williams about 0:02:20.360 --> 0:02:22.280 this the other day in the locker room, because I've 0:02:22.320 --> 0:02:24.720 heard from over the years from guys like Nick Collins, 0:02:24.800 --> 0:02:28.560 Charles Woodson, when a defense is not getting the turnovers 0:02:28.560 --> 0:02:31.399 that it wants, you can have a tendency to try 0:02:31.440 --> 0:02:34.280 to chase and make things happen, and that's where you 0:02:34.360 --> 0:02:37.320 get in trouble. And I think Tremont Williams, a veteran 0:02:37.360 --> 0:02:39.800 presence in that secondary, knows that you can't try to 0:02:39.840 --> 0:02:41.960 force it with the turnovers, at least in terms of 0:02:42.280 --> 0:02:45.480 interceptions and whatnot, because if if you blow your assignment 0:02:45.520 --> 0:02:48.400 because you're chasing a place somewhere else, that can really 0:02:48.400 --> 0:02:50.720 really get the defense in trouble. So you have to 0:02:50.720 --> 0:02:53.440 be careful there. But that being said, he also talked about, 0:02:54.360 --> 0:02:57.160 you know, gang tackling to the ball, get to where 0:02:57.200 --> 0:02:59.840 you're holding up that ball carrier, that receiver, and then 0:03:00.000 --> 0:03:01.600 it in there and try to strip the ball out. 0:03:01.639 --> 0:03:03.560 You know, the first guy who gets there can't try 0:03:03.560 --> 0:03:05.600 to strip the ball out because that's how you miss tackles. 0:03:05.639 --> 0:03:08.200 But it's it's a team effort here. And I'll be 0:03:08.240 --> 0:03:10.560 curious to see just how the Packers sort of put 0:03:10.800 --> 0:03:14.799 all of that focus and emphasis into practice on Monday night. Yeah, 0:03:14.800 --> 0:03:16.840 and I'm glad you brought that up too, because again 0:03:16.880 --> 0:03:18.880 the forty niners are dealing with the same thing. They 0:03:18.880 --> 0:03:22.200 only have one interception this season. Uh And as you 0:03:22.200 --> 0:03:24.640 know Kyle Shanahan was talking about, Yeah, they've they've given 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:26.720 the ball away too much, but they haven't gotten enough 0:03:26.760 --> 0:03:29.600 takeaways to make up for it either. So uh, that 0:03:29.600 --> 0:03:31.399 that is the big thing we heard it all these years. 0:03:31.480 --> 0:03:33.240 Darren Perry used to talk about it too. You have 0:03:33.320 --> 0:03:36.240 to be you know, fundamental, You have to trust your 0:03:36.240 --> 0:03:38.800 technique and make the plays when they're available to you 0:03:39.280 --> 0:03:41.560 and not you know, leave your your place on the 0:03:41.600 --> 0:03:44.600 field just to you know, seek glory. So uh, I've 0:03:44.640 --> 0:03:46.920 seen exactly how that shuffles out. Is gonna be really 0:03:46.920 --> 0:03:49.480 interesting to watch. And then conversely for the Packers defense, 0:03:49.880 --> 0:03:52.080 I mean, the stats don't line Mike. Last week they 0:03:52.120 --> 0:03:55.560 had for all four their outside rushers were not able 0:03:55.560 --> 0:03:57.880 to get to the quarterback, and they got a change 0:03:57.880 --> 0:04:00.960 that this week. C J. Beathard has two fumbles lost, 0:04:01.000 --> 0:04:04.760 he's had four interceptions. You can there is an opportunity 0:04:04.760 --> 0:04:06.960 there if you can get some pressure on him. We 0:04:06.960 --> 0:04:09.480 talked about it last week with Matthew Stafford. The type 0:04:09.480 --> 0:04:11.680 of quarterback he is, you need to keep his feet hot. 0:04:11.680 --> 0:04:13.360 They were not able to do that. He was able 0:04:13.360 --> 0:04:15.920 to make enough plays. Now you look at this matchup 0:04:15.920 --> 0:04:18.600 with San Francisco, it's going