SB Nation - John Kuhn

Saturday Injury Report: Ravens at Packers

Brandon — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 00:03:13 -0000

The Green Bay Packers have 11 players on the injury report including a few starters. It's even worse for the Ravens: several starters are among the 15 players listed.

The report includes CB Charles Woodson, QB Aaron Rodgers, and RB Ryan Grant, but all three players fully participated in practice on Saturday and should start on Monday. The most important player listed this week is LT Chad Clifton, who was limited in Saturday's practice, though Mike McCarthy said he did some team reps. I expect Clifton will play, but if he can't then his backup, OL T.J. Lang, is unlikely to play due to a concussion suffered in practice on Thursday. If neither Clifton or Lang were available, I thought LG Daryn Colledge would slide over to tackle, but McCarthy would rather leave Colledge at LG and start either OL Allen Barbre or OL Breno Giacomini at LT. The idea of Barbre at LT, after his disastrous stint at RT, is scary. LB Aaron Kampman is still listed, but there is no chance he'll play after tearing his ACL against the 49ers. LB Jeremy Thompson won't play after he spent Friday night in the hospital due to a neck injury suffered in practice on Friday, but McCarthy expects he'll be fine.

The Ravens have listed four key defensive players: S Ed Reed, LB Terrell Suggs, LB Ray Lewis, and DT Haloti Ngata. Reed wasn't able to practice until Saturday, but he expects to play. Suggs was expected to miss a month, but he said there is a chance he can play on Monday. Lewis might be slowed by his foot injury, but I haven't read anything to suggest he'll miss the Packer game. Ngata will play, but ankle injuries and defensive lineman are bad combinations, so he won't be 100%. The only other players who could miss the game are former practice squad S K.J. Gerard, and former Titans' practice squad player CB Cary Williams. TE L.J. Smith will miss the game too, but I think the Ravens can find a way to replace the 2 catches he's recorded so far this season.

The complete injury list is after the jump.

Player	Pos.	Injury	Saturday Participation	Saturday Status
Allen Barbre	T/G	Ankle	Full Participation	Probable
Brandon Chillar	LB	Hand	Full Participation	Probable
Chad Clifton	T	Hamstring	Limited Participation	Probable
Ryan Grant	RB	Shoulder	Full Participation	Probable
Ahman Green	RB	Groin	Full Participation	Probable
Aaron Kampman	LB	Knee	Out	Out
John Kuhn	FB	Hand	Full Participation	Probable
T.J. Lang	G/T	Concussion	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Aaron Rodgers	QB	Ribs	Full Participation	Probable
Jeremy Thompson	LB	Neck	Out	Out
Charles Woodson	CB	Shoulder	Full Participation	Probable


Player	Pos.	Injury	Saturday Participation	Saturday Status
Matt Birk	C	Ankle & Elbow	Full Participation	Probable
Prescott Burgess	LB	Shoulder	Full Participation	Probable
Joe Flacco	QB	Concussion	Full Participation	Probable
Jared Gaither	T	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
K.J. Gerard	S	Shoulder	Limited Particpation	Questionable
Jarret Johnson	LB	Not Inj. Related	Full Participation	Probable
Ray Lewis	LB	Quadricep	Full Participation	Probable
Le'Ron McClain	RB	Not Inj. Related	Full Participation	Probable
Haloti Ngata	DT	Knee	Limited Particpation	Probable
Ed Reed	S	Back	Limited Particpation	Questionable
L.J. Smith	TE	Shoulder	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Terrell Suggs	LB	Hamstring	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Kelley Washington	WR	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Cary Williams	CB	Knee	Limited Particpation	Questionable
Demetrius Williams	WR	Knee	Full Participation	Probable

Wednesday Injury Report: Packers at Lions

Brandon — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:57:16 -0000

UPDATE: From NFL.com:

Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford, who injured his non-throwing shoulder in last week’s wild win over the Cleveland Browns, will start Thursday against the Packers, reports NFL Network’s Michael Lombardi.

Lions WR Calvin Johnson, who was listed as questionable throughout the week, is active and will also play Thursday.

As the season grows longer, so does the injury report. This week the Green Bay Packers have 13 players listed, and the Lions have 14.

For the Packers: I'm sure everyone knows that LB Aaron Kampman and CB Al Harris are done for the season with matching ACL injuries. But after them, only RT Allen Barbre and RB Ahman Green didn't practice on Wednesday because they are both recovering from injuries suffered last week in practice. While it would be nice to have them both available, I don't think anyone expects either to play a significant role in the offense. The only other major concern was C Scott Wells, who had his knee swell up bad on Monday and Tuesday, but apparently nothing is torn and he should play.

For the Lions: Their injury list is long and a problem. Neither QB Matthew Stafford or WR Calvin Johnson has practiced this week. Will Carroll discussed Stafford's shoulder injury:

The result is good, but a meaningless win against a bad team really doesn't mean much in the longer term. Stafford's non-throwing shoulder is being described as "mangled" and it's clear that it was a dislocation. This is much like the situation with Sam Bradford, but on the non-throwing side.

It's a good point in regards to Stafford and Johnson. Why risk either player's long-term health when the best outcome is a 3-8 record? Obviously their absence helps the Packers, but I don't see how they can push either player on a short week when neither was able to practice. Two safeties (Kalvin Pearson and Ko Simpson) are listed as out, and starting FS Louis Delmas is questionable (limited in practice on Wednesday). If Delmas can't play, their secondary might be literally without any depth. LB Ernie Sims is out too, but his replacement is former Badger LB DeAndre Levy and he shouldn't be much a drop off from Sims. RB Kevin Smith was limited in practice on Wednesday too.

The complete injury reports are listed after the jump.

