#646 Packers Unscripted: Making the difference

Packers who's who's worth talking about. And we've gotten the reaction from UM coaches, teammates and whatnot on on this player making UM I guess a somewhat surprise appearance on the UM first team All Pro list that was announced late last week. And of course I'm talking about inside

linebacker Devandre Campbell. You were the one who said it on this show and we were talking about the Pro Bowl and how he didn't get not only didn't get Pro Bowl, which wasn't necessarily a surprise, but he wasn't even an alternati for the Pro Bowl, wasn't on any kind of a Pro Bowl recognition list at all. And you said, let's just wait until the All Pro votes come out. Well, I thought he had a pretty good chance, maybe to get second team All Pro, First team All Pro.

Surprised me. I would have to say, let's keep this on dev Andre Campbell. Let's start on devonre Campbell. I do have some thoughts on the Pro Bowl, though, once we get past this. The thing that the reason I said that is because one of the reasons I really liked the All Pro team is because they they judge

guys based on the position which they play. When you look at strictly inside linebackers, middle linebackers in the National Football League, I think Campbell the way he performed this season, when you look at the statistics, the analytics, all that stuff, he was among the best of his position. And I realistically, if you want to go past the numbers, past anything, just look at how this defense plays with him on

the field. Look at the difference in terms of their production not only against the run, but also what they've done against tight ends this season, against running backs leaking

out of the backfield, Campbell has been exceptional. And to see when we didn't get to see it, but to hear what that moment was like on Friday when when Matt Flour brings everybody together and announces to the team, Okay, we have two pretty obvious first team selections and everybody knows what's going on there, and then he mentions, but there's a third and it was it was interesting, and

you were the one that asked it. But listening to Aaron Rodgers kind of like recall his thoughts, They're like, well, it could have been Resul Douglas, it could have been this player, it could have been Devandre and and to hear we haven't at this point which we're taping, is we haven't talked to Campbell yet, but to hear what that moment was, like how enthusiastic the team was when it was announced that Campbell was a first team All Pro and then Campbell to give that speech and he

said it a number of times this year, but the fact that the Packers made him feel value, made him feel like he was a part of something, and the biggest thing of all allowed him to become the player he felt he was capable of being. That is where this sixth NFL season for Devandra Campbell, I think you can tell that this is the one for him. That was the galvanizing year, not just because of the success, but because he was finally put in a position with

this defense to be the man. Yeah. And it's interesting because any anytime, anytime there's a new addition to the team, there are always questions about, Okay, is that is this player going to fit the locker room? Is this player going to fit the culture? And then there are also players who who can come along and and who can elevate the locker room and they can elevate the culture.

Devandre Campbell is one of these guys. Not only not only does he fit the culture, did he fit it right from the beginning, but he also elevated it with his play to have the career year that he's had stepping into a brand new system. Didn't really have an offseason program because, as we've mentioned, he signs in the middle of June, basically like a week or so before everybody's being dismissed for the long break before training camp. And when I look at you know, we get asked

these questions all the time. Okay, so what's gonna what's different about the Packers this year? You know, last two years the Packers have had a first round by they've had home games in the playoffs, etcetera, etcetera. And when I look at what's going on with these with these Packers, if you were to if you were to ask me, what is the biggest difference between this team and the previous two teams that have tried to make these runs

to the super Bowl, The biggest difference is Devandre Campbell. Because, yes, a couple of years ago, A. J. Dillon wasn't here. He's he's a new player. Russeuell Douglas is is a new player this year. You've had other you know, guys step in, step up on the offensive line, all of that, and I'm not discounting that. But if you were to ask me the single biggest difference in personnel between this pack Ers team and the ones from the previous two years that have tried to make this run, Campbell is

the biggest difference. He changed the way this defense looks, He changed the way it plays. And uh and I took my cap to him because he in a very short amount of time he was able to get due recognition for it, and it made a believer out of me. In the middle linebacker position of the inside linebacker position. You got to see, you know, Nick Barnett in his prime. You got to see, you know, a J Hawk earlier

in his career. Certainly, Blake Martinez had some good moments and and Clay Matthews was exceptional after they moved him to that inside linebacker position. But Campbell playing at a first team All Pro level this year showed you how dynamic that position can be and just overall what the domino effect is on the rest of the unit when you get elite play from that position. That's stat that I believe was Mike Reiner was the one. Uh, Mike Reener,

