Badgers in the Way-Too-Early Top 25s
With the 2019 season officially in the books, it’s time to look ahead to 2020.
Even before the last piece of confetti had fallen in New Orleans after LSU’s win over Clemson in the national title game Monday night, there were already numerous Way-Too-Tarly Top 25s scattered across the internet. Many have the usual names at the top, including Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State and Georgia.
A little bit further down, though, is where Wisconsin finds itself. Though the Badgers lose their top playmakers on both sides of the ball -- Jonathan Taylor, Quintez Cephus, Zack Baun and Chris Orr -- the various outlets still believe they'll be more than competitive next fall.
Here's a look at where Wisconsin is in some of the early polls:
ESPN -- No. 14
CBS Sports -- No. 15
247Sports -- No. 14
USA Today -- No. 18
The Sporting News -- No. 14
Athlon Sports -- No. 10
Saturday Blitz -- No. 12
Saturday Down South -- No. 11
Packers 28, Seahawks 23: 2-minute drill
GREEN BAY — For the fourth time since 2010, the Green Bay Packers will play in the NFC Championship Game. That’s after running back Aaron Jones and wide receiver Davante Adams scored twice and the defense held off quarterback Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks for a 28-23 win in the Divisional Round of the NFC playoffs at Lambeau Field.
Game Balls
Offense: Davante Adams
The Packers targeted Adams early and often Sunday night and he delivered. The veteran, long thought of as one of the best route runners in the NFL, showed that on his first touchdown of the night. He took cornerback Tre Flowers inside on what was a fake rub route before breaking back out and Aaron Rodgers found him for an easy 20-yard score. Then, in the third quarter, the two hooked up again for a 40-yard touchdown on another beautiful route from Adams. And then, with Green Bay facing a third-and-8 with 2:19 left and clinging to a 5-point lead, Rodgers dropped a dime on Adams for a 32-yard gain.
Adams ended up with a Packers' playoff record 160 yards on eight catches and two scores. He also got all the praise in the world from Rodgers afterwards.
"He was on one tonight,” Rodgers said. “He was really crisp with his route running. Just one of those special nights.
Defense: The Smiths
The two free agent additions once again played a big role in helping the Packers get a win. Za’Darius Smith had a pair of sacks and spent much of the first half in the Seahawks backfield. Then, in the second half, it was Preston Smith’s turn. He came up with two sacks, including a huge one on the final Seattle possession that forced a Seattle punt.
The duo combined for the four sacks, eight quarterback hits and two tackles for loss.
Best tweets
https://twitter.com/jasonjwilde/status/1216527688879497221
https://twitter.com/dekker/status/1216544399141822469
https://twitter.com/patrickfinley/status/1216558912117321728
https://twitter.com/WISN_Watson/status/1216560063785115649
Best quotes
Rodgers on his connection with Adams:
“Tonight reminds me of the connection Jordy Nelson and I had for so many years where there were some unspoken things we could do without even communicating anything about it. Davante made three or four plays like that tonight. It was pretty fun.”
Rodgers on the two replay reviews
"We kind of got hosed on that first quarter one, so I was hoping we didn't get hosed again."
https://twitter.com/mattschneidman/status/1216562261671792640
In Case You Missed It
— The game drew several big names to it, including Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis and rapper Lil Wayne. The latter lead the Lambeau Field crowd in a rousing rendition of “Roll Out the Barrel.”
https://twitter.com/packers/status/1216543936858091522
— It appeared the Packers had recovered a fumble at the Seahawks 36-yard line on their first drive of the game, but the officials determined there was no clear recovery by Green Bay. The league sent out a tweet explaining the decision.
https://twitter.com/NFLOfficiating/status/1216513553391398913
But a TV replay suggested there was a clear recovery.
https://twitter.com/jasonjwilde/status/1216512034399051777
-- That was not the only controversial call in the game. The other came on third-and-9 late in the fourth quarter and the Seahawks needing a stop for one more chance to win the game. Instead, Rodgers found Jimmy Graham for what was called a 9-yard gain and the game-clinching first down. The play went to review and officials upheld the call.
— Wide receiver Allen Lazard suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter and did not return.
— Cornerback Chandon Sullivan (back), cornerback Kevin King (head/neck), defensive lineman Tyler Lancaster (arm/shoulder) and outside linebacker Preston Smith suffered injuries but did return.
— Six players were listed as questionable coming into the game due to an illness going around the team. Three of them were inactive — Danny Vitale, Dexter Williams and Josh Jackson. One was active and played — Tyler Lancaster. Two others were active and did not play — Bryan Bulaga and Alex Light.
— Jared Veldheer started in place of Bulaga at right tackle. It was his first start of the season and it came after he unretired midway through the season. Aaron Rodgers joked with Veldheer during the game about him being retired and now starting a playoff game. Veldheer informed him he was actually in the stands for the Packers opener against the Bears in Chicago.
Inside the Numbers
https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/status/1216554432508329984
6 — That’s how many postseason touchdown receptions Adams has in his career. It’s tied for the second-most in Packers history
4 — That’s the number of NFC title game Rodgers has led the Packers to. All of them have been on the road.
0-4 -- That's Russell Wilson's record in Wisconsin since coming into the NFL in 2012. His last win in the state came as the Badgers starting QB on Nov. 26, 2011 against Penn State.
155.8 — That was Rodgers’ quarterback rating on third down against Seattle.
