HOLY CRAP, THE PACKERS STINK

Lost in the frenzy of a string of interesting early games is the fact that, well, the Green Bay Packers aren’t very good. The Packers lost their third game in thirteen days, and their second at home in a week. And this time around they lost to the Houston Texans. The Texans, for crying out loud. An expansion team that has never been to the playoffs and that currently is on the wrong side of .500 came into Lambeau Field and beat the Packers. In so doing, the Texans rolled up 549 yards of total offense, and overcame four turnovers. Matt Schaub celebrated his first game back since suffering a torn MCL with 414 yards passing, and rookie tailback Steve Slaton piled up 120 yards on 26 carries. The Packers tied the game at 21 with six minutes to play. After the teams traded possessions, the Texans drove from their own three to the Packers’ 22 in one minute and 43 seconds, setting up the game-winning field goal. The streaky Texans started the season with four straight losses. Then they won three in a row, lost three in a row, and now have won three in a row. Though the playoffs remain very much of a long shot, a 9-7 finish is still possible. More importantly, coach Gary Kubiak likely has done enough to earn another season on the sidelines. As to the Packers, they’re now 5-8 and likely out of the running for the postseason. If they run the table and if the Vikings lose the next three, the Packers would have a chance, but the NFC North title would be settled between those two teams on the fourth tiebreaker or beyond, since they are 1-1 against each other, and they’d be 4-2 in the division and 6-6 in the conference. [Editor’s note: A reader points out that we’re wrong, and he’s right. The Packers would win the division via a 5-1 division record.] Still, it’s a stunning fall from grace for a team that finished 2007 at 13-3 and had every reason to be optimistic entering the current season, even with Aaron Rodgers taking over for the deposed Lord Favre.