Packers At Seattle Preview | Green Bay's Toughest Game Of The Season

Last week the Packers finished off their 2014 preseason with a solid win over the Kansas City Chiefs at Lambeau Field. The Packers finished the preseason 3-1, but the record means nothing in August. Now, all the games count. The Packers will begin the 2014 season on the road in Seattle, and looking at their schedule at this moment, this is their toughest game of the entire season.

The Packers spent the entire offseason preparing J.C. Tretter to be the starting center. However, Tretter got injured against the Rams and has been placed on injured reserve with designation to return so now rookie Corey Linsley steps into the role. The Packers have faith in Linsley, but his lack of preparation and lack of experience may get the better of him in this game. If he falters, the Packers have practiced with Josh Sitton and T.J. Land at center. Also, the Packers added Garth Gerhart to the 53 man roster. Gerhart has been on the Packers practice squad for a long time now and knows the system well. This entire offensive line will have its hands full against the Seahawks elite pass rush. This game could come down to whether or not this line plays well enough to give Rodgers a chance to make plays.

The running backs look ready to go. In each of his two preseason appearances, Eddie Lacy played the first possession of each game and dragged the Packers offense down the field to a touchdown. James Starks and Dejaun Harris also had great preseasons. If the Packers are going to win this game, these three are going to need to come up big.

The new look defense looked awesome in the preseason for the Packers. Julius Peppers has been good and Jayrone Elliot has been a gold mine. Expect Dom Capers to change out personnel to give the Seahawks different looks. The rumor though is that Capers has something up his sleeve for Seattle tonight. The Packers had a lot of closed practices during training camp and the rumors are that they were preparing something special for Seattle.

At the end of the day we believe this is going to be a close game, very close.

Final score, 24-20 Seattle. (We're sorry Packers fans.) 

Packers Preseason Games 2014 | Green Bay's Opponents Look To Improve

The Packers preseason schedule was announced recently, and it goes as follows. On the road against Tennessee in week one, on the road against St. Louis in week two, at home against Oakland in week three, and at home against Kansas City in week four. The games againsr Kansas City and St. Louis were expected, as they happen every year, and of course the Packers connections to Oakland are well known these days.

First and foremost, I am interested in seeing how the backup quarterback situation is going to look when the preseason rolls around. The Packers already have Scott Tolzien under contract and the recently re-signed Matt Flynn to provide stability. Also look for them to draft someone as well. I have been pinging Georgia’s Aaron Murray as a possibility all off season, and Murray would most certainly make this situation even more interesting. In reality, I don’t think the Packers want Flynn to be the backup quarterback this season, but they will be fine if he is. I think they would rather that Scott Tolzien, who is far more talented than Flynn, beat him out, or possibly a rookie such as Murray to beat him out. However, they would like Tolzien or a rookie to beat him out easily, and not have a situation unfold like they had last season where nobody beat anyone and they ended up with Seneca Wallace as the backup quarterback.

 I am also interested to see who is going to be lining up as the starting safety. The Packers chose not to sign a safety during the main free agency period, so they are looking to draft one. How high they draft one depends on what they think of second year defensive back Micah Hyde. There has been a lot of talk about switching Hyde to safety by many amongst the Packers brass. Hyde definitely played well during his rookie season, and he will merit more playing time in season two. If the Packers chose not to switch Hyde to safety look for them to draft a safety really high, as high as in the first round. I have done several mock drafts of the Packers this offseason and in each case I have put Louisville safety Calvin Pryor to the Packers in round one.

Also who will be playing center? The Packers chose not to re-sign EDS, and instead have placed a lot of faith in second year interior lineman J.C Tretter. The coaches think Tretter has the tools to succeed long term in the NFL as a center. Look for the Packers to draft an interior lineman for depth in this draft .

Packers 53 Man Roster 2013 | Ticket King Green Bay

With the Packers and NFL draft over, free agency long done, and undrafted free agents signed, the preseason 90 man rosters for most teams are set. Now coaching staffs get down to business of figuring out how to get that number down to 53 by week one. Here is my attempt at a very early 53-man roster prediction.

Quarterbacks: Aaron Rodgers, B.J. Coleman, Matt Brown (P.S.)- The Packers want Coleman to win the backup job, and if he does, Harrell gets cut and Brown goes to the practice squad.

Running Backs: Eddy Lacy, Dejaun Harris, Jon Franklin, Alex Green, John Kuhn (FB)- After spending two draft choices on running backs, I highly doubt that anyone else outside of these five players make the week one roster. That means James Starks's days are numbered.

Wide Receiver: Jordy Nelson, James Jones, Randall Cobb, Jarrett Boykin, Jeremy Ross, Charles Johnson- The first three are a given, and those first three are the league’s best trio. After that, it's anyone's ballgame. The coaches like Boykin and Ross added a spark in the return game late last year until he dropped the ball in San Francisco. I think Johnson beats out Kevin Dorsey for the last spot and Dorsey goes to the practice squad.

Tight Ends: Jermichael Finley, D.J. Williams, Ryan Taylor. Brandon Bostick. - The loudmouth is still number one on the depth chart. I expect a breakout season from Williams, and Bostick is interesting.

Offensive Line: Brian Bulaga, Josh Sitton, EDS, T.J. Lang, Derek Sherrod, Don Barclay, J.C. Tretter, Andrew Datko, David Bakhtiari- If this is the list of offensive lineman, Packers fans can finally rejoice at the departure of Marshall Newhouse. Right now the starting right tackle job is up for grabs.

Defensive Line: Ryan Pickett, B.J. Raji, Datone Jones, Mike Daniels, Josh Boyd, C.J. Wilson, Gilbert Pena, Mike Neal- Mike Neal and C.J. Wilson somehow keep their spots here. I like Gilbert Pena. Jerel Worthy returns from the PUP late season and one of the last three on this list loses their job.

Linebackers: Nick Perry, Desmond Bishop, Clay Matthews, A.J. Hawk, Brad Jones, Terrell Manning, Nate Palmer, Dezman Moses, Jamari Lattimore- A lot of interesting here. I think the Bishop trade talk was just gold ole' Ted blowing smoke up people's butts just for fun. The last draft choice the Packers made this year, Sam Barrington, goes to the practice squad.

Defensive backs: Tramon Williams, Sam Shields, Casey Heyward, Devon House, Micah Hyde, Jarrett Bush, Sean Richardson, Morgan Burnett, M.D. Jennings, Jerron McMillian. This is the strongest position for the Packers and this might darn well be the deepest secondary in the league. These guys all make the roster, no sweat. There is nothing to see here, move along.