to be imperative for them 0:04:18.600 --> 0:04:21.400 to rush that play cock because they are a very 0:04:21.520 --> 0:04:24.440 unconventional offense with how they use their tight end, how 0:04:24.480 --> 0:04:27.200 they use their fullback, and they're going to continue to 0:04:27.240 --> 0:04:29.880 do things a little bit unusual with all the other 0:04:29.920 --> 0:04:32.320 injuries that they've occurred at their other skill positions. Yeah, 0:04:32.320 --> 0:04:35.440 when you talk about turnovers, the way you create bad 0:04:35.480 --> 0:04:39.120 throws in this league is with pressure, with disrupting the quarterback. Obviously, 0:04:39.160 --> 0:04:41.320 the Packers had some issues earlier in the year with 0:04:41.360 --> 0:04:43.160 the roughing the passer and all that. We don't need 0:04:43.200 --> 0:04:45.960 to revisit that. But when you when you can get 0:04:46.480 --> 0:04:48.560 when you can get the quarterback off the spot, when 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:50.800 you can hurry him, when you can disrupt his timing, 0:04:51.080 --> 0:04:53.240 that's when the throws become errant. That's when a throw 0:04:53.320 --> 0:04:55.599 goes behind the receiver or above a receipt you know, 0:04:55.680 --> 0:04:58.680 too high, and then your defensive back is there with 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:00.359 a chance to get his hands on the ball and 0:05:00.400 --> 0:05:02.400 make a play. So that's how these things are going 0:05:02.440 --> 0:05:04.960 to happen. But in terms of maybe some more of 0:05:04.960 --> 0:05:08.080 those fundamentals on defense, I see this one as you 0:05:08.200 --> 0:05:11.320 have to find a way to contain George Kittle this 0:05:11.440 --> 0:05:13.839 tight end for the San Francisco forty Niners. He leads 0:05:13.880 --> 0:05:17.760 them in past receptions and yardage by a pretty significant margin. 0:05:18.200 --> 0:05:20.120 Now they find different ways to get him the ball. 0:05:20.200 --> 0:05:22.360 He's not just a middle scene guy at tight end. 0:05:22.400 --> 0:05:25.440 He'll run corner routes, they'll run screens for him, They'll 0:05:25.520 --> 0:05:27.840 run him anywhere on the field in order to get 0:05:27.920 --> 0:05:31.360 him the ball. He's becoming a pretty dynamic playmaker for them. 0:05:31.800 --> 0:05:34.760 I think if you can, if you can contain Kittle 0:05:34.800 --> 0:05:39.040 in the passing game, I think Bethard might have some difficulty, 0:05:39.120 --> 0:05:42.200 you know, finding a consistent rhythm with his offense because 0:05:42.200 --> 0:05:44.080 I think he really relies on this title. I thought 0:05:44.160 --> 0:05:46.239 this was probably one of the better questions I've received 0:05:46.240 --> 0:05:49.279 this season. On Insider Inbox this week, somebody asking how 0:05:49.320 --> 0:05:52.440 many players have entered the league. Uh, you know, it's 0:05:52.480 --> 0:05:55.600 in the same draft class, the same Combo and Iowa 0:05:55.640 --> 0:05:58.160 that they were being able to reunite with the San 0:05:58.160 --> 0:06:01.280 Francisco forty Niners. I didn't really think of many. The one, 0:06:01.320 --> 0:06:02.960 I guess kind of came to mind was like Casey 0:06:03.000 --> 0:06:06.320 Hayward in Sean Richardson, I guess, I mean, if you 0:06:06.360 --> 0:06:08.880 really want to dig deep, Andy Malumba and Alex Gillette 0:06:08.920 --> 0:06:10.800 came in the same class. Is there anyone that you 0:06:10.920 --> 0:06:13.480 that you thought of when you're well with the Packers 0:06:13.480 --> 0:06:17.240 and their Stanford guys Martinez and Murphy were drafted. Now, 0:06:17.279 --> 0:06:19.719 that's different sides