For me, this September has arrived with more at stake than any other that I can remember.For the past 2 months, I have physically been unable to write more than a sentence or two about the Brewers. I wanted to at all costs avoid a post that with the theme of "unfortunately, my April prediction was dead-on...the Brewers of the 21st century fade around the All-Star Break...etc"
This time around was even worse, not simply because they were losing games, but because: 1. they blew a 8.5 game lead since that time and 2. in an absolutely ridiculous amount of those games (20 or so) they have blown a lead of 3 runs or more (this includes "Aramis Ramirez game", where they held a 5-0 lead early and lost 6-5 on a walkoff job in the bottom of the 9th. If the Brewers fail to win the Central, this will be the game that you've gotta point to as the seminal moment for their collapse.)
Since that time, and before their latest homestand, they have been 20-35. Knowing that they probably should have won at least 7-10 games during this period and those games will be the difference between possibly losing the division and comfortably clinching with a week left in the season is something that we, collectively, need to put behind us.
The emotional mindfuck notwithstanding, it has served as an unbelieveable prologue to the most exciting divisional race in baseball. Exciting, not only because three teams are within 1.5 games of 1st place, but also because the Cubs and the Cardinals have played stretches of baseball that have been almost as perplexing as the Brewers and no one team can monopolize on the frustrating ineptitude of any of the others (i.e. the Cardinals have just dropped 2 of 3 at home to the Pirates and the Cubs have had ample opportunity to slam the door on the Brewers during the last few weeks in August). Milwaukee plays 10 at home and 13 on the road to finish the season (against relatively mediocre competition and including a critical home series against the Cards in the final week) and given their mini-surge to begin September, I am more hopeful than ever that I will have the opportunity to pee my pants no later than October 1st.
Every year since Mike Martz (who, because he molests collies, should be investigated for cruelty to animals as well) and the Greatest Show on Turf replicated Custer's performance at the Little Big Horn, the NFC has appeared to get worse and worse in quality. When the New Orleans Saints seem to be the consensus pick to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl (and when in the same breath its concluded that the AFC champ will cut off 'zeir johnson), we know that the age of dominant teams in the NFC has passed. Gone are the Cowboys, 49ers, and Packers of the 1990s (and to a lesser extent the Rams and Eagles shortly thereafter).
This is fantastic news for the 2007 Green Bay Packers. A team that was picked to finish with 4-5 wins last year due to having a "shitty" team on paper actually finished a respectable 8-8 and, had Giants defense buckled after puzzling* 4th quarter playcalling by Tom Coughlin against the 'Skins, they would've been a playoff team.
Logic would follow, that this year the Packers should be even better. The defense looks as strong as it has been since the Minister of Defense retired, the offense seems to have a more clear idea of how to execute its game plan, and most importantly (for me, anyway), I think this is the year that Brett Favre will be his most focused.
I know that my hero-worship and apologism for Brett has been borderline homo-erotic (ok, maybe not even borderline), but I wouldn't discount this as a critical factor in sparking a brief Packers renaissance. He's gotten is beef with the organization out of his system, he is even more committed to winning this year because he was closer than ever to retiring after last season, he has more experience with the coaching staff, and I think he won't feel the burden of carrying the team as much. As we all know, the desire to make the unbelieveable or impossible play has become a subject of mockery of late. I simply don't think you'll see as much of that this year because of a combination of a mental adjustment made on his part and because the team will be better as a whole. These statements may seem to be preposterous and lack justification, but I am incapable of thinking rationally about Brett. I have a crush on him and will probably get his salt-and-pepper stubbled face tattooed on my back like he is Jesus** or something. There'll be a whole post devoted to this later, don't worry.
Finally, the Packers have 4 games against the Lions and the Vikings. That's 4 wins right there. The Lions and the Vikings are an embarrassment of their former selves and to the NFC North. They will both go 0-14-2 (clever, eh?) and will then be immediately contracted.
Anyway, if the Packers aren't one of the best 6 teams in the NFC by the end of the season, it will have been one of the most disappointing letdowns that I will have ever experienced in sports.
The end. I'll have a less whimsical commentary by Saturday or Sunday morning, but I'm at work right now so this post is more of a coping mechanism for me to make it through the day without throwing my coffee mug against the interior faux brick wall or urinating on the carpet in our file room.
*by "puzzling", I mean "mentally handicapped" or "really fucking retarded"
** yay, Jesus
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