What Hangover ?

Nick Creegan

While Rick Reilly was busy consuming foreign objects out of an overjoyed Texans fan’s carpet, thousands of relieved Americans were tuned in to a long-waited — emphasis on the long — kickoff to the NFL season.

Thursday night, Aaron Rodgers reminded everyone that he is not Zack Galifianakis and the Packers are not a part of the “Wolf Pack.” In other words, no “hangover” folks!

Rodgers & Co. picked apart defensive coordinator Gregg Williams’ scheme from the beginning, and it almost seemed unfair at times. After two Packers possessions, Rodgers was 9 for 10 and threw for two touchdowns. This guy is looking like a monster! The Pack was 4 for 4 in the red zone and 8-12 on third down. They did their thing on offense, and they look even better now than they did last year in the Super Bowl!

Think about it, Charles Woodson, Jermichael Finley and Ryan Grant -- even though he isn’t looking like himself -- are all back ready to win one for them! Yes, these guys have a ring, but they still have a hunger to attain one while playing on the field instead of cheering from the sideline.

There is also some new exciting talent in the locker room, especially from Randall Cobb. He came out of Kentucky and is proving to be a future offensive and special teams threat. Not only did he score with a 32-yard catch, Cobb decided to put the icing on his own cake by disobeying his coach and running the ball out the end zone, tying the NFL record with 108 kickoff return for a touchdown. I think you should rethink your rule, Coach. This return kept people entertained and maybe even caused Roger Goodell breathe easier knowing that there is still an opportunity for an exciting return even with the new 35-yard line kickoff rule.

What I will say about the Saints is that even though their defense seemed somewhat impotent, Drew Brees still produced-MVP quality numbers . He threw for 419 yards and three touchdowns of his own. If the Saints had converted on some short-yard situations and didn’t turn the ball over, the game could have easily gone their way. Heck, Brees threw equally as well as Rodgers, if not better.

Coach Sean Payton, with all due respect, please don’t try to run it up the gut to win the game with Mark Ingram when you could have put the responsibility in Brees’ hands to complete a bootleg for a TD. Yes, Ingram is a Heisman winner who is very capable of being a star, but he is not a power back.

But this NFC showdown that opened the 2011 season was exciting. Regardless of how lethargic the defenses seemed, there's a high possibility that the game was a preview of what the NFC championship game will look like.

To all you Fantasy Football fiends out there, make sure you pick up Cobb if you haven’t already done so. Also, remember that Marques Colston is out for four weeks with a broken collarbone, and Lance Moore is banged up. So watch out for Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson to be getting a lot of looks from Brees in the next few weeks.