Note: This is a team-by-team look previewing the 2007 season. These are my official thoughts on how I think things will play out.
Last year: 8-8 (second in NFC North)
Best addition: Justin Harrell (DT, 1st round pick out of Tennessee)
Key personnel loss: Ahman Green (RB, Texans)
2007 outlook: When your best addition is a first round draft pick on the D Line while you let a former premier RB go without replacing him, you have issues. That is the situation in Green Bay. Green may have been struggling lately to stay healthy but could someone tell me what the alternative is? According to the roster its Vernand Morency, whom the Packers got from the Texans which tells me one thing - if he was expendable in a place where they haven't had a real steady, reliable runner, then why would you think Morency will be a better back than Green, who takes over in Houston? I'm sure Brett Favre is loving this.
On defense, the team remains thin at LB, and like what happened with the RB spot, Green Bay did nothing to fix this issue. Right now Brady Poppinga - who I actually met at my time in Evanston, Wyo. and have a lot of respect for - is slated to start next to Nick Barnett and AJ Hawk which could be a problem since he has had some health problems and there is no real depth behind him. If the LB corp can somehow hold together, this defense should help the team get to the playoffs.
Key to success: The Packers are thin in key positions and like the last couple of years, any injuries to guys at those spots will end the season on the spot. The funny thing is these positions were thin last year too, so why weren't they addressed in the offseason. This team looks like it is already being held together by duct tape and if it doesn't hold, Favre will probably kick himself for coming back yet again. That scenario gets more likely every day.
Against Washington: The Skins will travel to Lambeau Field on Oct. 14 to take on the Packers, two weeks after Washington's bye week. The Skins last faced the Packers on Halloween in 2004, a 28-14 loss at home.
Fantasy sleeper: Brandon Jackson. The team's 2nd round pick out of Nebraska, it is probably only a matter of time before Jackson takes the starting job from Morency. With not much standing in his way, look for Jackson to break some big runs early on and become a hot waiver wire pickup in the first couple of weeks. If you are desperate for a back in the late rounds of your draft, pick Jackson and tuck him away before he becomes a hot waiver wire pickup. And if you have no need for him when he gets hot, sell him high and fix another weak spot on your team.
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