2006 NFL Preview: Green Bay Packers

Last Year

All good things come to an end: L.C. and Jason, Heidi and Jordan, and 13 consecutive non-losing seasons for the Green Bay Packers. Losses in free agency and losses to injury left star quarterback Brett Favre as the lone soldier and at the age of 36, although his skills were intact, he couldn't do it alone. Favre claims this is the most talented team in all his seasons at Lambeau Field, but his Packers have much to prove as the Mike McCarthy era begins.

What We Learned From Last Year

If there is such thing as the injury bug, the Packers experienced the plague in 2005.

Few teams were bitten harder than the Packers and no team would have had the depth to deal.

Between the medical center and free agency, the offense took a severe personnel beating. Javon Walker, Terrence Murphy, Ahman Green, and Najeh Davenport suffered season-ending injuries, Pro Bowl guards Mike Wahle and Marco Rivera were lost in free agency. Throw in wide-out Robert Ferguson for five games, tight end Bubba Franks for six, and Tony Fisher for a couple and the Packers' offense was stripped down to its third strings.

That paved the way for rookie Samkon Gado to emerge with three 100-yard games and six touchdowns in eight games, before he also succumbed to a season-ending knee injury.

Much is going to be made about Brett Favre getting old and his skills waning with age, but those conjectures are far from accurate.

Favre is still capable of taking a complete team to the Super Bowl. He is still good for the two-minute drill at the end of each half, he is still valuable leader, and he still has a cannon for an arm. But what he can no longer do is carry a team by himself.

Quarterbacks like Favre, or even Jake Plummer, always overexert themselves to ensure their team wins. While their determination is appreciated, they will often end up forcing too many plays if they don't have playmakers they can trust.

Last year, Favre was really short on reliable teammates and that's why his interception total ballooned.

Among the wide receivers, Donald Driver continued to be the most dependable target. While Walker was out, Ferguson, once again, had a chance to step up, but he remained inconsistent. Antonio Chatman took on an increased role, setting personal bests for receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns, but he is better suited for special teams and was overused.

One area that struggled even before the injuries was the play of the offensive line. They were atrocious before and after. Deciding not to re-sign either All-Pro guards was a mind-boggling conclusion for the Packers and the amount of sacks that they permitted nearly doubled in 2005, one year after a allowing a league-best 14. Many people will claim that the tread on Green's tires wore out, but he really didn't have many open lanes because of the front five.

Expectations were fairly low for the Packers defense heading into 2005 and as the offense kept losing parts, the defense simply couldn't keep them in games.

The final rank of seventh doesn't really do this "break, but don't bend" defense justice. The 21.1 points per game that they allowed along with their 19th rank in that category is more accurate.

Defensive coordinator Jim Bates is underrated and really milked what he could out of this unit.

The defensive line was weak up the middle, although Aaron Kampman had another good season on the end. Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila continued to be the one-dimensional pass rusher that he is and was overused because there wasn't much depth behind him.

The linebackers were also short on talent as Nick Barnett was missing helpers on his right and left. The Packers have made over their linebackers corps for this season, but it is worth noting that although Barnett has led the Packers in tackles the last three seasons, he doesn't make many game-changing plays.

In the secondary, first-round bust Ahmad Carroll was often penalized and quite frankly, is lucky to still be with the team. Rookie free safety Nick Collins was a bright spot among the defensive backs.

With Favre forcing the ball on offense and the defense unable to generate big plays, the Packers finished with the league's worst turnover ratio at -24.

Favre mulled retirement in the offseason, but is coming back for at least one more season. With an excellent draft, the Packers have found several contributors who will be part of their future, but how soon can they help?

This Year

The Packers shaved nearly eight points off of their per-game offensive output in 2005 and their first order of business will be to regain their scoring touch.

It's really not too complicated — if they are healthy, they will at the very least top 20 points per game.

Believe it or not, Javon Walker won't be missed too much. That's not a knock on his talent, but Favre always makes his wide receivers into playmakers. Driver returns as the top wideout for now and rookie Greg Jennings, who is earning a ton of praise in training camp, will probably start opposite him. The Packers have much more depth at the position this year with Rod Gardner, Marc Boerigter, and Robert Ferguson in the mix, as well. Factor in a healthy Bubba Franks and Favre will have plenty of targets.