Player	Pos.	Injury	Wednesday Participation	Wednesday Status
Allen Barbre	T/G	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Brandon Chillar	LB	Hand	Full Participation	Probable
Chad Clifton	T	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Ryan Grant	RB	Neck	Full Participation	Probable
Ahman Green	RB	Groin	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Al Harris	CB	Knee	Out	Out
Cullen Jenkins	DE	Ankle	Full Participation	Probable
Johnny Jolly	DE	Back	Full Participation	Probable
Aaron Kampman	LB	Knee	Out	Out
John Kuhn	FB	Hand	Full Participation	Probable
Josh Sitton	G	Back	Full Participation	Probable
Scott Wells	C	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Charles Woodson	CB	Hip	Full Participation	Probable


Player	Pos.	Injury	Wednesday Participation	Wednesday Status
Joe Cohen	DT	Ankle & Elbow	Limited Participation	Probable
Louis Delmas	S	Shoulder	Limited Participation	Questionable
Jordan Dizon	LB	Concussion	Full Participation	Probable
Zack Follett	LB	Knee	Limited Participation	Probable
Grady Jackson	DT	Shoulder	Limited Participation	Probable
Calvin Johnson	WR	Not Inj. Related	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Daniel Loper	T	Quadricep	Limited Participation	Questionable
Kalvin Pearson	S	Not Inj. Related	Did Not Participate	Out
Ko Simpson	S	Knee	Did Not Participate	Out
Ernie Sims	LB	Back	Did Not Participate	Out
Kevin Smith	RB	Shoulder	Limited Participation	Probable
Matthew Stafford	QB	Hamstring	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Dewayne White	DE	Knee	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Derrick Williams	WR	Knee	(Not Listed)	N/A

Friday Injury Report: 49ers at Packers

Brandon — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:26:28 -0000

It's a long list for each team this week. The Green Bay Packers have 17 players listed, and the 49ers 13. But most of the injuries are not serious, and nearly everyone is expected to play.

For the Packers, it's been a rough week of practice. Both RT Allen Barbre and OL Evan Dietrich-Smith were injured during practice, and I'm not expecting either of them to play. C Scott Wells reported a concussion on Wednesday, though the injury likely happened during the game last Sunday. Mike McCarthy expects Wells will start. RB Ahman Green injured his groin late Thursday during practice, and it's not clear whether he'll play. Every other player should be available to play, including three guys who didn't play last week: LB Brandon Chillar, TE Jermichael Finley, and RT Mark Tauscher.

Tauscher will start the game, but he will rotate with OL T.J. Lang, depending on Tauscher's endurance.

For the Niners, only CB Nate Clements and LT Joe Staley are out. Those are two of their big name players, but they missed last week's game too. Fooch said their replacements have played really well. The only other player who could miss the game is LB Takeo Spikes who's day-to-day with a hamstring injury.

Overall, both teams are relatively healthy and injuries shouldn't play a major role. The complete injury list for both teams is after the jump.

Player	Pos.	Injury	Friday Participation	Friday Status
Allen Barbre	T/G	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Desmond Bishop	LB	Ankle	Full Participation	Probable
Brandon Chillar	LB	Hand	Full Participation	Probable
Chad Clifton	T	Not Inj. Related	Limited Participation	N/A
Evan Dietrich-Smith	G/C	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Jermichael Finley	TE	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Ahman Green	RB	Groin	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Cullen Jenkins	DE	Ankle	Full Participation	Probable
Johnny Jolly	DE	Back	Full Participation	Probable
Brad Jones	LB	Concussion	Full Participation	Probable
Aaron Kampman	LB	Concussion	Full Participation	Probable
John Kuhn	FB	Hand	Full Participation	Probable
Clay Matthews	LB	Jaw	Full Participation	Probable
Brady Poppinga	LB	Quadricep	Full Participation	Probable
Mark Tauscher	T	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Scott Wells	C	Concussion	Full Participation	Probable
Charles Woodson	CB	Hip	Full Participation	Probable


Player	Pos.	Injury	Friday Participation	Friday Status
Isaac Bruce	WR	Ankle & Elbow	Full Participation	Probable
Nate Clements	CB	Shoulder	Out	Out
Glen Coffee	RB	Concussion	Full Participation	Probable
Michael Crabtree	WR	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Demetric Evans	DT	Shoulder	Full Participation	Probable
Aubrayo Franklin	NT	Not Inj. Related
Michael Lewis	S	Quadricep	Full Participation	Probable
Michael Robinson	RB	Not Inj. Related	Did Not Participate	Probable
Mark Roman	S	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Justin Smith	DT	Back	Full Participation	Probable
Adam Snyder	T/G	Shoulder	Full Participation	Probable
Takeo Spikes	LB	Hamstring	Limited Participation	Questionable
Joe Staley	T	Knee	Out	Out

49ers-Packers Final Injury Report

Fooch — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:08:35 -0000

We're two days away from a monstrous game for the 49ers and we've got our final injury report of the week. A whole lot of probable players, but not much beyond that. Barrows thinks we'll see Matt Wilhelm starting at the Ted linebacker spot over Takeo Spikes, who remains "day-to-day." Wilhelm was solid last Thursday as a mid-game replacement for Spikes, so let's hope it carries over to Sunday.

49ers
Out
CB Nate Clements (shoulder)
OT Joe Staley (knee)

Questionable
LB Takeo Spikes (shoulder)

Probable
WR Isaac Bruce (ankle)
RB Glen Coffee (concussion)
S Michael Lewis (quadricep)
RB Michael Robinson (stinger)
WR Michael Crabtree (knee)
DT Demetric Evans (shoulder)
S Mark Roman (knee)
DE Justin Smith (back)
OT Adam Snyder (shoulder)

Packers
Doubtful
OT Allen Barbre (ankle)

Questionable
G Evan Dietrich-Smith (ankle)
RB Ahman Green (groin)

Probable
LB Desmond Bishop (ankle)
LB Brandon Chillar (hand)
TE Jermichael Finley (knee)
DE Cullen Jenkins (ankle)
DE Johnny Jolly (back)
LB Brad Jones (concussion)
LB Aaron Kampman (concussion)
RB John Kuhn (hand)
LB Clay Matthews (jaw)
LB Brady Poppinga (quadricep)
T Mark Tauscher (knee)
C Scott Wells (concussion)
CB Charles Woodson (hip)

The Day After Dallas: Injuries, Challenges, Punting, and Brad Jones

Brandon — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:15:17 -0000

Injuries, Injuries, injuires...from Mike McCarthy:

Cullen Jenkins had some ankle swelling. He'll probably miss some practice time this week. Desmond Bishop also had an ankle sprain. He'll probably miss some practice time. Greg Jennings had a knee contusion. He'll miss some practice time. And John Kuhn had a broken hand, and we'll see what he'll be able to do this week. With that, I'll take your questions.