I'm sorry, Mike if MS pronounced your name. From Pro Football Focus, that's STAD pumped out about how Campbell was the only linebacker in the National Football League with at least eighty solo tackles that had fewer than double digit

miss tackles and he only had four. Four was one of the most illuminating things about this season, because while you and I aren't sitting there counting miss tackles every game, as soon as I said that, I was like, you know, throughout the course of the year, I didn't see a whole lot of miss tackles from Devondre Campbell, especially in open space, like when he's in the open field man,

it was like a magnet to the football. He got that guy to the ground, or at least held him up long enough for the rest of the guys to come. There's no whiffing in his game, and that's not easy to do. That's a moving target that you're trying to put an arrow through, and Campbell has done a really good job of it. In addition, he's long, he's lengthy, and and you can just tell how much this meant to him into this team. The Green Bay Packers are going to try to get on a run here. They're

gonna try to beat the San Francisco forty Niners. They're gonna try to win this thing at home in the NFC Championship Game, and they're gonna attempt to try to win a Super Bowl. If those three things are gonna happen, Devandre Campbell, Russell Douglas, some of these guys that you and I were not talking about on June one are going to be the reason it occurs. I've been again as I said, it made a believer out of me.

This guy has made a believer out of me. And what the importances of the inside linebacker position in the National Football League in two thousand. Also, just can I make the point about the Pro Bowl really quick? Congratulations also to Devandre Campbell. Hopefully he's in Green Bay. I don't know where he's playing next year. You'll be a free agent after the season, but congratulations the two thousand twenty three Pro Bowl selection already coming his way. You

can see it happening. The most antiquated of antiquated systems in the National Football League Pro Bowl voting outside linebackers having to play inside linebacker because they can't differentiate a defensive end from an edge rusher. H Rogers called it. Rogers called it the bok tr treatment, right because David Baktr got All Pro recognition before he ever got a

Pro Bowl. Same thing happened with Corey Lindsley. He gets first team All Pro last year, and then this year with the Chargers in his new free agent contract, he makes his first Pro Bowl. And as you said, you can pretty much right in in ink. You don't even need to put it in pencil in ink of Andrea Campbell will be a Pro Bowler next season. Because the All Pro recognition came first. A lot of things happened with the hubb ark Ish thing. I know there's a

lot of questions about the voting process. I told you I wrote about it. I think I said on the show, the AP voters take that responsibility series they do and for them to actually acknowledge that. The other thing they've gotten right to they right tackle is the first team All Pro right tackle, they do a third receiver now instead of trying to do a fullback or reflex position. The I tip my cap to the Associated Press. They have adjusted to the times. I would really like to

see the Pro Bowl voting do that as well. Yeah. Absolutely, And the the for the All Pro voting, there there were three linebackers, essentially three interior linebackers who were selected and uh and Campbell Hamble was able to get that that third spot in the voting. So that's why he became a first teamer other than Aaron Rodgers. Telling that great story on Tuesday about the reveal by Matt Lafleur of the All Pro selections for the team and how

the team reacted. The other thing that I took out of um his session with the media, and I wrote about this on the website the other day. There's a there's a there's a mindset here with this team that that that's permeating a little bit. You know, back in t nineteen it was Matt Lafleur's first season, Packers kind of came out of nowhere in some respects to go thirteen and three right after back to back seasons of

