Railbird Central : Brandon Chillar

Three tweets 11.17.09

Brian Carriveau — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:16:49 GMT

I'll be providing at least three thoughts about the Green Bay Packers per day on Twitter. Here what I'm tweeting about:

1. Prediction: Outside linebacker Aaron Kampman only plays in the nickel package on defense against the San Francisco 49ers.

2. Jarrett Bush did a surprisingly good job blitzing this past Sunday against the Cowboys. I wish I could say the same about his pass coverage.

3. A.J. Hawk has earned his spot back in the nickel defense even when Brandon Chillar is fully healthy. #Packers

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Three tweets 11.16.09

Brian Carriveau — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:06:24 GMT

I'll be providing at least three thoughts about the Green Bay Packers per day on Twitter. Here what I'm tweeting about:

1. I was glad to see the #Packers hold Brandon Chillar out of yesterday's game. Players with club casts rarely play as well as they do without.

2. On the other hand, I don't know why a player like Jake Allen or Breno Giacomini wasn't active in Chillar's place.

3. Question: Would signing a street free agent at punter be a risk? Or is Jeremy Kapinos good enough for the remainder of the season?

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Packers Daily Links 11.3.09

Brian Carriveau — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:33:05 GMT

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Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is saying that not only are the Minnesota Vikings beating the Green Bay Packers on the football field, they're beating them in the offseason as well. "It doesn't take a football genius to figure out who has been doing the better job acquiring talent," writes Silverstein. "When asked Monday if he thought the Vikings were more talented, Packers coach Mike McCarthy admitted he was impressed with their lineup." This falls on Ted Thompson's shoulders. The man who's hesitant to dip into free agency may just have to do so to save his job this upcoming offseason.

It appears as if Brandon Chillar is going to miss a few weeks with a broken hand and then will eventually come back with a club-like cast. "Against the Vikings, backup inside linebacker Desmond Bishop filled in for Chillar in the nickel, playing alongside Nick Barnett," writes Silverstein. "The other option would be to play starter A.J. Hawk there." As much as fans wanted Bishop to play well in Chillar's place on Sunday, he played very average.

With Chillar out, it also appears as if "Big Okie" is out as well. “I would say right now ‘Big Okie’ is probably on the shelf for a little while,” defensive coordinator Dom Capers told Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. “We’ll have to look at other means to get what we got out of ‘Big Okie.’” As interesting as "Big Okie" was, this isn't much of a loss. With Atari Bigby seemingly getting better every week, he doesn't really need to be replaced.

It's possible that T.J. Lang and Allen Barbre could be out of the starting lineup this upcoming Sunday when the Packers take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. "As the coaches sorted through the aftermath of Sunday’s 38-26 loss to Minnesota and began preparations for this week’s game at winless Tampa Bay, they left open the possibility of going with the veteran tackle combination of Chad Clifton and Mark Tauscher," writes Demovsky. While neither of the young tackles played great, I'm not in favor of this. This is only a stop gap solution. In the bigger picture, the Packers might have to replace Clifton and Tauscher as early as next season. It's time to get the young guys some experience now.

"(Head coach Mike McCarthy) had to meet with defensive linemen Johnny Jolly and Cullen Jenkins, who in separate incidents during and after Sunday’s 38-26 loss to the Minnesota Vikings made McCarthy’s team look undisciplined on and off the field," writes Demovsky. Incidents like this make it appear that McCarthy is losing control of his team. If occurrences like these continue to appear, the Packers might be better off with a different coach.

Add perhaps the most important player on the Packers' roster to the injury report. "(Aaron) Rodgers, who played with a sprained foot, suffered a sprained toe on his other foot and is now hobbling on both of his feet," reports Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com. "Backup Matt Flynn figures to take over the first-string offense in practice Wednesday and Thursday before Rodgers returns to action in time for next Sunday’s game at Tampa Bay." McCarthy said he didn't expect Rodgers to miss any game time as a result of the new injury.

"Ahman Green, returning kickoffs for the first time since 1999, will keep the job," reports Bill Huber of Packer Report. "McCarthy thinks Green will get better as he gets back into football shape and more comfortable in the role." Wouldn't the Packers be better off with Kregg Lumpkin filling this role?

Mitchell of Acme Packing Company would like to see Ryan Grant being used differently. "I think Grant can be very effective as a member of a committee, instead of a lone workhorse," according to the article. "Remember how the Giants used Brandon Jacobs, Ahmad Bradshaw, and Derrick Ward with great success? That's the type of setup I'd like to see Grant in, with Brandon Jackson playing the role of the change-of-pace back. Then again, this is all assuming that the real problem isn't with Grant, but with his blocking, which is a very real possibility."

Aaron Nagler of Cheesehead TV gives fans some hope. "A lot, and I mean a LOT can and will happen between now and the end of the season," writes Nagler. "This is your team, no matter how much, at this moment, you wish it wasn’t. You simply have to get behind them, warts and all. I’m not happy with McCarthy, but I’m not ready to call for his head yet."

Sunday's game was the second most watched game ever in the history of football being broadcast on Fox.

