Packers perfect season ends in pain in Kansas City
Packers lose two offensive tackles in ugly all-around loss
~KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Mike McCarthy never put a whole lot of stock in a perfect season, except as a means of gaining home-field advantage and setting the Green Bay Packers up for another Super Bowl run.
Well, they still have a chance to earn home-field advantage.
The perfect season? That’s history.
Kyle Orton threw for 299 yards to outduel Aaron Rodgers , and the Kansas City Chiefs rallied behind interim coach Romeo Crennel for a shocking 19-14 victory on Sunday that ended the Packers’ 19-game winning streak. It was their first loss since Dec. 19, 2010, at New England.
“I personally always viewed the undefeated season as, really, just gravy,” McCarthy said. “The goal was to get home-field advantage and win the Super Bowl. That’s what we discussed.
Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy talks with coaches in the booth during the first half of an NFL football game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
“We were fortunate enough to be in the position to possibly achieve the undefeated season,” he added, “but we still have the primary goal in front of us, and that’s to get home-field advantage.”
Green Bay, playing without leading receiver Greg Jennings and top rusher James Starks because of injuries, can wrap up the No. 1 seed in their final two games against Chicago and Detroit. But the Packers no longer have the pressure of becoming the second team in NFL history to win a Super Bowl with a perfect record, or extending the second-longest winning streak in league history.
“I think our goal ultimate goal is to win a Super Bowl. The next step is getting that number one seed in the playoffs,” Rodgers said. “We’ve got a home playoff game – we’ve got a bye secured.”
Rodgers was 17 of 35 for 235 yards and a touchdown, and he also scampered 8 yards for another touchdown with 2:12 left in the game. But the Packers (13-1) were unable to recover the onside kick, and Kansas City picked up a couple of first downs to secure the victory.
“They had a good game plan,” Rodgers said. “You have to give them credit.”
Ryan Succop kicked four field goals for Kansas City (6-8), which had lost five of its last six games and fired coach Todd Haley last Monday. Jackie Battle added a short touchdown plunge with 4:53 left in the game, points that came in handy when Rodgers led one last scoring drive.
“Everybody had marked it off as a win for the Packers, but those guys in the locker room, they’re football players,” Crennel said. “They decided they were not going to lay down, they were not going to give up, so they went out and played a tremendous game.”
Neither team looked all that tremendous in the first half.
Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson was hit twice with offensive pass interference, Rodgers was harassed by the Chiefs’ weak pass rush, and Green Bay wound up making five first downs.
One of them came when Kansas City’s Jeremy Horne ran into Packers punter Tim Masthay , giving them 15 free yards. The Chiefs tried to give Green Bay another gift later on the drive when Mason Crosby missed a 59-yard field goal attempt but Kansas City had 12 men on the field.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) is sacked again by Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Tamba Hali (91) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011, in Kansas City, Mo. The Chiefs won 19-14. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
With another chance from 54 yards, the normally reliable Crosby still pushed the kick right.
Rodgers finished the half 6 of 17 for 59 yards, with a handful of drops between wide receiver Donald Driver and tight end Jermichael Finley. In fact, things were going so badly for Green Bay that at one point it ran out of the wildcat despite having one of the best quarterbacks in the game.
The Chiefs were still clinging to a 6-0 lead when Rodgers finally hit down field, finding Finley over top the coverage for a 41-yard gain. Three plays later, the Packers’ star quarterback hit Driver in the corner of the end zone for a 7-6 lead with 8:04 left in the third quarter.
Green Bay Packers tackle Derek Sherrod is taken from the field after an injury during the second half. Sherrod broke his leg on the play, as Marshall Newhouse again let Tamba Hali run around him and Hali banged into Sherrod's leg, ending his season.
Kansas City answered when Orton hit his own tight end, Leonard Pope , for a career-long 38-yard catch. Jon Baldwin added a 17-yard grab to set up Succop’s 46-yard, go-ahead field goal.
The Packers moved into field-goal range on their ensuing drive, but rather than have Crosby attempt a 56-yard kick in the same direction he had already missed, McCarthy elected to go for it on fourth-and-9. Rodgers’ pass fell incomplete and the Chiefs took over.
They needed seven plays to cover 59 yards, but had to settle for another field goal and a 12-7 lead. It was the third time the Chiefs drove inside the 5 and had six total points to show for it.
They got seven on their next trip, though.
With first-and-goal at the 5, Thomas Jones managed to gain a yard and Le’Ron McClain bulled ahead for three more, setting up third down from just outside the goal line. Battle took the carry over the right side and powered into the end zone, giving the woeful Kansas City offense its highest-scoring game since the Chiefs beat San Diego in overtime in late October.
