Railbird Central : Ryan Grant

The silver lining: the run game

Brian Carriveau — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:43:11 GMT

Our 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:

The run game

Say what you will about the Green Bay Packers offensive line and their pass protection, but for whatever reason, the running game seems to be gaining some steam.

The Packers rushed for 170 yards on Sunday on 32 carries for a 5.3 yard average, which is pretty damn good actually. In their last win against the Cleveland Browns, the Packers rushed for 202 yards on 41 carries for a 4.9 yard average, also pretty good. Even in the most recent loss to the Vikings, most fans wished the Packers didn't have to abandon the run as they averaged 4.7 yards per carry.

For reasons unknown, running back Ryan Grant is peforming better as the season has gone on. He's showing a little more decisiveness, a little more burst, and maybe the signing of Ahman Green has lit a bit of a fire under him.

Green hasn't looked too bad himself. In his first considerable amount of action in the running game since re-joining the team, he rushed for 45 yards on only six carries against the Buccaneers for a 7.5 yard average. More than anything, he really seems to be a change of pace to Grant's style of play.

And maybe the offensive line has something to do with it too.

"Grant continues to look like he’s running harder than ever," writes Tom Pelissero of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. "His explosive runs of 20 and 15 yards both came on zone left plays, and 24 of the yards came after contact. The Packers seemed to run left more with veteran RT Mark Tauscher starting in place of (Allen) Barbre."

Barbre may have had his struggles in pass protection, but his forte definitely seems to be run blocking. And he provides a pretty decent complement to Josh Sitton on the right side of the line who also excels in the running game.

The right hand side of the offensive line was awfully inexperienced at the beginning of the season, and it's possible that they're finally starting to get their bearings in the run game.

There's still huge issues keeping Aaron Rodgers upright, but Packers fans could use some good news about now.

Five notes from Sunday's win over Cleveland

TonyWilson — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:55:00 GMT

There were plenty of things to take from Sunday's win over the Browns. While a win is a win, the Browns really, really suck. You truly don't know how bad Derek Anderson is until you actually see him try to play quarterback in person. It blows my mind that he was actually a Pro-Bowler and led a team to 10 wins. I have no idea how that's possible. Anyway, on with the notes...

1. Thanks for showing up, RG. Grant's performance Sunday was one of the best I've seen since the 2007 divisional playoff game against the Seahawks. Grant was fast and determined. He was hitting holes and getting around corners like he did on '07. While it was against one of the worst defenses in the league, it was great to see how often the Packers went to him. At one point, I actually asked myself, "When are they going to start throwing?"

2. Best linebacker performance of the year. Brian mentioned how good A.J. Hawk looked in his "Blue Chips, Red Chips, and Cow Chips" below. The other LB that looked great for the first time this year was Nick Barnett. I happened to be sitting in the end zone where the Packers defense got the first goal line stand that led to a Cleveland field goal. Barnett had a nose for the ball and almost got an interception. I'm really hoping these two can build off solid games.

3. More Donald, less Greg. Donald Driver continues to shine. Another great aspect of attending a game is actually seeing Driver flying down the sideline en route to a touchdown. His ability to catch a five-yard pass then turn it into a 71-yard score is second to none. But, while Driver's been stealing the show, Greg Jennings had another quiet game. Jennings is a deep threat, and the Packers didn't take one shot at him the whole game. Granted, they didn't need to. His specialty seems to be the 10-12-yard curl route for the time being.

4. Aaron Kampman is really good. Again, kudos to Brian on acknowledging the performance of Kampman. He's been implemented a lot more as a down rusher, but he also has some more comfort as an outside linebacker. There's no reason why he can't make a quarterback's life a nightmare in nickel and dime situations. The guy definitely still has it, and if he can gain more confidence with the position, it increases the likelihood he won't leave next season.

5. I hate kickoffs that go out of bounds. And Mason Crosby did that twice. Was it because Josh Cribbs was running them back? I don't think so, because Crosby booted a few into the endzone of which Cribbs kneed. Against better teams, it can really be detrimental to give up so much field position. The Packers don't give up huge kick returns a lot, so kicks out of bounds can't happen.

Blue, red & cow chips in Packers '09 win at Browns

Brian Carriveau — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:32:00 GMT

Designating blue chips, red chips and cow chips is our way of analyzing each game's winners and losers for the Packers. So without further ado...

