Packers vs. Seahawks: Defending champs make a statement in the opener

In todays NFL I guess i doesnt matter if you win ugly as long as you just win baby. Id personaly rather win as a adult not a petulant child hellbent on smashing decorum and the rulebook into a thousand pieces but hey I guess I’m just old fashion.

Mike Tomlin crossed alot of lines last year when he stepped on the field and rightfully he got hit by the NFL with a fine and a loss of draft picks if his team played good. The NFL was right to do that.

Via NBC

If the play design looked familiar to certain football fans, that’s because it was a play straight out of college football. Our Ian Boyd broke the pop pass down in detail just a month ago:

Seattle was not surprised that Green Bay refused to test Sherman, who led the NFL last season with eight interceptions.

Sherman stated after the game that the lack of action was “weird” but that he was able to keep his composure throughout the evening.

Remember that time Richard Sherman made a speech about how you shouldn’t test him? (We’re paraphrasing.) Well, we guess the Packers were listening:

Aaron Rodgers threw the ball 33 times, and not one toss went Sherman’s way. They weren’t going anywhere near him.

I should remind you that Green Bay was also a pretty popular Super Bowl pick just a few days ago. Not as popular as Seattle, though, and this game is a pretty good reminder why that’s the case.

Alright, we’ll hold off giving the Seahawks another Lombardi Trophy. It’s only the first game of the season. But don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Thursday night, during the Seahawks-Packers season opener, Michael Bennett sacked Aaron Rodgers, forcing a fumble that was recovered for a safety. NBC showed us this graphic:

If you look closely, there’s Bennett’s autograph, which says Michael Bennett... and “Black Santa.”

John Kuhn -- he of one touchdown all last season -- ran in the 2014 NFL season’s first TD for Green Bay. Because betting is betting, people actually put money on that. Enough that the odds dropped somewhat significantly by the time it paid off:

Congrats, you prescient/nuts bettors.

When Ricardo Lockette scored on this pop pass from Russell Wilson, Alabama fans must have been sadly nodding their heads. Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn used the play-option pass to perfection in last year’s Iron Bowl, and it looks like the NFL is taking notice. To read SB Nation’s Ian Boyd’s breakdown of the play-option pass and how it has found a place in the pros, click here.

Wait those aren’t players on the Seah--

Ohhh, I get it. You guyssss.

Nowadays, Aaron Rodgers is a three-time Pro Bowler, former NFL MVP, and superstar with State Farm ads. But once upon a time, he was a lowly recruited high school quarterback who didn’t pick up any college scholarship offers.

He reminds us of that every time the Packers are on Sunday Night Football:

Football is back. Better yet, people capitalizing on the cuteness of animals to promote football teams and me totally buying into said cuteness while disregarding the football team itself is back. The Seahawks have already set the bar pretty high. This morning, a video of the “12th Dog” an adorable French bulldog kinda lazily named Charles Barkley surfaced, and we enjoyed that:

And now we’re seeing pre-game photos outside CenturyLink Field of a 12th Pony that has apparently been hanging out at games for a while without anyone telling us:

The wait is over. We’ve arrived. All hail the coming of the 2014 NFL season, which starts out with a bang on NBC in primetime with an NFC cross-division contest.

The Green Bay Packers may have won the NFC North in 2013, but they’ll have their hands full taking on the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. Seattle has dominated at times during the preseason (going without punting against the Bears) and looks like a 2014 version of the 2013 squad that pillaged its way to a world title. Quarterback Russell WIlson and the Seahawks’ terrifying defense (including the best secondary in the league) will continue to terrify. Be afraid, NFL. Be afraid.

Great atmosphere? Check. CenturyLink Field, with its legendary “12th Man,” is known as the loudest and most intimidating stadium in the league.

Where: CenturyLink Field, Seattle

When: 8:30 p.m. ET

TV: NBC

Announcers: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya

Radio: Packers Radio Network, Seahawks Radio Network

Online streaming: NBCSports.com

Seattle is a perfect 4-0 SU and ATS in its last four Week 1 home openers. Overall, the Seahawks are 17-1 SU and 13-5 ATS in their last 18 games at home.

Seattle opens the season as a six-point favorite at home against the Packers and this line has been climbing, according to sports books monitored by OddsShark.com