The only injury he mentioned in his post-game press conference was LG Daryn Colledge's ankle bruise, but Colledge returned to the game at few plays later. The three guys who missed the Dallas game, RT Mark Tauscher, TE Jermichael Finley, and LB Aaron Kampman, are all expected back at practice this week. A lot of guys are banged up, and there's still 7 regular season games to go.

According to Rob Demovsky, the Packers should have been assessed a 15 yard penalty after McCarthy tried a 3rd challenge. I admit I hadn't noticed. The Cowboys got down to the 1 yard line anyway, and were stopped when QB Tony Romo threw a INT to CB Charles Woodson, so I'm not sure it would have mattered.

P Jeremy Kapinos is a great punter, in practice, says special teams coach Shawn Slocum. Slocum better be careful, praising P Derrick Frost's practice skills didn't help Mike Stock keep his job after last season. I haven't been a big critic of Kapinos because he's not as bad as Frost and I doubt they'd find anyone better at this point. Still, he's one of the worst punters in the NFL and the Packers will have to bring in some serious competition next season. For the remainder of this season, Greg Bedard suggested P Sam Paulescu, but he was bad last season in Dallas with a 41.8 yard average, compared to a 44.2 yard average for Kapinos. His net average is even worse, but the punt coverage deserves a lot of blame for it.

In his 1st NFL start, LB Brad Jones had 7 tackles and 1 for a loss. I'm a big fan of his, but I was disappointed he couldn't bring more of a pass rush against the Cowboys' backup RT. A good game, but those are LB A.J. Hawk type numbers. So I'm surprised that the comments are praising Jones, McCarthy has been asked whether Kampman remains the starter, and Tom Silverstein writes about Jones's emergence.

The Day After: Green Bay Packers Win Over The Browns

Brandon — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 06:00:29 -0000

by Tony Dejak - AP

about 1 month ago: Green Bay Packers running back Ryan Grant (25) breaks away from Cleveland Browns safety Brodney Pool (21) on a 37-yard run in the fourth quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009, in Cleveland. Grant ran for 148 yards and a touchdown in the Packers' 31-3 win. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

View full size photo »

From the Press-Gazette:

There’s no point having a big back if he can’t break tackles, which is why RB Ryan Grant’s performance was so encouraging...
That included 26 on Grant’s long run, on an inside zone play he broke to the edge for 37 in the fourth quarter. The sustain up front from RG Josh Sitton and RT Allen Barbre was tremendous and FB Quinn Johnson picked off ILB Eric Barton, allowing Grant to get square, hit his aiming point and find the crease.

I was trying to see who took out Barton on that run, but it was blocked out on the replay. I shouldn't be surprised to find out it was Johnson. I'm not a fan of FB John Kuhn's run blocking, and they seem to be much better with Johnson. The article makes a few more good points about LT T.J. Lang, NT B.J. Raji, and "the Browns' grade-school simple" offense.

Despite the horrible game, Eric Mangini has decided to keep moving full speed ahead. QB Derek Anderson will remain the starting QB in Cleveland. He's so bad, he makes QB JaMarcus Russell look better by comparison. QB Brady Quinn won't be making a run to the Pro Bowl, but his QB rating of 62.9 is miles ahead of Anderson's 40.6.

Unfortunately for WR Brett Swain, he'll have season ending knee surgery, according to Mike McCarthy, which leaves them with only 3 healthy receivers (WR Jordy Nelson got hurt last week). According to the Press-Gazette, the most likely candidate to replace Swain is practice squad WR Jake Allen.

More On The Shutout Against The Lions

Brandon — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:00:37 -0000

More photos » by Jeffrey Phelps - AP

2 months ago: Green Bay's Clay Matthews, top, sacks Detroit Lions' Dante Culpepper during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

Browse more photos »

Please tell me that LB Clay Matthews is never coming off field again. From the Press-Gazette:

Matthews played every snap at right outside linebacker for the first time on Sunday and turned in a performance worthy of a player taken 26th overall in the draft.

Yes! Every time I saw LB Brady Poppinga playing at right OLB I wondered why. I didn't notice him on Sunday, except on special teams, but I wasn't exactly taking a roster count on every play either. Big thanks to Rob Demovsky for confirming it. Not that I think Matthews was personally responsible for the shutout, but he's clearly outplayed Poppinga.

Also ILB Nick Barnett played on every defensive snap, to the detriment of ILB A.J. Hawk. But that might be a good thing. From the Press-Gazette:

On the 19-yarder in the second quarter, FB Jerome Felton’s lead block picked off buck ILB A.J. Hawk too easily and several players made technique errors against the draw...

With Capers employing a nickel defense on 39 of 48 snaps (81.3 percent) against Scott Linehan’s three-wide offense, Hawk played only nine snaps and didn’t register a tackle.

I earlier blamed Matthews for the penalty that brought back the opening 99 yard TD return, but apparently G Evan Dietrich-Smith really was to blame. From the Press-Gazette:

Rookie OL Evan Dietrich-Smith might have gotten away grabbing around DE Copeland Bryan’s left shoulder, but officials had no choice but to wipe away WR Jordy Nelson’s 99-yard TD on the opening kickoff once Dietrich-Smith threw Bryan to the ground.

I like FB John Kuhn, but I don't think he's a good lead blocker. They were better last season when FB Korey Hall started. As the running game is struggling again this season, lots of fingers are being pointed, and it's time to point them at Kuhn. Remember when the Packers started getting some good running plays in the 4th quarter? From the Press-Gazette:

FB Quinn Johnson punctuated his NFL debut with a devastating pancake block on one running play and a decent lead on RB Ryan Grant’s 22-yard gain in the fourth quarter...