of the ball. That's one guy on defense, 0:06:19.760 --> 0:06:22.280 one guy on offense. But yeah, it is. I mean, 0:06:22.480 --> 0:06:24.760 there are a handful around the league. But I think 0:06:24.800 --> 0:06:28.080 what's unique about this is that it's a quarterback pass catcher, 0:06:28.400 --> 0:06:32.000 you know, quarterback tight end combination here that these guys 0:06:32.040 --> 0:06:35.640 played together. They're they're doing exactly together what they did 0:06:35.640 --> 0:06:38.320 in college, you know what they're doing now in the NFL. Yeah, 0:06:38.320 --> 0:06:40.599 And it's just it's it's so interesting too because listen 0:06:40.680 --> 0:06:42.599 to Kyle Shanahan talked. The thing that they really like 0:06:42.640 --> 0:06:44.680 about Kittle is, Okay, you can look at his receiving 0:06:44.720 --> 0:06:47.000 yards this year, you can look at his production last 0:06:47.040 --> 0:06:49.000 year when he kind of jumped on the scene, but 0:06:49.240 --> 0:06:51.599 it's what he does when he does not getting the ball. 0:06:51.640 --> 0:06:54.920 They feel like he's a traditional, you know, blocker in 0:06:54.920 --> 0:06:57.040 that position. He does all the little things you want 0:06:57.120 --> 0:06:59.599 right out of the tight end. He seems like he's 0:06:59.600 --> 0:07:01.760 on pace to become a real big playmaker in this league. 0:07:01.800 --> 0:07:04.560 And certainly they have a familiar with with Bethard he 0:07:04.640 --> 0:07:07.440 started i think five six games whatever it was last year. 0:07:07.960 --> 0:07:10.560 He has that rapport with Kittle. It seems like he's 0:07:10.600 --> 0:07:12.480 been able to generate that rapport with the with the 0:07:12.480 --> 0:07:16.240 guys around him in that offensive front and seeing what 0:07:16.360 --> 0:07:19.600 he can do to generate those opportunities against the Packers defense. 0:07:20.040 --> 0:07:22.280 Is I think ultimately going to be what the forty 0:07:22.360 --> 0:07:25.200 Niners are looking to accomplish in this game. The Packers 0:07:25.280 --> 0:07:28.160 task is that, Okay, if you do have Kevin King available. 0:07:28.200 --> 0:07:29.760 It looks like he's gonna be good to go despite 0:07:29.760 --> 0:07:33.640 the chin injury. You have maybe potentially JayR Alexander back. 0:07:33.720 --> 0:07:36.160 Sounds like the Packers are high on him. You know. 0:07:36.400 --> 0:07:40.280 Bashad Brylan's practicing this week. Jermaine Whitehead came back this week. 0:07:40.320 --> 0:07:42.840 He could be a really important piece to this If 0:07:42.840 --> 0:07:45.040 you have all your weapons available in the secondary, that's 0:07:45.040 --> 0:07:47.360 gonna be the easiest way for this Packers defense to 0:07:47.360 --> 0:07:49.680 be able to come back. Kittle. Yeah. Well, the other 0:07:50.000 --> 0:07:51.800 the other thing that I see as a big key 0:07:51.840 --> 0:07:53.800 to this game, and really it applies to both sides 0:07:53.840 --> 0:07:56.160 the ball for the Packers, and that's penalties. And we've 0:07:56.160 --> 0:07:58.560 been talking about it during the week how the Packers 0:07:58.560 --> 0:08:00.840 have been hurting themselves with penalty season West. You know, 0:08:01.240 --> 0:08:04.239 you look at these two road losses, which are really 0:08:04.320 --> 0:08:06.600 kind of the sore thumb type of games, you know 0:08:06.720 --> 0:08:10.480 here for the Packers Washington and Detroit. In Washington, on 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:12.400 the defensive side of the ball, you had the one 0:08:12.520 --> 0:08:15.440 drive with just kind of the slew of past interference 0:08:15.520 --> 0:08:18.520 defensive holding