The Packer Pundit

226th straight start
Quarterback Brett Favre took only limited work in team drills on Friday but still will make his 226th straight regular-season start Sunday against the St. Louis Rams. Favre injured his head and neck late in the Packers’ loss at Philadelphia last Monday. He sat out practice Wednesday except for light throwing in the team’s walk-through drills, and then took part in some team work both Thursday and Friday. McCarthy listed Favre on the official injury report as “probable,” which means “a virtual certainty that a player will be available for normal duty.”

Green returns, ready to go
Ahman Green, who missed Wednesday and Thursday’s practices, returned to participate today. He has been slowed by a sore hamstring, which prevented him from playing Monday against the Eagles. If Green is unable to play, Vernand Morency would make his second consecutive start. McCarthy said Green’s sore hamstring may be a result of the quadriceps injury that he sustained last October. Green touched the ball (run and pass) 23 times against Chicago in Week 1, 22 times against New Orleans in Week 2, and 30 times against Detroit in Week 3. “My experience when individuals come back from major injuries is you go through a period of nagging injuries,” McCarthy said. “His is a tight hamstring that takes a while to get warmed up and fatigues over the long run. We’re just being smart (by holding him out of practices).”

Coach pleased with progress of O-line
McCarthy said today that he plans to start Daryn Colledge at left guard and Jason Spitz at right guard in between tackles Chad Clifton and Mark Tauscher, and center Scott Wells on Sunday. Tony Moll, who started Monday against Philadelphia and gave way to Spitz likely will be used more as a backup tackle, McCarthy said. “Tony has been moving around the line,” McCarthy said. “Tackle is his natural position, so we feel like we’re in much better shape than a couple of weeks ago.” Colledge, demoted to second string early in training camp, will be making his fourth straight start and appears to have entrenched himself at the left guard position. Colledge was replaced by Spitz in training camp with Moll at right guard, but after Spitz injured his hamstring in Week 1, Colledge got a second chance and has made the most of it. “Daryn has done an excellent job of going from the situation he was in in training camp, fighting back,” McCarthy said. “He’s improved the last two weeks. I’m happy with the growth of the offensive line. You can see they’re starting to get in sync. … That whole group is improving.”

Blitz happy
While Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson opted not to blitz the Packers heavily Monday, choosing instead to protect his beat-up secondary, don't expect the same approach from Rams defensive coordinator Jim Haslett, the former New Orleans Saints coach. "He blitzes an inordinate amount of time," Packers offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski said of Haslett. "Usually teams blitz about 25 percent of the time - 26 is the NFL average - but he's like 48 (percent). When you say a high-blitz team, that's like 35 percent blitz. He's close to 50 percent. Every other snap, he's bringing something. "But that's feast or famine, too. If you don't get there, you're giving up some big plays, too." McCarthy spent five years as Haslett's offensive coordinator but said neither man will have much of an advantage. "I know with his personality how he likes to play the game . . . but (the offense) really has changed just through the migration from New Orleans to San Francisco to here," McCarthy said. "I'm not concerned with that. It really comes down to execution."

Interception Free
Marc Bulger has done something Packers fans wish Brett Favre could do: Go all season without throwing an interception. Actually, the Rams quarterback hasn't thrown a pick in 186 attempts, dating back to last season. Favre has thrown five through four games and is on pace for 20, down from a career-high and NFL-worst 29 last year. "He's just very, very smart," defensive coordinator Bob Sanders said of Bulger. "We've got to get some pressure on him and we've got to get some guys in his face." McCarthy, whose childhood home is about two blocks from the house the 29-year-old Bulger grew up in in Pittsburgh, coached Bulger briefly in New Orleans. Bulger was a sixth-round pick by the Saints in 2000 but was cut at the end of training camp and ended up on St. Louis' practice squad. "Our time together was brief in New Orleans, but like I said, we were smart enough to draft him, we just weren't smart enough to keep him," McCarthy said. "He's not turning the ball over and I think he's doing a good job running the new offense. I've been impressed with him."

Extra points
It appears Patrick Dendy will be the nickel back, ahead of Jarrett Bush. Dendy and Bush were vying to replace recently released cornerback Ahmad Carroll. ... McCarthy said Daryn Colledge and Jason Spitz will be the starting guards, although Tony Moll may still rotate in. ... With backups Abdul Hodge (knee) and Ben Taylor (hamstring) not expected to play, A.J. Hawk said he'd move to middle linebacker if something happened to Nick Barnett. The only healthy backup is recently re-signed Tracy White, who only plays outside.







