Super Bowl or Bust
The 2015 season is expected to be a great one for Aaron Rodgers, which will therefore lead to a great season for the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers is widely considered the best player in the NFL and has proven that week in and week out since his second season under center.
Ted Thompson, general manager for the Packers, he once again selected defensive players with several high draft picks this year, hoping to provide a shot in the arm for a defense that faltered, once again, come playoff time. Losing Davon House and Tramon Williams to free agency surely led to the selections of Damarious Randall and Quentin Rollins as well. Both Randall and Rollins are expected to compete with Casey Hayward to win the starting cornerback job opposite Sam Shields. The defensive rookie with the most expected of him may be fourth round draft pick Jake Ryan, a middle linebacker from Michigan who could allow Clay Matthews to return to his natural position of outside linebacker.
Eddie Lacy returns to the backfield and will hopefully continue his hard-nosed running style that wears defenses down by the time the fourth quarter rolls around. Lacy will probably stick around the 300 total touches that he has hovered around since he entered the NFL. His increased workload last year led to an average rush of 4.6 yards. Lacy and Rodgers meshed in an unexpected way after Rodgers injured his calf late in the 2014 season and was forced to play almost exclusively from the pistol formation. Though the timing seemed off at first, both star players excelled by the time the playoffs rolled around. With the calf injury, Rodgers was forced to play from the pocket much more than usual, but he proved that even when forced into an uncomfortable situation, he is the best in the business.
Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, and Davonte Adams head what may prove to be the best receiving corps in the NFL. Nelson and Cobb are bonafide stars, while Adams proved to be a vital cog to the Green Bay offense when he was given the opportunity. Ty Montgomery, a rookie from Stanford, will be competing with second year players Jared Abbrederis and Jeff Janis for the fourth and fifth received spots still open on the roster. Montgomery is also a return specialist, so his inclusion on the roster is given a boost.
The defensive front seven has been a disappointment for quite some time in Green Bay. Clay Matthews remains the only standout, though the addition of aging veteran Julius Peppers did provide a decent complement to Matthews at the other outside linebacker spot. Inside linebacker has been a black hole coming into each offseason and no matter what un-drafted free agents Mike McCarthy tried to plug-in, the hole remains. The defensive line has been better than the middle linebacker position for the Packers, but not significantly enough to be considered a positive for this Packers team. Mike Daniels has been a surprise along the line and has helped solidify the unit along with Letroy Guion. BJ Raki returns from a torn biceps and should be more motivated than ever entering this season.
Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix and Morgan Burnett were solid all season at the back end of the defense. Clinton-Dix was prone to mistakes, but that’s to be expected from a rookie safety. Micah Hyde also played a decent safety before Clinton-Dix nabbed his starting spot. Sam Shields is expected to take another step forward as a shutdown corner as well, and may find himself shadowing star receivers during the season. The rookies and Hayward will battle it out to help lock down the lockdown position unit.
Mason Crosby and Tim Masthay are likely to be the specialists for the Green and Gold this year. Crosby hopes to continue his career resurgence after struggling two seasons ago. Masthay struggled down the stretch last season but both players are established veterans who have produced for the Packers for years.
Every year with Rodgers in his prime and at the helm of this team is a Super Bowl or bust year. This year is no different.
I vote Super Bowl.
