The Packers vs Bears rivalry is the oldest and one of the best rivalries in all of football. Although Packers have mostly dominated this rivalry in history, the Bears have given us a run for our money in the last 20 years. A prime example of this was 2 years ago when Aaron Rodgers went out in the first quarter and the Bears dominated the Packers the rest of the game. Aaron came back in the 4th quarter and put up 28 unanswered points to lead us to victory. Well, this Sunday was a different story. Going into the half, the Packers were up 29-10. They put up 14 more unanswered points in the 3rd and the Bears scored 15 points in the 4th quarter but the game was pretty much over. The final score was a dominant 41-25. Although Mitchel Trubisky, who isn’t the most elite quarterback in the league was starting for this one and was a key factor to why they could not score points, there is something to say about how the Packers handled their defense. The Bears have one of the best defenses in the league and is usually the reason why they win the games they do.

This was the first game pretty much all season where all of our starting offensive players were back from injury and we played a challenging defense. Our “number 2” receiver Allen Lazard was back after injury and although he did not make a huge impact he still cleared some space for other receivers on field to make plays. Aaron Rodgers was dishing the rock to everyone on the field and finding players in the end zone. He finished the game with 4 passing TD and 0 interceptions. This was also a historic game for Rodgers because after this performance, he is now the 11th player in NFL history with over 50,000 passing yards. I am excited for how the rest of the season is going to go but for now, on to the Eagles!

Packers started off last Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts with a commanding lead of 28-14 lead going into the half. By the start of the 4th quarter that lead had been cut to 28-25. The colts tacked on another field goal and on the second to last drive of regulation they scored another 3 points giving them a 28-31 lead. With 1:30 left on the clock, Aaron Rodgers was typical Aaron Rodgers and marched the Packers offense down the field in time to kick the game-tying field goal to make it 31-31. The Packers got the ball first but sadly, Marquez Valdez-Scantling fumbled the ball and put the Colts in position to kick the game winning field goal.

Aaron Rodgers had said it best, that was like a playoff game. They are a good team this year and will most likely be making the playoffs with a good seed. MVS was visibly upset with himself for the fumble knowing it was partly his fault they lost that game, but that was not enough for some people. Fans took to twitter and he received multiple death threats from fans. This makes me upset as a Packer fan because at the end of the day it is just a game! I can understand being mad at the guy but you don’t think he’s mad at himself already? In an interview after the game, Aaron Rodgers made an amazing comment and said that every single play in a game is the difference between winning and losing. He said if he or another player made a play earlier in the game then they would not have gone to OT and that could go for anyone on the team. He also said that after the game he took MVS aside and told him they would not have gone to OT and had a chance to win the game unless he caught the 40 yard pass on 3rd & 10 in the middle of the field to help set up the game tying field goal.

No matter what, it was a tough loss but it was game that we could learn a lot from. Our defense showed great spurts but we need to be better in the run game. Our offense was clicking but needs to commit less turnovers. If our defense is strong and we don’t hand the other team the ball, there isn’t a team in the league that we can’t beat. I’m predicting this close loss to be our last loss of the season.

Shortly after the Bucks lost in the playoffs last season to the Miami Heat, Bucks owner Marc Lasry met with Giannis over lunch to talk about the future. In that 3 hour meeting, Lasry made it clear that they were going to do everything they could to make a championship run this season in hopes that he will resign with the Bucks. Well, hours into free agency the Bucks made that clear by trading point guard Eric Bledsoe, 6th man George Hill, and 3 first round picks in order to get one of the most sought after trade targets available. Jrue Holiday from the New Orleans Pelicans is now a Buck and I could not be happier. He is one of the most underrated players in the NBA and according to multiple players around the league, one of the best overall players right now. He does not do anything flashy and is fairly quiet so that is why he does not have the adoration as most stars in the NBA.

Holiday is a two-time all-defensive player who has average at least 19 points per game over the last 3 seasons. He also averaged almost 7 assists per game while shooting over 45% from the field last season. The reason why this is so perfect for the bucks is because he is a perfect compliment for the style of basketball the Bucks play. He is a great defender that can guard any position besides centers and can shoot from anywhere on the court. He also is exceptional in the pick-and-roll which is exactly what I said we needed more of in one of my past blog posts. The only problem is that we lost a lot of our depth and future draft picks because of this. If it pays off this season with the Bucks winning a championship and convince Giannis to resign, it will all be worth it.

