All Packer fans have to be feeling a lot like the Jeffersons only in reverse. We're not moving on up to the deluxe apartment in the sky, but rather down to the janitor's closet in the basement.

As with all professional sports, it's not that far from the Penthouse to the cellar and the Green Bay Packers are now officially the residence of the cellar in the NFC North, and tied with Houston for that distinction for the entire league.

Is that going to be the race for the #1 draft pick next year?

But just how far have the Packers fallen? They're 1-6 for the first time in like forever (not since 1991). Favre has never been in this situation before. Go all the way back to when he was chucking the pigskin around the bayous of Mississippi as a kid he's never been on a team that was 1 up and 6 down. Holy smokes! Then add the crazy fan that had gotten on the field and took off with the ball right out of his hand, and it's a wonder he's not in a rubber room somewhere. As for that melt-down at the end of the Bengals' game... Fuget'boutit.

The simple fact is he didn't know how to handle the predicament he's found himself in. Favre's mind, his body, his winning spirit just couldn't handle it anymore. It was obvious, for that brief moment in time, Favre lost touch with reality and nearly imploded right there on the field. He should have spiked the ball and gathered his team and his senses, but then things got jumbled. Instead of spiking the ball, Favre tried to trick the Bengals with a fake spike. Problem was, nobody else on the Packers saw it coming. Favre was left to try and make something happen on his own but quickly discovered the Bengals hadn't been fooled. They ran him down and the game was over.

But you can't blame him for what happened. Favre was being Favre. He was looking to make something happen. Yes, he threw a career high 5 interceptions, but given the fact he was trying to pass to what amounted to four #4 receivers, it was pretty amazing he didn't have more. The fact that the Packers are running, and have been running the West Coast offense for too many years to count (since 1992), they should realize they don't have the horses to get the job done. Sherman should be wise enough to know the logistics to running his offense.

The West Coast offense was constructed to be played with big, strong, powerful receivers like Sterling Sharpe, Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens and so on. Not with the likes of Antonio Chatman, Andrae Thurman and Lawrence "Taco" Wallace.

Not exactly the three amigos. As a matter of fact, because of their size, some are calling the Packers receiving corps their very own version of "The Smurfs."

Sort of puts a chill in the air, doesn't it?

Anyway, with the depleted team left to sputter along with a cast of misfits, everyone says that things will be okay but the other players have to step up. Step up?

Good luck.

Seriously, who exactly are they expecting to step up, some kid named Taco? And where do they expect him to go? What exactly do they think he's capable of doing? I mean, he's basically a nobody. There's a reason players such as Thurman and "Taco" Wallace were on the street midway through the season. And now they're being asked to play key roles in the offense? That's ridiculous. Or in the words of Mike Tyson, "It's ludicrous..."

You can't win with inferior players like those guys and again, I'm not taking anything away from those guys, it's just that they're not pro-caliber players. They might be someday but right now ... not so much.

Of course, what do the Packers have to choose from? There's no real talent floating around out there anymore. The Packers' front office already blew their chance of getting anyone with the talent to contribute. They stood with their hands in their pockets while the few good receivers that had been available signed with other teams.

And there's nobody left to help the Packers' bulimic running game, either. A huge side note: Pittsburg comes into Lambeau with a running game ranked fifth in the league with a pair of running backs that have already combined for almost eight hundred yards, while the Packers will come to play on Sunday with their running game hobbled, and consisting of one running back who's rushed for 71 yards and one TD. I don't see the threat of that sort of running game putting a whole lot of fear into the Steelers' defense.

So where can the Packers go from here?

One might think they can only go up but hold the phone. There's still nine games left and it's not improbable to find them 1-15 by season's end.

However, Packer fans can be optimistic because according to some recent polling of the players, they all agree that things are just hunky-dory in Packerville. Some players were asked what they thought about Sherman's performance thus far this season and most--not all--said they don't blame him for what's gone wrong. And they expect, and want, him to return next year.

Now a word of caution here. Don't expect the players to start bashing their coach or organization in public just yet. Ask Joey Thomas about that. He publicly disagreed with his benching, and said the coach was wrong about his playing ability being sub-par. Now he's looking for work.

However, the Packers claim it had nothing to do with his public comments. They said they weren't able to get through to the young cornerback, and they were fed up with all of his mistakes, and that was why they waived him.

Are we at the point in the season now where we will start to see heads roll out on Lombardi Avenue?

I mean, it took very little for the Packers to waive the second year CB. It didn't matter that Joey Thomas was a third round pick. He hung around 1265 Lombardi Avenue a little more than 19 months before he was tossed out the door. Some see it as just another example of Sherman's bumbling antics in handling the team. Side note: Thomas was the 70th player selected in the 2004 draft, and became the highest-picked player during Sherman’s tenure as general manager to be released.

And what's worse, the Packers replaced him with a virtual nobody. Jeremy Thornburg claimed on waivers from 49ers. The 6-foot, 196-pound defensive back was initially signed with Philadelphia as a rookie free agent back in April. However, Thornburg was inactive for the Eagles' first four games and then waived on Oct. 10. Which begs the question, was Thomas let go to send a message to the other players to keep their cake holes shut? Was he expendable in order to nip any sort of rebellion in the bud?

Joey Thomas probably thinks so. . . .

So don't look now, Weezie, but it appears the Packers won't be getting the keys to the penthouse any time soon.

Until next time ... Keep Driving Forward.