Zero2Cool
14 years ago
http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/105834738.html 

Green Bay This is just weird.

Jermichael Finley is out. Nick Barnett, too. Ryan Grant is long gone.

Glancing down the line, no Mark Tauscher.

Big man Ryan Pickett is battling injury; Brandon Chillar, too. Can't believe the latest news of Mike Neal and Brady Poppinga. Can't wait to get Al Harris and Atari Bigby back.

One of the advantages, one theory goes, of having a young team is that young players can withstand injuries or heal faster.

And yet here's 34-year-old "Big Cliff," still standing.

Among the foremost concerns for the Green Bay Packers heading into the season were the knees of left tackle Chad Clifton and the calendar working against the 11-year veteran.

He has had a long history of battling, repairing and playing through injuries, but he was feeling less than great at the start of the season. He had a sore left knee nagging him in training camp.

That's all long gone now.

"I feel good. I feel so much better than I did coming into the season," Clifton said.

It has really showed. Clifton held Minnesota's Jared Allen at bay, playing him one-on-one for most of Green Bay's 28-24 victory Sunday.

Clifton and the rest of the offensive line gave quarterback Aaron Rodgers plenty of time to work and kept him from getting sacked.

"That's priority No. 1 for an offensive lineman. We're definitely proud of that," said Clifton.

Rodgers appreciated it, especially after getting sacked 14 times in the two Minnesota games in 2009.

Rodgers said the play of the tackles, with the play calling of coach Mike McCarthy, kept Minnesota's defensive line of Allen and Kevin and Pat Williams off-balance. McCarthy mixed the screens with straight drop-back throws.

"We had a good flow there," said Rodgers. "At times they weren't even rushing. They were content with staying at the line of scrimmage and jumping. So when you can slow down great rushers like that, that's a win for us, and those guys did a great job."

The Packers hoped to get this kind of production out of Clifton when they re-signed him to a three-year, $20 million contract that included $7.5 million of guaranteed money in March.

Now Clifton is on a roll.

"This is probably the third week in a row that Chad Clifton's played very, very good football," offensive coordinator Joe Philbin said. "The kind we're used to seeing him play. He's played well the last few weeks, and we need him to continue to do that."

In back-to-back losses to Miami and Washington, Clifton still played well. He shut down Redskins linebacker Andre Carter. Against Miami, Clifton withstood the rush so well from Cameron Wake that the outside linebacker had to go to the other side because he wasn't getting anywhere with Clifton. Against Detroit, Clifton neutralized Kyle Vanden Bosch.

But the performance against Minnesota was especially gratifying.

"Huge game. Game we needed to win. Division game. That's a quality team," said Clifton. "They have a lot of great players. And it got us on the winning track. It's a long season; there's a lot of football to be played. We just need to try to take this victory and try to move forward. Obviously we were all excited. This was so big for the team, to get back to the winning category."

Of course, pass protection isn't all there is to it. Clifton has been very good at run blocking.

Green Bay's running game against Minnesota better reflected what McCarthy has wanted: quality, and not necessarily quantity, in rushing carries. Brandon Jackson carried 13 times for 58 yards and one touchdown.

"It seemed like when Brandon got the ball he was able to run off some big chunks," Clifton said. "If we can get him some carries like he did today - some positive yardage and big chunks of carries - we will make them respect and honor the run. That's what we're aiming for."

Another goal is preserving the legs of Clifton. He takes more time off after a game to recover. For a Sunday game, that means Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are for rest, he said. He practices with the team on Thursday and Friday. Throughout this process, Clifton is monitored by team physician Pat McKenzie, the trainers and line coaches James Campen and Jerry Fontenot.

"Coach McCarthy is really good about it. He gives me some time to rest after the game and heal up a little bit," said Clifton.

That has worked for cornerback Charles Woodson. Now Clifton has managed to hang in there. His health has allowed him to play well. It has also allowed first-round draft pick Bryan Bulaga, who was selected to eventually replace Clifton at left tackle, to fill at right tackle for Tauscher.

