A Blessing In Disguise?

In the fallout from Sunday's defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs, there seems to be some quite conflicted thoughts coming from the terraces of Lambeau Field.  Would it have been great to get the perfect 16-0 season? Sure.  But there seems to be a rising tide of thought that the weekends result was for the best.

It seems increasingly clear that the Packers fans were waiting for the loss.  The law of averages always meant that the longer the streak went on, the higher the chances of the loss coming along.  The greatest fear of all was that it would come post-season, when there would be everything to lose.  I sense that there is relief from the fans that it has come along at the best time, when the divisional title and the bye for the first round of playoffs have been secured.

But what about Mike McCarthy and his players?  There was certainly no hiding from the facts at Mondays press conference back at Lambeau Field after the game.  McCarthy was clear about the failures of his team and the areas in which they were outplayed.  And let's be clear, had the Chiefs converted more of their offensive drives into touchdowns rather than field goals (Ryan Succup converted 4), the margin of victory would have been far more convincing.

Mike McCarthy - Clear about Packers priorities

I think Aaron Rodgers and the rest of the Packers players will be of course disappointed not to be in the running for the 16-0, but in a way the pressure is now off them and they can start to concentrate on the more immediate and bigger challenges that are coming their way in the post-season.

The Packers have lost some crucial players in the last couple of weeks, not least offensive linemen Bryan Bulaga (knee) and Derek Sherrod (broken leg) who help form that crucial safety net for Rodgers and these injuries at such an important time in the season will start to have an effect on the squad mentality.

But the Packers have been here before.  The defending Superbowl champions won the Vince Lombardi trophy last year with no less than 10 first pick players missing.  Remember also that the Packers lost in Week 15 last season and went on to dominate through the post-season.

The Packers are still big favourites to defend the Superbowl title and confirm themselves as a truly elite team in the annals of NFL history.  But they have a long way to go, especially when you consider the ominous late season form of their fellow NFC rivals like Drew Brees and the Saints and the San Francisco 49ers.

I would love to see the Packers go all the way.  I have a soft spot for this team that is run in a different way to all other US sports franchises - it's owned by the fans.  It has a unique history and support that sets it apart from the rest and is ultimately one of the reasons for it's continued success.  Long may it continue.