A loss sucks but I always try to look at positives if there are any. Luckily, in this game there were a ton of positives.
1. Glad to see Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Aaron Rodgers not missing a single beat after not having little to no work in training camp. This was a big negative to some in that their timing would be off and it clearly was good to go.
2. Aside from one (costly) drop, Finley looked very good. A lot of YAC.
3. Bakhtairi looked decent. He deserves a pat on the back because going up against Aldon Smith or Justin Smith on your first NFL start isn't a small task to handle. He played exceptional and wasn't the worst offensive lineman. Add Barclay to this mix. Bottom line, they both have a lot of upside and should progress as the season moves along.
4. Our defense played nasty against the run. There were multiple times where multiple guys were jumping in on the tackle. There were some great form tackles and one that really pops out is when AJ Hawk sized up Frank Gore for a loss.
5. Lacy shows some promise. The Packers faced a top run defense with a crappy run-blocking offensive line. That is where Lacy will have to work some of his magic and use his strength to gain yards. He will do it to, just so long as the play calling allows for it.
There was plenty of bad in this game as well but I think it can all be worked out.
1. Pass defense was FUGLY. Many things can attribute to this. Lack of rushing the passer and of course the scheme. How many years are we going to have to continue watching guys catch a pass without a single player within 5 yards to make a play? What is going wrong? Is it Capers' play calling or is it the players not running the call properly?
For this game, I am calling it a personnel issue. Some may say Burnett and Hayward wouldn't have made a difference and I think that had they been there, it would have been a huge difference.
2. Offensive line will once again be average. The only remaining softness of the entire team is this unit. "Oh they are a pass blocking offensive line..." So then why is Rodgers always under constant pressure? Time to stop the excuses for these guys. EDS and Lang are below average in both pass and run block and I see no upside to them.
I think someone whispered in the refs ear to watch Sitton. Its very rare to see three penalties get called on a guard in one game...
3. Three and outs. How many were there? TOO MANY.
4. Drops. If the ball hits your hands, catch it. James Jones dropped a ball and became a ghost the rest of the game.
Overall, I was left impressed with the way these guys played. It left me feeling good about the rest of the season.
One more thing...I think it is funny how much people are overreacting to the Matthews hit on Kaepernick. Matthews doesn't have a history of being a dirty player and I think this is all due to his comments he made before the game being blown out of proportion by that idiot coach, Jimmy Harbaugh. Yes, it was a late hit but people are overly exaggerating what happened on that play. Just my thought.