Clifton is a man of few words. When asked how he has managed to survive and play well despite the missed practice time, he said: "Experience has a lot to do with it. It's my 11th year, so I better know what's going on out there."


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Pack93z
14 years ago
This is why you blend in the run game in your passing sets.. it will slow down the pass rush because they have to at least look for the run.

Rodgers said the play of the tackles, with the play calling of coach Mike McCarthy, kept Minnesota's defensive line of Allen and Kevin and Pat Williams off-balance. McCarthy mixed the screens with straight drop-back throws.

"We had a good flow there," said Rodgers. "At times they weren't even rushing. They were content with staying at the line of scrimmage and jumping. So when you can slow down great rushers like that, that's a win for us, and those guys did a great job."


"The oranges are dry; the apples are mealy; and the papayas... I don't know what's going on with the papayas!"
DakotaT
14 years ago
Who takes Clifton's reps in practice? I sure hope it's Newhouse, and that he is ready to go after next season at LT. Bulaga can stay right there RT.

Lang's future appears to be LG.
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Greg C.
14 years ago
Collinsworth mentioned that Clifton had played well the past couple weeks. I hadn't even noticed that. I didn't watch replays of those games because they were too depressing.

Anyway, I guess it was Bulaga, and maybe the other guys to some extent, who were responsible for the pressure on Rodgers against the Redskins and Dolphins. But with Bulaga now having a very solid game under his belt against the Vikings, I am feeling much better about the O-line. This could make all the difference in the world. Even the running game is looking halfway decent. The funny thing is that I don't have as much confidence in Aaron Rodgers and the receivers as I did last year. But if he protection begins to hold up on a consistent basis, they should have some breakout performances.
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warhawk
14 years ago
Childress got fined $35,000 for complaining about holding on Allen. I didn't see it and doubt it was anymore than Mathew saw and he's always getting held.

Childress also said he was upset on the facemask call on Loadholdt. WHAT? He only slung Mathews around in a circle on the play.

The officiating was not good but it went both ways. They got a TD called back (the second one wasn't even close) and we got a redzone INT with Franks mugging Jennings all the way down the sidelines.

I say Cliffy did a good job on Allen. That's apparent enough when Allen resolved himself to a non-rush and trying to bat the ball down way more than you normally see. I was a big advocate on the SIGN CLIFTON side before the year. I know a lot of people didn't want him but we had virtually no known LT and a lot of ??????'s.

Rodgers and the Receivers need to pick it up out there and help the D out. They are busted up and busting a gut to keep the team in games. The OL is giving Rodgers about as much time as any QB I see in other games played so it's time he and the wideouts starting clicking.
"The train is leaving the station."
Zero2Cool
14 years ago
warhawk, SHUT UP! The officials GAVE A GIFT to the Packers! We need to appreciate that gift and acknowledge the Packers didn't win the game, but rather the referees HANDED it to the Packers. Don't you read the posts my friend? :P



I did see holding on Allen when I watched the plays again, but Clay was held and illegally contacted in the face more consistently.
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DakotaT
14 years ago
Phil "loads of holds" should be flagged so much that the Vikings would be forced to bench him. And I thought McKinnie was a pile
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Nonstopdrivel
14 years ago
The one lineman I thought was consistently holding was Sitton; it seemed like he was getting pushed back on his heels. He never got called on it, though, so what do I know.
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Timmons
14 years ago
Either way, penalties or not, it's good to see some running gaps opened and Aaron not running for his life. I commend the Oline for a good game.
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zombieslayer
14 years ago
Jared Allen was obviously frustrated. Cliffy OWNED Allen that game. The only thing Allen was able to do right was get that one interception, which was a gift from Rodgers. More a Rodgers mistake than a good move by Allen.

So props to Cliffy. If he keeps playing like Sunday, don't be surprised to see him in Hawaii this year.

It's just weird. I still have the image in my head of Sherman almost getting in a fight with what's his name for that cheap shot on Cliffy. Amazing after all these years, the guy is still playing at the level he's at. OL take a tremendous amount of pounding to their bodies.
My man Donald Driver
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(thanks to Pack93z for the pic)
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