Spencer Havner -- Sunday's performance was just what the Packers were hoping they would get out of Havner as a triple threat, offense, defense and special teams player. When Jermichael Finley went down with an injury, Havner was there to pick up the slack. He'll never be the receiving threat that Finley is, but he helped fill the void at least for a day. He had two receptions for 59 yards including one that went 45 yards for a touchdown. He also had two special teams tackles to boot, one of them directly followed his touchdown in which he fought through a double team of blockers.
Aaron Kampman -- Two things happening at once are leading to an increased level of production from Kampman over the past two weeks. For starters, he's becoming increasingly more and more comfortable with the 3-4 defensive scheme instituted by Dom Capers. But Capers, likewise, is utilizing Kampman to his strength as a down rusher in both nickel and dime situations in three and four man fronts. Kampman had five tackles including two for a loss, a sack and three quarterback hurries against the Browns.

A.J. Hawk -- After seeing his role on the team decrease and receiving criticism in the media, Hawk responded in stunning fashion on Sunday. He led the team in tackles with eight, but three of them went for losses. More than anything, he seemed to be in the right spot at the right time. In the past, when he would get swallowed up by would be blockers, he was shedding those blocks and getting to the ball carrier. Hawk is always at his best in short yardage situations, and he continued that trend versus the Browns.
Ryan Grant -- A Browns rush defense ranked 30th out of 32 teams will help just about any NFL running back, but Grant deserves an "A" for his performance yesterday. Coming into the game averaging less than 4.0 yards per carry, Grant had 27 carries for 148 yards, good for 5.5 yards per carry. He also had a touchdown. Grant was aided by an improved performance by the offensive line, but he also showed good burst off tackle. Case in point was his 37-yard scamper up the right sideline in the fourth quarter, his longest rush of the day.

Tramon Williams -- Williams showed a penchant for returning punts in previous years, so a better performance was expected from him in the return game. He returned three punts for a total of six yards. Worst of all, he looked to be dancing his way around tacklers instead of heading north and south. It's only a small sample size, but Williams needs to have better production in future weeks.
Penalties -- Eight penalties was an improvement over the 13 the Packers had the previous week against the Detroit Lions, but it was still too many. Considering the pass protection was improved at least for one game, penalties are the biggest problem hurting the Packers this moment. The personal foul on Atari Bigby hitting an opposing player out of bounds was particularly egregious. Yes, the hit wasn't very hard, but there was no reason for such a move when the Packers had the game in the bag.

Packers Daily Links 10.26.09

Brian Carriveau — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:09:51 GMT

Railbird photo of the day:

Photo credit: Tom Lynn // Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Social Networking: Follow both Railbird Central and me on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

The biggest concern surrounding the Green Bay Packers has been the offensive line, and they had their best performance of the season against the Browns. "A sackless performance by the offensive line and overall good reviews give some hope for the Packers vs. Vikings next week," writes James Knell of Green Bay Packers Commentary. I couldn't think of any better way to get some momentum heading into the biggest home game of the regular season.

Not only did the offensive line not give up a sack, they also paved the way for a great ground game led by Ryan Grant. "The Packers presented a formidable rushing attack," writes Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. "Granted, it was against a Browns defense that came in ranked 30th out of 32 teams against the run. But for an offense that had been ranked 19th in rushing, for a running back who had averaged a pedestrian 3.8 yards per carry and for a line that was missing two of its five starters, it was a significant accomplishment." It's entirely possible that the offensive line was in a bit of a slump and can go back to the way they were playing in the preseason. Maybe that's not likely, but possible nonetheless.

Among the great individual performances was that of center Scott Wells. "Wells helped neutralize fearsome nose tackle Shaun Rogers of the Cleveland Browns Sunday just as he helped render once-dominating nose tackle Pat Williams of the Minnesota Vikings almost invisible three weeks ago," writes Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. McGinn hints that Wells might not be ready to let go his starting center job. Even if Spitz is healthy enough to play, Wells has done a pretty good job in his absence.

Among the more disappointing developments was an injury to tight end Jermichael Finley. "Finley told teammates he was 'good,'" writes Greg Bedard of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Most expected him to miss a couple weeks of action." The Packers could use Finley's services next week against the Vikings, but it's more important that they have him for the long haul. Considering his knee wasn't stuck in the turf when he got hit, his injury might not be as bad as expected.

Spencer Havner had the best game of his career in Finley's place. "Just to show how valuable he was, he scored the go-ahead points for the Packers on a short crossing route in which he rumbled down the sideline and beat two defenders to the end zone," writes Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Then he lined up on kickoff coverage and made the tackle on returner Josh Cribbs. Havner caught a 14-yard pass for a first down on the Packers' 99-yard drive in the fourth quarter and also had a 12-yard reception wiped away because of a penalty." Thanks to his play on Sunday, Havner will probably take on an increased role regardless of when Finley is ready to come back to play.

Chris Lempesis of Ol' Bag of Donuts saw an increase in man coverage in the secondary and better play as a result. "There have been adjustments made in the secondary, as well, as Capers has had the corners playing more man-to-man coverage," writes Lempesis. "The 3-4 calls for a lot of zone coverages, with the corners passing off receivers to the safeties, but Capers seems to have figured out that man-to-man is what Al Harris, Woodson and Tramon Williams excel at. That being the case, he’s decided to let them do what they do. Harris, in particular, was very good Sunday."

