Brandon Jackson: Contract Year Will Save The Packers' After Ryan Grant's Loss

All around the football world, people are yelling about the demise of the Packers' Super Bowl chances. No one doubts Aaron Rodgers can throw 4000+ yards again; he's done it the last two years. But they've also had a 1200 yard rusher both years to take pressure off the passing game. When defenses have to keep one eye on the half back, a good passing game will chew you up.

With the loss of RB Ryan Grant for the remainder of the season, many fans and media folks are concerned that defenses can put their full attention on the Packers pass attack. Without the proper balance, even the best of offenses can fall apart.

But please, fear not Packer fans. Brandon Jackson will be a very capable replacement, and your hopes and dreams of reaching the Super Bowl are as good as ever.

For those wondering why I can be so confident, the simplest answer is only 2 words: Contract Year. Those two magical words are what drive most athletes in any sport to do wild things. No, it's not always about money, but it is always at least 5-10% about money. And when a player knows that they have to put up or shut up, immediately, they usually respond because of the money.

Money is just the simplest answer, however, and beyond that is the fact that Brandon Jackson is a focused, intelligent, well-built pro running back. Is he designed the same way Grant was? No. Does he do some things worse than Grant does? Perhaps. Does Jackson do other things equally or better than Grant? Absolutely! The two things that Jackson does better than Grant are pass-protect, and catch the football. These two things alone will be a big asset in balancing the passing game.

Beyond that, if he finds a way to average 3.5-4.0 yards per attempt, he will fill in with the right amount to balance needed to keep teams from overloading in the secondary. Can he average that or better? We don't know, and it's not fair to assume he never could. He came into training camp this year with more muscle weight than before. But he is also aware of how to balance his power and his speed. It's that intelligence I mentioned that will allow him to go far.

If the Packers truly have to trade for another halfback, so be it. But as it stands, the Packers have the lowly Bills in town for Week 2. Jackson should have no problem putting up inflated numbers against their defense. Because of that, the Bears in Week 3 will have trouble game-planning against Jackson. By Week 4, Green Bay will know where it stands, and will have plenty of time to make a big-picture decision.

So fear not Green and Gold faithful. All hope is not yet lost.