Franks is more of a one-dimensional pass catcher, but the team is stocked with better blockers such as David Martin and Donald Lee. New offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzkinski is a former Packers' tight end coach and he will have to get creative to get them all involved.

Mike McCarthy is still planning on implementing the West Coast offense, but he will add a downfield element to it that was not present under former coach Mike Sherman.

Jagodzinski was the Atlanta Falcons' offensive line coach last season and he brought with him a new zone blocking scheme. Although the system is simpler than the man-to-man blocking, the front five have had a tough time picking it up so far.

Part of that has to do with the inexperience that will be starting with on their offensive line. Second-round pick Daryn Colledge and fourth-round pick Jason Spitz will both probably start right from the get-go. The Pack will also throw in a new starting center, Scott Wells, after veteran Mike Flanagan bolted to Houston as a free agent.

Spitz and Colledge have a very bright future, but you have to expect the interior of this line to get tested early on. Stalwart tackles Mark Tauscher and Chad Clifton return, but there is little depth behind them. Adrian Klemm and Kevin Barry are already lost for the season and Will Whitticker has had some weight problems, which has dropped him on the depth chart. The main concern here is that Clifton had ankle and knee surgeries, which might nag into the season.

The uncertainties up front stimulate anxiety in regards to the running game, but Ahman Green's return from a ruptured quadriceps is the bigger concern. He is still under the magical age of 30, but this type of injury could limit his effectiveness the whole season. We will quickly find out whether Sam Gado is another Nick Goings and whether Davenport can carry a full load.

On defense, the Packers are keeping the aggressive scheme of Jim Bates in place, even though he is not back with the team. More importantly, they have finally added a slew of playmakers to implement it.

In the secondary, the Packers may have drastically overpaid for Charles Woodson, but he is still a valuable addition. Al Harris is sometimes overmatched with top wideouts, but know he won't have to face that challenge on his own. Pushing him to the second spot and Ahmad Carroll to the nickel role puts the cornerback depth chart in better order.

The safety position will receiver addition by subtraction, as Mark Roman complained too much for the amount he contributed, and addition by free agency, as Marquand Manuel was signed from Seattle. The tandem of Manuel and Collins is inexperienced, but both have upside.

The major makeover comes at the linebacking position, where Nick Barnett will be joined by two quality rookies and one quality backup. First-round pick A.J. Hawk will contribute right off the bat and second-round Abdul Hodge might start on the outside, but will likely be groomed to replace Barnett eventually. Barnett is still a good player, but he no longer looks like he will develop into a top-10 linebacker. Ben Taylor will likely start on the outside while Hodge adjusts to the pros. If Hodge and Hawk blossom early on, the Packers might move Barnett or Hodge in order to get their three best linebackers on the field at once.

The front four is still a weak unit for the Packers, even though they added Ryan Pickett from St. Louis. He didn't accomplish much for the Rams, but some good coaching could make him serviceable. The Pack still don't have an every down defensive end opposite of Kampman and will be forced to overuse sack specialist Gbaja-Biamila once again.

The Packers had a very strong draft and will depend on several rookies right off the bat. The problem with freshman is that inconsistency will a recurring dilemma every single week. There are a number of uncertainties among the Packers rosters in regards to young players handling starting roles or previous starters returning from injuries and they could have got a jump start on team chemistry in the offseason, but had a very poor showing of players during organized team activities.

Favre is right, the talent is now in place, but it is just a question of how soon can they develop.

Over/Under: 6

The Packers will not be a playoff team in 2006, but look for them to have a strong second half as the whole team grows more comfortable with the new changes. If they stick with Favre through their struggles this season, they should contend for a playoff spot a year from now. They play: CHI, NO, @DET, @PHI, STL, @MIA, ARZ, @BUF, @MIN, NE, @SEA, NYJ, SF, DET, MIN, and @CHI.

Fantasy Sleeper

Bubba Franks has long been a Favre favorite in the red zone, but last year he only found the end zone once. With a new offensive coordinator who used to coach tight ends, the plan is to incorporate Franks much more into the offense. Expect him to be around 400 yards and at least five touchdowns this season.

This is the fourth consecutive season of comprehensive NFL previews by Dave Golokhov. Stay tuned as he brings you previews for all 32 NFL teams! He can be reached at [email protected].