where everybody's technique kind of went out the 0:08:18.520 --> 0:08:21.680 window on one drive and just handed Washington, a whole 0:08:21.720 --> 0:08:24.680 bunch of yards on the offensive side of the ball. 0:08:24.720 --> 0:08:26.680 In that game, you had a bunch of penalties as 0:08:26.680 --> 0:08:29.480 well that were affecting down and distance. The Packers sitting 0:08:29.520 --> 0:08:31.840 in second and twenty and third longs and all that 0:08:31.920 --> 0:08:34.520 because of penalties putting them behind the sticks. Then you 0:08:34.559 --> 0:08:37.600 go to the Detroit game. The penalties on special teams 0:08:38.000 --> 0:08:41.400 affected field position throughout that game. The Packers starting so 0:08:41.440 --> 0:08:43.960 many drives at the twelve or the fifteen yard line 0:08:44.000 --> 0:08:46.920 because of penalties on special things. One wiping out a 0:08:46.920 --> 0:08:49.200 big long kickoff return that would have been a potential 0:08:49.400 --> 0:08:53.400 momentum shift there for Green Bay. And then the penalties 0:08:53.400 --> 0:08:55.400 on the defensive side. You had a face mask, you 0:08:55.440 --> 0:08:58.400 had a taunting. You know, these fifteen yard chunks that 0:08:58.440 --> 0:09:01.000 you're handing the other team with the yellow flags. If 0:09:01.040 --> 0:09:04.040 the Packers can clean up the technique and just clean 0:09:04.160 --> 0:09:06.440 up that part of their game, I think they make 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:08.920 their own lives so much easier because they're gonna make 0:09:08.960 --> 0:09:11.520 life more difficult for their opponent. And here's the thing, Mike, 0:09:11.640 --> 0:09:13.680 you know this, I know this. No team in the 0:09:13.760 --> 0:09:16.040 history of the National Football League has ever gone a 0:09:16.160 --> 0:09:19.680 season without a penalty. They happen. They're gonna catch some 0:09:19.720 --> 0:09:23.320 bad breaks. Clay Matthews caught a brad break Lane Taylor 0:09:23.400 --> 0:09:25.199 on his holding call, which to me still looks like 0:09:25.200 --> 0:09:27.920 a pancake all those weeks ago. Was a bad break. 0:09:28.559 --> 0:09:30.880 Those situations are going to happen. But it's the ones 0:09:30.960 --> 0:09:35.319 that you can control. Taunting penalties to some extent, the 0:09:35.440 --> 0:09:38.800 unnecessary roughness stuff to some extent, and there's a varying 0:09:39.000 --> 0:09:41.480 degree of definition on that now. But but blocking in 0:09:41.480 --> 0:09:44.520 the back on a party kickoff return, that's an avoidable penalty. 0:09:44.960 --> 0:09:47.760 That that that's about discipline, and those kinds of things 0:09:48.200 --> 0:09:51.880 can't continue to happen because putting Aaron Rodgers on the 0:09:51.920 --> 0:09:54.720 thirty yard line versus putting them on the fifteen yard line, 0:09:54.920 --> 0:09:57.520 the percentages of a scoring drive go way up. I mean, 0:09:57.520 --> 0:10:00.120 it's it's like you know the Revolutionary War, right, Do 0:10:00.160 --> 0:10:01.760 you want to have your cannon ball at the back 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:03.600 of the line. Do you want to have it out 0:10:03.600 --> 0:10:06.040 in the front. Honestly, you want to have that thing 0:10:06.080 --> 0:10:08.320 on the front. You want to make some noise. That's 0:10:08.360 --> 0:10:10.120 the thing that Aaron Rodgers gives you. You can give 0:10:10.160 --> 0:10:12.480 them feel position. We've seen it, Mike, you can go 0:10:12.520 --> 0:10:15.400 back over the years since two thousand nine, at least 0:10:15.400 --> 0:10:17.360 the times in which the Packers have gotten the ball 0:10:17.400 --> 0:10:20.360 to Aaron Rodgers off a turnover on defense, How often 0:10:20.400 --> 0:10:22.920 that equates two points? How often that equates to victory. 