#461 Packers Unscripted: Off to Arrowhead

to do to come back seven and one? Well, so much has been made this week of the quarterback situation, whether it'll be Patrick Mahomes or what it'll be Matt Moore. At the end of the day, the weapons are the weapons and the Chief's offense though, and you have to account for them. So whether it's Sammy Watkins, Tyreek hill, Um Hardman, the rook you know, Travis Kelsey again having a phenomenal season, or even the Shawn McCoy now really stepping his game up as you know, taking the reins

as kind of their lad running back. There's so many different people that you have to stop. So even if it is Matt Moore in this game, the thing that I like about what Kansas City offers offensively is there's a lot of things that they can do to make the quarterbacks life easier, and you need to be able to eliminate those weapons. So, you know, my biggest key for this thing is one being able to stop McCoy,

not allowing Damian Williams to get going. He's you know, he's had a rough goal of it here the first six seven weeks of the season. You gotta, you know, keep him stymied. But if you're allowed, if you're able to actually stop McCoy and make this thing one dimensional and allow your safeties in in in cornerbacks to play to their strengths, that's gonna go a long way. Because, as I'm sure something we'll be talking about the fact that Darnell Savage was uh practicing in pads on Thursday.

It wasn't just that it was a walk through on Wednesday, allowed him to be out there. He was good to go and clear to be in that padded practice Thursday. So that signals that he's probably looking towards a return here to have them back and Adrian Amos and you know, being able to defend the middle of the field there is going to be critical, especially when you have weapons like Hill and Kelsey that really the Kansas City is

really looking to take advantage of. Yeah, we've been talking about those weapons for Kansas City, and a lot of it is built on speed. Obviously, Travis Kelsey not a speed burner, but for a tight end is about as fast and athletic as it gets. And then you have

your Tyreek Hills and you're Sammy Watkins. I think on the defensive side of this ball, what I point to for this game is to tackle, because I think the Kansas City Chiefs they're gonna look to make explosive plays by making guys miss and generating big gains off of

yards after the catch and things like that. And I think the Packers need to be on their p's and queues with the tackling because Andy Reid is going to be able to scheme things up to get the ball to the guys that he wants to have the ball in their hands. But if you limit those catches to where the ball is caught and not let those turn into the explosive gains that are hurt the Packers a lot over the last few weeks. I think the Packers defense can can stay in here and hold their own

regardless of whether it's Matt Moore or Patrick Mahomes. And the most the more I looked at the last month here and some of these games that they played tight, the games have been tighter because they didn't allow the

Chiefs to extend those plays. So, whether it's Mahomes just in the pocket or whether it's a guy like Hill with the ball now that he's back from the shoulder injury, you know, being able to work through those type of things is going to be you know critical that you know, if it isn't the first guy tackling that you're at least getting a helmet there and allowing the rest of the group to come and charge. And you know, it doesn't always have to be twenty five solo tackles. It's

you know, group tackles. You know count the same in the grand scheme of things, But you cannot allow them to break to the second level. That was one of the issues they have with Josh Jacobs last week is that he just when he got to that second level, he's so hard to take down a lot of those guys between those you know, the chains there, that's where they'll receive the ball. That's where they start to do their damage because of how they can get the yards

after catch. So that I agree with you whole hardly. That's going to be one of the big critical points of emphasis for this game for Green Bay because the thing about Matt Moore is I'm not trying to say that he's a He's not a prototype of homes by any means, but he's played in this league for a long time, with over a thousand passes thrown, you know, and in the number of you know, starts that he had both in Carolina and Miami, the moment is not

going to be too big for him. So I mean, if you allow him to get if let's say it is more, and you allow him to feel good and confident back in a swing of things early on, that can really be a recipe for disaster. And you mentioned earlier that the Packers looks like they're gonna get Darnell Savage back at safety in the back end. Here, the rookie first round pick out of Maryland, and he's fast, and the best answer for speed on the offensive side is to have your own speed on the defensive side.