The Packers marched down field in the closing minutes, and Rodgers showed his moxie by scampering around the end for a touchdown that made it 19-14, but that was as close as they got.
Green Bay came into the game averaging nearly 36 points, but was held to its lowest total since beating the Chicago Bears 10-3 in Week 17 last year. The Packers needed to win that game to make the playoffs, and wound up riding the momentum to a Super Bowl victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers .
All that momentum finally came to an end against the most unlikely of scenarios.
“We set the tone on both sides of the ball,” Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson said. “This is the great thing about football. You can’t always look at the records, because you’ve got grown men out there who are all getting paid. You don’t have to be better on paper.
“If you’re better on that given Sunday, you’ll get the win.”
Original story here
Packers feeling defensive about the D
By Ashley Fox, ESPN
~The Green Bay defensive players know how the numbers look, and that the presumption is if the Packers lose a game this season, it will be because the defense, not the offense, lets the team down.
Defense, after all, wins championships in the NFL, and Green Bay’s D ranks 31st in total yards allowed and 31st in passing yards allowed, better only than the similarly flawed New England Patriots. The Packers have allowed a grotesque 394.7 yards per game, including 288.7 passing yards per game. Seven times the defense has allowed more total yards than the offense, which ranks third in the league overall, has put up.
The turnover help started in week one against the Saints. Here, Packers safety Nick Collins forces a fumble as he pops the ball free from Saints receiver Marques Colston. The Packers defense, even with a healthy Collins, otherwise didn't find any success in slowing Drew Brees and his high flying Saints.
It is all there, and the Packers players see it, but they see this, too: Green Bay leads the league in interceptions, and it is not even close. They have 27 this season. Three teams are tied for second with 18.
This year could be the exception to the NFL rule because, although struggling to stop teams from churning out yards, the Packers are effective creating turnovers and then turning those turnovers into points. Give Aaron Rodgers the ball, and he is going to make something good happen. The Packers’ defensive players know that too.
“Huge,” Packers safety Charlie Peprah said when I asked him to put a value on creating turnovers. The Packers stress it, and it will be especially true when the calendar flips to January and every possession matters.
“You know, most teams, especially moving forward, they’re going to try to steal possessions from our offense in some type of way,” Peprah said. “So our mindset on defense is to give a possession back to Aaron and them. If we can get a chance to catch a ball or cause a fumble, we’re trying to give it back to our offense as many times as we can. Let’s get up top and get ahead, and we can play our game. That’s kind of the mindset, man, just get the ball back to ARod and those guys as often and as much as possible.”
Second-year DL Mike Neal is finally shaking off the rust and is being counted on to provide some pass rush which has been missing since letting Cullen Jenkins go. Can Neal stay healthy long enough to get all the rust off, and show the skills that made Ted Thompson shock everyone by drafting him so high in 2010?
In Mike McCarthy’s tenure in Green Bay, the Packers are 46-6 (an .885 winning percentage) in the regular season when they win the turnover battle, and 6-20 (.231) when they don’t. In every game this season, they have either created more turnovers or finished even with the opponent. Their plus-20 turnover differential is second in the league, and their 104 points scored off turnovers is third.
Also, they are the only team this season with three players — Charles Woodson (seven), Tramon Williams (four) and Peprah (four) — who have at least four interceptions each.
“Turnovers are emphasized on this defense, and whether that comes in the form of interceptions, fumbles, fumble recoveries, it really doesn’t matter,” said Packers linebacker Clay Matthews, who picked off Eli Manning in Week 13 and returned the interception 38 yards for a touchdown.
“But it seems to me that we’ve got a lot of ballhawks on this defense who are making plays. Fortunately we’re able to come up with the majority of them. When we get our hands on them, that’s really key, especially when our offense is playing the way in which they are. To stop the opponent on offense and give it to ours, it usually turns out to be seven points for us.”
That was the case against Oakland on Sunday, when the Packers intercepted Carson Palmer four times. The first came on the Raiders’ opening possession when Brad Jones picked off a pass intended for Darrius Heyward-Bey, giving the offense the ball on the Packers’ 48-yard line. After a defensive holding penalty against Oakland, Ryan Grant busted a 47-yard run to give Green Bay a 7-0 lead.
In the second quarter, Woodson made his seventh interception of the season, stepping in front of a pass again intended for Heyward-Bey. Four plays later, Grant found the end zone again for a 31-0 lead.
The Packers did not score on the other two interceptions — by Rob Francois and Sam Shields — but Francois intercepted Palmer in the end zone at the end of the first half and Shields intercepted Palmer on the Raiders’ last possession, when the game was long over.