0:10:23.160 --> 0:10:25.600 The same thing holds true on special teams. And you 0:10:25.600 --> 0:10:27.640 look at the years like thirteen and fourteen, some of 0:10:27.640 --> 0:10:30.120 the players that Micah Hyde made, some of the plays 0:10:30.120 --> 0:10:32.800 that you know, uh, you know Trevor Davis made last year, 0:10:32.800 --> 0:10:35.959 and these returns, time Montgomery has had his moments. Those 0:10:36.000 --> 0:10:39.600 things all help your bottom line. So, yeah, it's something 0:10:39.600 --> 0:10:41.080 you have to clean up. I know it's gonna be 0:10:41.080 --> 0:10:43.560 heavy emphasis. Fundamentals are so important to this team, in 0:10:43.559 --> 0:10:46.200 this franchise, So you would think that that's something that 0:10:46.240 --> 0:10:48.480 the Packers are really heavily preaching this week as they 0:10:48.520 --> 0:10:51.240 go into a game against the San fran Francisco forty Niners, 0:10:51.280 --> 0:10:54.439 which I'm always hesitant to call anything I must win 0:10:54.440 --> 0:10:56.480 in the first eight weeks of the season because of 0:10:56.480 --> 0:11:00.120 two thousand and sixteen in particular, but it is a 0:11:00.240 --> 0:11:02.599 critical game at a critical time that could change the 0:11:02.679 --> 0:11:05.080 narrative going into this bye week. Yeah, I agree with you. 0:11:05.120 --> 0:11:06.920 I think this is this is as close to a 0:11:07.000 --> 0:11:09.280 must win as you get in the middle of October, 0:11:09.679 --> 0:11:11.880 just based on where the Packers are right now, the 0:11:11.920 --> 0:11:14.360 way they've had their ups and downs, the way they're playing, 0:11:14.600 --> 0:11:16.520 and then with what you have on the schedule coming 0:11:16.600 --> 0:11:18.680 up after the bye week. Now, we heard from quarterback 0:11:18.679 --> 0:11:22.600 Aaron Rodgers after practice on Thursday, and he didn't make 0:11:22.640 --> 0:11:26.360 any you know, grand run the Table pronouncements or anything 0:11:26.440 --> 0:11:30.120 like that, but he did say he doesn't feel like 0:11:30.160 --> 0:11:33.240 this team is that far off and and what he 0:11:33.280 --> 0:11:35.440 feels and it's another thing that we've talked about that 0:11:35.480 --> 0:11:37.679 everybody in the Packers locker room has talked about, is 0:11:37.960 --> 0:11:40.800 getting past these slow starts and starting games faster. And 0:11:40.920 --> 0:11:44.280 Rogers basically said something very similar to what he said 0:11:44.320 --> 0:11:47.360 two years ago in the whole run the Table thing 0:11:47.720 --> 0:11:51.640 late in is that if the offense gets off to 0:11:51.720 --> 0:11:54.200 a faster start and can take a lead, can get 0:11:54.240 --> 0:11:57.920 points on the board early, everything about the whole outlook 0:11:57.960 --> 0:12:00.520 with the rest of the team changes. Then the offense 0:12:00.600 --> 0:12:03.440 isn't playing from behind the defense. With the lead, You've 0:12:03.440 --> 0:12:07.120 got Mike Petton and all of his different personnel combinations 0:12:07.160 --> 0:12:10.240 and and potential blitz packages that you could send at 0:12:10.240 --> 0:12:14.280 the quarterback. Aaron Rodgers said, this offense needs to lead 0:12:14.360 --> 0:12:17.280 from out in front. He's putting it on himself. He's 0:12:17.280 --> 0:12:20.480 putting it on the offense to be the leading unit 0:12:20.679 --> 0:12:23.640 of this team right from the get go on Monday Night, 0:12:23.800 --> 0:12:27.680 and if they can get that accomplished, then