The 49ers and the Lions are not 'Thirty Pointers" in the realm of hunting trophies. The Niners are more like a spike and the Lions are like gunning down a yearling, but meat in the freezer is meat in the freezer, right?Nobody up here at Deer Camp has bagged a buck yet this week, but we're still having a good time and at least the Packers started out the week on the right foot.
As I noted yesterday in my 'Yelling at the Television Set' reaction post, the Pack looked dynamite in the first half against a tough opponent, but it seems Coach Big Mac let his foot off the gas a bit too soon, which made the game closer than it should've been. While we dominated the time of possession in the first half and played better in all three phases, the offense and defense became conservative in the second half, which gave the announcers reason to get excited, even if we knew the game was won all along.
We ought to keep the momentum going against a plain-awful Lions team on Thursday. That defense is as rotten as our deer camp's 'double-seater' out-house today, and the super-short week favors the offensive side of the ball. Now we don't want the players thinking ahead, but I sure am! Bring on the victory pie! Two big slices! We should be 7-4 as deer season wraps up and that, my dear readers, will put us in good position for the home-stretch, with a few difficult AFC match-ups on the horizon. With that in mind, and the memory of that really good, aggressive first half against the Niners, I'd say we all have lots to be thank-ful for as Packer Fans. Always the optimist, I am trying to think of those things as I head out to the cold and lone-some tree-stand in the waning days of the 2009 deer season.
Of course you and I are also thinking about those two inconvenient injuries that have clouded the sky.
While Kampman missing time is a smack to the face, I believe the loss of Al Harris will be the one that really burns us as the days grow shorter here in Wisconsin. The past two weeks we've seen Dom using more man coverage behind increasing blitzing pressures, which has done wonders for our defensive tenacity, but it will be more difficult for him to leave those wide-outs on an island now that Al is done for the season. Worse, it means increased playing time for Jarrett Bush, who specializes in blown coverages and stupid penalties. This turn of events all goes back onto Ted Thompson, who we can thank for having Bush in on all Nickel defense packages from here on out. Hopefully Bush is ready, but I'm not expecting much.
As I wrote last week, if this particular team is gonna make a splash in the play-offs this season, it will be on the shoulders of the defense to keep us in games and make big plays. Losing Al and Aaron is a real punch in the guts, but I guess we'll have to see how Big Mac and Dom handle this bad luck. If they're worth keeping next year they'll figure it out.
Sounds like there is snow and cold in the fore-cast and it's about damned time, folks. Maybe that will get the white-tails moving around some. Here's to hoping for a safe finish to the deer season and safe travels for every-one as they take their buggies out for Thanksgiving Dinners later this week, in the event that winter weather does show up. I've got a few days to go, but I'm already getting mighty hungry thinking about that deep-fried turkey we're gonna feast upon as Ronnie Rodgers and the boys thump the Lions. It's gonna be a heckuva day, folks! Mark it: Packers 35 - Lions - 10.
One last note in closing, dear readers. We were playing a round of classic Trivial Pursuit around the wood-stove last night and the answer I won on will work well here. Q: What phrase appears at the conclusion of all Looney Tunes cartoons? A: "That's all folks!"
Until next time, then.
FG
