ALAMEDA — The Green Bay Packers put team shares up for sale last Monday, hoping to raise $62.5 million in capital. The shares were going for $250 each, and were attracting the attention of some high-profile figures. Like Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who was asked whether he had bought any stock.

“I haven’t yet,” Rodgers said on a conference call with Bay Area media. “But I’m not gonna rule it out.”

If the price is too high, Rodgers has no one to blame but himself. After helping the franchise to its 13th NFL championship and fourth Super Bowl win last February, the quarterback has the Packers playing better than ever.

When the Raiders leave the tunnel at Lambeau Field today, they’ll be looking to do something no team has done in almost a year — beat Green Bay.

The Packers are approaching historic benchmarks. Their 18 consecutive victories — including four in last year’s postseason, capped by a 31-25 win over Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLV — represent the second-longest streak in NFL history, behind only the 2003-04 Patriots’ 21 straight.

“It’s interesting,” Raiders coach Hue Jackson said. “This team was in a different state a year ago at this time, then all of a sudden they put together a hell of run and they’ve stayed on it.”

In fact, some are starting to believe Green Bay can join the 1972 Dolphins as the only NFL teams to emerge from the postseason unbeaten and untied. Coach Mike McCarthy insists his players aren’t among the people discussing that notion.

“No, we’re not,” he said. “We’re talking about the Oakland Raiders.”

And of course the Oakland Raiders are talking about Green Bay. One week before its toughest assignment of the season, Hue Jackson’s team was at its worst, looking generally lifeless in a 34-14 loss to a Dolphins team that was 3-8 going into the game.

Now the Raiders, locked in a tie for the AFC West lead with rejuvenated Denver at 7-5, must try to rebound against the ninth team in league history to begin a season 12-0, in a hallowed stadium where temperatures are expected to dip into the mid-30s.

Daunting doesn’t quite describe the challenge.

In enumerating the Packers’ strengths, you have to begin with the offense engineered by McCarthy and offensive coordinator Joe Philbin.

Green Bay is averaging 405.3 yards per game, and its 420 points are the fifth most through 12 games since the NFL merger in 1970. Nearly 35 percent of the Packers’ drives have ended in touchdowns this year.

Directing all of it is Rodgers, the NorCal kid who prepped in Chico and played at Butte College and Cal, then sat the bench behind Brett Favre for three years before getting a chance to prove that he is one of the NFL’s top quarterbacks.

Against the Giants last week, Rodgers had a passer rating of 106.1. That mark would have led the NFL in 2008; it was Rodgers’ worst rating of the year.

“He’s playing at a level that other guys haven’t ever played the position at before,” Raiders quarterback Carson Palmer said. “You can look at his film — and us playing the NFC North this year, you see a lot of Packer games — and he’s doing something that nobody’s done before.”

Defenders often say that an opposing player does everything well. It’s an easy, political answer. But Rodgers really seems to do everything almost perfectly. He moves in the pocket, he beats the pass rush, he manages the clock. He throws to the sidelines, he’s accurate in the short game and his deep passes are works of art.

Rodgers now owns the highest career passer rating (103.8) and lowest interception percentage (1.8) in NFL history, and many analysts suggest he is playing as well as any quarterback ever.

Not bad for a guy who looked embarrassed during the 2005 draft telecast, when he was rumored to be in the running for the 49ers’ overall first pick but eventually fell to Green Bay at No. 24.

Rodgers has managed to maintain a chip on his shoulder, even as his doubters have re-educated themselves or disappeared.

“I don’t know about ‘don’t really have any doubters.’ I’m sure there’s plenty out there still,” Rodgers said. “But I think the best way is to kind of remember where you came from, and for me that was kind of making my way, one opportunity at a time, from a young age – from high school to junior college to Division I, being a backup. I think you have to have a keen understanding and a good memory of what it took to get to where you’re at, because that’s gonna allow you to not be complacent about where you’re at presently.“

Doubters? Really, Aaron? A recent poll conducted by Public Policy Polling revealed that 89 percent of respondents in Wisconsin had a favorable opinion of Rodgers. The only names scoring higher were Abraham Lincoln and Jesus Christ. Rodgers polled more favorably that Martin Luther King, Santa Claus and George Washington.