that potentially 0:12:27.720 --> 0:12:30.040 becomes the formula for how you try to win some 0:12:30.080 --> 0:12:32.200 of these road games down the road. Yeah. He even 0:12:32.320 --> 0:12:35.040 used the Brewers as an analogy with that, saying that 0:12:35.040 --> 0:12:37.000 that's they're a great example of a team that just 0:12:37.080 --> 0:12:39.200 let momentum carry then they built some up and they 0:12:39.200 --> 0:12:42.120 got rolling. And that is one of the most powerful 0:12:42.160 --> 0:12:44.920 elixers in this game, is if you can get you know, 0:12:45.000 --> 0:12:47.720 momentum on your side and just get that inner confidence going. 0:12:48.160 --> 0:12:50.280 The thing I really like. There's two things I liked 0:12:50.280 --> 0:12:52.400 about one Rogers comments and also going back to what 0:12:52.480 --> 0:12:56.360 Kyle Shanahan talked about. First, starting with Rogers, He's right, 0:12:56.640 --> 0:12:58.120 I wish we had more time that you and I 0:12:58.160 --> 0:12:59.719 could go back and look to see the when the 0:12:59.720 --> 0:13:03.040 Packers get the ball in that first offensive possession, they 0:13:03.080 --> 0:13:05.400 score and they get a first down, how often that 0:13:05.440 --> 0:13:07.840 equates to points and how often that translates to victory, 0:13:07.880 --> 0:13:10.720 because it just does seem like when they start fast, 0:13:11.040 --> 0:13:14.080 everything hits on the right cylinders, the water on the 0:13:14.120 --> 0:13:18.400 sideline taste sweeter, everybody's feeling better in the conditions just 0:13:18.440 --> 0:13:21.160 seemed perfect for for a victory. But on the other 0:13:21.200 --> 0:13:24.319 side of it, I thought Kyle Shanahan was just heat 0:13:24.400 --> 0:13:27.400 praise on Mike Petton, saying that this guy is one 0:13:27.400 --> 0:13:29.800 of the best defensive coordinators there is. They don't get 0:13:29.840 --> 0:13:31.880 much better than him. And to be honest with you, Mike, 0:13:31.920 --> 0:13:33.520 I know there's been some ups and downs here in 0:13:33.559 --> 0:13:35.960 these first five six weeks, but as I mentioned earlier 0:13:36.000 --> 0:13:39.680 this week, Packers right now are fourth in total defense. 0:13:40.040 --> 0:13:42.280 You know that their second against the past. I mean, 0:13:42.280 --> 0:13:47.040 they're doing things right despite not everyone always being available, 0:13:47.080 --> 0:13:49.679 despite the pass rush not always getting home. There are 0:13:49.800 --> 0:13:53.200 enough playmakers on that defense in enough you know, scheme 0:13:53.320 --> 0:13:56.120 to allow them to to fully sort of reach their 0:13:56.160 --> 0:14:01.520 potential that they've kept the Packers in these games, win loser, tie. 0:14:01.840 --> 0:14:04.680 They haven't been just completely blown out of the water. 0:14:04.960 --> 0:14:07.320 They've always had a chance until the very end, and 0:14:07.360 --> 0:14:08.880 that is a credit to Mike Petton in the way 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:11.560 that the defense has responded to certain situations. Yeah, to me, 0:14:11.640 --> 0:14:15.080 the defense has had really one rough stretch of the season, 0:14:15.160 --> 0:14:17.640 and it was really from the start of about the 0:14:17.640 --> 0:14:20.240 start of the fourth quarter of the Minnesota game through 0:14:20.280 --> 0:14:23.120 the first half of the Washington game. Other than that, 0:14:23.520 --> 0:14:26.120 you look at the point. You look at the points allowed, 0:14:27.400 --> 0:14:30.080 the points in the opening game against the Chicago Bears. 