not making the playoffs. And there's we heard all the cliches about oh, you know, everything's gonna be more intense, you gotta step up your game, you know, blah blah blah. We didn't hear We didn't hear that from Aaron Rodgers this year, and I think there, you know, it's it's not about you know, oh, find another level of intensity, turn it up a notch. That's not what this is about. This team. This Packers team has you know, has been there and done that in terms of gotten into the playoffs,

had some success in the playoffs. No, they haven't had all the success that they want to have, but they believe in who they are, they believe in their process, and they're not going to suddenly try to just go outside themselves too, you know, to play the hero. The sense that I get is this team, this team, this locker room is very much staying within itself, and they're going to be very very business like in a lot of ways when when they take the field on Saturday

night against the forty nine ers. This is this is all business for these guys because because they've been here before, they've won this game before, and they will focus on winning this game. But they have they feel they have so much more out in front of them, and and running around and throwing her arms and doing all the raw raw stuff and all that. That's that's not the personality of the squad. It's a rate story in terms

of this matchup. And you have the San Francisco forty Niners who were so close to winning a Super Bowl championship, got to the promised Land and just tripped a couple of bricks before the finish line. You have the Green Bay Packers, who have been to back to back NFC Championship games two thousand. Didn't go so hot last year. It was right there for them. They got the turnovers late, they just couldn't finish it. They're trying to finally cross that precipice to be able to get back to a

Super Bowl for the first time in eleven years. You can't draw it up any better. My first thing I think I wrote an insider inbox this week was this game sells itself. Our photo, our video department. Do a fantastic job with the trailer. We'll have all the popping circumstances. You could sell this with a flyer and a guy standing down at the corner just telling me the tickets are on sale. That's how big this matchup is. And

there's a Shanahan La floor angle. There's all these different story lines that go with it, but ultimately you have two of the league's best teams. I know it's been tough for the forty Niners. They've had injuries, they've had setbacks, but they've found their way back to this point in the Green Bay Packers. Mike, what I've been telling fans all week long, it's time to be confident. I understand there's some nervous energy there. I understand the Packers have

had some playoff runs here. They haven't ended the way you wanted. You didn't get that hat on your head that you were hoping to get at the end of the season. But they're the first seat and they've played really well in the divisional round. At home here these last few seasons, be confident and and if you can take any solace from the fact that, well the fordni is really hot, Are they really tough matchup? Of course

they are. Why wouldn't they be. But remember the Packers have been the team other than Week one, have been arguably the most consistent team in the National Football League. Forty Niners have one some close ball games, they've eaten some good football teams, but the Packers have been doing it longer. And I feel like, especially as they've cut back to better health, now this is the time for all those things to kind of click in together and make that final push. Absolutely, I just I like the

I like the mindset, the approach of this team. Aaron Rodgers said, We're not going to make this any bigger than it is. Everybody knows it's big, it's it's it's the playoffs, it's winn or go home and all that. But you don't make it any bigger than it is. You believe in who you are, you believe in your process and uh m, and you believe that playing your best football is going to get the job done. Can I say one other thing? I'm not saying that Kyle Shanahan,

you know, and you know their offensive coaches stuff. Don't have some tricks up their sleeves yet. But you know, so many people are saying, well, how are they going to defend Deebo Samuel? How are they can do all this stuff? The one benefit to being able to have a buy as opposed to playing that wild card game, sam fran Heado empty the holster with a lot of their play calling. We saw Trent Williams motioning for crying out loud. I mean the reverse looks that they did

with with Samuel. That stuff's on film. I'm not saying that the forty Niners can't hit it against you, but the Packers have seen how dynamic this guy is gonna be. There's gonna be no blind sides here. You have to execute, you have to tackle, you have to be on your keys. But the Packers, they have a whole bag of tricks here that they haven't shown yet. Going to the playoffs, maximize those chances. Yeah, absolutely, And I want to get to uh those keys to victory here in a minute.

