Good morning ham & eggers,

Five frantic weeks into the season and we are on a fast dangerous rollercoaster with possibilities to either derail or give us the thrill of a lifetime.

At this very moment in time, considering all things from form, playcalling, injuries to the top office (trades etc.) - what would you consider as a successful season?

For me, it would be to make the playoffs. I could stomach another one and done because of what has transpired thus far. Before the season started, I had a wild guess at 10-6 and will stick by it, as I was probably giving flow to worst case scenarios.

I am not a negative nancy by any means, but my state-the-obvious quote of "No team has two players of equal skill in every position" holds true. Fact is, injuries to key players can never really be compensated for unless we have sleepers waiting in the wings.

In terms of individuals, I would like to see Greg Jennings play like we are accustomed to, perhaps the loss of Finley will afford that opportunity. I would also like to see Aaron Rodgers suck up everything and come out like a man possessed this week forward.

Come January 2nd 2011, 3:30pm, if the Packers are in the playoffs? I would consider it a good season.

What about you guys?

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I never bought in to the Super Bowl or bust hype. I predicted us to win the big game, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't be happy with a playoff spot.

A lot of people in these forums have lost the fun in watching football. For some, it seems like the thing that matters if HOW we win, instead of IF we win. No win is guaranteed, and a W is always a good thing.

Every win makes me happy. Every loss makes me really angry. With the current state of things, playoffs would be satisfactory.

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Superbowl...nothing less.

This team had the talent at the beginning of the year and to some extent still has the possibility. I don't care about injuries. They are part of the game and every team goes thru them to some extent.

This is the team Ted built. He has built thru the draft to have a deep team. This is when we see if his approach works.

At the beginning of the year, I thought we had a Super Bowl team, my expectations haven't changed.

Anyone who can blithely ignore injures and expect the same results from a decimated team as from a team at full strength is an idiot, in my opinion.

There. I said it.

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The defenders of Ted Thompson have said time and time again that, thru the draft is where you build a deep team...a team that is able to withstand injuries. Well, we have injuries. We have alot of them, but we haven't had an injury to a key guy, besides Grant. If Rodgers goes down, if Woodson goes down, if Matthews is out for a significant period of time, then my expectations might change.

IMO, those who use injuries as an excuse is an idiot. There I said it.

It's one of those "truisms" that folks like to throw out there.

"Injuries are no excuse", or the words to that effect.

Fuck a bunch of truisms.

Truisms can't sack a QB any more than a LB that is not actually on the field.

I agree to most extents.

I think there are only a handful of injuries you can say are not as impactful in terms of starters.

If we lose say, our number one or two reciever but not Finley.

Unlike other sports and leagues, the drop off from Starter to backup is pretty big because of MONEY. And when a player "breaks out", a large salary is usually in tow.

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I never use injuries as an excuse, but I change my expectations correctly. Sometimes they hit your harder that another time. This time we are hurting bad.

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I would conclude that his approach works if we even make the playoffs with this many injuries to starters.

Where would the Bears be right now if they were facing the loss of Forte, Urlacher, and Olsen for the season, with Cutler concussed, and short term injuries to Briggs, Harris, Adams, etc, plus Manning, Bowman, and Wolfe on the PUP list? Probably worse off than we are.

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What about the Domino effect?

You lose Grant means a dimension lost for the offense. You lose Rodgers it means the recievers will have lesser quality balls thrown their way.

You lose Ryan Pickett and maybe the team we play doesn't double team due to that extra important size difference.

In terms of the players injured at the moment, how many are proven to be injury prone? Justin Harrell? Atari Bigby? Who else?

Injuries are a part of the game, and most times times unavoidable. And most of the time players do not have an extensive injury history when drafted.

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