0:14:30.080 --> 0:14:33.720 A lot of that was by turnovers the offense created. Uh, 0:14:33.760 --> 0:14:36.400 the offense giving the ball away, same thing in Detroit, 0:14:36.520 --> 0:14:40.080 the turnovers that gave the Lions short fields and opportunities 0:14:40.120 --> 0:14:43.560 to score points. This this defense has played some pretty 0:14:43.640 --> 0:14:46.440 darn good football, with the exception of I would say 0:14:46.520 --> 0:14:49.280 four quarters the fourth quarter of the overtime in Minnesota 0:14:49.280 --> 0:14:52.200 and the first two quarters in Washington. Now, you can't 0:14:52.240 --> 0:14:54.280 fall back into another one of those ruts, you can. 0:14:54.520 --> 0:14:56.640 You have to you have to build on what you 0:14:56.680 --> 0:14:58.960 have to get done. Yeah, you have to build on 0:14:59.040 --> 0:15:01.160 what the defense is on. And I think part of 0:15:01.240 --> 0:15:04.240 Rogers point is they really will get an opportunity to 0:15:04.280 --> 0:15:06.720 build on what they've done if the offense is leading 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:08.840 from the front and giving them a lead to work with, 0:15:08.960 --> 0:15:12.200 especially into the second and third quarter. And let's be real, Mike, 0:15:12.680 --> 0:15:15.000 the San Francisco forty Niners. They just they aren't right 0:15:15.040 --> 0:15:17.560 now the creme de la crema that division. The Packers 0:15:17.600 --> 0:15:19.760 are gonna see it in about two and a half weeks. 0:15:19.880 --> 0:15:21.960 Right now with the Los Angeles Rams, one of the 0:15:21.960 --> 0:15:24.840 most high point, high scoring offenses in the league, You're 0:15:24.840 --> 0:15:28.840 going up against a backup quarterback, likely a third string 0:15:28.920 --> 0:15:31.080 running back depending on whether or not Braid is able 0:15:31.080 --> 0:15:34.120 to play in a team that in essence has had 0:15:34.120 --> 0:15:36.440 its share of ups and downs. If you're the Packers 0:15:36.440 --> 0:15:38.360 and you're at home, you have to set the tone 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:42.600 with that. You have to defensively take this opportunity to 0:15:42.720 --> 0:15:45.640 continue to build on that performance because there's a jugger 0:15:45.640 --> 0:15:47.960 not waiting for you down the line. I'm not saying 0:15:48.000 --> 0:15:49.920 you look past the San Francisco forty Niners, but you've 0:15:49.920 --> 0:15:52.360 got to take care of business in this game because 0:15:52.360 --> 0:15:54.360 you're gonna need your best effort to go into the 0:15:54.520 --> 0:15:56.320 l A Coliseum and come up with a win in 0:15:56.360 --> 0:15:58.760 two weeks. Yeah, I agree with you totally there, Weston, 0:15:58.840 --> 0:16:01.760 speaking of taking care our business, when we look at 0:16:01.800 --> 0:16:06.440 what's going on elsewhere in the NFL. Here in Week six, 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:10.240 Packers and Vikings are tied at two two and one 0:16:10.320 --> 0:16:13.360 for second place in the NFC North, behind the Chicago Bears, 0:16:13.360 --> 0:16:16.640 who are three and one only have four games in 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:20.200 the books. They're coming off there by. Chicago an interesting game. 