Brett from Green Bay, WI
How do you think Harbaugh will do at Michigan?
Look out, Urban.
Jon from Bloomfield, NJ
Hope you are well, Vic! Glad Rodgers got us this bye week so you will have some time to heal up before the game.
Do you think it's a coincidence I scheduled that test the day after the final regular-season game?
Jason from Moreno Valley, CA
Vic, genuinely hope you're recuperating well from your unexpected surgery. OK, so Suh gets reinstated. Long story short, they gave a reason that because he'd gone 32 games without incident, he was given a clean slate and treated more like a first-timer. Problem with that is he's had not one but two major player safety-related incidents in that 32-game period. Word is the Lions complained to the league, saying it would hurt their chances since it's the playoffs, and apparently their message got through. Do you think that sounds like a fair change of course?
I think the league is lacking consistency in meting out punishment. One guy goes down hard; the next guy goes free. It's too arbitrary for me. This is not a popular decision. It won't help the league's cause in setting a standard for its players.
Mike from Houston, TX
It seems the latest strategy for keeping players healthy during the year has worked. Do you think the coaching staff would agree? I can't recall a season since before the Packers' Super Bowl season with fewer major injuries to the team.
Whatever it is they did, I'm sure they'll do it again. What happens if it doesn't work next year? Do you immediately do something different?
Ben from Columbus, WI
As a young Packers fan in the '90s, I felt like the 49ers and Cowboys were our biggest rivals. Obviously, we've rekindled some of that 49ers rivalry recently. What would it take to rekindle that Cowboys rivalry?
A Cowboys win this weekend would create a week of hype next week that would include all of the big games the two franchises have played against each other, including the "Ice Bowl." Enjoy the calm of the bye this week. Next week, we'll begin the most tense and intense weeks of the season.
Brian from Mountain Home, AR
Vic, with Suh's suspension being reduced to a fine, am I the only one who hopes Detroit and Green Bay play in the NFC Championship?
I think all Packers fans would love to see that happen. It would mean the game would be played at Lambeau Field. I'm not sure of the impact the Suh controversy will have on the Lions this week. Will it be a distraction, or will it galvanize the Lions?
Patrick from Folly Beach, SC
I read somewhere that Aaron's calf will not be fully healed for quite some time. From what you have seen, can the Packers successfully adjust their game plan without Aaron's ability to extend plays out of the pocket, and will other teams now blitz more?
If he can't extend plays by running, then he'll have to extend plays by passing, and that means checking it down and finding the safety-valve receivers. I've seen evidence of that having happened in each of the last two games.
Patrick from Latham, NY
My heart sank into my stomach when I read Tuesday's "Ask Vic." I couldn't even enjoy the rest of the questions (though Mike is great) because I can't stop thinking about Vic's health. I will be thinking of you, Vic. Thank you for the endless entertainment and please get well soon so we can talk playoffs.
I'm not walking out on this fun, old-fashioned family playoffs. I said, doc, stick that thing in there and get me back in the press box. If Aaron Rodgers can play on one leg, then I can certainly sit and watch.
Nate from Pueblo, CO
I actually want to play against Dallas. I believe that to be the best, you gotta beat the best. Dallas is playing great right now. Their offense is as good as any team's in the league right now. If our defense holds its own, which I think it can, it'll hold against any of the teams left.
You don't have to beat the best to be the best. That's a fallacy. A lot of teams have won Super Bowls without having beaten the best. Let's go back to the 2010 season, when the Seahawks upset the Saints in the playoffs. Did it help the Packers that they didn't have to play the Saints?
Rusty from Hickory, NC
I realize I may be in the minority here but I think the Suh decision was the correct one. No way to prove intent regardless of his history. As a huge Packers fan, it hurts to say this but fair is fair.
That's an interesting opinion, but I don't share it.
Mark from Winfield, IL
Do you think Mike Smith's firing in Atlanta was the ultimate culmination of trading all of those draft picks for Julio Jones? Seemed like everyone agreed it mortgaged the future at the time.
Losing draft picks doesn't help a coach keep his job. A very good man and coach lost his job for no good reason, other than his team got old and needed to be rebuilt. Thomas Dimitroff said it at the 2013 scouting combine. The wolves win again.
Al from Wauwatosa, WI
Vic, the annual coaching turnover that occurs this time each year has me thankful the Packers have Mike McCarthy. Is finding a solid head coach, such as McCarthy, as elusive as finding a franchise QB?
I think there are more great coaches than there are great quarterbacks. What's most important in "finding" a great coach is providing an environment that promotes stability. The Packers do that; so do some other teams that have a track record of long-term success. The ones that are quick to fire their coach are also the ones whose fans are the quickest to demand that the coach be fired. In effect, those teams are being run by the fans.
Ryan from Austin, MN
What questions would you ask a head coaching candidate?
Plays or players? If he says players, I know he's a leader of men and he can lead my team to victory. With that, I wish everyone within the reach of this column a happy and healthy new year. Thank you for your kind thoughts of the past few days. Rest up this week, everybody. Next week, it gets real serious. Happy New Year!
