This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
When looking for a potential Super Bowl champion out of the NFC, there are essentially four responsible choices: the Seahawks, the Cardinals, the Packers, and maybe the Panthers. Ordinarily, I would chuck responsibility out the window on account of it being a snooze. But this time, it is not a snooze. It is a bright opportunity, a real shot to get this SB-prediction thing right.
The 2017 Super Bowl champion will be … Green Bay.
The last time the Packers were my pick, they went on and won the thing. Actually, I didn't pick them, my dog did. I put three containers of food with various team logos on them and Kiu, my now departed black German Shepherd, went straight for the correct bowl, the one marked "Packers," and together, along with Aaron Rodgers, we won the Super Bowl.
It was good then and it's good now, even though Kiu has long since gone on to dog heaven. May all his chow bowls in the great beyond be filled with his choice of meaty treats.
Rodgers had what was for him an off year in 2015, but look for a bounce-back performance now. He remains one of the league's best quarterbacks, and that, obviously, is the first step toward a title. Rodgers has, at times, been frustrated by the hurdles that have cropped up during seasons past, like, say … his own collarbone snapping, his linemen dropping from assorted ailments, his great receiver blowing out a knee or a star running back filling out his uniform like Bib the Michelin Man.
Rodgers is reason No. 1. Add in the return of Kansas farm boy Jordy Nelson, and the Packers' pass attack has the rudiments and the reaches of being nearly impossible to contain.
Reason No. 2 is a defense that looks loaded in the back end, enabling the Packers to slow opponents' explosive offensive attacks. The pass rush is something to circle. Last season, Green Bay ranked seventh in the NFL in sacks. If it replicates that, or betters it, two of the most important aspects to modern pro football will be covered — executing the pass and disrupting it.
An infusion of young talent all around seems to have bolstered the good feel around the team. A relatively easy schedule, by NFL standards, also should aid their run.
Only fitting for Green Bay to again hoist a trophy named after a man called Lombardi, and when it does, the football world will spin on its proper axis, a good enough reason, by itself, to go with the Pack in 2016.
GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" with Spence Checketts weekdays from 3- 7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM The Zone. Twitter: @GordonMonson.