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10.07
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Welcome to a new part of SnoTap where we preview the Packer game throughout and also feature a Packer playlist. The playlist will begin the post and feature anywhere from 17-25 songs. It is an eclectic mix with all types of music and also features music from San Francisco artists.
How important is the first week of the season? Many Green Bay Packer players and fans are probably asking themselves this question. They play the San Francisco 49ers, the team who wiped them off the face of this earth last January and the team the Packers practically dedicated their offseason to. If the Packers get beat again by 14 points or more, there will probably be a lot of hopeless wanderers out there trying to find answers. Although if the Packers win by 14 or more, fans will be crowing this team the Super Bowl champion. Basically, everything needs to be taken with moderation for the first game of the season.Head coach Mike McCarthy talked about all offseason about how this January dumpster fire did not matter to the Packers. As they say, actions speak louder than words. The Packers tried to figure out the zone-read option like it was the Da Vinci Code this summer by seeking out advice from David Aranda, the Wisconsin Badgers defensive coordinator and also spoke with Texas A&M coaches multiple times. The tone of this team appears to be we do not want to be the joker of the NFL when it comes to the read option.
Leading up to this game, Aranda gave some thoughts to Jason Wilde of ESPN Wisconsin about the experience with defensive coordinator Dom Capers and how to defend Colin Kaepernick. It was truly eye-opening because it changed my opinion on how the Packers should handle Wisconsin native. It does not seem like the Packers should beat up Kaepernick, instead the biggest thing is containing him inside the tackle box. It is still amazing Erik Walden got paid after one of the worst linebacker performances in history of football last year and having Nick Perry in there instead will definitely help this defense. Further, Perry being two years out of college means he has definitely seen his fair share of zone read offenses. I do not know if that will translate, but at least from my limited experience, it always helps seeing something a couple times before getting grasp on it.
As our writer Adam mentioned to me on Twitter as I am writing, the Packers could become one of the more unlikable teams to start the year. They have the national spotlight on them and if they choose to ding up Kaepernick during the option process, it could lead to an outage of why the quarterbacks are getting hit too hard. Even if I think the Packers playing contain versus actually hitting Kaepernick, it does not mean Capers agrees with me. The Packers defense kept asking officials during training camps what they could and could not do to a quarterback when he went out on the zone read. This one has all the feelings of being pretty chippy especially for the first game of the season.
With all the talk of zone read, people have sort of forgotten about the new look Packer offense. Gone are Greg Jennings and Donald Driver, Bryan Bulaga is out with injury and they have Eddie Lacy in the backfield. The Alabama rookie is the type of running back you need against a team like San Francisco. I would say a fair comparison to Lacy is Marshawn Lynch. Last year, Money Lynch had over 100 yards in both games against San Francisco, the best rushing defense in the NFL last season. Steven Jackson is another name thrown around and Jackson had just over 100 yards in one of their two meetings last year with San Francisco. I feel like asking Lacy to rush for over 100 yards is probably too much, but I do believe he will do enough to force the San Francisco safeties up creating more opportunities for Aaron Rodgers.
The Packers quarterback made a couple uncharacteristic mistakes with the Niners defense last January. I doubt he will want to make the same mistakes this year. Donte Whitner is a fine strong safety but he is a more of a big hitter than anything else. Starting Eric Reid, a rookie, could get bapitized by the Packers receivers. Remember Rodgers interview with Peter King of MMQB, he said this offseason he worked on his deep balls. I would not be surprised if the Packers go deep in the first five plays of their offensive set.
As for a prediction, I think the Packers go on the road and beat San Francisco. The Niners have not lost at home since September 2011 when they lost in overtime to Dallas and they have not lost in regulation at home since November 2010. The Packers' backs are against the wall, but I feel that's when the Packers play their best. The Niners have some early season injuries and it might take them a couple weeks to adjust to the new talent. Packers win 23-17
-Charlie.
-Charlie.