Green Bay Packers' Rob Francois (49) intercepts a pass in front of Oakland Raiders' Kevin Boss (87) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
“You know, the thing is, we expect [the offense] to score,” Woodson said. “So for us to come up with turnovers and get the ball back in their hands, we feel real good about what they’re going to do once they have an opportunity. … Those things work hand in hand. If you’ve got an offense and a quarterback that’s playing the way he’s playing, you give those guys opportunities and good things are going to happen for you.”
That will be the formula for the playoffs. An extra possession could be the difference between winning and losing, although the way the Packers are putting points on the board, at a rate of 35.8 per game, it might not matter.
The defensive players said they hoped to use the Raiders game as a building block. They would like to erase the perception that they aren’t very effective slowing teams down. The No. 31 ranking doesn’t tell the whole story of the Packers’ defense, but it is still there, a black mark on an otherwise stellar season.
“Well, I wouldn’t say [turnovers are] more important, because statistically you want to be tops in the league, but at the end of the day it’s all about winning,” Peprah said. “If that’s the formula and that’s what it’s going to take, then hey, that’s what we’re going to do.
While the Packers defense has given up far too many yards, and points, to be happy with their performance, they have scored plenty of points themselves. From back-to-back pick-6's off Philip Rivers in San Diego, to Clay Matthews taking one to the house from Eli Manning. Charles Woodson is due for a pick-6 next. Who will he victimize next? Orton? Hanie? Stafford?
“But at the same time, we want to make it look a certain way. It all matters, but right now we just need to keep turning the ball over and giving the ball back to Aaron, and that seems to be the right formula.”
Ashley Fox is an NFL columnist. Follow her on Twitter: @AshleyMFox.
By Ashley Fox, ESPN
Original story here
Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers named Sporting News Athlete of the Year
By Matt Crossman, The Sporting News
~This is how close games become not close games: Aaron Rodgers gets on a roll. On Thanksgiving Day, the Packers entered halftime with a 7-0 lead over the Lions but had been (arguably) outplayed and (decisively) outgained. On the opening series of the second half, Rodgers engineered an easy touchdown drive.
The next score would be crucial. The Lions moved the ball, but the Packers picked off a Matthew Stafford pass. With the Packers taking over at their 35, the Lions needed a stop to stay in the game. The Packers needed a touchdown to put it away.
It took one whip of Rodgers’ arm to see which team would win that battle.
Rodgers faked a handoff, saw the safety bite, noticed wide receiver James Jones wide-open and fired the ball on a line to him. Jones caught it and sprinted into the end zone. Game—and threat to the Packers’ pursuit of perfection—over. It was the most important pass of the game, the highlight of the day for the Packers, yet afterward, Rodgers seemed, well, a little disappointed in it. “I underthrew it a little bit, but I didn’t want to overthrow it. He made a nice catch.”
Jones caught the ball in stride and ran for more than 30 more yards virtually untouched; how those two things could be true and the ball could still be called underthrown is a mystery to everyone except Rodgers. Maybe he didn’t like the throw because Jones had to move his hands to catch it. Whatever. The idea that Rodgers would dump on his own pass should scare the bejabbers out of the rest of the NFL. Rodgers is playing at such a high level that he critiques his game-changing touchdown passes.
It’s because of that pass, and hundreds more like it, that Rodgers is Sporting News’ 2011 athlete of the year. Nobody in any sport played at a higher level than Rodgers has the past year. He threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns in the Packers’ Super Bowl victory in February, and he has led Green Bay to a 13-0 start this season. He is a lock to win the MVP award and has led some analysts to say he is playing the quarterback position as well as anybody ever has.
In three-plus years as a starter, Rodgers has gone from good to unreal without stopping at great. Sporting News asked players and coaches on teams the Packers have beaten this year how he does it. A sampling of their answers:
“He’s got it all,” says Rams cornerback Justin King.
“Everything that you ask for out of your quarterback, he has,” says Falcons corner Dunta Robinson.
“He has the total package,” says Broncos defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
“He’s got everything you want in a quarterback,” says Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher.
These answers are as mind-numbingly consistent as the man who provokes them. Probe a little deeper, though, and the answers start to vary. It’s his legs that make him stand out. No, it’s his arm. Nah, it’s how accurate his arm is when he’s using his legs. Forget that—dude is so smart, that’s what makes him special. Wait! You’ve got to hear about this guy’s vision. And on and on. Barely a body part goes unmentioned. Before long his pancreas will have an exhibit in Canton. This solidifies the idea that he’s the total package: From head to toe, he uses his whole body to carve up defenses.