Packers
Out: Cornerback Will Blackmon (foot).
Doubtful: Receiver Robert Ferguson (foot), did not practice; linebacker Abdul Hodge (knee), did not practice.
Questionable: Receiver Donald Driver (ribs/hip), practiced; running back Ahman Green (hamstring), did not practice; tight end Donald Lee (knee), did not practice; linebacker Ben Taylor (hamstring), did not practice.
Probable: Quarterback Brett Favre (head/neck), practiced.

Rams
Out: Fullback Paul Smith (eye).
Questionable: Tackle Orlando Pace (concussion), practiced.
Probable: Cornerback Fakhir Brown (ankle), did not practice.

Status definitions
Out: Definitely will not play.
Doubtful: At least a 75 percent chance the player will not play.
Questionable: A 50-50 chance the player will not play.
Probable: Virtual certainty the player will be available for normal duty.

Driver may not play Sunday
By Pete Dougherty
greenbaypressgazette.com
Donald Driver’s continued discomfort in his injured side caused him to miss practice Friday and puts into question the availability of the Green Bay Packers’ best receiver for Sunday’s game against St. Louis. Driver injured his ribs and hip when he took a hard hit while trying to make a catch over the middle last week against Philadelphia. He missed practice Wednesday, returned for practice Thursday but then was absent Friday while undergoing further diagnostic tests. Coach Mike McCarthy said he’d not received the results of the tests before he met with reporters early Friday afternoon, but having Driver miss the last day of practice of the week to undergo tests isn’t a good sign. “It’s uncomfortable, so we’re just being proactive and sent him for some further tests,” McCarthy said. McCarthy is listing Driver on the Packers’ official injury report as “questionable” (50 percent chance of playing). Halfback Ahman Green was listed as questionable last week after missing the last day of practice because of a hamstring injury, and he didn’t play against Philadelphia. Green is expected to play this week, however. -- More




Receiving corps might lose core
Driver remains questionable
By BOB McGINN / journalsentinel.com
The Green Bay Packers might be down to three wide receivers Sunday for their game against the St. Louis Rams at Lambeau Field. Donald Driver underwent tests Friday in an attempt by the team's medical staff to determine the source of his recent discomfort in his side. Driver's participation in practice was limited Thursday but he didn't attend the workout Friday. "We're just being proactive," said coach Mike McCarthy, who was unaware of the test results. Driver, the starting flanker, remained questionable on the injury report. The No. 3 wide receiver, Robert Ferguson, is out with a foot injury. If Driver can't play, Koren Robinson would start at flanker alongside split end Greg Jennings. Free agent Ruvell Martin then would be the only backup unless the Packers made a roster move today and activated one of two wide receivers, Calvin Russell or Chris Francies, from the practice squad. McCarthy said a move was possible. Jennings probably would move to the slot in three-wideout formations. -- More






Mystique gone
from Lambeau
Packers searching
for lost advantage
By ROB REISCHEL
Special to Packer Plus
Remember the good old days?
You know, the days when opponents feared Lambeau Field like a call from the IRS. The days when a loss by the home team seemed as rare as Haley's Comet. Those days are long, long gone. Instead, the Green Bay Packers' once enormous home-field advantage has vanished and they're all trying to figure out why. "I don't know how to explain it," defensive end Aaron Kampman said. "You just have to find a way to get that fear back in here and give our crowd something to cheer about it." There's been little to cheer about inside of Lambeau for more than three seasons now. Between the start of the 1994 season through the 2002 regular season, Green Bay enjoyed one of the greatest home-field advantages in sports. During that time, the Packers were a sensational 69-9 (including playoffs) at home - an astounding winning percentage of .885. But on Jan. 4, 2003, Michael Vick and the Atlanta Falcons came to Lambeau for an NFC Wild-Card playoff game and drilled Green Bay, 27-7. It was first post-season home loss in Green Bay's history and things haven't been the same since. Including that playoff loss, the Packers have won just 13 of the last 29 times (44.8%) they've played at Lambeau. Green Bay is 0-2 at Lambeau Field this season heading into Sunday's home game with St. Louis and searching for answers of how to recapture that Lambeau mystique.
-- More






