A radio host asked me this week: Is there any reason to think the Green Bay Packers aren’t the best team in football?
I was silent for a second, which felt like a minute. Every reason I could come up with felt like nitpicking.
The Packers are rolling right now with an offense that looks unstoppable, and a defense that is making enough big plays. A forgiving schedule gives the Packers a great chance to roll up a big win total this year.
You have to squint hard to find areas of concern, but we saw a few of them in the Green Bay papers this morning:
1. The Packers are trying to teach James Starks to have better vision, according to the Kareem Copeland of the Green Bay Press Gazette. Too often, Starks dances or misses the hole.
Ryan Grant seems to have great one-cut instincts but can no longer get to the outside well. The Packers running game has been pretty good, but not great. They could struggle against a truly elite defense.
2. Cornerback Tramon Williams hasn’t been the same since a Week One shoulder injury, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The Packers are 31st against the pass in terms of yardage, although they are first in interceptions.
We’d argue that Sam Shields and Charles Woodson haven’t been any better in coverage. This is probably Green Bay’s biggest concern, but the personnel is there.
3. Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com looked at why Clay Matthews is stuck on one sack. Matthews does lead the team in QB hits. We covered this topic last week, but Wilde does a nice job going inside the numbers. The Packers rush three defenders more than any team.
So there you go: The Packers aren’t perfect. They are closer to complete through one quarter of the season than any team out there.