FEET AND LEGS
“He’s very, very mobile,” says Bears defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli. “When he breaks that pocket, boy, he is tough. He’s accurate. He’ll run, but he is extremely accurate outside that pocket.”
But he’s almost sneaky about it. Nobody would call him a dual-threat quarterback. But he can beat defenders with his legs if they force him to run, and he can beat them with his arm if they force him to pass. It’s a lose-lose situation for the defense. Consider this example against the Rams. The Packers had a second-and-goal at the Rams’ 7 late in the second quarter. Safety Craig Dahl and King had wide receiver Donald Driver double-covered right at the goal line; Driver was sandwiched between them.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) runs with the ball against the Carolina Panthers during their NFL football game in Charlotte, North Carolina September 18, 2011. REUTERS/Chris Keane (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)
Rodgers broke the pocket, and he was heading toward the goal line, though he was still behind the line of scrimmage. Dahl and King had a decision to make: stay with Driver or pursue Rodgers before he ran in for a TD. They both broke for Rodgers, who in an instant pulled up and whipped the ball to Driver for a touchdown.
EYES
Jones says he’ll sometimes make a bad break on a route, and when he gets to the huddle, Rodgers will point it out, leaving Jones wondering how in the world Rodgers even saw it.
Rodgers sees lots of things others don’t. For example, he sees an open player where there isn’t one; there’s no other way to explain the number of passes that get caught by blanketed receivers. It happens so often and in so many different ways it has become normal. What’s remarkable about this is that usually, a quarterback who tries to fit the ball into such small holes often has a high number of interceptions or at least a poor completion percentage. But through 13 games, Rodgers has thrown only six interceptions (and has 39 touchdown passes) and has completed 69.6 percent of his passes—not far off Drew Brees’ all-time single season NFL record of 70.6. “He’s like an under-control gunslinger,” King says.
CHARLOTTE, NC - SEPTEMBER 18: Aaron Rodgers #12 of the Green Bay Packers walks down the field against the Carolina Panthers during their game at Bank of America Stadium on September 18, 2011 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
But vision is only part of the story with Rodgers’ eyes. It’s not just what he sees but where he’s looking, a lesson Robinson learned this season. “He started on his right and was coming back over to our left. He wasn’t even looking at the receiver. He just turned and threw it to a spot, and the receiver ended up catching the ball,” he says. “I thought I definitely had a chance to intercept the ball, but it got there so fast that I didn’t get a chance to get a hand on it. I just had to make a tackle at the end of the play.”
The tackle left Robinson one up on Panthers safety Jordan Pugh, who was beaten on a similar ploy by Rodgers that turned into a key 49-yard touchdown by Greg Jennings. “Aaron came out of the play-action, threw his eyes opposite of where he was going,” says Panthers head coach Ron Rivera. “Then he brought them right back. So he cleared everybody out to this side, and because he looked over to this side, Jordan was still hung out there by himself.”
A defensive back who is alone against a Packers wide receiver might as well not be there at all.
SHOULDERS AND HIPS
Rodgers’ shoulders and hips work in tandem to create fakes that give his receivers space. “He uses (his shoulders) to manipulate the DBs into thinking he’s going in one direction with the ball before swiveling elsewhere or using them for hard pump fakes on double-move routes,” says Charles Davis, an analyst on Fox and the NFL Network.
A good example of an effective pump fake came against the Rams. Angled toward the left sideline, he faked once—not just with his arm but with his shoulders and hips, too—then threw to a wide-open Jordy Nelson. This pass actually was underthrown; had it been on target, Nelson would have sprinted uncontested into the end zone. He scored anyway but had to beat the two defenders who caught up to him as he waited for the pass. Which, again, should scare the bejabbers out of the rest of the NFL: Even Rodgers’ “bad” passes turn into 93-yard touchdowns.
Davis adds this: “He’s carrying his team on his (shoulders), easily, and happily, and he always kept those same shoulders up while waiting for his shot behind you know who.”
HEAD
“The guy went to Cal,” says Rivera, who also went there. “So he’s a smart guy.”
Flashback: California quarterback Aaron Rodgers smiles as he walks off the field during Cal's 45-28 win over UCLA Saturday, Oct. 16, 2004 in Berkeley, Calif. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
Let’s hear from someone who doesn’t have an institutional bias: “He’s extremely intelligent, so it’s hard to fool him,” Allen says.
Rodgers doesn’t get rattled when teams try to rough him up, either; in fact, he seems to almost like it. After Lions end Kyle Vanden Bosch pummeled him a few times in the Thanksgiving Day game, Rodgers, wearing a sly grin, characterized Vanden Bosch’s trash talk as mild, almost as if he were disappointed Vanden Bosch wasn’t more abusive (vocally, that is).