With Johnson on the field, the Packers ran 17 times for 72 yards (4.2 average), compared to 10 for 24 (2.4) without him.

Preview: Green Bay Packers at Vikings

Brandon — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 13:00:55 -0000

by Jeff Roberson - AP

View full size photo »

My pessimism level is high for the game at Mall of America Field next Monday night. For two reasons: 1) the offensive line has looked bad, at times; and 2) the team really struggled in their game last season in Minnesota. But I'm coming around to the fact that it could be a heck of a game. Their last three meetings under the dome have been close, within one score. But what really turned me into an optimist was when looked at the stats.

I took a hard look at the stats available at Football Outsiders. Team passing ranks out of 32 teams:

Team	Pass Offense	Pass Defense	QB	WR	OL Pass Protect	DL Pass Protect
Packers	10	5	12	4 and 19	32	18
Vikings	15	7	15	20 and 38	28	5

According to FO, the 4th best WR so far this season is WR Donald Driver. Despite all the 50 yard catches by WR Greg Jennings (ranked No. 19 overall), Driver has outplayed him this season. The top two receivers for the Vikings are WR Percy Harvin (No. 20) and WR Sidney Rice (No. 38).

The Packers pass offense has done well, in large part because they've avoided any INTs this season, but the Vikings pass defense is very good and they've been getting after the QB. That is a bad matchup for the Packers, who currently are the worst team in the NFL at protecting the QB.

The same can be said for the Vikings. The Packers don't have as many sacks, but the Vikings aren't doing a good job at stopping the pass rush either. QB Brett Favre has been playing it safe in the passing attack, and he'll have to avoid taking any risks because the Packers' secondary has been very opportunistic this season. Both teams will struggle to pass the ball.

The analysis of the running game, and the rest of the preview, are after the jump.

More stats from Football Outsiders:

Team	Run Offense	Run Defense	RB	OL Run Block	DL Run Block
Packers	6	15	17	18	18
Vikings	14	6	5	8	5

This might not make much sense at first. How can the Vikings be the No. 14 run offense when RB Adrian Peterson is the 5th best RB? How can the Packers be so much better when RB Ryan Grant is only the 17th best RB? The answer: Peterson is getting no help from his teammates. RB Chester Taylor is averaging only 2.4 yards/carry. Meanwhile, Rodgers has 88 yards rushing (5.9/carry avg.) and a TD. Also, FB John Kuhn ran for a TD on his only carry of the season. The Packers run defense has allowed two 100 yard rushers in their first three games, but that's still good enough for just below average. The Vikings will have some success against them, when they're handing the ball off to Peterson, but the Packers can be productive too despite the excellent Vikings run defense.

For an added edge, despite the blocked FG attempt that the 49ers returned for a TD last week, Football Outsiders currently has the Vikings ranked 2nd best on special teams. The Packers are way down at No. 26. The one thing both teams have in common is that they are among the worst when punting and on punt coverage. K Mason Crosby is ranked low right now due a missed PAT. For the Vikings, their strength is in the return game. WR Percy Harvin had a kickoff return for a TD last week, and WR Darius Reynaud is one of the best punt returners in the league, although he might be hobbled by a leg injury.

Neither team is an offensive juggernaut at the moment. The Packers offense has played better over the first three games, but the Vikings present the biggest defensive challenge they've faced so far this season. Still, it's hard to tell if the Vikings defense is really as good as their stats indicate. Their first three games were against three of the worst offenses in the NFL, and the best offensive player they've faced so far this season, RB Frank Gore, was injured on the first series of the game. Still, the Vikings offense could easily outplay the Packers, but only if Peterson carries the offense on his back.

The Packers offense is going to have to produce if they are going to win this game. No lead will be safe until the Packers score 30+ points. I'm still not overly optimistic, but there's no way I'm picking the Vikings. Packers 31, Vikings 27.

Recap: Green Bay Packers Defeat Rams 36-17

Brandon — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 11:01:16 -0000

More photos » by Tom Gannam - AP

Browse more photos »

Though the Rams have lost their last 13 games (ugh!) it was still a good looking win. They led the entire game, and although the Rams got within 6 points in the 3rd quarter, they pulled away with 2 TDs in the 4th quarter. Despite the comfortable win they could have played better and there are still some holes on the team.

The defense looked weak at times, and allowed 17 points to a team only had scored 7 in their first two games. But a lot of writers were expecting a slow start for the defense as they get used to all the new schemes from Dom Capers. At least they can fall back on big plays CB Charles Woodson in the meantime. The offensive line might be struggling all season long, as they find it hard to protect QB Aaron Rodgers and open up rushing lanes for RB Ryan Grant, but at least Rodgers is playing well despite the pressure and a few drops from his receivers. The offense showed off it's big play ability again in this game. The special teams struggled, but at least they can hang their hat on a blocked FG.

And they also came out of the game with only a couple injuries, according to Mike McCarthy. I don't think WR James Jones returned, but WR Greg Jennings did return after apparently re-injuring his wrist early in the 3rd quarter.

The Packers almost ended the week tied a top the NFC Central, but QB Brett Favre had a big game winning TD pass to improve the Vikings to 3-0. Although we should all feel better about last week's loss to the Bengals since they just upset the Steelers.

Packers vs Rams coverage; Packers vs Rams recap; Packers vs Rams boxscore; Turf Show Times

Play-by-play recap from NFL.com:

First Quarter:

(11:03) 3-Josh.Brown 48 yard field goal is BLOCKED (97-J.Jolly), Center-45-C.Massey, Holder-5-D.Jones, RECOVERED by GB-27-W.Blackmon at GB 25. 27-W.Blackmon to GB 43 for 18 yards (5-D.Jones).

It was a little discouraging to see the Rams move the ball down the field fairly easily to start the game, but DE Johnny Jolly had a great game, starting with this blocked FG attempt.

(10:20) (Shotgun) 25-R.Grant right end to SL 46 for 10 yards (96-J.Hall). SL-37-J.Butler was injured during the play.