64.3 — That was Green Bay’s third-down conversion rate on Sunday. Coming into the game, the Packers were converting just 36-percent of their third downs.
3 -- That's how many catches Jimmy Graham had. All of them came on third down and went for first downs, including the game-clinching one just after the two-minute warning.
What’s Next
Green Bay will travel to San Francisco next Sunday to play for a trip to Super Bowl LIV. Kick is at 5:40 p.m.
Packers: DL Kenny Clark, three others listed as questionable for Seattle game
Green Bay has been largely healthy throughout the entire season and that’s pretty much the case heading into its playoff game with Seattle.
The Packers issued their final injury report prior to Sunday’s game and four players are listed as questionable. Those are defensive tackle Kenny Clark (back), fullback Danny Vitale (knee/illness), defensive tackle Tyler Lancaster (illness) and running back Dexter Williams (illness).
Clark missed practice on Wednesday but was a limited participant on Thursday and Friday. Coach Matt LaFleur sounded optimistic that he would be ready to go come Sunday.
The other three are dealing with an illness that has been going around the team. Vitale practiced on a limited basis Wednesday because of the knee injury before missing the last two days. Lancaster also missed the last two days, while Williams missed all week.
Green Bay would obviously love to have Vitale back after he missed the Detroit game and Lancaster has been active all season as an extra body along the defensive line. Williams was likely to be inactive even if healthy as Jamaal Williams is expected to return after missing the Detroit game with a shoulder injury.
As for Seattle, it has listed five players as questionable: defensive end Ziggy Ansah (neck), safety Marquise Blair (ankle), tackle Duane Brown (knee), tackle George Fant (groin) and defensive end Quinton Jefferson (ankle). The Seahawks have also listed starting guard Mike Iupati (neck) as doubtful.
Kick on Sunday at Lambeau Field is set for 5:40 p.m.
Former Packers coach Mike McCarthy reportedly has a new job
Former Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy has a new job.
As first reported by Fox Sports, McCarthy has been tabbed by the Dallas Cowboys to replace Jason Garrett.
McCarthy sat out this season after being fired by Green Bay last December. He did interview for several jobs last offseason and then was reportedly a candidate for multiple openings in the last few weeks, including in Cleveland, New York and Carolina. The 56-year-old is the first person in NFL history to coach both the Packers and Cowboys.
Over his nearly 13 years with Green Bay, McCarthy helped the Packers to 125 wins and a victory in Super Bowl XLV.
Packers, Seahawks to battle in playoffs...again
After a crazy Wild Card weekend in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers know their opponent for next week’s playoff game at Lambeau Field and it’s a familiar one.
Coach Matt LaFleur’s club will face the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at 5:40 p.m. That’s after Seattle went on the road and beat Philadelphia 17-9.
This will be the fourth time Green Bay and Seattle have met in the playoffs with the other three being very memorable for both fan bases.
In the 2003 Wild Card round, the game went to overtime before this happened:
https://youtu.be/vAgG9XcrDFY
The teams would meet five years later in the Divisional Round and this time the game was played in a snow globe in Green Bay. After falling behind 14-0, the Packers outscored the Seahawks 42-6 the rest of the way.
https://youtu.be/FPF_FcpPQp0
For their third matchup the scene would shift to Seattle for the 2014 NFC Championship Game. Green Bay dominated for much of the afternoon but a late collapse turned a 19-7 lead with 3:52 left into a 28-22 loss in overtime. If you’d like to relive that disaster, see the clip below.
https://youtu.be/3L-1sNa1qvU
The game will mark the return of former Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson to the state. He’s 4-3 against Green Bay in his career, but all three losses have come on the road. He’s completed just 57-percent of his passes and thrown double the number of interceptions (6) than touchdowns (3).
The winner of Sunday’s game will face either No. 1 seed San Francisco 49ers or the No. 6 seed Minnesota Vikings in the NFC title game.
Packers get safety Raven Greene back
Raven Greene is back on the practice field for Green Bay.
The safety made his first appearance since suffering an ankle injury in Week 2 of the season that landed him on injured reserve. But the Packers have designated him to return from IR and he’s eligible to play when they open the postseason Jan. 12 at Lambeau Field.
“Potentially,” coach Matt LaFleur said Thursday of whether Greene could help them soon. “It’s still an evaluation for him but definitely nice to work him back out there today.”
Before being hurt, the former undrafted free agent had become a significant part of Mike Pettine’s unit, serving as a hybrid safety and inside linebacker. Green Bay struggled to find a suitable replacement for Greene, though veteran Ibrahim Campbell had seen time there since coming off the physically unable to perform list.
https://twitter.com/packers/status/1212801961801723909
The Packers practiced Thursday even though they don’t play this week and won’t know their opponent until after this weekend. In addition to Greene, running back Jamaal Williams, wide receiver Allen Lazard, safety Will Redmond and linebacker BJ Goodson were back at practice.
However, only one starting offensive lineman — left guard Elgton Jenkins — took part. Center Corey Linsley (back) and right tackle Bryan Bulaga (concussion) left the Detroit game early last Sunday. Right guard Billy Turner (ankle) was injured against the Lions but stayed in the game. Left tackle David Bakhtiari (unknown) was also not on the practice field.
Others sitting out included fullback Danny Vitale, tight end Jimmy Graham, outside linebacker Preston Smith and tight end Marcedes Lewis.
