Playoff Pressure? It's All On "The GOAT"

Sunday's Lambeau Field meeting between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Green Bay Packers brings up an interesting question.

In this NFC Championship game, which quarterback is under more pressure? Is it red-hot Aaron Rodgers of the Packers or the QB that many refer to as The GOAT (Greatest Of All Time), Tom Brady?

I think it's all on Brady, making his 14th divisional championship start and looking for his 10th Super Bowl appearance. Why? Because Tom needs to win, has to win, to prove to all that his past success with the New England Patriots wasn't all due to the brilliant coaching of Bill Belichick.

Just look at how the Patriots stumbled to a 7-9 record without Brady (or a decent quarterback) under Belichick while the 43-year-old Brady has found success in Tampa Bay.

For Rodgers, the quotes coming from him this week express the joy of being in this season, of reaching this plateau and enjoying it -- and his teammates. Despite having the best record in the NFC at 13-3 this season, and the top-scoring offense, I think Green Bay is confidently playing with house money.

Many will look back at the terrible game that the Packers played in Tampa, that Week 5 thumping (38-10) coming off a bye week, no less, as an indication that the Bucs are better. Or that Green Bay's defensive coordinator, Mike Pettine, is only 10-3 against Brady.

Nonsense.

This is a different Packer team in January than it was then. A better, confident team.

Granted, Green Bay will have to play clean football on Sunday. But the pressure? That's all on Brady.

Another Week, Another Test OnThe Road To Super Bowl LV

 When you get to this point in the season, every NFL foe is one that deserves respect.

For the Green Bay Packers, who earned the right to host the NFC Championship game at Lambeau Field with a 13-3 regular season, a tough game is expected.

Tampa Bay's Buccaneers, led by quarterback Tom Brady, benefited from four turnovers by the New Orleans Saints, turning three into 21 points in the 30-20 win.

After dispatching a tough defensive team (LA Rams), the high-scoring Packers will again need to bring their "A Game" on both sides of the line to get to Super Bowl LV.

In order to butcher the GOAT (Brady, though to be honest I might call him the GOTE -- Greatest Of This Era...it's just impossible to compare quarterbacks from different generations. Saying Brady is better than Joe Montana (four-for-four in Super Bowls) or Bart Starr (five NFL titles in seven years) just isn't far to any of them.

But let's get back to butchering the GOAT. To do so, the Packers will need:

• Run-Run-Run to daylight. Coach Matt LaFleur, unlike his predecessor (Mike McCarthy) doesn't abandon the run early. And running the ball successfully will help Green Bay control the ball, and the clock.
• Don't get fancy -- just stay with that has been successful in putting up 30+ points.
• Patience from quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be key, taking what the Bucs give him. This is his first home field in an NFC title game; I don't think he'll let it go to waste.
• NO turnovers. Don't give the Bucs a short field.
• Bother Brady. He gets the ball out quickly, so the defense needs to be ready.

There may be a few grills out in the Lambeau Field parking lot, and come post-game, there will be plenty of room next to the brats for a GOAT.

The weather will lend itself to the Frozen Tundra on Sunday, and Green Bay will win 37-20.

Are You Ready For Some Football (Talk)?

Putting this right out there. I'm NOT a fan of the College Football Championship playoff in it's present form. Doubt if many outside of a few cities and fan bases are.

Four teams compete, but it's the SAME DAMN four teams, by and large, year after year. Until this format is expanded to eight teams, we'll still have this issue. Carrying this another step, let's limit scholarships to college teams. Why should the Clemsons and Alabamas of the world be able to hoard talent? The "Transfer Portal" is a step in the right direction, but we need to take it further.

A bit of parity would go a long way to help the health of college football nationwide.

AM NOT a fan of Alabama football, either. The rich get richer in college football, that's just a fact. This was Coach Nick Saban's seventh national title (six at 'Bama, one at LSU) and that breaks a tie with Bear Bryant, who won six titles with Alabama -- when the champion was "mythical". (Yes, I'm showing my age here!).

But I do respect this year's Saban-coached team more than any other. Why? Because this year Alabama didn't feast on teams equal to The Little Sisters Of The Poor. Instead, they played ONLY teams in the tough SEC. And still went unbeaten.

Would love to see the Big Five conferences go this way in the future. Skip the cupcakes, go to the main meal. Won't happen, but it sure would be fun!

FOR THE FIRST TIME in his Green Bay Packer career, quarterback Aaron Rodgers will get to have home cooking throughout the NFL playoffs. Prior to this, he's been the road when the Packers reached the NFC Championship game (going 1-3).

Green Bay's Saturday foe in a 3:40 p.m. kickoff is the Los Angeles Rams. And the Rams have only played in Wisconsin in December (or later) twice in recent history. I went back as far as 1960, and in the 1960s the NFL schedule makers tended to have Green Bay close out the season with a West Coast road trip, facing San Francisco and Los Angeles. If the Rams did come to Wisconsin, it was in September or October.

The last Rams' playoff visit came in Green Bay's 1967 Super Bowl II season, a Packer 28-7 win in Milwaukee, no less. So Los Angeles is a stranger to the Frozen Tundra.

That's why I'm thrilled to see the early weather forecast for Saturday -- cold and light snow.

LAST CHIME for Pittsburgh's Big Ben? Yes, the Steeler QB threw for over 500 yards in the loss to the Cleveland Browns -- but had four interceptions among his 68 pass attempts. And since Cleveland had a BIG lead, Browns' DBs played pretty soft....he's really showing his 37/38 years and, let's face it, Pittsburgh needs to move on. The Steelers don't fire coaches, so Mike Tomlin's job is secure. This team has a good defense and some pieces, but it's time for a change at quarterback.

KEEP THINKING positive thoughts -- we're just about a month away from pitchers & catchers reporting for spring training!

Suggestions For A State Prep Basketball Tournament

 So here we are in 2021,  and around the state there's high school basketball being played.

Well, not currently in Dane County, but you get where I'm going with this. Life is moving forward, despite Covid-19. Hell, I've seen pictures of high school teams playing while wearing masks (again, good on you!)

And it won't be long before we start talking about the state basketball tournaments. Here's a thought, and maybe it's out of the box. Instead of having the girls' tournament at one site (Green Bay) and the boys' at another (the Kohl Center, the home of the University of Wisconsin teams in Madison), why not have each division play at a different site.

For the WIAA, the governing body of prep athletics, I offer this suggestion: We have enough college campuses around Wisconsin to accommodate this. And, should there only be online college classes in those cities, we would even have dorms to house the teams in. It's the bubble concept, much like the NBA.

Okay, I realize that, in the case of the boys' tournament, it's a thrill to walk onto the Kohl Center court and compete. But I bet if you asked ANY player in the state if he would play a state tournament at another site, as long as he would be guaranteed a game, he'd say Hell Yes!

Even the NCAA is looking at something similar for the March Madness tournament -- with all the games being played at multiple locations in the state of Indiana.

Food for thought, folks.