Nine first half carries for RB Ryan Grant, and six of them were for 2 yards or less. This was the only carry over 10 yards. It was a good play; a power running play where RT Allen Barbre pulled right and created a running lane for Grant. But for most of the half, Grant would run one direction, and then look for a cutback lane. I'm not sure if it's by design to get the defense to go one direction and have him cut back the other direction. Or if he doesn't trust his blockers, and is looking for daylight where ever he sees it. Either way, it's not working.

(7:13) 12-A.Rodgers sacked at SL 34 for -7 yards (91-L.Little).

DE Leonard Little just beat Barbre for the sack. It was a weak effort by Barbre, but at least it was only 1 of 2 sacks allowed all game. Unfortunately it's still not a great showing since the Rams only had 1 sack in their previous 2 games. Barbre does seem to be improving, which is more than can be said for the rest of the offensive line (Jason Spitz excluded). Actually I don't know what to make of RG Josh Sitton; it seems like he's getting shoved around sometimes, but otherwise holding up.

(5:52) 39-S.Jackson right tackle to SL 38 for 19 yards (36-N.Collins). PENALTY on SL-73-A.Goldberg, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at SL 19 - No Play.

This was the first play I noticed DL B.J. Raji. He played mostly at left defensive end, but he played so often inside the offensive tackles that he was really playing like a defensive tackle. RB Steven Jackson ran right at Raji, and the blocker had to hold Raji to keep him out of the way. He doesn't receive a stat for it, but Raji moved them back 10 yards on his first play.

(4:09) (Shotgun) 10-M.Bulger sacked at SL 10 for -5 yards (74-A.Kampman). FUMBLES (74-A.Kampman) [74-A.Kampman], RECOVERED by GB-97-J.Jolly at SL 15. 97-J.Jolly to SL 15 for no gain (60-J.Brown).

Nice play all around, although QB Marc Bulger was injured on the play. Unfortunately it led to just another FG.

(2:46) (Shotgun) 12-A.Rodgers sacked at SL 20 for -12 yards (91-L.Little).

In the early going, QB Aaron Rodgers was under a lot of pass pressure. Daryn Colledge was moved to LT for this game due to the injury to LT Chad Clifton, and as blueguitarbob points out, he's playing high and getting overpowered. I lost track of all the times the pocket collapsed when Colledge got shoved into it.

(2:08) 39-S.Jackson left guard to SL 14 for 3 yards (77-C.Jenkins). FUMBLES (77-C.Jenkins), RECOVERED by GB-31-A.Harris at SL 12. 31-A.Harris to SL 12 for no gain (70-A.Barron). SL-10-M.Bulger was injured during the play.

Another great play and the 2nd turnover of the half. Unfortunately the offense stalls (again) and they settle for a FG (again); the 3rd FG of the quarter.

Second Quarter:

(13:09) 12-K.Boller pass incomplete short right to 11-L.Robinson.

QB Kyle Boller came in when Bulger was hurt, and turned this game into a matchup of two ex-Cal Golden Bears. He was high on his first two passes, but he got much better after he settled down.

(12:10) 12-A.Rodgers pass deep left to 80-D.Driver to SL 30 for 46 yards (32-B.Fletcher). Penalty on SL-32-B.Fletcher, Defensive Pass Interference, declined.

Just an amazing one-handed catch by WR Donald Driver, his other hand was being held by the defender.

(9:55) 30-J.Kuhn up the middle for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.

It was like the Rams completely ignored FB John Kuhn on the play, although he had a wide open running lane due to a great block by Colledge.

(9:42) 39-S.Jackson right end to SL 22 for no gain (56-N.Barnett).

LB Nick Barnett is still the best of the inside linebackers. LB A.J. Hawk gets shoved around too much. LB Brandon Chillar always seems a step behind the play (see next play). Although Barnett is still being held to a 40 play limit, according to Mike McCarthy, so LB Desmond Bishop got some playing time in the 2nd half.

(4:51) 12-K.Boller pass deep right to 46-D.Fells for 16 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

(:08) (Shotgun) 12-K.Boller pass deep left to 46-D.Fells for 19 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Chillar covered Fells one-on-one on both TDs. He was there, but as I mentioned above, he's always a step behind the play. It looked like he was expecting to have some help in coverage deep. The Packers defense played a lot of 2-5-4 and it seems to be causing them some trouble in pass coverage. I'm not sure what the advantage to having 5 linebackers in the game is. The pass rush is weak, they only had one sack in the game, whether 5 linebackers are in or not. It doesn't seem to give them any advantage with the run defense either.

(2:33) (Shotgun) 12-A.Rodgers pass deep right to 85-G.Jennings to SL 21 for 50 yards (24-R.Bartell).

I'm slightly out-of-order, lumping both Chillar allowed TDs in one post. WR Greg Jennings has been pretty quiet this season, but if all he does is catch one or two 50 yard passes per game, I guess I can live with that.

(2:00) 12-A.Rodgers pass deep left to 80-D.Driver for 21 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Rodgers makes up for a missed TD to Driver in the first quarter with this one. He is having trouble with his accuracy this season. He's been long on some passes, but a lot of it has to do with the lousy pass protection.

Third Quarter:

(12:09) 12-K.Boller pass short right to 39-S.Jackson to SL 47 for 13 yards (50-A.Hawk, 36-N.Collins).

Pick your Steven Jackson poison on the Rams first drive of the 2nd half. After a Packer 3-and-out, Jackson had 4 carries and a pass reception to move them into Packer territory and set up a FG. It wasn't pretty, but at least it was their last scoring drive of the game.

(8:12) (Shotgun) 12-A.Rodgers pass incomplete deep right to 87-J.Nelson.

I don't recall if this particular pass that WR Jordy Nelson dropped, but he dropped one that he should have had. WR James Jones was running in a fog and ended up with zero catches. I'm not sure what's going on with him. At least Nelson seemed to come around on the next drive.

(4:17) 25-R.Grant right tackle to SL 44 for 10 yards. PENALTY on GB-63-S.Wells, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at GB 46 - No Play.