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couple of things to me. One thing in particular that stands out to me is a key to victory for the Packers in this game, and that is to tackle um. Deebo Samuel has the statistics he has because he breaks tackles and gets yards after contact. George Kittle has the statistics that he has as a pass catcher because he takes short throws and they rupture into big games because he's hard to bring down. The Packers have to be

on their pas and cues. With the tackling Deebo Samuel and George Kittle and these guys, they are going to make their plays the differences. Are they going to be able to turn a seven yard play into a seventeen

or a twenty seven yard play? Is George Kittle going to be able to turn a ten yard catch into a twenty two or twenty eight yard catch, being able to make your tackles Devandre Campbell, as we talked about, he doesn't miss him right, But the rest of the Packers have to tackle in this game as well as Davandre Campbell does, because that's what the forty Niners live off of, is the broken tackles in the yards after contact to move the chains and to create the big

plays that get their offense rolling. Cooper Cup Davante Adams both unanimous first team All Pro selections. I don't think anyone can argue with that. There was a lot of controversy in the minds of some people that Samuel got the third spot over Justin Jefferson. Both are great players, absolutely, but the the X factor with Samuel for me is

I'm not a lie of sports bureau. I'd like to see a stat of how many players in NFL history had seventy five catches and averaged over eighteen yards per catch. I mean, that tells you he's not just the possession receiver. He's an explosive receiver. That's that's like James Lofton territory, but doing it in a in a much different way than James Lofton. Yeah, exactly, And and especially in this day and age with passing offenses. Teams are ready for this stuff. And the guy didn't matter when he had

the ball in his hand. It's in an open space, He's going to be able to find ways to hurt you. The Packers can't let that happen. I don't know what the secondary is gonna look like. I don't know how they're going to configure if g I R. Alexander's back, where he's gonna play. If he's back, who comes out, who goes in? What packages are going to come up with?

All I know is whoever draws that assignment on a given play has to lock in like that is the most important rep of their season, because, as we've seen over and over and over again, especially these last two months with the Niners, when Samuel gets going that bowling ball doesn't stop and and being able to actually care hail him while keeping an eye on Kittle. Brandon Ayuk as the guy that nobody is talking about this week that really has come on since that Week three matchup

with Green Bay. They have weapons, Elijah Mitchell in the backfield. For me, the biggest key is going to be what happens with Jimmy Garoppolo, because I don't see this being a game or Jimmy Garoppolo throws the ball twelve times, he's gonna have to make some throws. They're gonna want to run the ball. You see the playoff statistics. They run the ball in the postseason with Shanahan, but with the shoulder, with the thumb. The Packers could potentially have

Sadarius Smith back, Whitney Merciless back. Maybe we'll see. Not promising anything, but if those guys are there to take reps off of Preston Smith, Rashaan Gary, Kenny Clark in the middle had a really nice performance earlier this season against Alex Mac. I want to see the pressure that they can generate. I want to see them stop the run. I want to see them be able to have success against Garoppolo and win this game in a lot of the same ways you won Week three, forcing turnovers, creating

points and opportunities off those takeaways. Yeah. Absolutely. And before before we came in here and turned on the cameras to to shoot this episode of unscripted, we went outside in the bowl to shoot our final thoughts. Um. Yeah. With with the week being a little condensed with the Saturday game. There, you know certain things we're doing on

on different days. There's only two of us. But the one of the things that I mentioned in that video in terms of a key to victory here for the Packers, and I've said this with some other games this season as well, but it's about it's about withstanding the surge

from the opponent. And I say that particularly with the forty niners because of when you look at their last two games, as we talked about earlier in the week, they were down seventeen nothing to the Rams, with their with their season on the line, and then they surged all the way back right and and they were able to get that game tied up seventeen seventeen and then make it a back and forth contest there down the stretch. Last week against the Cowboys, they jumped all over Dallas