And j R. Alexander. We're expecting him probably to get his share of Tyreek Hill. But Darnell Savage is one of these guys that if he's if he's playing in the deep middle, playing center field, he's gonna have to chase the ball down. He's gonna have to chase down these uh, these speedy weapons for the Chiefs, and as I said before, just prevent those big plays. Yeah, and this is a much better matchup for Green Bay than it would have been a couple of years ago. I mean,

I think that they are conditioned to match speed for speed. Now, there were some years where it was like that that could be a really big problem. But I think you've seen even with some of these explosives they've had in recent weeks that they've allowed. You've seen JayR Alexander, you know running down uh, you know receivers. You've seen Will Redmond being able to come back and make a play. They have the athleticism and talent to to stay stride

for stride for them. The big key for this game is going to be being back and getting on your technique, being able to know where your leverage is in playing within the scheme so you don't allow those big, gashing plays. But afterwards, I mean, certainly they have the speed and the side to side, sideline to sideline speed to be able to account for a lot of the things that

Kansas City's gonna throw at them. Yeah. Well, on the offensive side of the ball for the Packers, I know we're coming off of this game with Aaron Rodgers and the maximum passer rating one point three, But to me, this matchup and the venue Arrowhead Stadium, and everything that goes into that, this game to me just screams run the ball, protect the ball. And we talked earlier in

the week about Kansas City's run defense. They're allowing about a hundred and fifty yards a game on the ground, about five point zero yards per carry, both of those figures in the bottom quarter of the league. As far as run defense, I think with the Packers and there one to punch with Jones and Williams, they've got to get that going. They need to establish that and take

advantage of that weakness in Kansas City defense. And then really, anytime you're on the road, especially but in an environment like this prime time Sunday night football Arrowhead Stadium. A team that went to the A f C Championship Game last year. Uh, there's no faster way to to lose momentum than to turn the ball over. And the Packers have done a good job obviously protecting the football for the most part this year. That really needs to continue

in this game. I say that also because whether it's Matt Moore or a limited or compromised Patrick Mahomes, in some way, I think the Packers have a significant edge at quarterback in this game with Aaron Rodgers. And to me, anytime you have a significant edge at quarterback, if you protect the football and don't lose that turnover battle, you

have a really really good chance to win. And it's funny too much because you can go back and you want to look at all the different defenses and and strategies and players at the Packers have had over Aaron Rodgers career as a starting quarterback now twelve years into this thing, is that it's taking the football away. When the Packers take the football away. With the way that Rogers takes care of it, it's been a recipe for victories.

It's been on what has allowed the Packers to, you know, be one of the league's most consistently winning franchises, you know, during Aaron Rodgers tenure as a as a you know, quarterback here in the NFL. This matchup is interesting to me on a number of different levels because Mahomes sort of everyone always says Mahomes reminds it reminds everyone of Rogers a lot, and it does. But he also has some of those you know, Brett Farve qualities too. He's

not afraid to be a gun slinger. He's really smart with what he does. Um, but you know he is going to be prone to a couple more mistakes. And I would say Rodgers is a lot of times the thing that's gonna be really interesting about this matchup. Okay, let's just say Mahomes ends up playing in this. Again. I've stated in my opinion on this, there's a lot for this young man to play for, and there's a lot that Kansas City is playing for in the season.

I would think it wouldn't be the smartest of measures. But let's say that's the route they take. I I very easily could see this being a shootout. I very easily could see this be a game where the Packers defense still plays really well. Um, just because of how this game is set up and how things are are looking offensively, though, I think where the Packers truly get

the edge is their run game. I think with Aaron Jones and Jamal Williams and the performance that they're coming off of for the last few weeks when it's had to be both of them, when it's had to be one of them, the way that they've stepped up and risen to the occasion has been sort of that difference maker. And when I think, getting back to my main point here, the best years Aaron Rodgers head is when that running

game is at its best. And I think that's what when you talk about all the different factors and things that went right for the Packers and things that went wrong. But realistically, when I think of six and one, I think of how the offense has found an equalirium, has found a balance, and it's a credit to Aaron Jones and Jamal Williams, and I think those two guys don't

