It's official: Something is up with the Green Bay Packers...

I alluded to it earlier in the week, when I did the score update post: The Green Bay Packers have three of the five highest-scoring games of the year, and, in the Worldwide Leader's "Year of the Quarterback" and with the NFL promoting scoring unlike we've seen at least in this millenium, it's no secret they are 8-0.

However, it's pretty clear that the entire game between the San Diego Chargers and the Green Bay Packers last Sunday had several fairly openly scripted moments. Follow along on the NFL Network's/NFL.com's Packer/Charger highlights.

1. 00:10 - 00:26. Much like the Patrick Peterson game-winner for the Cardinals over the Lambs (whom I believe we can now officially put on the "Suck for Luck" chart, even if it's for the boatload of draft picks he'd bring), watch this first interception return for a touchdown and tell me that the San Diego team is even remotely trying here to tackle the Packers' Charlie Pepper. 14-7 Pack.
   
2. 00:28 - 01:11 Tremon Williams. Are you serious? Watch, especially, the replay breakdown on this pass (00:41 onward). Tremon Williams is so locked into that "jump the seam route" Pick-Six that the only way that Philip Rivers could've thrown that ball was damn near with the INTENTION that he had literally locked eyes with Williams and that Williams was going to take it to the house. 21-7 Pack.
3. 01:15 - 01:32 (And let's please never mind showing the San Diego highlights that cut that 21-7 lead to 21-17 in the second quarter, NFL Network, on top of this monstrosity.) Aaron Rodgers, two minute drill, less than 25 seconds to go in the half, TOUCHDOWN PASS to Jordy Nelson. 28-17 Pack, after review... EXCEPT HE DIDN'T CATCH THE BALL!! (Freeze it at 01:28. If you get it properly, you see that ball being trapped to the ground by Nelson, all but being juggled the whole way, and the replay still awards the touchdown.)
4. 02:28 - 02:41 Chargers now down 45-31. 7 1/2 minutes to go, onside kick. Watch this CLOSELY. VERY CLOSELY. Jordy Nelson again, after the ball appears to contact a Packer player in front of him, bats the ball directly to a Charger for the recovery. Drive leads to a touchdown, Packer lead now only 45-38, adding to the already-highest scoring game of the year.
5. 03:36 - 03:49 44 seconds to go, still 45-38. Chargers on that last-gasp drive, 3rd and 10, pass is nowhere close, but there's a flag on Charles Woodson for his second pass-interference call. He may have obstructed the path, but he was going straight and the receiver was cutting into him. Here's the kicker that clip doesn't tell you: If you had watched the game on television or the play on NFL Network's Red Zone: The flag was thrown by an official on the TWENTY YARD LINE! Twenty-five yards from the play! (Brian Tuohy also questions the other PI call Woodson got on him in that game, but I have no clip of that to show you.
6. Next and final part of the clip. Two plays later, Rivers overthrows the only receiver near the ball by ten to fifteen yards for the pick (and almost an inexplicable pick-six!) to seal the win. Thanks for coming, thanks for watching this entire production (andthecommercials) of the National Football League.

You know, someone said to me last night, when ESPN aired a documentary of Alabama-Auburn, that I was effectively the guy who poisoned Toomer's Corner. (Hint from my blog: No shit.)

I said to him that the only reason I haven't been arrested for sporting violence is that I am fully aware that the games are not legitimate, for the most part. Look at that clip and tell me the NFL didn't have something planned for the Packers.

ON EDIT: NFC Offensive Player of the Week for that week: Aaron Rodgers.

That's the third time this season he's gotten the weekly award, and he just got the monthly award for October!