The Green Bay Packers enter Sunday’s WildCard playoff game against San Francisco,
having allowed more points than any other team in the post-season.
The defense has allowed an average 26.8 points and 372.2 yards per game, which ranks 25th in the NFL.
The NFC field is loaded with defensive talent. Seattle is #1, Carolina #2, New Orleans #4 and San Francisco #5. The Packers hardly fit into that group. But Mike McCarthy isn’t too concerned.
AUDIO: Mike McCarthy says throw out the stats, identity of defense has changed :21
Maybe the Packers can throw the numbers out the window, but Mike McCarthy will have to clean house of he wants to shed themselves of all the negative stats.
Green Bay dominated San Francisco for years, but not recently. The 49ers have won the last three games in the series. And with 12-wins on the year, come in with a six-game winning streak, winning those games by more than 10 points per contest.
Even with all of San Francisco’s fierce defensive numbers, the Packers also haven’t been able to put the brakes on the Niners offense and quarterback Colin Kaepernick. And the 49ers offense is only getting better after playing much of the year without wide receiver Michael Crabtree.
Is McCarthy really gaining confidence in his defense, or is he trying to pump his team up. The Packers allowed 21.2 points a game in the first six weeks. They’re allowing 30.1 points in the last 10-games.
The Packers are hoping the cold weather against a team from California will help. But the Packers are just 4-3-1 at home this season, not exactly the home field advantage they’re used to.
Call me a skeptic, but the Packers haven’t beaten a team that really scares you since the early portion of the season when they took down Baltimore. And the Ravens didn’t even make the playoffs. They lost to the 49ers in the opener and San Francisco is a much better team right now.
Certainly Mike McCarthy must sell his team on the positives, trying to build momentum. And yes, Aaron Rodgers is back, but what have the Packers done of late that really tells you their chances of making a Super Bowl run are as good as any other team in the playoffs?
I just haven’t seen enough there to be convinced this team will be fortunate to win one playoff game and I certainly wouldn’t bet on it.