Green Bay Packers: A Few Thoughts Heading Into Matchup With San Francisco 49ers

The disappointment of Sunday's loss to the Atlanta Falcons may not have worn off quite yet, but the Green Bay Packers get a chance to regain their winning ways this Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. 

The Packers (7-4) are currently on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoffs, and also find themselves a game back of the division leading Chicago Bears (8-3). 

The 49ers (4-7) are fresh off a 27-6 thrashing of their NFC West rival Arizona Cardinals, and now sit only one game back for first place in their division. 

Sunday will be an important game for both teams if either have reservations on participating in the playoffs in January.

Here are a few more thoughts leading into the game:

Can the Packers Stop a Rejuvenated Brian Westbrook?

49ers starting running back Frank Gore fractured his hip early on in Monday night's game, and was placed on injured reserve yesterday afternoon. 

That's a big loss for the 49ers and their floundering offense, but nine-year veteran Brian Westbrook helped ease that burden with a solid performance backing up Gore Monday night. 

Westbrook carried the ball 23 times for 136 yards and a touchdown and he appeared healthy and fresh for the first time in 2010.

In fact, before Monday night, Westbrook had only registered five carries for nine yards the entire season. 

So, what should we expect from Westbrook on Sunday?

To be fair, the Packers' defense presents a much stronger challenge than does the Cardinals. Green Bay's run defense has generally been pretty solid during the Dom Capers' 3-4 era, and they've shut down teams that are one dimensional like the 49ers. 

A perfect example of this was just a few weeks ago when the Packers' defense shut out a Jets' offense that relied so heavily on the run. 

Offenses that hurt the Packers have been balanced, with both a strong running game and a quarterback that can make plays out of the passing game. 

While I certainly respect the 49ers running attack, their passing game leaves something to be desired. The revolving door at quarterback of Alex Smith and Troy Smith doesn't exactly strike fear into the hearts of defensive coordinators, and the gameplan for Capers and the defense has to be pretty simple:

Stop the 49ers running attack and make Smith beat you through the air.

That's really your best bet, because I don't think either Smith can beat a team on his own. 

Which makes stopping Westbrook priority number one for the defense. If Westbrook does have a good game, however, the Packers could be in some trouble.

But look for the defense to do everything they can to make the 49ers a passing team Sunday. 

Will Everyone's Favorite Running Back Get a Chance Sunday?

If you take anything from coach Mike McCarthy's words on Monday, chances are pretty high that rookie running back James Starks will make his NFL debut on Sunday. 

When asked if Starks would be ready to play against the 49ers, McCarthy simply responded "he'd better be."

But poor Starks. I might be as guilty of this as anyone, but he's been deemed the blogosphere's savior at running back for awhile now, and the sad part is he hasn't even played a down of football in almost two years. 

I get the adulation with Starks, because I'm as intrigued as anyone about what he could bring to the Packers' offense. But we need to scale down our expectation for him more then a few notches. 

He hasn't played in forever, and he's still a rookie who has only been practicing with the team for the better part of a month. 

More then likely, Starks is still trying to pick up all the pass protections and we know how important that is to whether or not a running back gets on the field in the Packers' offense.

Why do you think it took Dmitri Nance so long to see the field?

This all probably boils down to Nance anyway: If he passes his concussion testing this week, we probably won't see Starks. Nance has worth on special teams, and it's safe to say he's been designated the short-yardage back for now. 

But in the event that Nance can't go, Starks will more than likely get his first few NFL carries on Sunday.

And as McCarthy said, "he'd better be" ready, because he unfairly has some huge expectations to fulfill once he gets on the field. 

Williams Cashes In

Packers cornerback Tramon Williams has played at a Pro Bowl level all season, and general manager Ted Thompson rewarded him for it Tuesday. 

Williams signed a four year, $33 million dollar extension that will keep him in Green Bay through the 2014 season. 

First off, congratulations to Tramon Williams. There's not a player out there who deserves this more, and if you don't believe me, read his story. I guarantee you'll come away a believer. 

But it was also a great move by Thompson and the Packers, as they most likely locked him up at a much cheaper price now than had he hit the open market after the season. 

Which brings me to an important point: Everyone always crucifies Thompson for rarely signing free agents, but locking up your core players is just as significant as signing some overpriced player on the market. 

Thompson's policy has always been that of paying players who have proven their worth in Green Bay, and this is just another great example of that. 

Because let's be honest: Williams has more then proven his worth. ESPN Milwaukee's Jason Wilde has said numerous times that several NFC scouts have placed Williams in the league's top five cover cornerbacks. 

He's gotten better every season since coming up with the Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2006, and now Green Bay has him locked up for the foreseeable future.

In this deal, everyone is a winner.

Two More Packers To IR, Reason for Hope?

Both linebacker Brandon Chillar and specialist Spencer Havner have been placed on injured reserve, running the Packers' total to 13 players on the season ending list.

Linebacker Robert Francois was activated to the 53 man roster and he'll back up Desmond Bishop and A.J. Hawk in Chillar's absence. 

But with the 13th man heading to the IR, I have an interesting theory that might help cheer up a few bitter Packers' fans. 

Let's first say the Packers' 2010 season doesn't end in a Super Bowl victory—a likely scenario, considering their playoff positioning right now and their luck with injuries already. 

I get that's a dreary outlook for this season, but is there any reason in the world to believe the Packers won't be the favorite to win it next season?

Not only will the Packers get a whole draft class next April, but they'll also return Jermichael Finley, Ryan Grant, Nick Barnett, Morgan Burnett and everyone else currently on the IR. 

It'll be like adding two draft classes for next season, with the IR draft class already consisting of more then a few really good players. 

Factor in all the experience and solid play for the backups this season, and it's safe to say the Packers should be stacked next season.

At the very least, the Packers should be the deepest football team in the NFL, right?

And that's without knowing what the 2010 Packers do the rest of this season. For all we know, this group could make a deep run into the playoffs. 

One thing should be for sure: There will no shortage of talent and depth on next season's roster, after everything this team has gone through. 

It's a silver lining of the highest degree, but there's nothing wrong with taking a little good out of a crummy situation, is there?