The day has finally come.
His entourage follows closely behind him. He gets off the private jet wearing a cut-off shirt and a faded baseball cap to hide his graying hair. Familiar?
Yet, something feels different.
The offseason pandemonium that is Brent Favre, er-excuse me, Brett Favre is far from the friendly confines of Green Bay. But not too far away. Thankfully, he's packed his bags and is now hounding the arch rival Vikings with his will-he or won't-he play antics a mere 300 miles west of Green Bay. Meanwhile, the Green Bay Packers can focus on more important things: training camp, the 2010 NFL Season, and winning the Super Bowl.
Which brings me to my somewhat bold, yet very realistic prediction for the upcoming season: the Packers are very capable of bringing the Lombardi Trophy back to the Frozen Tundra.
The Packers aren't shying away from high expectations. Head Coach Mike McCarthy even told his team in the first team meeting to target winning the Super Bowl as a goal for the season.
The Packers enter the 2010 season after finishing the second half of the 2009 season on a 7-1 run. Not to mention, they almost escaped Arizona with a win against the high-flying Cardinals in the Wild Card round of the playoffs, only to lose 51-45 in overtime.
Why would the Green & Gold aim any lower for the upcoming season? They shouldn't.
Aaron Rodgers has solidified himself as one of the top quarterbacks in the league, emerging from you-know-who's spotlight. He has weapons all over the field from Donald Driver, to Greg Jennings, to Ryan Grant, to the emerging Jermichael Finley.
The new Dom Capers 3-4 scheme revolutionized the defense as the Packers led the NFL in rush defense and interceptions. With pressure on the quarterback one of the main goals, the Packers seemed to come away with one of the steals in the 2009 draft in OLB Clay Matthews, who led the team with 10.0 sacks. I even forgot to mention the reigning player of the year: cornerback Charles Woodson. Woodson will hopefully be along side a healthy Al Harris and Atari Bigby, along with Pro Bowl safety Nick Collins to anchor the Packer secondary.
Everything seems to be set in place for a great season, so what possibly could the Packers need to be working on in training camp? Plenty.
Most Packer fans would probably mention the protection up front as the first and foremost problem heading into the season. The Packers gave up a league high 51 sacks last season including 14 to the rival Vikings in two games. Yikes.
Enter Bryan Bulaga. The Packers recently signed first-round draft choice out of Iowa only allowed 3 1/2 sacks in his 30 career games at Iowa. Bulaga will add depth to an offensive line that was manhandled early and often in the 2009 season. Hopefully, the added depth and competition can produce better results. Rodgers' life depends on it or at least his health does.
The Packers must also reduce their penalties. Unsurprisingly, the Packers also led the NFL in the total number of penalties with 118 for a whopping 1,057 yards. This must be addressed throughout training camp in terms of officiating during practice.
Punting must improve. Outside of pass protection, punting easily could be tagged as the worst facet of the Packers team in 2009. The Packers were the worst team in the league in punts inside the 20 with only 15. They tied for last in net punting average at 34.1.
Dreadful.
More punts downed inside the 20 equals increased pressure from the defense and more chances for an optimistic secondary to cash in on interceptions. It all seems so simple. Again, McCarthy hopes the punting competition that will most likely last throughout training camp will directly correlate with an improvement in results.
Lastly, and certainly not least, the Packers MUST improve tackling. The Packers tackling both on defense and special teams was abysmal late in the season. The team will certainly focus on tackling throughout training camp. Back to basics!
For all the positives for the 2010 Packers squad, there is a negative area that the team must address to prepare for the season.
As the players return to work, riding kids' bikes to the field, two-a-days, and an ever-supportive fan base in Green Bay, they will be ready to do just that: work.
The Super Bowl remains the ultimate goal. GO PACK GO!
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