Probably a perfect example of why C Scott Wells was benched. He was run over on this play.

Fourth Quarter:

(15:00) 12-A.Rodgers pass deep middle to 85-G.Jennings to SL 17 for 53 yards (24-R.Bartell).

The offense did a good job to get out of a hole when the Rams pinned them down at the 2 yard line during the 3rd quarter, but otherwise it was a very quiet half. Two good runs by Grant to end the 3rd quarter, and this big reception gets the offense back on track.

(12:18) (Shotgun) 12-A.Rodgers up the middle for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Rodgers did a lot with his legs on this drive, and this was a nifty open field move to juke the only defender in the area and run right up the middle for the TD.

2-M.Crosby extra point is No Good, Wide Left, Center-61-B.Goode, Holder-10-M.Flynn.

Yes, K Mason Crosby isn't supposed to miss those, but he's battling an abdominal injury that has to be effecting him.

(9:57) 25-R.Grant up the middle to GB 28 for 17 yards. PENALTY on SL-98-C.Ah You, Illegal Use of Hands, 5 yards, enforced at GB 28.

That was a nice zone blocking play. It's good to see Grant get on track, but the running game still looks like it's going to be inconsistent going forward.

(6:19) (Shotgun) 12-K.Boller pass short middle intended for 16-D.Amendola INTERCEPTED by 21-C.Woodson [97-J.Jolly] at SL 26. 21-C.Woodson to SL 26 for no gain (16-D.Amendola).

It's just not a Packer game without an INT by CB Charles Woodson. I can't believe the Rams didn't challenge him deep at all since Woodson had some trouble with going deep during the win over the Bears.

(4:50) 12-A.Rodgers pass short right to 30-J.Kuhn for 10 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Again, the Rams seemed to ignore Kuhn. Time to drop Grant in your fantasy league for Kuhn :)

A Packer Fan's Guide To Madden 2010

Mitchell_M — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 21:08:06 -0000

If you're anything like me, you're excited for the season opener at Lambeau on Sunday night. However, you're also looking for ways to extend the NFL experience beyond just the weekend. You might even look for something different on Sundays when Green Bay isn't playing. Face it, Green Bay is on Monday Night Football in Week 13, the Week 13 showdowns between Detroit and Cincinatti or San Francisco and Seattle likely won't be very exciting, and you won't have much of a choice of what games to watch. (Unless of course you have NFL Sunday Ticket. In which case, why not just give your money directly to Jerry Jones? He needs it to buy chrome plating for his pizza cutter.)

So whether you're looking to get some gridiron action on a Wednesday night or you just can't stand watching St. Louis and Cleveland punt back and forth, I highly recommend Madden 2010 to help supply your football fix.

Word of warning: this lengthy post is based on Madden 2010 for the XBox 360. If you have a different system, you can try to use the suggestions below, but they might not work the same. Unless you're using the Wii. Screw the Wii.

I was a sickly child growing up, meaning I often wasn't able to go out and play with the other kids in the neighborhood. Video games helped pass the time until I shook off my various ailments, but I never lost my love for sports sims.

Historically, the Madden franchise has delivered installments with mixed results. Either they simply repackaged the previous year's product with updated roster information and/or a few horribly misguided "innovations", or they come up with something that actually works. Madden 2010 is of the latter variety.

The online mode is much improved; there's fewer bugs in the system, meaning you won't lose your mind because some 11-year old from New Hampshire discovered a tackling glitch. There's always little blemishes here and there, but the best part is that it forces players to use the Online Rosters of all 32 NFL teams. No longer will you go into a game against the Raiders to suddenly discover that they have Andre Johnson and Reggie Wayne.

The meat of the game, as always, is with the Franchise and Superstar mode. I've never been a huge fan of Superstar mode, mainly because I am horrible at it. Having played a mix of cornerback and safety in high school and college, I usually create myself as a cornerback, but I've never figured out how to effectively cover anybody in man coverage and I'm constantly giving up long TDs. However, playing Superstar mode as a QB, RB, WR, DE, or LB is usually a challenge worth a few tries.

As far as I'm concerned, Franchise mode is where it's at. Once upon a time, I had a dream of being a GM for the Packers. Franchise mode allows me to live that out, long after I realized that it simply wouldn't happen. (Even though it totally should. The moment Thompson retires/resigns, I'm sending an application.) In Madden 2010, Franchise mode remains essentially the same: pick your team, run through the preseason, play the regular season, play the postseason (if you made it), then go through offseason tasks like hiring coaches, scouting and drafting rookies, and resigning existing players.

My biggest gripe in Franchise mode has always been how unrealistic it is, especially where statistics are concerned. I don't care if Adrian Peterson gets cloned in a lab somewhere and the clones play for three other teams at the same time as AP: they simply cannot ALL run for 2,000+ yards in a season. What's worse is the statistics game-by-game. The default setting is Pro (medium) with quarter lengths of 5 minutes, which is just enough time to pass for 150 yards, rush for another 40, have five players with 3 tackles a piece, and win a game 24-0. These games are too short and too easy. So the obvious choices are to either up the difficulty or increase the time. But you can't do both, because then you either have 20 minutes of hellishly difficult gaming or 2 hours of even more hellishly difficult gaming.

EA Sports finally found a way to make longer quarters and higher difficulty co-exist: accelerated clock. Accelerated clock is so simple that it's genius: if you pick your play within the first 10 seconds of the play clock, it automatically runs anywhere between 10 and 25 seconds off the clock (depending on your settings). This allows you to play at a realistic pace: drives of 10 plays actually last 6 or 7 minutes of game time. It's an extraordinarily lifelike addition to the game, and I'm thankful for it.

* * *

Steps to setting up a realistic Franchise mode:

Set difficulty settings. The default setting is Pro, which puts all four categories (rush offense, pass offense, rush defense, pass defense) at 5 out of 20. The minimum setting should be All-Pro, which sets the categories at 10. Because it's so difficult to run the ball in Madden 2010, I usually set the rush offense category a notch or two lower than the other ones. For example, right now my difficulty setting is 13 for pass offense, 10 for rush offense, and 14 for pass and rush defense.