One thing that makes Rodgers and the Packers so deadly is their tendency to distribute the ball to different receivers.

Wide receiver Greg Jennings had already established himself as a Pro Bowl selection heading into 2011, and tight end Jermichael Finley probably would have done the same if he had stayed healthy.

Suddenly, Jordy Nelson has become just as important, with 48 receptions for 876 yards and nine TDs through 12 games.

“The good thing about what they’re doing as an offense is Aaron Rodgers shows everybody love,” Oakland cornerback Lito Sheppard said. “He’s not throwing the ball 80 times to one guy. He’s throwing it to the open guy and everybody’s making plays.”

The Packers defense isn’t nearly as accomplished. In fact, it ranks 31st in the league in yards allowed at 397.8 per game. That statistic is misleading, though.

Green Bay tends to give up a lot of fourth-quarter passing yardage as it protects leads, and the Packers are second in the NFL with 27 takeaways.

There may be opportunities for the Raiders in the passing game. That’s not to say it will be easy to keep pace.

“Don’t feel like you need to score 14 points in one drive,” Palmer cautioned. “The most you can do is obviously score a touchdown a drive, and if you have to punt, you have to punt.”

And if you have to punt twice, … well, you may already be in trouble against these Packers.

You can reach Staff Writer Phil Barber at 521-5263 or phil.barber@pressdemocrat.com.

The last thing the offensively challenged Tampa Bay Buccaneers need to see
is a Green Bay Packers defense that is coming off a much-needed dominating
effort.

Hoping for another shut-down performance, the Packers look to move to 10-0
and continue their best start since 1962 while trying to hand the reeling
Buccaneers a fourth consecutive loss Sunday at Lambeau Field.

While Green Bay’s offense continues to play at an extremely high level
behind Aaron Rodgers(notes), the Packers finally put forth the stifling defensive game
they had been looking for in Monday’s 45-7 home rout of Minnesota.

The Packers (9-0) yielded at least 424 yards in each of their previous three
games before keeping the lowly Vikings to 266. They held Adrian Peterson to 51
yards with a touchdown on 14 carries and sacked rookie Christian Ponder(notes) three
times.

“I think we’ve known that we can play at this level, it’s just a matter of
getting it done,” said linebacker Clay Matthews(notes), who had two of his five sacks
Monday.

Green Bay defenders have taken their generous play prior to Monday
personally at times. That unit has felt it has not held up its end of the
bargain while the Rodgers-led offense continues to roll over the competition,
with the Packers averaging an NFL-high 35.6 points per game.

“We’re mad,” cornerback Charles Woodson(notes) said. “We’re mad about the way we’ve
been performing. The way our offense has been playing and carrying this team, we
want to be a part of that too. We don’t want it to just be one-sided.”

Woodson and his defensive peers have a chance for another stingy showing
against Tampa Bay (4-5), which has been outscored 88-43 during a three-game
skid. The Buccaneers’ 156 total points this season are 12 fewer than the Packers
have scored in the first half alone in 2011.

Tampa Bay and Cleveland are the only teams in the league not to have scored
an offensive touchdown in the first quarter all season.

“It’s not getting any easier,” Tampa Bay center Jeff Faine(notes) said. “We’ve got
a very, very huge challenge at Green Bay. We’ve got to play smarter and more
disciplined. It’s unfortunate we’re in the position we’re in, but we’ve got to
dig ourselves out.”

Trying to improve offensively is only half the battle for Tampa Bay.
Stopping Rodgers is perhaps an even more daunting issue for a Buccaneers defense
that allowed scoring plays of 80 and 78 yards in last Sunday’s 37-9 home loss to
Houston.

Rodgers, meanwhile, was an efficient 23 of 30 for 250 yards Monday, throwing
four touchdowns for the second straight game. The reigning Super Bowl MVP has
completed an astonishing 72.9 percent of his passes in 2011 and has thrown 11 of
his 28 TDs – and no interceptions – over the last three contests.

His passer rating of 130.7 is on pace to easily break Peyton Manning’s(notes) NFL
record of 121.1 in 2004.

“It’s amazing,” veteran Packers receiver Donald Driver(notes) said. “He gets better
and better. Every week he seems to be breaking another record. And sooner or
later, he can’t do anything but break his own. You have to take your hat off to
him. If he’s not the guy that’s going to win MVP this year, then something’s
wrong.”

