Well, what in the hell was that, Packer fans?  That win over the Patriots was like a choose your own adventure novel where every path you took ended in frustration.   I have watched that game three times now and with each subsequent rewatch I feel more and more like Penn and Teller on the set of Fool Us watching a hack magician stump me with a simple card trick.  Was our defense good?  Yes?  Then why did they allow those two ridiculous drives in the second half to a third-string rookie quarterback in vaunted Lambeau Field?  Was that the real Aaron Rodgers in the first half, or his body double from the State Farm commercials?  Are we really still sending Amari Rodgers out to field punts?   I spent most of Sunday adding up two plus two and continually coming up with five.  In a world where football wins are Kardashian children, that game was a Rob.  But, a win is a win and beating Bill Belichick is never a bad thing.  This is a fact.  So why are we all so red-assed about this outcome?  As usual, I have some thoughts.  Grab your sickle, and let's see if we can separate the wheat from the chafe of this wildly perplexing week four victory and find four narratives from this game that Packers fans near and far can all agree upon. 

• Agreement #1--The kids are gonna be alright

This week it was Doubs' turn to drop an all important touchdown reception.  Couple that with Romeo's first half fumble, and you would think I would be down on the young rookie from Nevada.  You would be wrong.  Did Doubs make a few mistakes this week?   Sure.  The dude is a rookie.  It's going to happen.  Maybe it's easier to overlook the mistakes when you can't shake the image of his fourth quarter touchdown reception.  Good gravy.  That thing was more beautiful than a double rainbow.  Even more exciting than Romeo snagging his second career touchdown is the fact that it looks like the youngster is starting to gain Rodgers' trust.  You can see it in the way Aaron speaks about Doubs after the games.  Like a proud yet stern parent.  I normally am not a fan of reboots, but this is one origin story that I can't get enough of.

Doubs wasn't the only rookie to put the biscuit in the basket this past Sunday.  Christian Watson got the first score of his young career on a gorgeous 15 yard end around run that conjured images of 2020 Marques Valdez Scantling.  These first four weeks have been Christian Watson sparring in a computer generated dojo with Morpheus.  What's going to happen when this youngster finally realizes that he can stop bullets with his hands?  We have all drooled over Doubs for the last month and a half, and for good reason.  But, Watson's skill set is the key to unlocking this Packers' offense's true potential.  It's not an understatement to say that Watson may possibly be the most athletic wide receiver in the entire NFL.  He has shown glimpses thus far.  And, the glimpses are getting brighter.  If Green Bay can start working Watson into some of the same formations that MVS has occupied over the last four season, Rodgers and the running backs will suddenly find a lot more breathing room  to operate in.  All it takes is trust and a little patience. 

• Agreement #2--Rashan Gary is the captain now.

Rashan Gary likes to call himself Bane, after the second-rate Batman villain who wears a mask and speaks in an unintelligible garble (or maybe that is just Tom Hardy's real voice--remains to be seen).  I think he is selling himself short.  Rashan Gary is a goshdarn (keeping it clean--my mother in law reads this!)  genetically modified tyrannosaurus rex.  You could make a case that his performance against New England was his best in a Packers uniform.  Two sacks.  A forced fumble.  A recovered fumble.  And, a vicious first quarter hit that knocked Patriots starting quarterback Brian Hoyer out of the rest of the afternoon.  The craziest part about Sunday's game--It feels like Rashan could have squeezed even more toothpaste out of the tube if Joe Barry spent more time designing exotic blitzes and less time trying to uncork his thumb from his ass.

I wrote about Rashan several times this summer.  It wasn't hard to speculate that he was on track for a big year.  And, as high as my expectations were, he has exceeded them.  He now has tallied 10 sacks, 16 quarterback hits, and 12 tackles for loss in his last eight games.  He has a sack in every game this season.  I think it's fair to say Rashan has worked his way into being Green Bay's best defensive player.  With each passing Sunday, he is inching closer to becoming possibly the NFL's best defensive player.  The scariest thing is that he still has room to improve.  Good luck this week, Daniel Jones--you are going to need it.

• Agreement #3--It is better when Aaron Rodgers throws TD's to our team.

Hailey's Comet.  The 50-Year Storm.  Venus' transit across the sun.  Aaron Rodgers throwing a pick-six at Lambeau.  What are four things that happen roughly every half century for $200, Alex?  (I bet Rodgers would love this forced Jeopardy reference!).  Seeing Rodgers throw an interception is a strange phenomenon.  Seeing him throw a pick-six just feels inherently wrong, like putting your underwear on backward.  A pick-six at home?  That is just flat-ass uncomfortable to experience.  Like watching Justin Timberlake disrobe Janet Jackson during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show.  Or watching Mark Zuckerberg speak in public.  It's just unnatural.  That was only the second pick-six Rodgers has thrown in Lambeau in his storied 18-year career.  That's 3511 pass attempts in Green Bay.  Two interceptions returned for touchdowns.  A 1:1755 ratio.  Roughly the same chance of getting struck by lightning at some point in your life.  Or, siring a child with Antonio Cromartie. 

Rodgers performance on Sunday was so bizarre.  The first half of that game may be some of the worst football I have seen Rodgers play.  He was missing everything by several yards.  He missed two wide-open routes over the middle.  Hell, he missed a few gimmes out to running backs in the flat.   And, not just barely missed either.  Then, he comes out from halftime and puts together an MVP-caliber performance in the second half.  Baffling.  Maybe it's miscommunication with his young receivers.  Maybe it's a timing issue.  Perhaps, he is missing Getsy and Hackett a little bit.  Whatever it is, the first thirty minutes of the New England game felt like watching Michael J. Foxx play Operation.   I am giving Ol' #12 a pass for this week--the whole team looked discombobulated.  But, it is certainly something to track over the next few weeks. 

• Agreement #4--This defense is underperforming.

This defense is far too talented to play this tepid.  There have been moments of brilliance to this point in the season, but far too often, those moments have been offset by missed tackles and a startling lack of cohesion.   There just seems to be something missing.   Perhaps a sense of uniformity.  When you return an entire unit intact from a year ago, not to mention nearly the entire defensive coaching staff, it is dismaying to see such a lack of consistency.  Poor runs fits.  Subpar communication in the defensive backfield.  Bad angles.  Several missed tackles.  This is just not good enough for a skilled and veteran unit such as this. 

Now, I am not coming with pitchforks to Joe Barry's front porch.  Yet.  I still believe in this unit and in Barry's ability to lead it.  But, some of the mistakes he is making are simply unacceptable.  The Packers are sitting in two safety shell FAR too often.  That's not just me saying this.  Matt LaFleur made this same point on Monday in his weekly press conference.  Barry has to take more chances and add some variation to this scheme.  He also has to work harder at coming up with personnel changes that make sense.  This week he rolled out a defensive front that included Devante Wyatt, TJ Slaton, and Kinglsey Enagbare.  Now, I like all those youngsters individually.  But, why on Earth would you play them all at the same time?  This isn't hockey.  We don't need sweeping line changes.  Barry has to come up with a plan to leave at least one of our defensive stalwarts on the field at any given time. 

• Catching Strays

What inanimate object is under more constant duress?  Matt LaFleur's hair part or Mike McCarthy's belt?

Doubs and Watson sounds like a Fast and Furious spin off.

Amari Rodgers is about as shifty as an NHRA drag car.

Our defense handles opening drives like my stomach handles Jimmy John's

Thanks for reading, and, as always, GO PACK GO!!!