Rodgers has unnatural patience, both in the pocket and in life. As Davis noted, he waited on the bench for three years behind Brett Favre before getting a chance to start, then weathered the preposterous controversy surrounding Favre’s departure with impressive grace. On and off the field, he is steady, and he rarely makes a bad decision. “For a guy who hasn’t started that many years for the Packers, he has a crazy amount of poise in the pocket,” says Bears linebacker Lance Briggs.
ARM
The best for last. None of these body parts would matter if Rodgers didn’t have an incredible arm, of course. His arm makes all the other parts work together.
Opponents, teammates and analysts marvel at the speed of his release, the velocity he gets on the ball and his ability to fit the ball into tight holes. There is no official stat for this, but he completes more passes to covered receivers than anybody in football. This is suggested to Nelson, and he breaks into a grin: “Are you saying we can’t get open?”
The Arm
Well, no, that’s not exactly the point. The point is this: When a quarterback constantly completes passes to covered receivers, there’s not much a defense can do. Says Vikings coach Leslie Frazier: “There are a number of times we look at tape and you say, ‘What do you tell that defensive back in that situation?’ The ball is thrown where only the receiver can make that play.”
Here’s a suggestion: Grin and bear it, buddy, you just got beat by Sporting News’ athlete of the year.
Original story here
One year since last loss, numbers tell tale of Packers dominance
By Don Banks, Sports Illustrated
~Perhaps it’s a byproduct of the league-wide obsession with all things Tebow, and the remarkable story that just keeps raging on in Denver, consuming more and more oxygen every week. Maybe it’s a bit of perfect-season fatigue, with the 2007 Patriots and the 2009 Colts having trod this same parcel of ground so recently. And without a doubt, some of it can be attributed to the Packers themselves, a small-market team almost devoid of drama, with no prima donnas or screaming need to draw attention to itself.
But somehow, and I’m not even sure how it’s possible in an NFL that receives year-round saturation coverage, it feels as if we’ve overlooked and underplayed the 13-0 saga that has unfolded in Green Bay this season. The defending Super Bowl champion Packers, like a well-oiled machine that hums along almost unnoticed in the background, just keep winning every week, but rarely take top billing in the NFL news cycle.
An amazing 19 different Packers have notched touchdowns this season, but Jordy Nelson leads the way with 10 scoring receptions.
Which means it’s high time we took notice of the high-water marks Green Bay is starting to post in this nearly unprecedented run of success. For starters, it was Week 15 of last season when Green Bay last tasted defeat, that strangely hopeful 31-27 Aaron Rodgers-less loss on a Sunday night in New England. It simultaneously pushed the Packers to the brink of playoff elimination at 8-6 and seemed to jump-start their memorable six-game sweep to the postseason and a Super Bowl title.
Let that one sink in a little. With one more win this Sunday at Kansas City, the Packers will have gone an entire 12 months without losing, logging a perfect year of a different kind. It would be Green Bay’s 20th consecutive victory, just one shy of New England’s NFL record 21, achieved during its back-to-back Super Bowl-winning seasons of 2003-04. A win at the struggling Chiefs (5-8) would also wrap up another piece of history for the Packers, their first No. 1 seed in the NFC playoff field since their Super Bowl season of 1996.
At that point, with two weeks remaining in the regular season, and holiday home games still to play against NFC North rivals Chicago (on Christmas night) and Detroit (New Year’s Day), the Packers could firmly set their sights on the record books. It is no secret in Green Bay. The Packers intend to fully embrace and chase the perfect season. The first 19-0 record in league history and consecutive Super Bowl titles would put them squarely in the discussion for the greatest team of all time.
“I mean, it’s out there,” Packers cornerback Charles Woodson said. “We’ve assured ourselves a spot in the playoffs, and really that’s all you can do at this point. Then once the regular season’s over and the playoffs start, all your focus is on that one prize and that’s to win the Super Bowl. Our goal is to finish this season the way we want to, playing Green Bay Packers football and trying to get the rest of these wins, and going into those playoffs on fire.”
See, there’s no rest-your-starters talk in Green Bay. Just a mentality of going out to “get the rest of these wins.”
“There’s no other team that can say it’s 13-0 right now and on the precipice of doing something great,” Packers linebacker Clay Matthews said. “But there’s still a lot left that we need to accomplish.”
Or as Packers nose tackle B.J. Raji succinctly put it, when asked about Green Bay’s quest for a perfect season: “It hasn’t been done in a few decades (the ’72 Dolphins of 17-0 fame), so we’re trying to add to history.”
