28-year old WR Greg Jennings is off to a great start so far this year for the Packers.  Aaron Rodgers has completed an amazing 25 of 33 passes (75.8%) that he has thrown in Jennings’ direction, which is remarkable when you consider that those passes are usually down the field.  Jennings has played in all four games for the Packers so far this year and he has caught 25 passes for 366 yards (14.6 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He has now played in 79 games in his first six years with the Packers and he has caught 347 passes for 5,588 yards (16.1 avg) with 43 TD grabs.  Look for Jennings to keep piling up on his impressive career receiving numbers as the 2011 season wears on.

A lot of people were wondering why the Packers took 21-year old WR Randall Cobb in the second round of the NFL Draft last April.  But, no one questions the pick now as Cobb is making a huge impact so far this year.  He has played in all 4 games for the Packers so far this year and he has caught 7 passes for 148 yards (21.1 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He also has returned 6 kickoffs for 242 yards (40.3 avg) and 8 punts for 51 yards (6.4 avg) so far this year.  Cobb has touched the ball 21 times for the Packers so far this year and he has 441 yards (110.3 yards per game and 21.0 yards per touch) so far this year.  He is making a huge impact for the Packers this year and they hope he keeps up the good work.

22-year old safety Morgan Burnett won a starting job as a rookie in 2010.  He played in 4 games for the Packers last year and he had 14 tackles, 1 interception and 1 pass defensed, before going down for the season due to injury.  Burnett is really stepping up for the Packers so far this year.  In the Packers’ first three games, Burnett has 27 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 sack, 3 interceptions and he has defensed 4 passes already.  Those are eye popping numbers that Burnett is putting up and the Packers hope that he can stay healthy this year.

24-year old TE Jermichael Finley had a rough time last year due to injury.  Finley played in only 5 games for the Packers last year and he caught 21 passes for 301 yards (14.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  This year though, Finley is making up for lost time.  Finley has played in all 3 games for the Packers so far this year and he has 15 grabs for 206 yards (13.7 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Finley wants to be more of this years possible Super Bowl run than he was last year when he was hurt early.

27-year old QB Aaron Rodgers seems even better than in the past so far this year, and that has to be downright scary for the competition.  He has played in both of the Packers games so far this year and he has completed 46 of 65 passes (70.8%) for 620 yards with 5 TD passes and 0 INTs (126.4 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 9 times for 14 yards (1.6 ypc) so far this year.  Rodgers has so many weapons on offense that not everyone gets the ball, and him spreading the ball around is what makes the offense so deadly.

28-year old Ryan Grant missed most of last season due to a broken ankle.  While he was out of action, 25-year old then rookie James Starks took over late in the year and in the playoffs as the featured back and he looked good.  Now Starks is pressing Grant and they are both healthy.  Starks carried the ball 12 times for 57 yards (4.8 ypc) with 1 TD run, while Grant carried the ball 9 times for 40 yards (4.4 ypc) and he caught 1 pass for 5 yards.  You’re not supposed to be able to lose your starting job due to injury, but it appears that Starks has overtaken Grant as the #1 back.  More than likely though, they will share carries this year as long as they are both effective.

47-year old head coach Mike McCarthy really has the Packers rolling right now.  He has a 48-32 (60%) record during his first five years during the regular season.  He is also 4-2 (66.7%) during the post-season.  McCarthy has gotten the Packers to Super Bowl by winning three road games which is an amazing feat in it’s own.  Whacking the Falcons, Eagles and Bears on the road is impressive but the biggest task will be beating the Steelers in Dallas this weekend.  His legacy as the next great Green Bay head coach hinges on him winning in the Super Bowl.  The Packers have the most NFL Championships in NFL history with 12.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are going to be without Pro Bowl rookie center Maurkice Pouncey for the Super Bowl due to injury.  They will be starting 24-year old Doug Legursky who has played in 24 games in his first two years for the Steelers but he has only started 4 games.  This sets up 24-year old NT B.J. Raji to have another big game in the Super Bowl.  The 6’2″, 337 pound Raji will likely be a bully in the middle of the D for the Packers opening up A.J. Hawk and Desmond Bishop to make plays.  Raji has 5 tackles, 1 sack, 2 passes defensed and a interception (which he returned 18 yards for a TD).  He played in 16 games during the regular season for the Packers and he had 39 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks and 3 passes defensed.  Mark it down, B.J. Raji is going to have a big game this Sunday in the Super Bowl.

24-year old outside linebacker Clay Matthews has been a force to reckon with for opposing offenses since the day he arrived in the NFL.  He has played in 3 games so far during the playoffs and he has 13 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss and a fumble recovery.  The Steelers have big time problems with pass protection setting up Matthews for a huge game against the team his dad hates.  His dad was a long time linebacker for the Cleveland Browns, arch enemy of the Steelers.  Clay Matthews Sr. never got to the Super Bowl but I’m sure he’s not jealous of his son.  Jr. also had a great regular season for the Packers as he had 60 tackles, 13.5 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 4 passes defensed, 1 interception (he returned it 62 yards for a TD) and he forced 2 fumbles.  He is going to be in Ben Roethlisberger’s face all day next Sunday and “Big Ben” won’t be able to break one of his tackles.

Packers’ GM Ted Thompson was under a lot of heat when he traded Brett Favre to the Jets and replaced him with Aaron Rodgers.  If Rodgers can win next Sunday’s Super Bowl he will tie Favre for Super Bowl wins as a Packer.  In his last three seasons, Rodgers has clearly outplayed Brett Favre.  Rodgers has played in 47 games (all starts) in his last three years in which he has completed 1,003 of 1,552 passes (64.6%) for 12,394 yards with 86 TD passes and 31 INTs.  He has also carried the ball 178 times for 879 yards (4.9 ypc) with 13 TD runs.  Rodgers also has been very consistent as he has had 3 great years in a row for the Packers.

Brett Favre has played in 45 games (all starts) in his last three years in which he has completed 923 of 1,411 passes (65.4%) for 10,183 yards with 66 TD passes and 48 INTs.  He also carried the ball 47 times for 58 yards (1.2 ypc) with a TD run in his last 3 seasons.  Favre was outstanding in 2009 for the Vikings but he showed his age in both 2008 and 2010.  Ted Thompson made the right choice and he deserves kudos for it because it was not an easy decision.