The reason it's important to up the difficulty is because at the default level, blowouts are perpetual. You will be hard pressed to play a game where you don't pass for 3 TDs, run for another 2, and return both a INT and punt return for six. Sure, it's fun every once in a while, but it's boring winning 63-3 every week.
Change Franchise setup options. The first thing to do is change quarter length from 5 minutes to 15. Then, go to the bottom of the menu and activate accelerated clock runoff. (I personally put mine at 25, but it leaves little time for audibles at the line, so 20 or even 15 might be a little easier to deal with.) Finally, toggle everything from "CPU" to "USER".

Like I explained above, the longer quarters combined with the accelerated clock and higher difficulty makes the game both more challenging and more realistic. For example, I just started a new franchise yesterday (when the new season rosters were released...goodbye Ruvell Martin, hello Brett Swain!), and I eked out a 20-17 win over Chicago. I was legitimately trying the entire game, and I was losing 17-13 for most of the second half. I've still managed to deliver blowouts against teams like Cincinnati and St. Louis, but I've actually lost to teams like Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore. Getting the settings where they need to be make the Madden experience totally different from past years.
Fill out your roster. The newly-released Week One roster is exactly how the Packers are set up in real-life. However, Madden has minimum requirements at each position, and the new rosters are short on both offensive and defensive tackles. What I do is I sign Jamon Meredith and Anthony Toribio, simply because a) they won't play after the preseason ends and the depth chart is updated, and b) I have to sign someone anyway, or let the computer sign someone, and I'd rather have someone that's on Green Bay's practice roster. I also signed Brian Brohm, just because he's on the practice roster, the third QB never ever plays, and I can cut him outright after I find someone better in the draft or free agency. Sadly, Pat Lee and Justin Harrell were banished from Madden when they were put on IR.

After setting up your roster, you'll have to go through and manually set your depth chart. A few suggestions for those who want them: place DeShawn Wynn at RB2 over Brandon Jackson (better runner), Korey Hall at FB1 over John Kuhn (better blocker), Daryn Colledge as LT2 over Jamon Meredith (see above), and Jordy Nelson as both KR2 and PR2 over Tramon Williams (so Williams is fresher for nickel packages).
Set your audibles. There is nothing more irritating than running the 2-minute drill and having only one pass play that's in a formation suitable for it. Audibles should be set as the following for offense: one singleback inside run, two singleback pass plays (one short, one long), and two shotgun pass plays (one short, one long). It's even worse on defense, where the audibles are in the 4-3 alignment. Defense is obviously more open ended, but make sure that half of your options are 3-4 plays and the other half are nickel/dime packages with 4-man fronts.

* * *

Now that you have everything set up, it's time to sim through the preseason, right? Wrong! The preseason is extremely important for two reasons. First, it prevents bench players from regressing too far during the course of the season. If you sim through the pre-season and you don't play Quinn Johnson or Brandon Underwood, their ratings will degrade the following offseason. Even if they don't play much in the regular season, getting them reps in the preseason keeps them from losing points.

The second reason for playing in the preseason is much more important; for whatever reason, EA Sports removed the option to make substitution packages from the Franchise main screen. I personally hate this move, because without the option to sub players in specific formations, you barely get to use them. Get this, without the substitution option, Aaron Kampman simply won't play in nickel or dime packages. Let that soak in for a second, then read on.

The only way to sub specific players in or out in specific packages is to do so during the game. Whatever changes you make will be saved, so it only needs to be done once. After you determine who needs to be in or out in any given package, they will stay there until you move them.

Here's how to do it: play the first preseason game, but don't worry about calling plays. Instead, flip through the playbook and hit the RB button to bring up the substitution screen. This allows you to scroll through each of the 11 positions and sub a player for each play in that particular package. For example, if you sub Ryan Grant for Brandon Jackson in the Full House package, Jackson will be the RB for every Full House play. Be careful, though, because some formations have multiple looks (Singleback, I Formation, Shotgun, etc.) Each individual look has seperate subs, so you have to make sure that you're thorough with your substituting.

Here's the substitutions that I recommend for Green Bay:

Brandon Jackson for Ryan Grant in all Shotgun formations. Jackson is a far superior pass-catcher to Grant, and he's quicker in the open field. You should have him as your 3rd down back anyway, but this ensures that a swing pass doesn't end in a 2-yard loss.
Quinn Johnson for Korey Hall in Goal Line formation. Johnson can't run the ball, catch the ball, or pass block very well in Madden 2010. But boy, can he run block. Plug him in as the goal line fullback and watch him bowl over linebackers with ease.
John Kuhn for Korey Hall in Full House formation. The Full House isn't as heavy on power blocking, so it's ok to take out the slightly better Hall in favor of Kuhn, the slightly better receiver.
Jermichael Finley in most Single Back formations. Finley isn't a terrible blocker, but he's not great, which is why Donald Lee is still the starter. Any run plays you deploy while he's in the game won't be ruined by Finley's blocking...most of the time. He is, however, an outstanding receiver, meaning he should get the majority of the TE looks in most Single Back plays.
Aaron Kampman for Johnny Jolly in all 4-man front nickel, dime, dollar, and quarter formations. This one is self explanatory: Kampman > Jolly.
B.J. Raji for Ryan Pickett in all 3-man front nickel, dime, dollar, and quarter formations. This is important as it keeps Pickett fresh for base defense plays and uses Raji's pass rushing skills in pass defense plays.
Cullen Jenkins for Ryan Pickett in all 4-man front nickel, dime, dollar, and quarter formations. Again, self explanatory. Jenkins is an outstanding inside pass rusher, while Pickett is not. Putting Jenkins and Raji (the DT2) on the inside with Kampman on the outside gives the team an outstanding pass rush.
Jeremy Thompson/Brandon Chillar/Clay Matthews for Cullen Jenkins whenever Jenkins is moved inside. Don't let Mike Montgomery see the field unless you have to. He's awful.