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Packers Daily Links 10.11.09

Brian Carriveau — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 13:54:00 GMT

Railbird photo of the day:

Photo credit: Mark Hoffman // Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Monty of Total Packers wonders why the linebackers are playing so poorly. He gives statistical evidence comparing the Packers linebackers to others in the league, "Take a look at the Packers tackling statistics. You would expect Hawk or Barnett to lead the team in tackles, but Chillar holds that honor with 26 tackles. The Packers leading tackler ranks tied for 47th in the league, and the guy isn’t even a starter.

"Hawk is next with 23 (67th), followed by Barnett with 22 (75th).

"Compare those stats with the linebackers from teams who also run the 3-4, and you’ll begin to see the problem more clearly. San Diego’s Stephen Cooper is third in the league with 39 tackles. Cleveland’s D’Well Jackson also has 39. San Francisco’s Patrick Willis is seventh with 37 tackles. Baltimore’s Ray Lewis is eighth with 35. The Jets David Harris is 15th with 33. Cleveland’s Eric Barton is 17th with 31. Denver’s inside linebackers, D.J. Williams and Andra Davis, have 31 and 30, respectively."

Ever since Tim Tebow suffered a concussion two weeks ago, the topic of concussions has come up quite a bit lately in the world of football. Lori Nickel of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel got quite a story from Donald Driver: "Most of the times that I had my bell rung I was still able to focus, not the first play, but after that," said the Green Bay Packers wide receiver. "I had a couple where Brett (Favre) would say, 'You OK?' And I'm like, 'Nope!' As long as he would tell me where to line up at, I'd be OK." Some of the Packers that have suffered concussions sometime in their career include Driver, Aaron Kampman, Quinn Johnson, Korey Hall and Brady Poppinga.

Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press-Gazette writes a column lamenting the Packers' talk but not following through with it. "Coach Mike McCarthy has steadfastly said he’s committed to running the football," writes Vandermause. "Yet there always seems to be an excuse why it doesn’t happen." Themes start to emerge from Mike McCarthy's press conferences. Things like "pad level" and "fixing it in practice," and things don't seem to improve.

Tony Walter of the Green Bay Press-Gazette has some information on Packers CEO Mark Murphy. One part I found interesting is that he doesn't always answer his own phone like his predecessor Bob Harlan, but... "Murphy has been visible in the community, making more than 100 speeches to community groups since he joined the Packers and building relationships with area politicians." I've gained a little respect for Murphy after hearing that little statistic of over 100 speeches.

The Packer Ranter relays a story about his cousin working at the Sears portrait studio. "The other day the head photographer, Jo-Jo, told my cousin to go home over lunch and clean himself up because there was a VIP coming that afternoon for a PPS (private photo shoot)," according to the article. "My cousin obliged, swapping the jean shorts and cutoff shirt for some Wranglers and a polo. Just as Jo-Jo foretold, right at three o’clock a badass Kia Sportage pulls up and out pops Packers GM Ted Thompson and his family." Click here to read the rest of the story.

Mark Strotman of Bleacher Report thinks the Packers need help along the offensive line and previews that position in the upcoming NFL Draft in April. "Realistic options include Trent Williams from Oklahoma, who has the versatility to play both tackle positions if he can improve on his pass blocking," writes Williams. "His run blocking is superb, which gives him the ability to play right tackle, the position he played up until this season." Another option he provides is Iowa tackle Brian Bulaga who's appears to be another good prospect.

The Packers have had to open a warehouse for their Pro Shop. "Internet sales have grown to 33 percent of Pro Shop business in just a few years and probably soon will be 40 percent to 50 percent, said Kate Hogan, director of retail operations," reports Richard Ryman of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

Aaron Kampman spent his bye week taking in a game from his high school alma mater, which, of course, is where his former high school coach was slain.

A couple authors we link to, Al Bracco and Joe Arrigo, are writing for a website officially endorsed by the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Railbird endorsed video: Enjoy "Operation of Flight" by The Heavy Pets...

The Silver lining: Big Okie

Brian Carriveau — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:43:00 GMT

Our Tuesday regular season feature called "The silver lining" is back. Following losses, it's a bright spot from an otherwise gloomy game. After wins, it's an unexpected performance. This week's silver lining is:

Big Okie

Sunday's game against the St. Louis Rams saw the debut of a personnel package dubbed "Big Okie," in which Brandon Chillar in essence played the role of a safety/rover where Derrick Martin would leave the field of play. Essentially, it put the Packers with five linebackers on the field at once.

Yes, Brandon Chillar got exposed in coverage by a Rams tight end, but give credit to defensive coordinator Dom Capers to come up with a package that put the best 11 players on the field.

The purpose of the package was to help contain Rams power running back Steven Jackson, and it helped.

As I noted in this morning's Packers Daily Links, Packer Report editor Bill Huber quantified the Packers' success against Jackson when he wrote, "On the positive side, though, Jackson was held to 3 yards or less on 16 of his 27 carries."

Certainly not all of those short gain came against "Big Okie" but several of them did. And with the Packers facing another workhorse of a running back next game against Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota Vikings, "Big Okie" is probably here to stay. At least until Atari Bigby returns.

Some kinks need to be worked out. Perhaps using the package only in favorable down and distance circumstances such as first and ten or third and short is the way to go. Maybe utilizing it when the offense is on their own end of the field is another adjustment that needs to be made.

Capers might need Nick Collins to give Chillar some assistance over the top as well. Whatever tweaks need to be made, I still applaud Capers for some creative game planning.

Now if the Packers could just generate some pass rush on Favre...