let up. Yeah. When I say, and I just want to be clear when I say I think the Packers are going to have a significant quarterback advantage in this game. That's if Patrick Mahomes plays. I don't think we're going to see the m v P Patrick Mahomes. We're not going to see the guy who can scramble all the way out to the right boundary and throw the ball

back to the left. Hash. We're not going to see the guy who can roll to his left and then open up and throw back across his body at some weird arm angle on the move and hit somebody like Tyreek Hill and stride cutting back across the other way. I just if Mahomes plays, I just think it's going to be a compromise Mahomes, It's not going to be the m v P Mahomes. And that's where I you know, run the ball and protect the ball. I think that's

what wins this game. Yeah, and that's why. And again we're going to find out probably ninety minutes before this game begins on Sunday night. But I just don't see why, other than suf refuge and all those you know, different kind of sleight of hands that Kansas City could be trying to use, I don't see why you do it. I don't see why you go that direction, especially considering Matt Moore actually looked pretty good last week. I felt, I mean, he's not Patrick Mahomes, but he also didn't

look out of place there. He looked like he could have effectively run this offense. And considering he wasn't on this roster two months ago today, I think that actually, you know, speaks pretty well of him and what he's brought to the table. Yeah. Well, a couple other things to touch on here with regards to we've been speaking all week about the venue and Arrowhead Stadium and everything

like that. A couple of things to keep in mind. One, the Chiefs are five and two, but you know what they're two losses are both at Arrowhead Stadium, which you would think when looking at things on paper, But it's true. They lost back to back home games too. I believe it was the Colts and the Texans, if I'm not mistaken.

So kind of strange in the sense that the team that was the number one seed in the a f C and had the home field in the playoffs and everything throughout last year has already lost to home games this year. On the other side of that, for the Green Bay Packers, you look at the last quarter century of Packers history and if you were to rank the you know, top five or six regular seasons, the Packers

have had in that time. One of them, would two of them, I should say, would definitely be two thousand eleven, And and those both happened to be years that the Packers lost at Arrowhead Stadium, even though it was one of the better seasons in recent history for this franchise. So a couple of things with regards to this location and the recent history and the history in the past and everything going on that that make this a little

more interesting. Was the quarterback in ninety was that Alviskerback? It wasn't Joe Montana was already done. No, Montana was gone by then. It might have been Gerback. I have to look it up for sure, but you're probably right on that. But it is funny. I mean, as a kid, I remember that game a little bit, and I remember, you know, because obviously you see Arrowhead and you just have the bright red colors and and and certainly that was a you know, demoralizing day for a little west

Hot quits. But um no, I mean, and you go back to two thousand eleven, I can actually tell you where I was. I wasn't watching the game in two thousand eleven. I was at a local fabric shop with my wife. She was trying to put together this project for school, and I remember following it on my phone for fantasy football reasons and just to see how the

game was going. You certainly were there, and like it was just one of those things where those type of games, you get that feeling in the first half, like Okay, it's a slow start, and then you get into the third quarter, it's like, Okay, this isn't a slow start anymore. In the fourth quarter, it's so, this is getting kind

of dangerous. And I think one of the things, and a lot was made out of that, the two shell, some of the adjustments that Romeo Cornell made that you know, some defenses down the line end up exploiting for a minute. And Cornell was at the time, right because because Todd

was it Todd Haley had already been fired. Yeah, the Chiefs were going through a transition there, and UH and the Packers obviously we're thirteen and oh and and the winning street came to a winning streak that was actually nineteen games going back to UH to the finish to two thousand ten that ended with the championship. The Packers had won nineteen games in a row. And that streak

ended at Arrowhead. Yeah. And the thing that stands out to me, other than the fact that the adjust was that Kernell made in you know, very game Kansas City team, was when even when we were down season like that, how much that crowd ended up ultimately getting behind them because of what it meant and the run of the

