Going to Lambeau - Going to WIN!

bedir than average · January 6th, 2008, 02:57 PM

After the trouncing (ignoring those five minutes) of the wrong Washington the Seahawks get to go to Lambeau Field this time to score.

NFL.com's GameCenter

Code:

Team Matchup SEA GB 
Points Per Game 24.6 27.2 
Total yards per game - Passing 247.8 270.9 
Total yards per game - Rushing 101.2 99.8 
Points allowed per game 18.2 18.2 
Total yards allowed per game - Passing 219.1 210.4 
Total yards allowed per game - Rushing 102.8 102.9 
Giveaways 24 24 
Takeaways 34 28

That's two very evenly matched teams, which implies home-field and turnovers will be the key. I was surprised to learn that Seattle has a better running game than Green Bay, especially how everyone focuses on that being Seattle's weak point.

For me, the key is going to be the on defense for both clubs. Will Seattle with four Pro-Bowl starters on Defense be able to pressure the best QB of the 90s enough that Trufant gets a pick or two, or will they struggle as they did in their losses to New Orleans, Carolina and Atlanta?

For the Packers it comes down to the health of their defense - KGB and Woodson particularly. If those two are 100% they are a different defensive club, one that scares me a little bit.

What gives me confidence in the Seahawks ability to win, is that in games that have mattered (everything but the last three of the season) they allowed only 15.8 points. This is a point prevention defense that is on a tear.

Looking closely at the Playoff game against the Redskins the thing that sticks out is that of 18 drives for the Redskins only 2 resulted in Touchdowns, and one of those started on the Seattle 42. This isn't even a "bend but don't break" defense any more, this is a defense that breaks opposing QBs, and doesn't allow points.

The Seahawks will go to Lambeau and win.

23-10

djwhokid · January 6th, 2008, 05:02 PM

LOL! The Seahawks defense is going to limit the #2 rated offense to ten points in Lambeau Field? Highly doubtful.

The Packers scored 27 points against Dallas' defense (which is better than the Seahawks) in Texas Stadium, with Favre injured.

If the Seahawks are going to win, Hasselbeck will have to have a career passing game. Based on what he did against the Redskins secondary, doubtful. We already know the Seahawks running game is non-existant.

Now, I do think the Seahawks pass defense could give Brett Favre trouble, but the Packers do have a running back, his name is Ryan Grant.

Quote:

I was surprised to learn that Seattle has a better running game than Green Bay, especially how everyone focuses on that being Seattle's weak point.

Look at the stats after Ryan Grant took over as the starting running back. The Seahawks defense should bottle him up, but he seems to have a penchant for the big run.

bedir than average · January 6th, 2008, 05:25 PM

Umm, Green Bay was the #4 offense by scoring, not #2
Seattle was 9th (includes 3 games in which they rested regulars).

The two teams tied for scoring defense (which again includes the three games in which Seattle didn't try). Even if you ONLY drop the Atlanta game from Seattle's numbers, they move from 6 to 1st.

Yes, Grant had 100 yards rushing four times in his 7 starts. He had 676 yards in those game on 128 carries for 5.28 yards per carry. Which is really good, sure. Of course, for him to do that would mean that the #10 defense in yards per rush would be having its worst game of the season. Comparing the Running Games is fun - Green Bay tied for 11 with 4.1 y/rush, Seattle at 22 with 3.8 y/rush. Oh, and Seattle was better at getting first downs via rush than Green Bay and only 5 (15/10) less 20+ yard runs.

Recall also that Seattle was the number 4 team in the NFL for takeaways, and fourth for Sacks.

As for Hasselbeck, he played the game with an injured wrist and it showed. Whether that wrist gets better is a huge factor, but I'm also sceptical of assuming that since a QB has his worst game in three years that means he will follow it up by again being awful, it is much more likely that he will regress to the mean, which in this case means performing better.

adeel · January 6th, 2008, 06:28 PM

It's the NFL and anything can happen, but I don't think Seattle is going to beat Green Bay in Green Bay by two touchdowns. Green Bay is definitely the better team. Seattle has a chance by pressuring Brett Favre, but then there's Ryan Gant to contend with.

diceman · January 12th, 2008, 07:42 PM

I was happy to see my Packers be the gentlemanly team and spot the 'Hawks 14 so they wouldn't be totally embarrassed.

In 49 years of watching the Pack, I can't recall them ever turning a game around so quick. Of course, I've never seen a player rebound from two devastating mistakes like Grant made and then dominate the game. I really thought Kearney and the rest of the Dline were going to give Favre fits. Their pass rush was the biggest worry I had going into the game. Sorry Holmy, not this time.

bedir than average · January 12th, 2008, 08:08 PM

Thanks for not gloating

That was the most embarrasing performance by a playoff team I have ever seen.

diceman · January 12th, 2008, 09:58 PM

Hey Bedir, I would never gloat to a fellow Braves fan! Ok, I assume you're a Braves fan since you post there.

I don't know if Seattle was bummed by the weather or not, but after forcing those first two turnovers, I figured they would have been sky high. I know how you feel, though. Green Bay has put up a few playoff stinkers also since 2000, and a couple of them have been home games. You still have a good core team and unless you have a lot of players going into FA, I'm betting you'll be back next year.

