The Packers have been an offensive machine so far in the playoffs and 27-year old QB Aaron Rodgers has a huge hand in that.  Rodgers has completed 49 of 63 passes (77.8%) for 546 yards with 6 TD passes and 0 INTs (134.5 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 5 times for 17  yards (3.4 ypc)  so far this post season.  The Packers hope that Rodgers will continue to roll tomorrow afternoon at Soldier Field.  It won’t be easy though as the Packers only scored 27 points in two games against the Bears with each team winning one game.  Rodgers completed 53 of 73 passes (72.6%) for 545 yards with 2 TD passes and 2 INTs against the Bears during the regular season.  He also carried the ball 9 times for 41 yards (4.6 ypc) with a TD run against the Bears.  The Packers need Aaron Rodgers to rise up and thump the Bears tomorrow to get them to the Super Bowl in Dallas.

The Packers have an outstanding trio of corners and they are all bringing their A-Games during the post season.  It all starts with 34-year old, future Hall of Famer, Charles Woodson.  Woodson has 12 tackles and a sack in two playoff games.  He was the spy who dealt with Michael Vick against the Eagles and the Falcons just didn’t want to challenge him at all.  Woodson is still on top of his game and he might just get a pick against Jay Cutler tomorrow.  27-year old CB Tramon Williams is taking his game to a brand new level of greatness in the playoffs.  He has 5 tackles, 3 interceptions (79 return yards) and he has scored on a pick six.  Williams intercepted Michael Vick’s last pass to seal the deal against the Eagles.  23-year old, undrafted rookie CB Sam Shields (Miami, Florida) has been the nickel back for the Packers this year and he has been outstanding too.  He has 7 tackles and 1 pass defensed in his first two playoff games.  He has outstanding speed and he plays like he thinks the ball is his any time it’s in the air.  This trio of CBs is likely to give Bears’ QB Jay Cutler fits tomorrow as he completed 37 of 66 passes (56.1%) for 389 yards with 1 TD pass and 3 INTs against the Packers this year.

24-year old ro0kie RB James Starks got off to a very late start to his rookie year due to injury.  He played in only 3 games during the regular season for the Packers in which he carried the ball 29 times for 101 yards (3.5 ypc).  Starks also caught 2 passes for 15 yards (7.5 avg) during the regular season.  But in the playoffs Starks has been a workhorse for the Packers.  In the Packers’ first two playoff games, Starks has carried the ball 48 times for 189 yards (3.9 ypc) and he also has caught 2 passes for 9 yards (4.5 avg).  The 6th round pick out of Buffalo appears to have fresh legs right now and he’s giving the Packers more balance on offense, making them even more difficult to deal with.  The Packers hope that Starks has a good game tomorrow, because if he does, the Packers will be in the Super Bowl.

27-year old Aaron Rodgers has been outstanding since pretty much pushing Brett Favre out the door in Green Bay.  Rodgers played in 15 games this year and he completed 312 of 475 passes  (65.7%) for 3,922 yards with 28 TD passes and 11 INTs (101.2 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 64 times for 356 yards (5.6 ypc) with 4 TD runs this year.  He has now played in 54 games in his career with the Packers and he has completed 1,038 of 1,611 passes (64.4%) for 12,723 yards with 87 TD passes and only 32 INTs (98.4 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 189 times for 926 yards (4.9 ypc) with 13 TD runs so far in his career.  Rodgers keeps getting better which should scare the bejesus out of the rest of the NFC North and the NFL in general.

25-year old Matt Flynn stepped in for Rodgers when he missed a game due to a concussion and he played solid.  Flynn played in 6 games for the Packers this year and he completed 40 of 66 passes (60.6%) for 433 yards with 3 TD passes and 2 INTs (82.4 QB Rating).  Flynn also carried the ball 9 times for 26 yards (2.9 ypc) this year.  He has now played in 28 games in his NFL career and he has completed 49 of 83 (59%) passes for 497 yards with 3 TD passes and 3  INTs (73.2 QB Rating).  Flynn has also carried the ball 18 times for 25 yards (1.4 ypc) so far in his career.

VERDICT:  The Packers are probably very comfortable with going with Aaron Rodgers & Matt Flynn at QB for the future.

25-year old WR Jordy Nelson is really improving as a WR for the Packers.  He has played in 15 games for the Packers this year and he has caught 43 passes for 543 yards (12.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Nelson has now played in 44 games in his first three years with the Packers and he has caught 98 passes for 1,229 yards (12.5 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  Nelson is proving to be a very valuable asset to the offense this season for the Packers.  He has a bright future.

26-year old WR James Jones has stepped up this season with Donald Driver being a tad gimpy.  Jones has played in 15 games for the Packers so far this year and he has caught 49 passes for 671 yards (13.7 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  He has had over 100 yards receiving in a game twice so far this season.  Jones has now played in 57 games in his first four years with the Packers and he has caught 148 passes for 2,061 yards (13.9 avg) with 13 TD grabs.  If Donald Driver ever retires, Jones would likely move into the starting lineup.

27-year old QB Aaron Rodgers has been incredible the last four games for the Packers as they are 3-1 having scored 127 points.  Rodgers has completed 96 of 130 passes (73.8%) for 1,232 yards with 11 TD passes and 0 INTs in the Packers’ last four games.  He also has carried the ball 24 times for 152 yards (6.3 ypc) with 1 TD run in those games.  Rodgers has now played in 12 games for the Packers this year and he has completed 261 of 399 passes (65.4%) for 3,243 yards with 23 TD passes and 9 INTs (100.3 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 53 times for 284 yards (5.4 ypc) with 4 TD carries so far this year.

27-year old WR Greg Jennings got off to a slow start this year.  In his first 5 games, Jennings only caught 14 passes for 183 yards (13.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  But, in his last 6 games, Jennings has caught 37 passes for 639 yards (17.3 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  Jennings has played in 11 games overall this year for the Packers now and he has caught 51 passes for 822 yards (16.1 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  While Aaron Rodgers likes spreading the ball around to all of his receivers he knows that Jennings is his go to man.

The Packers started out this year 3-1 and things were looking good.  But back to back overtime losses at Washington and at home against the Dolphins had the Packers reeling and back to .500 (3-3).  Coach McCarthy then got the troops motivated and well prepared for success as his team has responded with 3 straight wins over the Vikings, Jets and Cowboys by a combined score of 82-31!  McCarthy needs to keep the Packers ready to succeed every single Sunday the rest of the year as the schedule looks tough.  The Packers are now 44-29 under the 47-year old McCarthy in his five regular seasons in charge of the team.

In his first three years with the Packers, 26-year old linebacker Desmond Bishop played in 41 games in which he had 74 tackles, 1 sack and 4 forced fumbles.  This season though, Bishop has stepped up because of injuries to the linebacking unit of the Packers.  Bishop has played in 8 games for the Packers so far this year and he has 49 tackles, 4 passes defensed, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble and a interception that he returned 32 yards for a TD.  Bishop could be in the starting lineup at linebacker for a long, long time if he continues to play like he is right now.