Packers had been on at that point. Mike I was in the locker room for every home game running quotes, and I just remember every single week and Clay Matthews, to his credit, often said, you know, the next one is only as good as the last one, so we

gotta keep winning for this to matter. But there was a public sentiment nationally that Okay, this is a team that's just going to run through everybody, and then Kansas City very humbly reminded them that now and any given day the NFL in that day, that venue, that day. That was my lasting takeaway. It was just how rocking

it was by what was sort of a cataclysmic upset. Yeah. Well, in the big picture here and now for the Green Bay Packers, they need to win to get to seven and one and stay alone in first place in the NFC North because on Thursday Night football, the Minnesota Vikings took care of business. Not the prettiest game in the world, but a win is a win as a win. As they say, nineteen to nine, the Vikings are six and

two at the halfway point. So the Packers if they want to remain by themselves the top the NFC North, they need to get to seven and one. Your thoughts on the Thursday night game. Unfortunate for the Redskins and for Packers fans who were rooting for Washington to to pull the upset. When Case Keena went out of the game and Dwayne Haskins went in, the rookie out of Ohio State, it just for whatever Washington had going on offense,

it all kind of disappeared. And for his valiant and effort, I guess I would say as Washington's defense put up against a Minnesota offense that was lighting people up the last few weeks, Washington's defense kept him in the game, but their offense just couldn't do enough. Yeah, and it's unfortunate too, because I don't know if you remember, the player that jumps off to my mind right at the top of my head is Steve Smith here and I'll tell you what I'm trying to get at um. Right

at the beginning of his career, I remember correctly. I think Carolina was actually working through some stuff. They were trying to find their quarterback, and you know, you kind of get those players every once in a while, those skill position players were It's like, Okay, this guy is pretty good. If you could just get him to somebody to throw on the ball, man. I really get that feeling with Washington's Terry mcclaughlin McLaren. Gosh, that kid is

explosive and yeah, he's really come on the scene, hasn't he. Yeah, and if he could just get him somebody to consistently deliver him a football, I think that guy is gonna be really special for Washington. You know, part of me too, after watching that game the highlights back. I also think too that a guy like Adrian Peterson, he used to always talk about how he wanted to play to forty and then I highly doubted that for a while, especially when he was like the third string running back in

New Orleans. But the way he's running now, yeah, he doesn't have the explosive speed anymore, but he still has the power to move piles. So the point I'm trying to make your is Washington has some players, they just don't have a quarterback, and then case Keenum maybe could have potentially been able to keep them in the game to to win a close one, he ends up leaving

with the concussion. Well, Keenum was Keenum was moving the ball for this offense early on managing they kept getting into gold and ghost situations and they couldn't get the ball in the end zone and they were settling for field goals, and so you're thinking, Okay, if they can keep moving the ball and then eventually cash in, they'll stay right there and maybe have a chance to pull the upset. And then the second half Keenum's out of

the game. They say he's in the concussion protocol, and U really, Washington just didn't have a chance, even though Minnesota's offense, while efficient when you look at all the numbers, was not the explosive, piling up the touchdowns unit that it had been the last few weeks. Yeah, there's a part of me too that wonders if Washington kind of did this to themselves, because I mean, they were talking all week long about, Okay, Keenyan is going to be

the starter. We're gonna have Haskins as the number two because he's the future, And a part of me is kind of like, I just, I mean, if Colt McCoy is in that situation, you wonder. Certainly he's coming back from a significant injury, and I know things didn't go great for him for the first game back when he had to play. But yeah, I just Haskins looks like

he's out of place right now. But you know, we got to talk about Minnesota for a little bit to be at a position now that there's six and two and working through some of the stuff that they've worked through, our game winning streak after a two and to start, a lot of people questioning what was going on in Minnesota, including some people in their own locker room ing there questioning what was going on there at two and two after the loss in Chicago when their offense just did

not look like it had anything going for it. And but a different story now in Minneapolis a month later. Yeah, that's why I ended up saying the insider in box yesterday and one of my posts that we make so much out of, you know, Mike Simmers defense, but Mike Simmer the head coach is pretty darn good too, and for him to be able to rally the troops at a time in which it seemed like this because all

fallen apart. And I know I myself personally, I was wondering, oh, man, if this doesn't go the way they needed to, what does this mean for Zimmer? And here they are now sitting six and two and still in the thick of this thing. And you know, looking at how their schedule lines, there's some tough matchups on there, but there is an element of controlling their own destiny too, with that slate