The Packers have indeed added a little history to their long and storied franchise legacy in the past year. Let’s take a little closer look at their still-unfolding dominance from as many angles as possible. Because you get the feeling their days flying under the radar are almost at an end:
• Turns out there’s a very good reason you’re not hearing much about Rodgers and his ability to mount fourth-quarter comebacks like quarterbacks Tim Tebow of Denver or Eli Manning of the Giants. During Green Bay’s 19-game winning streak, the Packers have never trailed in the fourth quarter.
You got that? Nineteen games, never a fourth-quarter deficit. It’s the longest such streak in NFL history, and it’s not even close, with the Sammy Baugh-led 1942-43 Washington Redskins putting together a 13-game run. Green Bay was tied in the fourth quarter with the Giants in Week 13, and again last year in Week 17 at home against the Bears, but that’s it.
When given time, Rodgers has been a surgeon during the streak.
• Despite going just 10-6 in the regular season in 2010, the Packers notably went the entire year (four postseason games included) without trailing by more than seven points at any time. That impressive streak of competitiveness died rather early this year, when Green Bay fell behind 13-0 at Carolina in Week 2, a game the Packers rallied to win 30-23.
But Green Bay has still been dominant to a ridiculous degree. The Packers have played 52 quarters so far this season, and led at the end of 44 of them, or 85 percent of the time. During the 19-game winning streak, Green Bay has had a lead at the end of 64 of its 76 quarters of play, or 84 percent.
• If you made the Packers a two-touchdown favorite to win every game this season, you’re looking pretty smart so far. Green Bay has outscored its 13 opponents 466-278 in 2011, a league-best 188-point differential. That’s 14.5 points per game better than the other guys.
During the 19-game winning streak, the Packers have been almost as good. Green Bay holds a 642-374 scoring margin in that span, a 268-point bulge that translates to 14.1 points per game. No wonder there hasn’t been a need for many fourth-quarter comebacks.
• Green Bay’s total of 466 points this season is already a franchise record, besting the 2009 team’s 461 points. But these Packers have bigger fish to fry than that. Green Bay’s total is tied for the second most ever through 13 games since the 1970 merger, trailing only the record-setting 2007 Patriots (503 points).
New England scored a league record 589 points in going 16-0 that season, or 36.8 per game. Green Bay is averaging 35.8 points per game this season, a pace that would see it finish with 574, second-most ever. The Packers need to average 41.3 points in their last three games to score 590 this season, breaking the Patriots’ mark.
Improbable? Not really. The Packers have already had five games of 42-plus points this season, tying the 1971 Super Bowl champion Dallas Cowboys for the most such games in a season since the merger. During the 19-game winning streak, Green Bay has scored at least 42 seven times, or in 37 percent of its games.
• The Packers have 57 touchdowns this season, a team record, and 19 players have scored them, just two shy of the league record in that department. Green Bay has five times scored at least 28 points in the first half of games, and the other 31 NFL teams have combined for just nine 28-point-plus first halves this year.
“It’s a lot of fun to be a part of a team with a bunch of playmakers, who all know how to get into the end zone,” Woodson said. “This is a treat for me.”
The Packers have scored at least 30 points in 12 of the 19 games in the winning streak, and given up 30 or more just three times in that span (but twice in the past five games). They are the first defending Super Bowl champ to score at least 24 points in each of its first 13 games of the season, beating out the 2000 St. Louis Rams’ streak of 10 games to start the year.
• The Packers have plenty of Super Bowl-era success to draw upon, having made the game five times under three head coaches in three different decades. But their current 19-game winning streak blows away the Lombardi and Holmgren eras on that front. The longest winning streak for Lombardi’s Packers was 12 games, in 1961-62. And Mike Holmgren’s teams never won more than the nine in a row, accomplished by his twin Super Bowl clubs of 1996-97.
• One more win and Green Bay becomes just the fourth team in league history to open a season with a 14-0 mark, tying those ’72 Dolphins (in the era of 14-game regular seasons), as well as the 2007 Patriots and 2009 Colts (who finished 14-2, choosing in the final two weeks of the season to give many key starters rest for the playoffs).
The Packers’ road dominance is also starting to build some historical significance. Green Bay, with a win at Kansas City, would be just the sixth NFL team to go 8-0 on the road in a season, and it would give the Packers an 11-game road winning streak, counting their three away wins in last year’s playoffs (the Super Bowl is considered a neutral site game). Green Bay’s home winning streak stands at 11, and it has won 17 of its past 18 games at Lambeau Field, dating to 2009.
