We Are The Champions!

It still does not seem real that the Green Bay Packers have just won Super Bowl XLV. When I think back to the Super Bowl win and loss of 13 and 14 years ago, it was no surprise that the green and gold were in the big game. They finished 13-3 both years. They had relatively no injuries except a rash of receiver injuries during the middle of the 1996 season.

This season was a roller coaster ride. The Packers were picked by many to make a championship run but found themselves losing player after player early on including starters Ryan Grant, Jermichael Finley, Mark Tauscher, Morgan Burnett, Justin Harrell and Nick Barnett. A minor leg injury to Clay Matthews was the straw that broke the camel’s back early and led to bad losses to Washington and Miami. But with Matthews back the next week and young players like Brandon Jackson, Desmond Bishop. Charlie Pepprah, and Tremon Williams stepping in for these injured stars, the Packers regained their swagger with a breakthrough win over the Vikings, a shutout victory over the Jets, and a destruction of the Cowboys and Vikings. The second swoon of the season came late though when Aaron Rodgers suffered a concussion which forced him to miss nearly two games. The games were both losses, an embarrassment against the Lions and a hard fought heartbreaker to the Patriots.

At 8-6, Green Bay was left in a spot where they had to win their final two regular season games in order to salvage the NFC six seed and squeak in as the last playoff qualifier which would require three road playoff wins to get to the Super Bowl.

And that’s where the magical run began as the Packers would not lose another game. Aaron Rodgers returned to tear up the New York Giants. And then the defense completely shut down the Chicago Bears creating a spot for the Packers in the playoffs. The Packers opened with a bang in Philadelphia and then had to hold on for dear life against the Eagles. A week later, the Packers went in and defeated the NFC number one seed, Atlanta Falcons by scoring 35 consecutive points en route to a 48-21 win. Then the Packers replicated a 7-point win over the Bears in the NFC Championship Game to earn a spot in Super Bowl XLV.

The Super Bowl against Pittsburgh was a microcosm of the season. The Packers jumped out to a lead early but then suffered injuries to stars Donald Driver and Charles Woodson. The Packers struggled as they tried to find a way to compensate and let the Steelers back into the game as a 21-3 lead was cut to 21-17 and later 28-25. But the Packers found a way late to save their season as Aaron Rodgers led the offense on a scoring drive at ate up clock and then the defense shut the door with big plays in the final two minutes.

So here we are, the Green Bay Packers are Super Bowl Champions for the fourth time and NFL Champions for the record 13th time. Aaron Rodgers has matched Brett Favre’s Super Bowl victory total and road playoff victories in a career. The Packers became the first team since 1962 to never trail in a game by more than 7 points. The best part is that this team is young and could easily return to the big dance in the near future. When you consider all the players on IR who could be back on this team next year, it is scary how good this team could be even if they suffer half the injuries they went through this year.

What a great time to be a Wisconsin sports fan. Go Packers! 2011 Super Bowl Champions!