This Sunday, the Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers are looking to add another win on the season. The 6-2 Packers who recently got back some of their star players like wide receiver Davante Adams, left tackle David Bakhtiari, and corner back Kevin King look to secure another win against the young, 1-7 Jacksonville Jaguars. There is not a lot to say about the Jaguars except that it is going to be a long time before they are something to be worried about. In the last 2 seasons they have gotten rid of all their star players that they drafted like Leonard Fournette and superstar cornerback Jalen Ramsey for just a couple draft picks. It is fair to say that they have gone into a rebuild. That being said, the Packers cannot play down to the Jaguars. They need to show that we are head and shoulders above them before halftime.

With the Bears game coming up, we need to start burying teams before they even have a chance of coming back. We have shown time and time again the last 2 seasons that we can find a way to win, but we have not shown complete dominance over teams besides a few blowout wins here and there. That is why the Packers don’t get the respect they deserve, and I think it is mostly because our defense plays down to the level of competition. I get it though, as a defensive player, you take a lot of damage every game no matter who you play. When you’re playing a much weaker opponent, it is probably easy to ease up a bit because there is no point in getting injured for that game. That is why teams like Vikings and the lions were able to score so many points on us. I think this could be a statement game for our defense, showing that they can play up to the level of competition needed to beat tough opponents. They are going to need to play at the top of their game to beat teams like the Seahawks, Buccaneers, and Bills, and this is a good opportunity to practice how they will need to play when playoffs come around without the pressure.

My final score prediction is 42-17, Packers. Let’s keep it rolling!

With NBA season officially over, that means NBA free agency is right around the corner. The Miami Heat have been very open talking about how they plan on going for Giannis this off season. The NBA just announced a few days ago that next season will be starting on December 22nd and with that only being a month and a half away, the Heat intend to make an offer soon. Now don’t get it twisted, as a Bucks fan, I would be distraught to see Giannis leave Milwaukee. I don’t think the Heat could offer any package that would be worth a player like Giannis. He is quickly becoming the new face of the league, much like Patrick Mahomes in the NFL. With LeBron and Tom Brady still in the playing they are not the faces of their sports yet, but Mahomes and Giannis are next up in line. With the Bucks wanting to keep Giannis for his entire career, they would have to offer almost everything and make a deal that we just could not refuse.

In the last couple days, there was a rumor started that the Heat are willing to go all in and make a trade that would include their young stars like Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, and others. Now I like both of those players a lot, but I do not think they are worth a player as dominant as Giannis. He has the possibility to be the best player to ever play the game of basketball. The concern though, is that if Milwaukee does not win a championship this season, they will probably lose him to another team in free agency at the end of the season. That is why it is imperative they go all in on Giannis and do whatever they have to do in order to win a championship now. Not in 5 years. NOW. If we show him that it is possible to win in Milwaukee, and win multiple championships, he would most likely stay. Either way, this is just a rumor. I doubt the Bucks would accept any trade offer for Giannis and decide to play this year out and bet that we can win a championship.

With the NFL trade deadline coming up on Tuesday, there has been lots of talk about the Packers making a push to add that last piece to the team and make a Superbowl run. There were rumors for a little bit about possibly adding another edge rusher like Wisconsin native JJ Watt from the Texans, but that was shut down fairly quickly. An edge rusher would help but with the inconsistencies in the wide receiver positions for everyone not named Davante Adams, it’s probably best to trade for another offensive weapon. The most recent name to come up is Will Fuller V. When he is healthy, he has shown that he can be an amazing option to throw to and would help elevate some pressure for Adams.

Fuller is a young, fast receiver that makes plays down the field. As a 26 year old player, he has 490 yards, 5 touchdowns, and is averaging 15.8 yards per catch this season. He is explosive and would be a solid number two option in the wide receivers. I am sure that the 35-20 loss the Texans received from the Packers might help nudge him to want to play for a better offense. Now this is all speculation at this point and apparently no deal talks are official, but the Packers are confirmed to have inquired about him. However, the Texans are not in full fire sale mode and looking to trade their number 1 receiver for nothing. I do not know what it would take to secure Fuller but I feel a second round pick or a third round & a fifth round pick would be a fair trade. A solid wide receiver would greatly help the Packers chances of competing for a Superbowl and with the trade deadline coming in a few days, it is imperative they make the push and finally go all in on a championship.

