Defensive back has stayed a sore spot for the New England Patriots for years. Bill Belichick has a knack for getting the most out of veterans though. Could that mean Green Bay Packers corner Charles Woodson is an option?

Casey Heyward makes Woodson too expensive for Packers

It's never comfortable for fans to know they're about to see their team cut a player that helped them win a championship. That is what Green Bay Packers faithful had to hear when news broke their team planned on cutting ties with star corner Charles Woodson. Due $9 million in 2013 and sitting at age 36, it was bad time for the former Defensive Player of the Year to miss most of the season with a broken collar bone. In his absence, rookie Casey Heyward snagged eight interceptions and made a push for a permanent spot as a starter. Faced with a younger, cheaper option the choice was obvious for Green Bay. Woodson did amazing things for them but just is too expensive to keep around. Early remarks hint he is in the market to join another contender, hoping for one more run at a championship. Given the weak market of corners this offseason, it won't take long for him to find work.

Aqib Talib fate will decide Patriots NFL offseason objectives

New England is certainly a team that would take that chance. Head coach Bill Belichick has a proven history of getting the most out of discarded veterans. Retired safety Rodney Harrison joined the team at age 33 and promptly helped them win two Super Bowls. Randy Moss came over from a forgettable stint in Oakland at age 31 and scored a record-breaking 23 receiving touchdowns his first season. Older players seem to thrive in the Patriots system, which is why Woodson is a very interesting idea. New England has issues to work out in their secondary. The biggest of them is thefuture of corner Aqib Talib. In just six games after getting traded from Tampa Bay, Talib had a solid run in helping the Patriots to another AFC championship. That should help him greatly when he hits free agency in March. Many wonder if the Patriots should use their franchise tag to keep him but that would cost $10.5 million and severely limit their salary cap. On the other hand they could let him walk and bring in a cheaper option like Woodson until they find a young replacement.

Charles Woodson still has some life left in his body. The Green Bay Packers will release him for the simpler reasons of money. If the New England Patriots aren't sure about Aqib Talib, then there is no harm is bringing the crafty vet in on a short-term deal.

With Super Bowl 2013 odds available, there's always fun bets released involving the performance of the national anthem, color of Gatorade used to dowse the winning coach, and which side the coin will land face up with. In this year's Ravens vs. 49ers game, some of the different situations offered by various sports book outfits include those focused on the new star QB, Colin Kaepernick.

With Super Bowl odds currently favoring the 49ers to win the big game by about 3 to 4 points, the other prop situations are where the real fun begins. Sure, there's been examples of celebrities winning big bucks on predicting who will win the NFL championship game, but how about correctly picking how long the anthem will last, or other prop items related to players. Or how about predicting how well Colin Kaepernick will play for San Francisco against the Baltimore squad?

A report from Yahoo! Sports indicates there were at least 12 prop bets related to Kaepernick currently available at the William Hill Race & Sports Book. There's estimates that this could increase to 30 bets by the time the game. Currently, some of the Kaepernick situations include a wager on whether or not he will have more pass attempts than Lebron James has points against Toronto on Sunday. There's another one pitting his amount of touchdown passes against soccer star Lionel Messi's number of goals scored against Valencia.

Colin Kaepernick has certainly emerged as one of the top stars to watch in this game, and he's joined by Ravens star Ray Lewis. These are the major stories, as well as the fact it's the battle of the Harbaugh brothers. By the way, one bet Kaepernick won't want to think about is whether or not 49ers quarterback Alex Smith will take a snap from center. Right now, the odds are against it, and Kaepernick hopes it stays that way. No hard feelings, Alex.

Passing teams don't usually invest in running backs but the Green Bay Packers may have to until they can figure out their offensive line problems. Is Eddie Lacy and Marcus Lattimore possible options in the draft?

Aaron Rodgers not sure if Cedric Benson or DuJuan Harris are answers

Scoring points wasn't the problem for Green Bay most of the 2012 season. Aaron Rodgers did his usual damage to defenses but any fan who knows the game of football saw the Packers just didn't look the same. Scoring points in pro football isn't the same as controlling the game. To paraphrase NBA coach Doc Rivers, there's a difference between scoring the most points and scoring the big points. That is something Green Bay did in 2010 when they still had an investment in running the football. Since then they have leaned on Rodgers and chosen to hand the ball to veteran castoffs like Cedric Benson and unproven rookies like DuJuan Harris. Both showed flashes of solid play throughout the season but never took it to a level that allowed the Packers to confuse defenses. That in turn led to over 50 sacks on the season and serious questions about how the team will protect their MVP. Upgrading the line is obvious, but has the time come for a serious move to find an every down runner?

NFL draft will not favor running backs again despite talent level

The talent level hasn't dipped at all since the days of Jim Brown for running backs but the rules and trends have changed. The NFL is a passing league first, meaning quarterbacks and receivers take priority over bell cow runners. The case stays the same for 2013 crops. None of the top names entering the draft are expected to reach the first round. Among them include BCS championship MVP Eddie Lacy and talented but snake bitten back Marcus Lattimore. Both have the skill sets to succeed on any pro roster but aren't clear set on any place to land since they might not go until the second round. Lacy comes from a long line of successful Alabama running backs. If not for two devastating knee injuries, Lattimore has the complete set of skills from running to pass blocking to become a fixture on any team. Green Bay has its own agenda with the draft but GM Ted Thompson can't keep ignoring a roster spot that needs talent like every other. Either player would take loads of pressure off Aaron Rodgers simply by standing in the huddle.

Eddie Lacy and Marcus Lattimore don't have the rulebooks on their side but talent is talent. The Green Bay Packers have a history of taking risks when the talent is clear. There's no reason to see that stopping with running backs.

For the second straight season, the Green Bay Packers ended their season in the NFC Divisional playoffs. The Packers played the San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 12, 2013. The 49ers won 45-31. On the opening possession, 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown. Kaepernick followed that up with 181 rushing yards. That set an NFL record for rushing yards from a quarterback. He also had 263 passing yards.

Dom Capers is in his fourth season as the defensive coordinator. In each of those seasons, the Packers reached the playoffs. During the 2010-11 season, his defense allowed the second-fewest points in the league. That helped the team win Super Bowl XLV.

Capers deserves praise for that season. However, his defenses have played a major role in the playoff losses. During the 2010 NFC Wild Card, the Arizona Cardinals scored 51 points. During the 2012 NFC Divisional round, the New York Giants scored 37 points. Add in the 49ers game, and Capers' defense has allowed 44.3 points per game in three playoff losses. During the 2011-12 season, his defense allowed more passing yards than any unit in NFL history.

The Packers had no answer for Kaepernick. Was Capers trying to find one? He kept playing man defense without a spy defender. Since nobody covered Kaepernick, he just ran the football. Capers magnified the problem with blitzes that didn't reach the quarterback. When Kaepernick got away, there was no one to stop him from getting a first down. Or in some cases, a touchdown.

Mike McCarthy has shown loyalty to players. Mason Crosby is an example of that. Can McCarthy afford to show the same loyalty toward Capers? Why weren't adjustments made in the second half? Why doesn't the defense play with more fire and intensity?

With the new trend of running quarterbacks, the Green Bay Packers must find a defensive coordinator who can stop read option plays.