Additionally, I would encourage mixing up the LB and DL rotation in any of the 5 base 3-4 sets. Put Bishop in for Hawk in a formation, and Thompson in for Matthews in another. Keeping your players in a rotation keeps them fresh and helps prevent them from getting beat or hurt. Again, you have to make these substitutions while playing in a game; you can't do it from the menu screen. I recommend focusing on one formation at a time, then running a play. Just keep track of who you moved and when so that you can finish anything you start. There's nothing worse than taking Cullen Jenkins out of a formation and failing to put him back in; then you're stuck with Montgomery and Pickett.

After setting up your substitution packages, you shouldn't have to worry about anything on the roster or depth chart unless there's an injury. As long as you do this during the first preseason game, you shouldn't have to make any changes for the rest of the year until you lose players and replace them with new ones.

* * *

After advancing to the regular season, hold off on playing the first game right away. The most important aspect of Franchise mode is not only improving your team, but sustaining it. The best way to do that is though the draft, but it's foolish to simply draft players based on their round projection. Scouting is imperative to this process, and you can only do it during the regular season.

Scouting in Madden 2010 is easy; you get a certain number of scouting reports per week (starting with 19, changing when you change scouting services in the offseason) to investigate college players. You tag the players you want information on, and the reports are back the following week. You can scout a player a maximum of 6 times before they are "fully scouted" and no longer provide you with new information on their skills.

Make sure you always scout players with high potential at positions you will need. For Green Bay, I put emphasis on LT, RT, DE, DT, and SS. Remember, the players with the highest potential are not necessarily surefire 1st round picks. For example, I found a safety whose potential meter was nearly full, and I intended on drafting him with my first pick (if he was available.) However, come draft time, I learned that he was projected to go in the 6th round. Naturally, this let me wait and use higher picks on higher projected players at different positions, and resulted in a more successful draft.

One important note about scouting; if a player has an injury rating of 70 or less, don't waste your time on him. He will ALWAYS be hurt, period. The same goes for any WR with a catch rating of less than 70 or any lineman with a strength of less than 70. Players will always improve their ratings on mechanical stuff (route running, footwork, etc.) But the more natural ratings like speed and strength rarely change.

* * *

Now that all the painfully boring stuff is done, feel free to take on all comers. Because I am feeling extra pretentious today, allow me to make some suggestions on Packer players to target, players to avoid, and plays to make it all happen.

Players who can help:

James Jones as a slot receiver. As long as he's not lined up outside, Jones is an absolute beast. The only defenders who can cover him are the elite LBs or CBs, and the corners are preoccupied with Jennings and Driver. Jones is best used running slants, drags, digs, and curls in 3-wide formations.
Jermichael Finley as second tight end. I know this isn't news to most of you, but Jermichael Finley is simply too big, too fast, and too skilled to be covered by most players. Running him in 2-TE sets opposite Donald Lee is usually a good idea, especially running outs to the sideline or seams in the middle of the field.
Charles Woodson as lockdown corner. Al Harris has lost a step in Madden 2010, but certainly not Chuck. Make sure he's covering the other team's best WR, and you should be safe.
Brandon Jackson as receiving back. I know I already mentioned this, but replacing Grant with Jackson in the Shotgun formations is critical. Nobody in Green Bay runs a flat route better than Jackson.
Will Blackmon as a return man. Again, not news here, but Will Blackmon is downright Hester-esque when returning kicks. He's not as fast as Hester (obviously), but he's stronger and able to break tackles better.

Players who can hurt:

Brandon Jackson as running back. He might be better in real life, but running a dive play with Jackson is absolutely absurd.
Aaron Kampman in man coverage. Blitz Kampman as often as possible, and leave him in zone coverage whenever he's not rushing. Do not, I repeat, do not let him cover someone man-to-man. He will let other teams eat the defense up on underneath routes.
Atari Bigby as long-term safety. Bigby is an excellent tackler, a strong player who forces fumbles, and can sometimes cover a receiver. But do not expect him to stay healthy. He's good for 2009, but I would look to draft a replacement as soon as possible.
Jeremy Kapinos as anything. Video games sometimes imitate real life, and this is proof. Kapinos' punts are awful. Find a replacement ASAP.

Plays to use on offense:

Strong I Slot Off Tackle: A solid run play that uses the FB as a lead blocker while the WR3 pulls a linebacker away from the box. Unless you run into a blitz, you should get no fewer than 5 yards with this play, and you'll often break longer runs.
Singleback Flex Inside Cross: A very reliable short pass play that features the TE and WR3 running opposite drag routes. Use this to pick up a short first down or, if the defense is in man coverage, to get a big play out of the receiver after the catch.
Full House Weak Zone: A safe run play that is best used away from the defense's strong point. If the LBs are loading up one side, simply switch the play to the other side. Good for running between the 20's.
Shotgun Doubles On HB Angle: On 3rd and long, this is the play to run. You have three main options: the RB running a check down route in the middle of the field, the slot receiver running a short china route to the weak side, and the tight end running an out on the strong side. If the defense is stacked towards the short zones, hit either receiver on deep routes for a big pickup.

Plays to use on defense:

3-4 Normal Strong/Weak Blitz: Either the Strong or Weak blitz works fine: the OLB and ILB on one side overload their half of the offense while everyone else is in man coverage with safety help over the top.
3-4 Over Trio Sky Zone: Very similar to the Strong or Weak Blitz, but this play offers a solid zone coverage scheme instead of man-to-man.
Nickel Normal CB Fox Blitz: Use the CB on either side to go around the offensive tackle and get to the quarterback quickly. The 4-man front helps keep any run plays in check while the corner blitzes.
Nickel 2-4 Cover 2 Sink: A very basic coverage scheme that offers decent pass rush: the DTs are flanked by both OLBs, who rush the edge. The other two LBs and all three CBs take intermediate zones, while both safeties split the field.

Well, that's really all I can think of for now. If you think I'm on to something, want to add something yourself, or you have criticisms of my strategies, or even if you hate Madden and want to rail against me for including it in a post, leave your love/vitriol in the comments section.

Just don't hate on my Madden skills. I will take on any and all comers. Challengers, step right up.