Now there has been a lot of rumors and talk about Giannis possibly being traded this off-season or that he will sign with another team when his contract is up. Buck’s GM, Jon Horst, has openly said that we are going to be offering him a supermax contract of over $220 million after his contract is up at the end of next season. On the other hand, Giannis has also said publicly that if he feels like they won’t be able to compete for a championship, that it would make the decision to stay really hard. What he means is that if we continue to fall short of winning a championship next season, then he is going to sign with a contending team in the off-season. That puts the Milwaukee Bucks in a tough situation. Do they continue to trust the team that we have built with players like Eric Bledsoe, Khris Middleton, and George hill, or do we use players like that for some good trades.

The roster of the Bucks has been relatively the same for the last 3 seasons. There was obviously a change in our bench and our role players on the team, but for the last three seasons our core of the team has remained fairly unchanged. With that, we have also shown that core is not enough to win a championship with only one appearance in a conference final. I think that it is time to move away from some of the team’s players and go all bringing in a star to help Giannis win.

Bucks trade: Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton, and a 1st round pick

Jazz trade: Donovan Mitchel

Even though Donovan Mitchel just signed a max contract with the Jazz after their playoff loss, I think that he is still on the table in trade talks. He was visibly upset, knocking down posters and exercise bikes, after every play off loss and did not look like he wanted to keep playing on this team for the next five years. I think that he asked for a trade after the loss and the Jazz wanted to get out in front of the issue before the media reported on it. So they signed him to a max contract, making sure Donovan Mitchel got his money, but also insuring that they would be getting his true value in a trade. Don’t get me wrong, this is all a theory, but I have never heard of a player signing a max contract less than 24 hours after they blew a 3-1 lead in a playoff series. I think he wants out, and he is exactly the type of player that would play great with Giannis. The Bucks trade Middleton and Bledsoe, which would clear up space in our salary cap allow us to bring in a third option or more role players.

I think that Mitchel would work great in our system because he works great in the half-court pick and roll as the primary ball handler. He runs the pick and roll with Giannis and either has a 3 point shot, layup/dunk in the paint, can pass or lob it to Giannis, and if none of those are there he can kick it to one of our spot up shooters on the roster. He has shown that he can score points in clutch moments and would play perfectly off of Giannis’s play style. Not to mention that he is used to playing with a 2-way paint dominant player like Rudy Gobert. We would take a hit in our chemistry and 3 point shooting by getting rid of Middleton and Bledsoe but if we could bring a good role player for the SF position like Robert Covington, we would be in a good position to win a title.

Last season, everyone said the Packers were, “a fake 13-3 team.” So far through the first 4 games of the season, the Pack look like the real deal. Not only do we have a top 10 defense for the first time in years, but we have the number one offense in the league right now even though we did not draft a wide receiver. The Packers also made history being the first NFL team to ever score 30+ points in each of their first 4 games while having 0 turnovers. I’d love for the Packers to keep this pace up because this is one of the best squads we have had in years and it has been a while since we have gone to a Superbowl. Aaron Rodgers deserves another ring.

When the NFL released their power rankings in week 1, the Packers we listed at #17 saying that, “the team didn’t get any better in the off season.” Let’s just say that ranking moved up pretty quick after the first game of the season, moving all the way up to #3. The next couple weeks, the Packers fluctuated around the top 10. Now being one of the four undefeated teams in the league, Aaron Rodgers being a solid MVP candidate, and having the best offense in football the Packers are now ranked as the #1 team in the league. A lot of people still don’t agree with that ranking but as a die-hard Packers fan, I know that the Packers never get the respect they deserve. Even when we have amazing seasons and Aaron Rodgers is playing great, the Packers usually never crack the top 3 rankings. That is why it is so refreshing to finally be ranked at #1. This is a championship caliber team and I think everyone on the team knows that. We just need to stay healthy and spend our last $8 million on one more piece that would cement our place as one of the elite teams in the NFL. If we got another edge rusher or wide receiver, we would easily have the most complete team in the NFL and would be favorites to win the whole thing.

