The Green Bay Packers will easily win the NFC North, and they will keep the Vikings out of the playoffs. That alone is not a story because most people who follow football would pick the Packers to win this division. Aaron Rodgers is the best player in all of football, and he leads a team that is good enough to get him 12 wins. The team is good enough to sail into the playoffs, but we do not know what they will do once they get there. That is an intriguing thought considering the shape of the playoff picture.
Aaron Rodgers for MVP
He could be the MVP every year given how he pulls the Packers along, and it is hard to argue his value to the franchise.
People who love the Packers have been spoiled with years of good quarterback play, and they have gotten a Super Bowl title out of it. They have been given every good thing to watch on TV, and they have the assurance that Rodgers could play for ages if he wanted to. He can win one playoff game by himself, but he cannot win two.
The defense is faltering
The defense in Green Bay has been in sore shape for some time, and it is difficult to imagine them getting any better if they are playing the way they have in the past. They are good enough to win a weak division, and they can count on Aaron to give them a boost in a wild card round game, but they cannot win a divisional round game with a bad defense.
They have to be massively improved, and they have to stay healthy.
The Packers get overlooked
We have a habit of overlooking the Packers in the same way we do the Giants because we expect them to be a moderately good team. We expect them to get into the playoffs, and we complain when they cannot win playoff games. They almost are not given any motivation to try to change because they are pretty good as they are.
This is a major factor in why they may not play well in the playoffs, and it could continue until they decide that they want to make a wholesale change to the defense. That sort of change could really make a difference, but they have not made it yet.
No Super Bowl
As much as we all would like to see Aaron Rodgers win another Super Bowl, it is more likely that the Seahawks or Falcons go back to the Super Bowl.
Those two teams are better on the whole, and they have better defenses. Also remember that the Falcons and Seahawks are coached in the same style because Dan Quinn of Atlanta is a Pete Carroll disciple. That leaves very little room for the Packers even though they could go 11-5 or 12-4.