in the beginning. The surge is right out of the gate, and it was thirteen and nothing before the Dallas Cowboys even caught their breath. Um, that surge is coming at some point from the forty enters on Saturday night. I don't know if it's going to be right away in the first quarter. I don't know if it's going to be coming out of halftime, or if it's gonna be

somewhere in between. But this this forty Niners offense, and combined with the pass rush of the defense, they're they're gonna have this surge and the Packers are going to have to limit the damage. They're going to have to survive that surge. And it might just be stopping them on a given drive to force a field goal, getting a key third down stop. Maybe it's maybe it's getting a turnover that that suddenly flips the momentum of the game. But the Packers are going to have to withstand that surge.

These playoff games, you know how they go west, the momentum shifts are huge, and both teams are going to have the momentum at different times in the game, and when the other team has it, you have to limit it as best you can and and try to turn it back your way as as soon as possible. And I think that applies on Saturday night. The point I made all week is San Francisco one in Dallas. Because of that opening surge. People can make their little memes

of McCarthy. That's fine, he's a big boy, he can take it. But the fact of the matter is it was what the forty Niners did in that first quarter that enabled them to be able to outlast the Cowboys in the second half. And at the end, Dallas did a lot of things right, but ultimately we're too far in the hole by the time their offense started clicking late. San Francisco is going to look to do that again here because you're at an opposing venue, You're gonna want

to take that crowd out of it early. But what I like about Green Bay is I think that this defense is much more disciplined than what's Dallas is, and that's a credit to Dallas. By the way, Dallas's defense might have been the worst of the National Football League last year, it was certainly in the running. They added some parts. Michael Parsons is going to be a monster in this league for years to come. That Dallas defense made a huge jump from but they still were young

and undisciplined. This unit. And when I say on discipline, I'm not talking about just missing gaps. I'm talking about tackling an offensive lineman too the ground in the scenario in which you gotta get a staff the penalty and smart packers are the least penalized team in the National Football League this year. You want to be able to continue to play with that veteran head, you know, that mindset,

and be keeping your head on your shoulders. Uh. That's where I think Green Bay can do this thing differently. And honestly, Mike, you and I were out there in the Bowl. It is cold, and while it will be a little bit warmer on Saturday night, they have the blowers going right now. They're doing everything they can to keep this thing, you know, thought out and temperate. But the ground in Green Bay, Wisconsin is still the ground in Green Bay, Wisconsin. This is not a T and

T stadium. The game will be slower than it was in Dallas. I think that also lends itself to Green Bay's favor. Yeah. Well, and you mentioned it earlier in the show too, about how these teams and I actually looked it up earlier in this week. Earlier this week, both of these teams, not just in Week three when they played each other and it came down to the last couple of seconds obviously with the Mason Crosby kick.

Both of these teams throughout the course of the year have played numerous down to the wire down to the last possession of type of games. Both teams had nine of their seventeen games in the regular season decided by one score, nine out of seventeen both of them, which means eight others aside from when when they played one another.

Both of the both of these teams, both these teams are battle tested in that respect in terms of playing sixty minute games, and you just know that this one, this one is going to come down to the last couple of possessions in the last five or six minutes of the fourth quarter, and it's going to be who is who is going to be executing at the proper level, Because it's not somebody, in my opinion, with either these teams,

It's not somebody who's going to blink. It's not somebody who's going to make a crucial mistake at that moment. It's going to be one team execute eating at the ultimate high level to pull out a close game down the stretch with which both of these teams have been tested to do um throughout the course of the season. You know who the forty Niners kind of remind me of a little bit. I think it's the two thousand one Chicago Bears. Actually two thousand one green Bay Packers

against the Chicago Bears. I think that was the year with Dick Gerond and maybe I'll get this wrong with Jim Miller. Where the Bears weren't they like thirteen or three or something like that. But I think the Packers ended up beating them twice, and the Bears has gone thirteen and three, but they lost twice to Green Bay. That's what the forty Niners kind of remind me of because they were the ones that lost, you know, these games early on, but still ended up beating the Rams twice.