Before the regular season stopped due to Covid-19, the Milwaukee Bucks had the best record and held the title of the best team in the league. We had the MVP of the league, who also won defensive player of the year, Giannis Antetokounmpo. Every one felt like this was his year, coming off back to back MVP seasons and leading his team to the number one spot 2 years in a row. No one expected the Bucks to get knocked out in the second round of playoffs but that’s the way it goes sometimes. What was the team’s downfall?

Although the Bucks were head and shoulders above everyone during the regular season, teams play completely different during the playoffs. The way the Bucks run their offense, it is built around Giannis. He is a beast inside the paint so almost every other player on the team is a three-and-D player. It gives him room to drive into the lane and get a bucket and if a defenders come to help he can kick it out to a shooter. This system worked great for the regular season but when playoffs started teams started to use more half court plays, setting off-ball screens, and moving players around while the bucks continued to use the same strategy.

The Bucks need to do two things in order to bring a championship to Milwaukee next season. First, bring in another star player. The Bucks need a better second option than Khris Middleton. He would make an amazing third option, but we need another star on our roster in order to make it to the finals. The second thing is to change up the offensive scheme. We need more half court sets and get our shooters open off the ball. Bringing in another star that could operate the pick-and-roll with Giannis in the half court would help a lot. Coach Budenholzer has shown that he can be one of the best coaches in the league but he does not show a lot of variety and it is made clear when the playoffs come around. If we added different types of sets, brought in a star to relieve the pressure off of Giannis, and add more variety to play calls, there’s no reason why the Bucks couldn’t win multiple championships over the next 10 years.

No team in the NFL faced as much criticism as the Green Bay Packers in this years draft. After going 13-3 and only being 1 win away from a Superbowl, the packers front office shocked the world by trading up in the draft to pick quarterback in the first round. This came as a shock to many people because not only was this the most stacked wide receiver classes in history and the Packers are in need of a receiver, but the Packers already have one of the best quarterbacks in history. Needless to say, Packer fans were outraged with this pick. Everyone started to count the Packers, and Aaron Rodgers, out after the draft and ESPN was having a field day talking about the end of the Rodgers era.

The Packers front office defended this decision by saying that they are confident in the receivers that they already have. Two players that showed a lot of potential last season was Allan Lazard and Marquez Valdez-Scantling. Both players showed that they can be reliable options for Aaron Rodgers, but neither of them showed that game-changing talent the Packers need at the wide receiver position. It looks like the front office’s confidence in their receivers have paid off the first 3 weeks of season.

So far, Aaron Rodgers has been scalding hot and leading his team to a 3-0 start. The Packers have scored over 120 points through the first three games and have the #1 ranked offense in the league. Aaron Rodgers said that during training camp he looked back at his film from each of his MVP seasons and wanted to play like that again. It shows. He is taking more chances down the field and trusting his receivers to make the catch through tight windows. Aaron Rodgers is playing like he is 25 years old again and as a Packers fan it is beautiful to watch. He wants to make it clear to the organization that they made a mistake drafting a QB in the first round.

Now I don’t believe the narrative that the Packers drafted a QB in the first round to light a fire under Rodgers. I think that they drafted him as a safety net. If Aaron Rodgers gets hurt, then you have a promising back up in Jordan Love. More importantly though, if Rodgers falls off a cliff and isn’t playing like himself then they can move forward with their new QB. If Rodgers is still playing like an MVP candidate, then we have a solid trade piece to help build the team around him. I mean, who wouldn’t want a versatile, young QB that just spent the last 3 years learning under one of the best players in history.

Either way, I am really excited to see where the Packers season goes. So far, we are playing like the team to beat and head coach Matt Lefleur is looking really confident with their system. I hope that Rodgers proves everyone wrong and continues to play at an MVP caliber level to lead the Packers to a Superbowl. It is still too early to make any assumptions, a lot of things can happen, but I will end on this. Aaron Rodgers is a BAAAAAAAAAAAD MAN!