The key to victory on Sunday rests in the legs of Ryan Grant, who has yet to find his amazing form from the 2007 dream season. Surely the team was watching the game tape from the Divisional Playoff, which saw General Grant run like a crazy moose through the Sea-Hawk Defense. And we've sure seen brief flashes of that form this season, dear readers. Such was the case in the second half of the Falcons game, or in Monday Night opener. The problem has been consistency. As I am in bowling, we have been 'consistently inconsistent.'Regular readers are well aware of my thoughts on the 'lack of a running game domino effect' that has plagued the Packers through their current three-game winning streak. No run = no pass = too many (crappy) punts = a tired and injured defense. Granted, no one else is really playing that well either, but the root of the problems all go back to Grant, and his strange inability to find the cut-back lanes which are the bread and butter of the zone blocking running scheme. If I can see this, you can bet the coaches have seen it and will emphasize this going forward.
Seattle is no longer a top NFC team and - surprising as it may be - this is the first must-win game of the season. But it won't be easy. You can bet Coach McCarthy will be working double-time in order to correct the bone-headed mistakes that have been pulling us down like a 90-pound anchor on a short rope tied to a leaky canoe. But we as fans must also do our part to change to momentum.
Here are ten things I am doing to turn the season around. I encourage you readers to join me in these activities and come up with some of your own.
10 - Mike Holmgren pinata filled with glazed donuts.
9 - Pork Ribs on the grill (dry rub).
8 - Portaging my canoe around the neighborhood, earning me the nick-name, "Crazy Canoe Guy" from some of the local youngsters.
7 - Extra Bob Seger on the tape deck, especially "Fire Lake."
6 - Adding a little extra Green and Gold to my new Halloween costume, which is a cribbage board with a 29 hand.
5 - Carving a pumpkin with a like-ness of Coach McCarthy on the front.
4 - Doing some extra row-trolling for muskies this week, in part because of the new Tom Gelb article in "Musky Hunter" and in part because I like to imagine each oar stroke as a successful running play against the Sea-Hawk defense. (I know this makes no sense).
3 - More naps. You've got to be well-rested for game day, after-all.
2 - On Sunday, only walking through door-ways back-wards.
1 - Yelling from my pick-it-up truck at any and all pedestrians: "Go Packers!" and then giving a thumb-up with emphasis.
Hope these momentum-changers help the Packers turn this season around, and hope you will come up with a few of your own. Lord knows we need to mix it up.
Check back for my early-season score-card column and my new fantasy football update (I'm 3-2 after a heckuva Monday night game by Reggie Bush).
Mark it folks, Green Bay - 30, Seattle - 13. Until then.