During the regular the Rams were the division champ and the actually West, but the Niners beat them both times. See I know history a little bit. But the reason I say that is San Francisco totally belongs to be here. But you know I have my question is I don't know how many games in a row they're going to be able to win. And that's why I felt going into the playoffs, why you want to have the buyers

because some of these teams are really talented. I don't know if they can win three or four in a row. San Francisco may be able to do that. We're gonna find out. But Green Bay. You want to create the shortest path to victory as possible. The Packers have done that. They're gonna get this game at Lambou Field unlike last year. Yes, the temperature will be colder. They're gonna have the crowd into it again. It's not gonna be a bunch of you know, nine thousand people, including my father, banging a

sign against the bleacher. It's going to be real people, real energy, and I think that's gonna bring the best out of this Packers team. I can't wait for it. It's gonna be an amazing football game. That is it's gonna be. It's gonna be dynamite, no question about it. Quickly before we go, just your thoughts on how these other games are going to unfold. The other one, obviously, in the NFC Los Angeles Rams are at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The winner there will face the winner of

forty Niners and Packers in the NFC Championship Game. And on the a f C side, Cincinnati at Tennessee, Buffalo at Kansas City. Any quick thoughts on how those games are going to unfold. My quick thought, I've never said this, We've done. We've done unscripted for six years now. Can you believe that? Go back into two thousand sixteen. Look how young we look. My thing is, I've never said this on the show. I legitimately hope the Packers win on Saturday. And there's a reason for that too, beyond

all he worked for the team. But the reason I say that is I really want to care about these Sunday games because it's a great slate of football. I was really disappointed by Super Wildcard weekend. I think everybody was the one game, the one game that ended up mattering the most to the Packers fortunes. Obviously San Francisco and Dallas was by far the best game of the weekend. As we predicted. We just didn't know that all the rest of them were. I should say four of the

other five we're going to be absolute snoozers. But the reason why is because this is the weekend. Man, I said this to you three times this week. Here's the fourth. This is the first round of the playoffs. To me, these are the eight best teams in the National Football League. I actually really believe that. I don't think anybody snuck through here for to have of Rams playing the Buccaneers. I want to see that game. I know it's a rematch. I want to see it again. I think the Bills

in Kansas City. Those teams are going to continue to play each other this year, next year, the year after. You look at you look at the ages of Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. They played for the a f C Championship last year. They're playing in the a f C Divisional Round this year. They these two quarterbacks might go against each other a dozen, fourteen times in the playoffs. Before this is all said, it's gonna be the Batman and the Joker Man. We're destined to do this forever.

And in Cincinnati or Tennessee. Man, one of those teams is going to the f C Championship Game cincin Eddie, an a f C Championship game Tennessee, after everything they went through this year, going to an a Tennessee, Tennessee,

getting Derrick Henry back. Now for the playoffs, we talked about some of these guys the Packers might get back, Tennessee potentially getting Derrick Henry back, and Cincinnati being at this stage, at this stage for the first time in thirty one years, you were just getting out of diapers thirty one years ago. West, Yeah, yeah, I really was. That actually is true. But this is that That's why I want to care about those games on Sunday. And I'm telling you right now this thing doesn't work on

for Green Bay. I ain't watching football on Sunday. So I mean to be able to see how this uh, this whole hand. You know, it's the beautiful mry Aaron Rodgers always talks about and we are days away from finally figuring out some of these answers. Yeah, absolutely, well it should be. It's it's usually the best weekend of NFL football of of the entire season, and I think that's going it's going to play out that way this

time around. With that, we'll call it a wrap on this edition of Packers on Script and be sure to follow all of our coverage of the team and everything with Saturday night's game. We'll have it for you on Packers dot com. For West, I'm Mike. Thanks for tuning in, everybody. We'll see you next time.