“I think we’re a good team anywhere,” Woodson said. “We’re one of the teams that travels well, and we’re a good team at home, too. For us, it really doesn’t matter where we play.”
GREEN BAY, WI - SEPTEMBER 19: Charles Woodson #21 of the Green Bay Packers runs onto the field during player introductions before a game against the Buffalo Bills at Lambeau Field on September 19, 2010 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
The Packers are certain to be playing at home in the playoffs this year. But Lambeau hasn’t been the overwhelming advantage in the postseason that it once was. The Packers are just 3-3 in their six playoff home games since the close of the Holmgren era in 1998.
• Rodgers is headed for his first NFL MVP award this season, and his 39 touchdown passes has already tied Brett Favre’s 1996 team record. But his most astounding statistic may be his league-record-tying 13 straight games with two or more scoring passes, a feat only he and Peyton Manning (2004) have accomplished in the first 13 games of a season (Tom Brady in 2010-11, and Don Meredith in 1965-66 also had 13 games in a row with two touchdown passes).
If Rodgers throws at least two more touchdowns against the Chiefs, his streak will stand alone in the NFL record book.
• While Green Bay’s defense takes a backseat to its high-powered offense, it remains one of the best units in the league in terms of takeaways. The Packers’ 27 interceptions this season are nine more than their closest competitor in that department. Just like last season, Green Bay consistently wins the turnover ratio statistic.
The Packers, during the course of their 19-game winning streak, are a plus-31 in the turnover category (51 takeaways, 20 giveaways) and they’ve either won or tied the turnover battle in 18 of those games, with only a minus-1 turnover ratio in Green Bay’s first-round playoff win at Philadelphia marring that trend.
• Unlike the Colts’ stance of two years ago, when Indy seemingly shied away from its shot at perfection, the Packers seem eager to carry the weight and expectation that comes with their historical accomplishments. They might rest some key starters, but only after they first secure another victory, or six.
“Players want to play, and we’re all competitors here,” Matthews said this week. “We play each and every Sunday to win ballgames. Obviously we’ve got to be smart, but we like winning. I like winning. I think we’re going to try to win some ballgames around here.
“It’s something only one other team in the history of the NFL has done. It’s something pretty special.”
Indeed. Something pretty special is unfolding in Green Bay, and I think it’s about time we all started paying a little closer attention. Even if it means tearing ourselves away from Tebow Time.
Original article found here
Jennings to miss 2-3 weeks, coach McCarthy says
From Mike Vandermause, Green Bay Press-Gazette
~Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Greg Jennings suffered a knee sprain against the Oakland Raiders yesterday and will need about 2 to 3 weeks to recover.
Packer fans shouldn't have to miss Jennings' smile for too long.
McCarthy said he expects Jennings, the Packers’ No. 1 receiver, will be ready for the playoffs, which begin for the Packers on the weekend of Jan. 14-15.
McCarthy said Jennings is going through treatment and will be in rehabilitation for the next couple weeks.
McCarthy's injury "evaluations & timelines" have occasionally been a bit off, so it remains to be seen when Jennings will actually be back. But the news on Jennings is a lot better than many Packer Nation fears were on Sunday night.
McCarthy said he hasn’t seen Jennings today but was told the receiver was in for treatment and was upbeat.
McCarthy said he feels fortunate the Packers will get Jennings back this season. There had been some speculation outside the building that he could be lost for the season.
McCarthy said next-day evaluation is as important as the initial on-field assessment.
Other highlights from McCarthy’s presser:
*Josh Sitton, who has been out with a knee injury, might be able to practice this week.
* Ted Thompson and McCarthy have had conversations about what to do if the Packers lock up homefield advantage early. But McCarthy stressed that the team is keeping its focus on Kansas City.
*The playing and practicing status of James Starks will be assessed on Wednesday.
* Robert Francois and D.J. Smith were awarded game balls for their performance against the Raiders. Each player had an interception.
Green Bay Packers' Robert Francois (49) intercepts a pass in front of Oakland Raiders' Kevin Boss (87) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011, in Green bay.
* Earning homefield advantage in the playoffs is important and it will be good to play a home post-season game for the first time since 2007.
*McCarthy repeated what he said yesterday about linebacker A.J. Hawk. It was his intention to play Hawk in the second half against the Raiders but with the lopsided score, McCarthy decided to give him extra time to rest his calf.
* He expects a highly contested football game against the Chiefs. He said he never likes to see head coaches fired and feels for the family of Todd Haley, who was canned on Monday.
* Linebacker Desmond Bishop will be close to practicing this week, while Hawk for sure will be ready to go.