of NFC North games to close out the season. Well, and I think Zimmer has learned some lessons over the years two in terms of that leadership and in terms of directing the ship, so to speak, because I remember a few years ago the Vikings were five and oh, they went to Philadelphia. Their offensive line kind of fell apart. Sam Bradford got sacked a whole bunch of times. It was their first loss of the year. They were five and one, and Zimmer went to the podium after the

game and completely ripped his offensive line. You know, there was a leadership question there, because the Viking season did fall apart, they ended up eight and eight, and you wonder, you know, I just I I agree with you. I think I think Zimmer is a really good head coach and what he's doing with this team now. But this is also a little bit different Mike Zimmer head coach than from a few years ago when when I think he made some mistakes. I agree with you on that.

I also would say I don't think the words mattered ultimately with that offense. That offensive line was bad. I mean, that was no bad offensive line, but you're right, but they were. But they were five. They were five and oh, they were five and oh, and they had lost one game, and those guys were sitting there saying, our head coach just completely threw us under the bus and we're five and one, Like what do you want? Zimmer was way

too emotional. But it was funny because I remember watching them earlier in that season when they were five and oh, and I'm like, oh, man, there's five and note despite that offensive line, and then things started going the wrong direction from they were older. They need to make some adjustments,

but a credit to Rick Spielman, they did. I still think there's some room to grow for that offensive front there, but they're they're playing the way Mike Zimmer wants to play, which is to have a running game that is very reliable. They've got two runs. I mean, Dalvin Cook is spectacular, and then Madison, the rookie as their number two, is

pretty darn solid as well. And the other thing I want to just point out too before we wrap this thing up is that when they did sign are Cousins, there was also like there was this understanding that we have to protect this guy. So, I mean, with the shifts that they've made in the investments they've made in the line, and the young group that I think is growing together, and then you know, regardless of how the passing game has gone for them, they've been able to

run the football consistently each week. That's a credit to the line, that's obviously a credit to Dalvin Cook, and it's a credit to the fact that Minnesota, even though they had to work through some stuff even the season, is still very much in this divisional race. Yeah, well, we shall see what else happens in the NFC North. Here the Lions are playing the Giants, the Bears trying to write the ship as well. They are playing the Chargers, which is who are Green Bay's opponent the following week.

So a lot to keep an eye on here, But yeah, you kind of start to feel like the Lions and the Bears they need to get things turned around here if they want to stay in this with the with the Packers and the Vikings, because you know, the worst case scenario for the Packers is six and two. The Vikings are already six and two at the midway point, and these other these other teams can't fall too much further. But the lines have to win this against the Giants.

They just have to. There's no way fans or butts around it. I mean, you look at where the Giants are right now. They certainly look like they found a quarterback, the quarterback they can build around, but that team has a lot of holes, most of them on defense. Detroit, if they are the team that they think they are, that they can put up the signs saying that they got you know, messed out of that that win against

Green Bay. You need to ultimately beat these teams because you didn't get the job done last week, and now you've got a Giants team that can be explosive staring at you in the face and then with the Bears, I think that's just such an interesting game, as we talked about earlier this week, because Chicago I think still has potential to be better than a team. As you even said, I mean, the Chargers are not a two and five teams and somebody's gonna walk out of Soldier

Field feeling pretty bad about themselves. So yeah, that's that's a critical game in this thing. And um, yeah, there's a lot of gut check games this week. Philadelphia having to go to Buffalo, you know, that's a good it's it's it's a win that Buffalo I think needs to have to prove that they are six and one team. But there's Philadelphia not wanting to follow two games below five.

So yeah, there's throughout the league this week a lot of intriguing matchups with some pretty big implications going into the midpoint of the season. Yeah, and with that we'll call it a wrap on this edition of Packers Unscript. Would be sure to follow all of our coverage of the team and of everything going on Sunday night at Arrowhead Stadium on Packers dot com. You can subscribe to us like us on iTunes and other podcast services on Twitter, he's at West hot I met Mike Spofford at Packers

for the team account. Thanks for tuning in, everybody. We'll see you next time.