A Wasted Opportunity

Here's the good news, if you believe in moral victories. The Packers didn't get steamrolled by the Tennessee Titans, as a lot of the experts (including me) thought they would. The 19-16 OT loss to the Titans wasn't as bad as it could have been, considering how most had Tennessee pegged as the best team in all of the NFL.

If you don't believe in moral victories, then you probably don't want to hear about how close it was. Count me among those that don't believe in moral victories.

The Packers should have won this game yesterday. Pure and simple. For 57 minutes, give or take a play here and there, the Packers kept Samsh & Dash (LenDale White and Chris Johnson) in check. They made Kerry Collins look like the old guy he really is. They exposed the Titans receivers for the frauds that they are. The only problem is they play sixty minutes (in regulation), which was about three minutes longer than the Packers bothered playing defense.

Late in the game yesterday the Titans started making plays. Runs that were being stuffed were all of a sudden being broke. Pass plays that weren't being completed all of a sudden were eating up big chunks of yardage. It happened on Tennessee's final drive in regulation, and thanks to Rob Bironas' miss on the final play of regulation, continued into the overtime session.

Of course, the defense wasn't the only reason Green Bay lost yesterday. The offense has to look in the mirror as well. Aaron Rodgers threw a bad pick into double coverage to kill a drive (really one of the few bad decisions he has made all season long). Rodgers also lost a fumble at a key time during the game (though his protection, or lack thereof had a lot to do with that). And, as we've seen Mike McCarthy do at times (usually in big games against teams that are either even with or better than the Packers), the run game got put on the shelf. Ryan Grant had a lot of early success (42 yards in his first nine carries against a very good Tennessee defense), so why does he wind up with just 20 carries for 86 yards? The Packers were having success running the ball, and seemingly stopped doing what made them successful.

If you want to talk about moral victories, it's your right to do. Sure the Titans are tough in Nashville, and they are the lone undefeated team in the NFL. But, the Packers blew a chance to make a statement yesterday (sorry, the Colts game isn't a big enough statement considering they are 4-4). They should be 5-3 and tied for the NFC North lead. Instead they are 4-4 and looking up at a team that will have Rex (the Wonderdog) Grossman under center for the next month.