Stumbling Seahawks just may bite Packers
Seattle Seahawks' Ray Willis (74), Max Unger, center, and Chris Spencer (65) sit on the bench during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009, in Houston. By CHRIS JENKINS AP Sports WriterGREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - As the Green Bay Packers make their push toward the playoffs, they know a seemingly beatable team like the Seattle Seahawks can jump up and bite them. Literally, at least in quarterback Aaron Rodgers' case. Going into Sunday's home finale for the Packers (9-5) at Lambeau Field, Rodgers recalled an unpleasant moment in last year's 27-17 victory over the Seahawks: He said defensive end Darryl Tapp bit him on the arm during a play. "It felt like a bee sting," Rodgers said. "I was looking down, and he was biting my arm, so I had to get his teeth off my shoulder. Luckily, I was wearing a long sleeve." If Tapp sinks his teeth into Rodgers on Sunday, that will be as close as any of the struggling Seahawks (5-9) will come to tasting the playoffs this year. The Packers already have shown they can handle adversity, bouncing back from a disappointing 4-4 start to put themselves back in the middle of the playoff race with a five-game winning streak. Now, after their defense struggled to stop the pass in a last-second loss at Pittsburgh, it remains to be seen how a young and flawed - but still potent - Packers team handles pressure to make the playoffs. "You always want to bounce back from a loss, especially a tough one," cornerback Tramon Williams said. "Those tend to linger a little bit. You always want to just forget about it, come back that next week, get a win, and feel refreshed." arily expect the Packers to show the same vulnerabilities Sunday. "I don't know, it was almost like watching a team shooting 3-pointers that they banked them in or something and they didn't call glass," Hasselbeck said. "It's like, 'Come on, that doesn't count. Does that really count?' I felt like Green Bay was in good position on a lot of plays, and Ben did a really nice job of evading a tackle and throwing it up and somebody else catches it." Still, the Packers appeared to miss two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Al Harris for the first time since his season-ending knee injury Nov. 22. Tramon Williams is a capable fill-in as the Packers' No. 2 cornerback, but Green Bay still must find reliable extra defensive backs. Packers coach Mike McCarthy remains supportive of nickel cornerback Jarrett Bush, who was burned for big plays Sunday. "It's always easy to be critical of a player when you see a big play go over the top of his head," McCarthy said. "But I also take those opportunities to look at myself, and how are we using him. Are we asking him to do too much? ... I have all the confidence in Jarrett that the things we ask him to do, he'll be successful." Most Popular |
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