Jim Biever/Green Bay Packers
Not even James Jones' lucky hoodie could save the Pack from the Vikings.
A few minutes before the Green Bay Packers kicked off to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night at Lambeau Field, my 15-year-old son, Tyler, turned to me and suggested that Green Bay might be better off losing.
This was the final game of the 2015 regular season, and all of the following weekend’s playoff matchups were already set, except for two games in the NFC. Both Minnesota and Green Bay were in; the only question remaining: Which team would win the NFC North conference and host a playoff game?
Tyler reasoned that by ceding the NFC North title to the Vikings for the first time since 2009, the Packers would bypass a home game against this same peaking-at-the-right-time Minnesota team in exchange for a more appealing date with the so-so 9-7 Washington Redskins at FedEx Field on Jan. 10.
Obviously, Green Bay did lose, in a game that wasn’t nearly as close as its 20-13 score indicates, and is headed east. But after watching the Packers’ performance against the Vikings, when they showed about as much intensity as they did in earlier blowout defeats to the Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals, I’m not expecting Washington to be any easier for Green Bay to take on than Minnesota would have been.
The Packers finished the 2015 regular season 10-6, and a sputtering offense against the Vikings was dragged down further by underperforming running back Eddie Lacy (13 carries for a measly 34 yards) and a passing game that seemed nonexistent for extended periods of time. It’s likely Green Bay won’t be advancing deep into January.
Never fear, though: This year’s NFL playoffs still hold plenty of intrigue.
Will the 15-1 Carolina Panthers continue to dominate the same way they did all season? Or will the two-time defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks, led by former Badgers quarterback Russell Wilson, continue their recent power surge?
Can 39-year-old quarterback Peyton Manning — who came in off the bench with an injured foot on Jan. 3 to engineer a come-from-behind 27-20 Denver Broncos victory over the San Diego Chargers — win one more Super Bowl?
Will another former Badger, NFL fan favorite and league sack leader J.J. Watt, dance his way deep into the AFC playoffs with the 9-7 Houston Texans?
My early Super Bowl 50 prediction: Seattle vs. Denver.
