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DangeRuss
Before we advance-statistize the fun out of sports conversation, let's just look simply at a dual-threat quarterback who's chameleon-like in his usage. Find a down and distance on which Wilson is not going to be effective. Short yardage, he can run, he can throw on the run, he can drop back and throw precise passes short and long. The Packers simply do not have the dimension of defensive depth to counter Russell Wilson. He makes important throws from all distances all game. It's not just a running team in the Pacific Northwest, and don't let his lack of yards fool you. And, he's not nursing a calf injury about to play on a wet field in the rain.
Defense Wins Out
Speaking of that Seattle defense...what more can be added to the deepest and most versatile group in the league. They're physically imposing, they're beyond confident in themselves and each other and they are absolutely pissed off right now. This is as scary a defense the league has seen in years, and they're playing on their own track, huge favorites to lay waste to one of the best offenses in the league. Oh, and Rodgers has one touchdown pass in his last two games against the same defense. Has anyone else shut him down like that?
Home Field
Nevermind the noise, the silent stat that reflects an insanely low amount of home losses from the Seahawks during their stretch of excellence. They lost once there all year. They ran through the playoffs last year untouched. Some said it was a slow start for them, but whatever start that leads to a finish as the top seed in the conference can't be very slow. Championship teams are immune to slow starts, and that's why Seattle is the defending champion and the Packers have yet to reach the Super Bowl since they were anointed winners of the next four Super Bowls following the 2010 season.
It's My Philosophy
The Packers want to play up-tempo, work quickly down the field and gun for big yards while mixing in runs to keep defenses off balance. Seattle can hit teams with a variety of different looks, all centered around ball possession and control. Which team seems more favorable on a rainy and wet day? Seattle is built to play in this kind of weather, and despite the inclement weather in Green Bay, the Packers are not. Oh, and Rodgers has a calf injury, sort of a critical muscle in terms of maintaining traction with one's toes when moving on a slippery surface.
A Question of Toughness
The Packers are a finesse team. The Seahawks are an imposing team. Eddie Lacy, for all his size and sometimes quiet resemblance of Marshawn Lynch in a physical sense, is not a powerful, bowling kind of runner. The Seahawks are tougher at every position on the field, and are more more talented top to bottom. The Packers are about speed and precision, the Seahawks are about beating the tar out of you from the snap, and eventually scoring points.
As always, I'm fully prepared to eat my words here, should the Packers score one of the best conference championship upsets in recent memory, but who sees that happening, really?