Green Bay’s season appears to be over, but there are a few reasons to hold off on calling it quits for a little bit longer.
Just about everybody has thrown in the towel on the 2018 Green Bay Packers season, and with very good reason.
They’re 4-6-1, third in the NFC North, Mike McCarthy is being exposed as an overrated head coach, Aaron Rodgers seems to be frustrated with the team and the coaching staff, last Sunday night’s loss in Minnesota looked like the final nail in the coffin and the odds suggest it will take a miracle to get this team into the playoffs next month.
But that’s exactly why, if you’re a Packers fan, you shouldn’t give up on them just yet. You don’t have to be soaring with confidence, but don’t relinquish the faith entirely. Green Bay needs a miracle, but its quarterback might just be the greatest miracle worker the NFL has ever seen.
Just look at all the times Rodgers has pulled wins seemingly out of thin air. You can count on one hand the quarterbacks in this league with the ability to do that, and Rodgers is one of them. Heck, he might be the best of them.
Also, if you’re a Packers fan, you haven’t forgotten about the Cinderella run in 2010. Green Bay, at 10-6, entered the playoffs as the six-seed in the NFC, clinching that final playoff spot on the last day of the season. Nobody ever gives much respect to the six-seed, but the Packers got hot at the right time and rode their momentum all the way to an upset over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV.
That’s exactly what the Packers need this year. They would essentially need to win out their final five games to finish the season 9-6-1. Luckily, their last five games are all winnable (Arizona, Atlanta, at Chicago, at New York Jets, Detroit) with the toughest challenge being their Week 15 matchup at Soldier Field.
In addition, Green Bay would need a few other teams to falter down the stretch, as the other teams in the Wild Card race include Minnesota, Washington, Seattle, Carolina and Philadelphia, and they’re all currently ahead of the Packers in the standings. The Packers aren’t in control of their own destiny, and it’s understandably difficult for fans to remain hopeful when they need a ton of luck on their side.
But if there was a team in the NFL that you should expect to get lucky in that way, it would be the Packers. As one of the most historic and iconic franchises in football, they have that vibe about them.
Lastly, if you need a miracle in this league, there isn’t a better quarterback to have under center than Rodgers. He might be frustrated, but that doesn’t mean he’s OK with this 2018 season ending in disappointment.
Green Bay’s chances aren’t good. It’s hard to blame anyone for writing off the rest of this season. But there is a tiny inkling of hope still sparkling for this team, and Packers fans should hang on to it until it is completely vanquished.