Rodgers, however, is 31 of 62 for 431 yards with four touchdowns and six
interceptions while losing both career starts against Tampa Bay. He threw three
of those picks, including one taken back 35 yards for a fourth-quarter score by
Tanard Jackson(notes), in the Packers’ 38-28 loss in Tampa in the last meeting Nov. 8,
2009.

Buccaneers quarterback Josh Freeman(notes) threw for 205 yards and three touchdowns
in that contest but was picked off three times against the Texans last weekend.
Freeman, who has been bothered by a sprained thumb, has thrown nine touchdowns
and 13 interceptions in nine games, compared to 25 TDs and just six picks in
2010.

“I feel like I’m a better quarterback this year than I was last year,”
Freeman said. “As crazy as that may sound, looking at the numbers, I feel like
I’m throwing the ball as well as I ever have, it’s just things aren’t going my
way.”

Trailing almost throughout their losing streak, the Buccaneers haven’t run
the ball much lately. They’re averaging just 16.3 carries for 68.0 yards during
their skid, with LeGarrette Blount(notes) totaling 106 yards on 23 carries in two games
since returning from a knee injury.

Tampa Bay is looking for a fourth consecutive win over the Packers. It
snapped a 12-game skid in Wisconsin with a 17-16 win in its last visit Sept. 25,
2005.

Hip-hop duo Calle 13 won album of the year at the Latin Grammy Awards Thursday in Las Vegas, earning the top prize after a record-breaking ceremony that saw the Puerto Rican stepbrothers receive the 19th award of their career and the most awards ever in a single night.

When you start 8-0, you get to be compared with more lofty company. Many teams start 6-0, but only 13 other teams have survived to 8-0 since the league went to the 16 game schedule in 1978. Most people think that the Packers are the clearly best team in the league, and it’s just a question of when the coronation will occur. My thoughts haven’t changed much since I wrote this about it being too early to talk undefeated with this particular team, and the Packers have since won games over Minnesota by 6 and the Chargers by 7.

I went through the 14 teams (including Green Bay) who started 8-0, and looked at 10 different categories: points scored, points allowed, point difference, turnover margin, yardage margin, net passing yards per play on offense, net passing yards per play on defense, yards per carry on offense, yards per carry on defense, and strength of schedule (opponent win percentage after 8 games). I rank-ordered each team from 1-14 in each category, and tallied the totals. Here are the 8-0 teams in order of their strength across all categories, relative to each other.

1. 2007 New England Patriots – Lost Super Bowl
2. 1991 Washington Redskins – Won Super Bowl
3. 1984 Miami Dolphins – Lost Super Bowl
4. 1985 Chicago Bears – Won Super Bowl
5. 2009 New Orleans Saints – Won Super Bowl
6. 1998 Denver Broncos – Won Super Bowl
7. 1990 New York Giants – Won Super Bowl
8. 2005 Indianapolis Colts – Lost in Divisional Playoffs
9. 2008 Tennessee Titans – Lost in in Divisional Playoffs
10. 2003 Kansas City Chiefs – Lost in Divisional Playoffs
11. 2009 Indianapolis Colts – Lost Super Bowl
12. 2011 Green Bay Packers – ?
13. 1990 San Francisco 49ers – Lost in NFC Championship Game
14. 2006 Indianapolis Colts – Won Super Bowl

You may think this is meaningless, but if we cut this list in half, the top 7 teams all reached the Super Bowl and 5 of them won. The bottom half? Of the other 6 teams, only two of them reached a Super Bowl, with the 2006 Colts the only one to win, after going 4-4 down the stretch in the regular season. Dominance matters.

The Packers rank #1 in net passing yards per play on offense, just ahead of 1984 Miami and 2007 New England. They are also near the top in points scored as a result. They are average or below average in most other categories, including dead last by a substantial margin in pass defense and points allowed, and ahead of only the 2008 Titans in yardage difference.

What if, rather than looking at overall strength across several categories, we try to find the teams most similar to the way that the Packers are doing it. Using the absolute value difference in each category, here are the 8-0 teams ordered from most to least similar to this year’s Packers.

