Wednesday, October 30, 2013

The Final Nine Games For The Packers Are A Mixed Bag

Jack and I were writing earlier about the schedule for the remainder of the year. I'm not sure where it ranks on the list of easiest remaining schedules but it doesn't look all that bad. On the flip side, the Packers have fallen on the Football Outsiders rankings to No. 9 overall because, in part, all five of the teams they've beaten this season are ranked below them (Detroit is the best at No. 12) while their two losses (Bengals at No. 5, 49ers at No. 8) were against teams ranked above of them.

Looking ahead, there is only one remaining opponent currently in the Football Outsiders Top 10 (Bears) and they're a perfect example of why looking back isn't always a proper guide. Injuries have taken their toll and the Bears have major question marks at quarterback and on defense. While the Bears are currently sitting at No. 6 overall, they're not likely to stay there.

After the Bears, the remaining schedule looks like this: home Eagles (No. 24), at Giants (No. 31), home Vikings (No. 25), at Lions (No. 12), home Falcons (No. 18), at Cowboys (No. 11), home Steelers (No. 16), and at Bears (No. 6).

So the next three games look like the easy part of the schedule before three tough road games with two mediocre teams squeezed in between at Lambeau. As I said above, the Bears are sliding, but Chicago's always a tough venue and I would expect them to drop at least one of those last three road games. They won't win them all, though I'd expect them to. The good news is that none of these games feature a team that is currently ranked ahead of the Packers.

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