Jennings' Consistency
Belies His Youth
By Mike Spofford / Packers.com
When Greg Jennings recorded just one catch for 5 yards in the season opener against the Bears, questions inevitably were raised. Where was the Jennings that led the NFL in receiving yards in the preseason? Was this young, rising star going to suffer through the inconsistencies so many rookie receivers do, making a big impact one week and disappearing the next? Well, it looks for now as though that first game was an aberration. Since being shut out by the Bears until catching that one pass on the second-to-last play of the game, Jennings has begun having the consistent impact in the passing game everyone thought he would after his dynamite preseason. In his last three games, Jennings has 14 catches for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Jennings has topped 65 yards in receiving (a notable benchmark because 65 yards per game is essentially a 1,000-yard pace for a 16-game season) in three straight contests.

To put into perspective just how rare that is for a rookie wide receiver in the NFL, not one receiver drafted in 2005 was able to top 65 yards in three straight games. In fact, only three rookie receivers last year (Cleveland's Braylon Edwards, Baltimore's Mark Clayton and Philadelphia's Reggie Brown) had as many as three games total with more than 65 yards. Furthermore, each of those three 2005 rookies had three 65-plus-yard games in a span of four contests, but the earliest any of those consistent stretches began was mid-November. Jennings has put one together in the season's first month, illustrating just how far ahead of the curve he is for a receiver his age.
-- More




Robinson on standby
By Jason Wilde / madison.com
Anyone who's ever flown on a red-eye knows it takes awhile for your body's internal time-clock to reset itself, so it was no surprise Koren Robinson was still trying to recover Friday from his late-night flight back from Seattle. "I'm still groggy right now," said Robinson, whose flight back from Wednesday's hearing in Kirkland (Wash.) Municipal Court landed at 7:30 a.m. Thursday, forcing him to come straight to Lambeau Field for work. "But I'll be straight with a lot of energy come Sunday." He'd better be, because the Green Bay Packers' offense could find itself relying heavily on him. No. 1 wide receiver Donald Driver missed practice Friday and was undergoing what coach Mike McCarthy called "further tests" on his injured side and hip, and with No. 3 receiver Robert Ferguson not expected to play because of a foot injury, the Packers could end up starting Robinson opposite rookie Greg Jennings against the St. Louis Rams Sunday afternoon at Lambeau Field. -- More




GM's roster decision backfires
Thompson admits gaffe with Blackmon
By BOB McGINN
journalsentinel.com
The Green Bay Packers have been playing one man short all season because of a roster decision regarding cornerback Will Blackmon that was highly questionable when made Sept. 2 and looks even worse now. General manager Ted Thompson admits that Blackmon should have spent the first six weeks of the regular season on the physically unable to perform list. "In hindsight, yeah, absolutely it would probably have made more sense to go 'PUP,' " Thompson said Friday. "But I didn't have the luxury of that at the time." Thompson was referring to what he says is a complication during Blackmon's rehabilitation that has caused him to be out longer than anticipated. "The reason he wasn't able to go during training camp was not the reason he's not able to go now," he said. "It's a new thing. I'm not saying it's not the same foot or the same area or anything like that. But the foot is a very complicated thing." Blackmon, a fourth-round draft choice from Boston College, suffered a break of the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot during a routine play May 21 in minicamp. On May 30, he underwent surgery. -- More






T.O. reportedly writing children's books
NFL suspends Henry for two games
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Culpepper still 'probable' for game vs. Pats






Meet Erin

Carolina
Panthers
Cheerleader

TopCat Season: 2nd

Hometown: Columbia, SC

Education: University of South Carolina

Occupation: Paralegal

Future Goal: Obtain master's degree in elementary education

Hobbies: Dancing, hiking, shopping, working out and spending time with family and friends

Favorite Charity: Children's Miracle Network
Favorite TV Show: CSI and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Favorite Food: Italian, chips, popcorn and seafood
Favorite Music: Country and hip-hop
Favorite Quote: Do unto others as you would have done unto you.
Most Important Thing In Life: Faith and family
Achievements: Graduate of and dean's list member at the University of South Carolina, University of South Carolina cheerleader, UCA cheer instructor, UCA all-star cheerleader, and making the TopCats