1. 1984 Miami Dolphins
2. 2009 New Orleans Saints
3. 2006 Indianapolis Colts
4. 2003 Kansas City Chiefs
5. 2007 New England Patriots
6. 2005 Indianapolis Colts
7. 1998 Denver Broncos
8. 2009 Indianapolis Colts
9. 1990 New York Giants
10. 2008 Tennessee Titans
11. 1990 San Francisco 49ers
12. 1991 Washington Redskins
13. 1985 Chicago Bears

No team is truly similar to the Packers of 2011. The pass defense numbers are so far below any other team that started 8-0 it is stunning. The 2009 Saints are the only team on this list that even finished the season allowing barely more than 6.0 net yards per pass. The Packers are currently at 7.1.

The teams that show up near the top of the similar list are other top passing teams, all of whom had a better pass defense. The lower yardage difference totals is also what boosts the 2006 Colts and the 2003 Chiefs up the similarity list. It’s no surprise that the 1985 Bears show up as the most opposite team to this year’s Packers.

While the common perception that this year’s Packers team is the clear favorite to win the Super Bowl, the pass defense is historically bad for a unit to win a Super Bowl. It’s a bit of a surprise given how good they were last year, and maybe they can turn it around as a result, though each passing week raises more flags.

Kerry Byrne of Cold Hard Football Facts states that the Packers are on pace to have the best passer rating differential (offensive passer rating minus defensive passer rating allowed) since Unitas. Here’s the problem with that: it’s comparing end of season figures to the Packers at the halfway point. It also includes interceptions, which are very explanatory, but not as predictive. The more predictive portion of the passer rating–the yards per attempt part, doesn’t bode as well for the defense. Rodgers has thrown only 4 interceptions on 266 attempts, and the defense has 16 interceptions on 319 passes.

IF the Packers continue those interception rates, then sure, they will rank near the top in pass efficiency when we look back and explain why they won. Rodgers, who is playing at a high level, can still have games where the ball gets tipped, or batted, or deflected, and see that turnover number turn. Even more likely, they won’t continue picking off over 5% of the passes thrown at them, particularly when they have been giving up big chunks of yards. If those numbers regress, they will see that differential plummet as the interception portion normalizes.

If we strip away the turnovers, and look at the more predictive net yardage, the difference between the Packers’ offense and Packers passing defense is in the bottom half of the 8-0 teams.

Green Bay has been dominant to get to 8-0 in part because of the turnovers in the passing game, and Rodgers’ efficiency. Compared to the other 8-0 teams, though, they look far from unbeatable. All those 8-0 teams, by the way, averaged 5.7 wins over the second half of the season. Still too early.

[photo via Getty]

Read More: Aaron Rodgers (QB – GBP), James Jones (WR – GBP), Jermichael Finley (TE – GBP), Jordy Nelson (WR – GBP), Randall Cobb (WR – GBP), Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers took care of business against the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football, 42-34, giving us a thrilling matchup in the NFL’s first game of the regular season. 

We learned plenty of things on Thursday night starting with QB Aaron Rodgers being deserving of all the offseason hype he received. SB Nation’s Acme Packing Company handed out three things they learned from the Packers in Thursday night’s game. Take a look at what they said about the things they learned and here’s my take:

---

Follow @sbnation on Twitter / Like SB Nation on Facebook

---

1. Jermichael Finley and Randall Cobb are going to be major weapons this year, while Jordy Nelson has improved. Finley had three catches for 53 yards while Cobb added two touchdowns, one through the air and one on a kickoff return. Finley was injured last year and Cobb’s a rookie so this is an added offensive explosion for the Packers. And let’s not forget Nelson who had six catches for 77 yards and a touchdown. Who needs Greg Jennings? (Actually, the Packers did as he was their leading receiver on Thursday night)

2. The consequence of No. 1 is that James Jones is now offensive option No. 6 in the passing game, or so it seems. Without Finley and Cobb last year, Jones was a solid option catching 50 balls for 679 yards. This year his role may be lower. He caught one ball for one yard on Thursday night. It’s not a bad offense if James Jones is your sixth option in the passing game.

3. We can have an elite YPC with two slightly above average, but not great running backs. RB James Starks and RB Ryan Grant shared the load last night combining for 97 yards rushing on 22 carries. The Packers offense is centered on the pass so as long as they can get solid contributions like that in the running game, they’re going to be elite.