C.D. Angeli of Tundra Vision is still concerned about the penalties. "Penalties don't necessarily spell the difference in the win/loss column, but they are an indicator of team discipline," writes Angeli. "The fact that the Packers have continued to have difficulties with foolish penalties, pre-snap penalties, and unnecessary, non-combat penalties means that there is still sloppy play despite the wins." If the Packers were able to stop the bleeding along the offensive line and not give up any sacks, there's hope that they'll quell the penalty issue as well.

Aaron Kampman hopes the team is gaining some confidence after two games in which they gave up a combined two points. "Football is a game of confidence," Kampman told the Journal Sentinel. "I think that we can draw some confidence from this. Now, in the same breath, you obviously realize that statistically speaking, both of these offenses were not on the top of the NFL."

Demovsky says the red zone offense isn't performing very well. "A week after scoring only one touchdown on five red-zone possessions, the Packers again struggled in that area," writes Demovsky. "They were 2-for-3 against the Browns, but only the 5-yard touchdown pass to James Jones in the fourth quarter came easy."

Railbird endorsed video: Enjoy our winning tradition, "Well Oiled Machine" by Hot Buttered Rum String Band...

Packers Daily Links 10.10.09

Brian Carriveau — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 14:07:33 GMT

Railbird photo of the day:

Photo credit: Rick Woods // Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Social Networking: Follow both Railbird Central and me on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

While most of the mainstream media is on hiatus during the bye week weekend, there's been some good stuff coming out of the Packer blogosphere. Al Bracco of Packers Lounge did some film study from the Vikings game to find out if quarterback Aaron Rodgers holds onto the ball too long. "I studied every one of his sacks, over and over again," writes Bracco. "On five of them, Rodgers had every opportunity to either throw the ball away or look for a safety valve. In each case, he kept looking down the field, hoping against hope and holding on to the ball too damn long. It’s nothing more than bad decision-making in that critical moment." The offensive line certainly hasn't been great, but if Rodgers can get rid of the ball instead of taking some sacks, the entire offense would operate a lot better.

Mitchell_M of Acme Packing Company looks at the Packers' running in the first half of games versus the second half and is perplexed about the differences he found. "The team averages over 2 ypc more in the second half of games in 2009," according to the article. "Ryan Grant in particular has been better after halftime; his average increases from 3.0 to 4.8. Aaron Rodgers also runs better in the second half, where he averages 6.7 yards per carry, but that's likely a product of the quarterback figuring out that the offensive line can't protect him." That is an interesting finding, especially considering in the Rams game the defense knew the Packers would be running the ball late in the game as they protected a lead and still couldn't stop it.

Chris Lempesis of Ol' Bag of Donuts breaks down the 11 upcoming free agents the Packers have on their team and their probability of re-signing. For the most part, I agree with the exception of one player. "(Nick Collins) is always struggling with injuries," writes Lempesis. "Not sure if you can fork over big cash to someone who can’t stay in games." The thought of the Packers safety combination minus Collins next season is pretty scary. He's the single upcoming free agent the Packers need the most. He might not want to sign a contract extension for a shot at free agency, but that doesn't mean he's worth any less to the Packers.

Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette interviewed Packers general manager Ted Thompson and, as expected, Thompson didn't say much of value. He did offer this one bit about the defense though: “We had some breakdowns in each of the games that we can correct, but they are more fundamental or mental errors that we made," said Thompson. "We’ve shown that we have the versatility amongst our players to play pretty high quality defense. Again, this is an area where we’re continually going to improve.” Both Thompson and McCarthy have a penchant for saying the team's problems are due to fundamentals, but when the team performs as poorly as they have been, it's becoming harder and harder to believe. I'm starting to believe that the talent just isn't good enough, and if that's the case, it's the fault of the general manager.

Greg Bedard of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revisits the decision to hire Dom Capers as defensive coordinator while Gregg Williams and Mike Nolan were hired elsewhere. "After four games - a minuscule sampling, to be sure - it would appear as if the Broncos and Saints were the big winners," writes Bedard. "Both are off to 4-0 starts thanks in large part to vastly improved defenses." The Packers, meanwhile, are a middling 2-2 and haven't played very good defense outside of Charles Woodson.

Drew Olson of OnMilwaukee.com found this picture of Deanna Favre posing with a fan wearing a Vikings No. 4 jersey with "THANKSTED" written on the back.

Railbird endorsed video: EOTO kicked it last night at the High Noon Saloon in Madison. I wanted to go, but alas, I couldn't. This video is reminding me of what I missed...