January 6th, 2008, 02:57 PM	#1 (permalink)
bedir than average Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Starbucks Posts: 8,258	Going to Lambeau - Going to WIN! After the trouncing (ignoring those five minutes) of the wrong Washington the Seahawks get to go to Lambeau Field this time to score. NFL.com's GameCenter Code: Team Matchup SEA GB Points Per Game 24.6 27.2 Total yards per game - Passing 247.8 270.9 Total yards per game - Rushing 101.2 99.8 Points allowed per game 18.2 18.2 Total yards allowed per game - Passing 219.1 210.4 Total yards allowed per game - Rushing 102.8 102.9 Giveaways 24 24 Takeaways 34 28 That's two very evenly matched teams, which implies home-field and turnovers will be the key. I was surprised to learn that Seattle has a better running game than Green Bay, especially how everyone focuses on that being Seattle's weak point. For me, the key is going to be the on defense for both clubs. Will Seattle with four Pro-Bowl starters on Defense be able to pressure the best QB of the 90s enough that Trufant gets a pick or two, or will they struggle as they did in their losses to New Orleans, Carolina and Atlanta? For the Packers it comes down to the health of their defense - KGB and Woodson particularly. If those two are 100% they are a different defensive club, one that scares me a little bit. What gives me confidence in the Seahawks ability to win, is that in games that have mattered (everything but the last three of the season) they allowed only 15.8 points. This is a point prevention defense that is on a tear. Looking closely at the Playoff game against the Redskins the thing that sticks out is that of 18 drives for the Redskins only 2 resulted in Touchdowns, and one of those started on the Seattle 42. This isn't even a "bend but don't break" defense any more, this is a defense that breaks opposing QBs, and doesn't allow points. The Seahawks will go to Lambeau and win. 23-10 __________________ I'm sorry I left for a while. I needed a vaction, and then work changed substantially. I'm over 50 hour weeks, plus two hours a day of commuting time. A few weeks ago I launched my own blog about Seattle Sounders FC and Life in Puget Sound. I won't be by these parts often as my focus has changed. Sorry about the unannounced retirement.

January 6th, 2008, 05:25 PM	#3 (permalink)
bedir than average Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Starbucks Posts: 8,258	Umm, Green Bay was the #4 offense by scoring, not #2 Seattle was 9th (includes 3 games in which they rested regulars). The two teams tied for scoring defense (which again includes the three games in which Seattle didn't try). Even if you ONLY drop the Atlanta game from Seattle's numbers, they move from 6 to 1st. Yes, Grant had 100 yards rushing four times in his 7 starts. He had 676 yards in those game on 128 carries for 5.28 yards per carry. Which is really good, sure. Of course, for him to do that would mean that the #10 defense in yards per rush would be having its worst game of the season. Comparing the Running Games is fun - Green Bay tied for 11 with 4.1 y/rush, Seattle at 22 with 3.8 y/rush. Oh, and Seattle was better at getting first downs via rush than Green Bay and only 5 (15/10) less 20+ yard runs. Recall also that Seattle was the number 4 team in the NFL for takeaways, and fourth for Sacks. As for Hasselbeck, he played the game with an injured wrist and it showed. Whether that wrist gets better is a huge factor, but I'm also sceptical of assuming that since a QB has his worst game in three years that means he will follow it up by again being awful, it is much more likely that he will regress to the mean, which in this case means performing better. __________________ I'm sorry I left for a while. I needed a vaction, and then work changed substantially. I'm over 50 hour weeks, plus two hours a day of commuting time. A few weeks ago I launched my own blog about Seattle Sounders FC and Life in Puget Sound. I won't be by these parts often as my focus has changed. Sorry about the unannounced retirement.

January 12th, 2008, 07:42 PM	#5 (permalink)
diceman Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Port Orange, Florida Posts: 1,329	I was happy to see my Packers be the gentlemanly team and spot the 'Hawks 14 so they wouldn't be totally embarrassed. In 49 years of watching the Pack, I can't recall them ever turning a game around so quick. Of course, I've never seen a player rebound from two devastating mistakes like Grant made and then dominate the game. I really thought Kearney and the rest of the Dline were going to give Favre fits. Their pass rush was the biggest worry I had going into the game. Sorry Holmy, not this time. __________________ From "Bull Durham": Skip: You guys. You lollygag the ball around the infield. You lollygag your way down to first. You lollygag in and out of the dugout. You know what that makes you? Larry! Larry: Lollygaggers! Skip: Lollygaggers.

January 12th, 2008, 08:08 PM	#6 (permalink)
bedir than average Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Starbucks Posts: 8,258	Thanks for not gloating That was the most embarrasing performance by a playoff team I have ever seen. __________________ I'm sorry I left for a while. I needed a vaction, and then work changed substantially. I'm over 50 hour weeks, plus two hours a day of commuting time. A few weeks ago I launched my own blog about Seattle Sounders FC and Life in Puget Sound. I won't be by these parts often as my focus has changed. Sorry about the unannounced retirement.

January 12th, 2008, 09:58 PM	#7 (permalink)
diceman Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Port Orange, Florida Posts: 1,329	Hey Bedir, I would never gloat to a fellow Braves fan! Ok, I assume you're a Braves fan since you post there. I don't know if Seattle was bummed by the weather or not, but after forcing those first two turnovers, I figured they would have been sky high. I know how you feel, though. Green Bay has put up a few playoff stinkers also since 2000, and a couple of them have been home games. You still have a good core team and unless you have a lot of players going into FA, I'm betting you'll be back next year. __________________ From "Bull Durham": Skip: You guys. You lollygag the ball around the infield. You lollygag your way down to first. You lollygag in and out of the dugout. You know what that makes you? Larry! Larry: Lollygaggers! Skip: Lollygaggers.

January 6th, 2008, 06:28 PM	#4 (permalink)
adeel Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Toronto Posts: 840	It's the NFL and anything can happen, but I don't think Seattle is going to beat Green Bay in Green Bay by two touchdowns. Green Bay is definitely the better team. Seattle has a chance by pressuring Brett Favre, but then there's Ryan Gant to contend with.