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:22.920 They're going down to Miami. Now Chicago is coming off 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:25.720 the by, they've got their rest. A couple of weeks ago, 0:16:25.800 --> 0:16:28.200 Miami was three and one and lining up for a 0:16:28.240 --> 0:16:30.840 game against the Patriots team that had lost a couple 0:16:30.840 --> 0:16:33.160 of games, and everybody was wondering just where things were 0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:36.720 headed in the NFC East. Well, the Patriots took care 0:16:36.720 --> 0:16:38.960 of business against the Dolphins, and then the Dolphins went 0:16:39.000 --> 0:16:42.000 to Cincinnati and kind of stunk up the field quite 0:16:42.040 --> 0:16:46.280 frankly in giving one away to the Bengals. So now 0:16:46.280 --> 0:16:48.280 all of a sudden, Miami is three and three and 0:16:48.280 --> 0:16:51.400 they're fighting to to keep their season afloat in that 0:16:51.520 --> 0:16:54.320 NFC East with the Patriots starting to catch fire a 0:16:54.400 --> 0:16:57.760 little bit. An interesting game here with Chicago going down 0:16:57.800 --> 0:17:02.480 to Miami. Obviously, Vikings, Vikings and Packers fans will be 0:17:02.720 --> 0:17:05.320 rooting for Miami to hand Chicago a second law. Yeah, 0:17:05.359 --> 0:17:07.199 they'll be cheering for Adam Gays in this one. The 0:17:07.240 --> 0:17:09.760 other thing I enjoyed too, I'm kind of like Pavlov's dog. Now. 0:17:10.000 --> 0:17:11.280 So when you're like, oh, it's time to care, I 0:17:11.320 --> 0:17:13.359 thought were going into a sponsor read when you're like, oh, 0:17:13.359 --> 0:17:15.320 we gotta talk about some business here, Like I was 0:17:15.359 --> 0:17:19.000 just already zoned into that. But that being said, Friday's 0:17:19.000 --> 0:17:22.800 I get to skip. Yeah, there's no sponsors, just business. Uh, 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:25.160 you're right. This is a really important game for Adam 0:17:25.240 --> 0:17:27.840 Gaze and in the Dolphins, trying to show that, Okay, 0:17:27.920 --> 0:17:29.800 we got off to a really strong start. We are 0:17:29.880 --> 0:17:33.000 this team. It wasn't by coincidence, it wasn't by fluke. 0:17:33.280 --> 0:17:35.439 But now they're taking on a Chicago Bears team that 0:17:35.520 --> 0:17:37.640 the you know, there's kind of whistling a different tune 0:17:37.680 --> 0:17:39.800 at this point and kind of feeling good about where 0:17:39.840 --> 0:17:43.120 they're at sands the last thirty minutes of that game 0:17:43.160 --> 0:17:45.960 against the Packers. So that's gonna be a big one here, 0:17:45.960 --> 0:17:47.840 the Packers. The a FC really needs to help out 0:17:47.880 --> 0:17:49.640 Green Bay a little bit here. When you look at 0:17:49.880 --> 0:17:51.879 you know, Packers are gonna have a tough match up 0:17:51.960 --> 0:17:54.840 with you know, New England and some other matchups. Obviously 0:17:54.880 --> 0:17:57.560 they're gonna get Miami at home. You're going into the 0:17:57.600 --> 0:17:59.399 New York at the end of the season and winter, 0:17:59.800 --> 0:18:02.720 so's it's a it's a very heavy second half of 0:18:02.720 --> 0:18:04.639 the schedule for them. So yeah, if you can have 0:18:04.720 --> 0:18:06.600 Miami come out there and maybe get a big win 0:18:06.640 --> 0:18:09.800 over Chicago here you know, knocked them down a few pegs. 0:18:09.960 --> 0:18:12.399 But personally, Mike, I mean this this where things stand 0:18:12.480 --> 0:18:14.640 right now with Minnesota from here on out, I'm gonna 0:18:14.640 --> 0:18:17.679 be really interested to watch because you know, now Arizona, 0:18:17.800 --> 0:18:20.119 even though you know they still I think are in 0:18:20.200 --> 0:18:23.600 most power rankings, are considered near the bottom. So were 0:18:23.600 --> 0:18:25.840 the Buffalo Bills when they went to the US Bank stadiums. 0:18:25.840 --> 0:18:27.880 So if Josh Schrosen leading that thing, can they get 0:18:27.920 --> 0:18:31.240 David Johnson going all big questions? And certainly I do 0:18:31.320 --> 0:18:33.119