Packers grind out a 23-14 victory over the Vikings to take
back control of the NFC North!
Thanks to a couple of interceptions by Morgan Burnett (this week’s Defensive MVP) the PACK is BACK on top
of the NFC North at 8-4 (*really 9-3) and after losing to the Seahawks for real
the Bears are also 8-4 so the North will still come down to December 16th
at Chicago. The Vikings at 6-6 are still part of a wild chance for the final
playoff spot in the NFC.
Another dramatic swing in the game was when the Packers
lined up to go for the first down on a fourth-and-seven from the Vikings 29 in
the third quarter while losing 14-10. The Vikings called a Time Out, Packers
coach Mike McCarthy had a change of heart and sent slump-ridden Mason Crosby
out for a 47-yard field goal attempt. After doinking a short one in earlier and
missing a 53 yarder badly and then kicking the opening kickoff of the second
half out of bounds, Mason Crosby appeared to be out of a job. Mason not only
made this field goal but the dagger field goal late, thank you Vikings for
calling that Time Out. Maybe this will be the turning point in Mason Crosby’s
season and the Packers will be able to count on him down the stretch. Not MVP
worth by any means.
I give Offensive MVP to Aaron Rodgers. He had yet another solid game leading his team to victory on his 29th Birthday!
It was not just Crosby that had to overcome adversity in
this game. First, just as Greg Jennings comes back to lineup, very early in the
game Jordy Nelson goes out again with a hamstring problem. Then T.J. Lang gets
injured and the Packers are forced to use UNDRAFTED ROOKIE Don Barclay on an
already struggling Offensive Line. Like a Christmas miracle the line plays
better and suddenly the Packers have a running game again. When James Starks
scored on a 22 yard run I knew everything would be okay.
Everything was looking okay with the Offense but points were
being left out there as we continue to have trouble getting the finals yard for
first downs and wind up punting twice on 4th and short situations in
the second quarter. Still it was a 10-7 lead in the 2nd quarter on
the way to blowing out the Vikings.
All of the sudden Adrian Pederson goes off on the longest
Touchdown run of his remarkable career. I was very stunned that the ONLY
Minnesota Viking that is any good just gave his team the lead. A.P. continued
to run through the Packers Defense in the 3rd quarter but the
Packers did manage to go up 20-14.
Somewhere around the beginning of the fourth
quarter the best sign yet that this will be a Super bowl season was beginning
to happen.
The Packers went on an 11 minute drive, longest in the NFL
this season, which resulted in the clinching field goal by Mason Crosby.
Something like that is simply not possible without a solid running game. The
Packers just became a better team!
Someone said to me “Mike, can you really feel good about a
win like this” my simple response is “I feel great about this win” There is no
bigger wins than wins in division games. It’s been nearly two years since the Packers
have lost one of these NFC North games, the ones that really count.
What went right: It’s clear the
Packers will need to run the ball effectively to be a threat in January.
Against another team playing vanilla against the run, Green Bay was able to
take advantage. James Starks and Alex Green combined for 124 yards on 27
attempts. Starks’ bruising style and Green’s burst complemented each other well
Sunday. There weren’t many big plays to be had in the passing game against
Minnesota’s Cover 2, but Jermichael Finley (60 yards on six receptions) was
effective over the middle.
What went wrong: Peterson completely
tore up the Packers’ run defense start to finish. The undermanned Green Bay
defense missed tackles, was slow to react and let Peterson get to the second
level as Peterson finished with 210 yards on 21 carries. On his stunning
82-yard score, Burnett, M.D. Jennings and Tramon Williams all missed tackles.
The absence of Clay Matthews and C.J. Wilson certainly does not help, but
Peterson had a career day.
It is now time to address the problems that the naysayers
are pointing out:
1.
Offensive Line: This is still a problem area but
now we know why Thompson and McCarthy did not feel the need to go out and find
more experienced linemen. Just like all the other positions, our backups are of
good quality.
2.
Running Game: For the second time this season,
we had one. Will it continue, who knows?
3.
Inability to stop the run: We don’t play against
A.P. every week, thankfully.
4.
Aaron Rodgers hold on to the ball too long: Well
I disagree. Some of his best plays come because he is able to hang onto it and
get away and find someone to throw it to. Taking a few sacks does not kill a
team, interceptions do.
5.
The Kicker: To be continued…if Mason Crosby can’t
do it the packers will replace him; there is no shortage of decent kickers
looking for work.
YES, there are issues to clean up but it is like this with
every team in the NFL. The Texans have only one loss and it was when the
Packers beat em 42-24. The Falcons have only one loss but that is masking many
little problems they have much like the Packers 15-1 record did a year ago. I do
not advise betting money on the unpredictable NFL but if you are going to; you
should put it on the Packers to win it all.
Do you agree?
