The poll for the Green Bay Packers offensive 2011 MVP excluded the obvious choice of Aaron Rodgers, but I was surprised that Jordy Nelson has apparently dominated the runner-up spot. Nelson was my choice but I thought it would be a toss-up between him and Greg Jennings. Instead, it was Nelson by a landslide.

I'm expecting the poll for the APC defensive 2011 MVP will be won by a large margin too, but I've included a few names anyway. Even B.J. Raji, though he slumped last season yet somehow earned a trip to the Pro Bowl. I thought about including a couple players they really missed last season, Nick Collins and Cullen Jenkins, but decided against it. This is about the guys on the roster.

If I ran a poll that included Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers, I'd expect he'd be the run away winner for the team's offensive MVP. The battle for second place should come down to the top two wide receivers, but I've included a whole bunch of starters in the poll below and let's see what happens.

Let's compile our 2011 All-NFC North team - NFC North Blog - ESPN. If you feel like stuffing the ballot box, Kevin Seifert is looking for suggestions in the comments to fill the nine open spots on his All-NFC North team. He'll post the results at the end of the week.

He's already included seven Green Bay Packers on the list, but spots remain open for T.J. Lang, Jermichael Finley, and Jordy Nelson. The Packers already have three offensive lineman though Steve Hutchinson was healthy enough to deserve inclusion this year. The top rivals for Finley and Nelson should be Brandon Pettigrew and Percy Harvin.

On defense, B.J. Raji and Desmond Bishop could earn spots too. I don't know if I'd really put Bishop ahead of Brian Urlacher (who's lost a step but certainly means a lot to their defense). Should Raji really be ahead of Suh or Vikings DT Kevin Williams?

2011 Tackling: The Safeties | ProFootballFocus.com. This article is from last week, but it mentions both of the Green Bay Packers starting safeties. And in a good way.

Mike McCarthy is a coach who harps on the fundamentals, and it shows in these rankings. While S Charlie Peprah left something to be desired in coverage, he only missed two tackles after the catch. Unfortunately this list is probably for the regular season, and excludes the missed one on Hakeem Nicks. S Morgan Burnett finished in the top 20 overall in tackle efficiency among safeties.

And Burnett was even handicapped by a cast on his hand that he wore for most of the season. The picture above was from his first game after he broke his hand, and it was huge. It shrunk from week to week as his hand healed.

This doesn't excuse last season because this article doesn't have anything to do with their ability to cover a receiver. I'm still looking at the safety position as one of the biggest areas of need this offseason, assuming Nick Collins is unable to return. But making tackles was something, in general, they did pretty well.

There are times that I still can't believe the Green Bay Packers aren't in the Super Bowl, but they had their shot and either the Patriots or Giants will hoist the Lombardi Trophy next Sunday.

Super Bowl 2012, Key Matchup: Giants Defensive Line Vs. Patriots Offensive Line - Big Blue View. They have a rookie right tackle, but otherwise there's a lot of experience up front. Unless DE Jason Pierre-Paul can take over the game, the Giants may have to get creative with their pass rush. I can't see the possible return of oft-injured RT Sebastian Vollmer giving the Patriots much of a boost.

Super Bowl XLVI: Do You Trust Edelman in the Slot? - Pats Pulpit. The AFC lined up with Steelers WR Antonio Brown in coverage against Larry Fitzgerald during the Pro Bowl, and Fitzgerald easily scored a touchdown against him. The Patriots may do the same with Julian Edelman against one of the Giants top receivers, but they'll do it in the Super Bowl. He was lined up against Anquan Boldin in the AFC Championship game and Boldin easily got separation from him. In a poll at Pats Pulpit, Edelman comes in second place as their best option in the nickel. The guy in first place was signed off the Raiders practice squad a couple months ago.

Greg Schiano, Chuck Pagano, Jeff Fisher: How will new NFL coaches fare? - The League - The Washington Post. In my latest at The League, I wrote about the seven new NFL head coaches that were hired in 2012. Some of them I'm familiar with (Jeff Fisher, Joe Philbin) and some of them I had never heard of before (Chuck Pagano, Dennis Allen). From the Washington Post.com:

Coming into this offseason, there were seven NFL teams looking for a new head coach. And only one big name head coach [Jeff Fisher] was available. So it’s no surprise that it’s been a hiring season filled with unknowns and retreads.

I'm not sure where 11.5 sacks rank among the worst in the NFL, but Green Bay Packers LT Marshall Newhouse is certainly among the leaders. Does that mean he shouldn't be considered the starter in 2012?

LT Chad Clifton has had a long career, but he's been wearing down over the past few seasons and he's one of the oldest starters in the NFL. The Packers will look back at an injury plagued season, and remember that he couldn't even play the entire game during their playoff loss. He's scheduled to make $5.25 million next season, and I can't see it happening. It looks like the end of the line.

The good news for OT Derek Sherrod is that broken bones can heal. Unfortunately, his injury against the Chiefs was still severe. It's a long offseason, but we'll have to see how he's doing in August. Even if he can't play left tackle, he could be a candidate for the right side, and Bryan Bulaga could shift over.

That said, I'm thinking that Newhouse is good enough to be the starter next season. His problem is consistency. He wasn't allowing one sack per game. He was either giving up three sacks or zero. So if he can avoid the horrible games, he's got the potential to be a lot better next season. Plus, Newhouse proved to Aaron Rodgers that he can play. Rodgers said "Starting the season out, I didn't look at Marshall the way I look at him now. I look at him now as a guy who really has a strong, legitimate chance to be the left tackle of the future."

Also, I just watched the Giants go to the Super Bowl with two tackles that got destroyed by the 49ers, and last season I saw the Steelers make it there with two unwanted veteran tackles. It doesn't seem like you need to have a great set of tackles to succeed in the NFL. Of course it doesn't hurt, but Rodgers has such a quick release and makes such quick decisions that he doesn't need his tackles to be perfect. With all the problems on defense that need to be addressed, I'm thinking Newhouse is good enough and the Packers can use the cap savings from Clifton to re-sign Scott Wells and Jermichael Finley.

FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | Scramble for the Ball: 2011 All-KCW Team. Football Outsiders assembles their annual All-Keep Chopping Wood Team, in honor of this guy, for the worst player at his position.

Only one player from the Green Bay Packers made the list for 2011: S Charlie Peprah. I can't argue with his selection, but it was quite an accomplishment. There were a lot of bad safeties starting in the NFL last season.

The only other NFC North team represented was the Vikings, who led the division with two players. Former Packers K Ryan Longwell, and CB Cedric Griffin.