Road to NFC North title goes through Green Bay

"Ask Vic" will publish on M-W-F through the football season.

Ethan from Ontario, Canada
What did your eyes tell you was the biggest cause of the point drought during the game?
I don't want this to become a recurring theme, especially after a win.  A win needs to be good enough. The Packers are 2-0 and the road to the NFC North title goes through Green Bay. OK, here are the obvious choices for an answer to your question: 1) The play-calling became conservative and protective. 2) The Vikings decided to play defense. 3) Aaron Rodgers just isn't the quarterback he was in his prime. 4) The Packers offense is a work in progress under a new coach. In my opinion, the best approach is to lower these ridiculous expectations that the way it was is the way it must always be.

Mark from Bettendorf, IA
Are we seeing an Aaron Rodgers that isn't comfortable yet?
I think we're seeing a quarterback for whom expectations are too high.

Scott from Madison, WI
Vic, I don't want to overeact or withold due credit through two games, so please provide some perspective on what we should think about the 2-0 Packers so far?
They're making plays that win games, and they have a very favorable schedule ahead of them. Go ahead, get excited.

Brad from Yulee, FL
Vic, despite some horrid coaching decisions and a lackluster game by Gardener Minshew until the end, Minshew turned a switch at crunch time. What did we just see at the end of that game?
What happened is good. We'll watch for more on Thursday. The Steelers are in the same situation. Mason Rudolph looked good in his surprise debut. Can Minshew and Rudolph do it again?

Brad from Jacksonville, FL
Vic, you’ve gotta trade Ramsey. He can’t physically push the head coach. Who’s in charge of this team?
His trade value declined with that display. The longer the Jaguars wait, the worse it'll get.

Bill from Sheboygan, WI
Can you hear a horn in the distance?
When all is said and done, this might be the game that costs Mike Zimmer his job. A missed field goal attempt, a missed extra point attempt, an interception in goal to go with the game on the line, a hundred yards in penalties and damaging incidents of undisciplined behavior, all contributing to a devastating division loss on a day the Vikings rushed for 198 yards. On top of all of that, Zimmer didn't have his defense ready to play. Yeah, I can hear a horn in the distance.

Jerry from Savannah, GA
Vic, do you think Howard Cosell could have envisioned former coaches such as Urban Meyer being pregame analysts who constantly refer to their former teams as we?
Cosell saw it coming and he created terminology for it: the jockocracy. If you go back to the days of Paul Christman, the former players and coaches in the booth were names of lesser renown. They weren't capitalizing as much on their fame as they were their knowledge of the inner workings of the game. Monday Night Football gave us celebrity-type former players, such as Frank Gifford, Don Meredith and Alex Karras. That's when the explosion of former jocks in the booth began and it's now to the point it's a prerequisite for getting a booth analyst or studio gig. I don't watch pregame shows, and I turn off the sound on any analyst who can't detach himself from his team allegiances.

Josh from Madison, WI
Is Cam on the fast track to an early exit, ala Luck?
Anybody who's had rotator cuff surgery knew and knows his career is in jeopardy.

Nathan from San Diego, CA
With all this defense talk, I realized my knowledge of Packers history is overwhelmingly focused on offense. I’m embarrassed to say I can't even tell you what Lombardi’s defenses were known for outside of the names of some of the players. How would you describe Lombardi’s defenses?
They were a typical read-and-react front whose tackles were assigned the task of keeping the blockers off the middle linebacker so he could run to the ball and make the tackle. That's how defense was played in the run-the-ball era. You didn't see a lot of exotic looks in the passing game -- I don't remember seeing five-wide until the mid-nineties -- so pass coverage was basic: cornerbacks on the two wide receivers, strong safety on the tight end and the free safety playing centerfield over the top. That was defense in the Lombardi era. Taking the tight end off the field and bringing on a third wide receiver on passing downs began the age of specialization; that's when defenses began to evolve in exotic ways. Three wide receivers introduced nickel and dime coverages and pass-rush specialists.

Eric from Las Vegas, NV
Vegas boards have the combined spread of those four games at 89 points, so I'll take the under on your total. I have a feeling the Big Ten games are closer than you think.
The combined points differential in Saturday's four featured games was 107 points. I set the over/under at 120. Congratulations, you've won a free subscription to "Ask Vic."

Eric from Hudson, WI
I suppose you’re going to start giving Mike McCarthy credit for these wins just like you did Jeff Fisher a couple of years ago. Draft and develop was cute until the drafting went south. What’s the rush in paying Rodgers? Weeks one and two are your answers. He tilts the field; your words. Did New England need AB? Nope. Bill Belichick picked him up in spite of Vic Ketchman. If receivers are a dime a dozen, coaches are a nickel.
OK.

Jim from Hunterton, IN
Well, Vic, we made it six quarters into the season before Rodgers and LaFleur had a sideline spat.
I'm not sure what to make of that.

Timothy from Ocala, FL
I think the call to go for two was the right call for the Jags versus Houston, but the actual play dialed up was terrible. They hadn't gotten any yards up the middle all day! Why not keep the ball in Minshew's hands?
I thought they should've kicked and gone to overtime. All of the pressure was on Houston. The Jags' arrow was pointing up. Lengthen the game.

Kyle from Osceola, WI
Paul Hornung (recently placed) the first legal sports bet in the state of Indiana. Commissioner Rozelle is rolling in his grave?
I hope Hornung got a lot of money for the promotion.

​Mark from Eau Claire, WI
I know it's premature, but what are your first impressions of Matt LaFleur?
He's had his team ready to play in both games. That's job one for a coach.