* He’s optimistic Ryan Pickett and Brandon Saine will be available this week. They are going through concussion protocol.
* Chad Clifton was in the training room today. He’s got a chance to return. He feels good. If stays on course, he’s hopeful he will practice next week.
Full story here
All eyes on Greg Jennings knee
By Tyler Dunne, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
~Green Bay - Towel around his neck, wide receiver Greg Jennings gave the crowd a thumb’s up and was carted to the locker room. The Green Bay Packers have lived these nightmare scenarios before.
Midway through their 46-16 whipping of the Oakland Raiders, Jennings twisted his knee between a pair of defensive backs.
“It didn’t look very good, so we’ll see what the MRI says tomorrow and hopefully, you know, we got a bye wrapped up, so he really has close to five weeks before the next game, or our playoff game,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. “So hopefully we can get him ready for that.”
Green Bay Packers' Greg Jennings gives a thumbs up to the crowd as he is taken off the field on a cart after being injured during the second half of an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jim Prisching)
However this unfolds, Jennings’ injury is a cautionary tale. This is the danger Green Bay faces these final three games – more injuries. Nothing has slowed Rodgers. Green Bay’s defense enjoyed a breakout game. The Packers are a perfect 13-0.
But chasing immortality has its perils, its attempt-at-your-own-risk disclaimer. Losing Jennings would be a major blow. While sympathizing with the No. 1 wideout, players inside the locker room remain steadfast. They don’t want to dial it back.
“Tonight was a freak injury like they all are,” tight end Jermichael Finley said. “We have to keep this offense rolling right now. We have to keep a full head of steam.”
Nose tackle B.J. Raji added, “We have the talent and capabilities, so why not go for it?”
One reason? The injuries are adding up. Running back Brandon Saine and defensive end Ryan Pickett both suffered concussions Sunday. Green Bay entered the game without left tackle Chad Clifton (back/hamstring) and right guard Josh Sitton (knee sprain). Inside linebackers Desmond Bishop and A.J. Hawk remained out with calf strains. And Rodgers – the MVP front-runner fueling this run – absorbed several crushing hits.
In the second quarter, he was blasted by linebacker Aaron Curry. In the third, he was drilled by Rolando McClain. Rodgers was sacked four times and hit seven times.
Past teams have dealt with Green Bay’s plight differently. The 2007 New England Patriots played their starters and came within one Eli Manning drive of 19-0. The 2009 Indianapolis Colts, sitting at 14-0, yanked their starters. With a hodgepodge of backups, that team lost its final two regular-season games and then fell in the Super Bowl to New Orleans.
Inside the locker room here, the consensus is clear. Enough with the 16-0 questions. They’re thinking bigger.
While the Packers receiving corps is deep, Jennings is the number one guy, and losing him will hurt, without a doubt.
“We don’t want to talk about 16-0,” cornerback Tramon Williams said. “We want to talk about 19-0, if anything. That’s the only thing that really matters – 19-0. . . . We’re here in December. You don’t want to take your foot off the pedal going into the playoffs. We don’t want to slow down at all.”
Teammates agree. They’ve come this far. Yes, Jennings’ injury and those heavy hits on Rodgers are worrisome. But they don’t believe that should change their approach at all.
“I always felt that the team that lets their foot off the gas at the end of the season going into the playoffs is a little lackadaisical,” right guard Evan Dietrich-Smith said. “That’s when you let a team come into your house and beat you. We’re not looking for that. We’re looking to keep pushing.”
Kansas City, Chicago and Detroit stand in the Packers’ way. The latter two NFC North foes will be battling for their playoff lives. Green Bay might need to forge ahead without Jennings. The initial reaction was mixed. Veteran Donald Driver was optimistic and vague, saying he thinks Jennings “will be fine.” Finley reiterated the team’s “next man up” credo.
“Last year, I went down at the beginning of the season and Greg stepped up,” Finley said. “So this year, it’ll be on our receiving corps to step up.
“He’s a big-time playmaker on this offense, and he’s going to be missed. There’s going to be a lot of the shoulders of whoever takes his spot.”
The most likely scenario seems to be a torn medial collateral ligament, which does not require surgery and generally requires two to six weeks of recovery. Until Jennings undergoes an MRI, the extent of the injury is unknown.
If his role increases, Finley says he’s ready.
“No doubt,” he said. “I’m willing to take on that task and to tell you the truth can’t wait to take on that task and touch the pigskin.”
The Packers have been here before. Sixteen players succumbed to injured reserve last season. They know how to cope.
But this is somewhat different. Now injuries are striking within the prism of Green Bay’s pursuit of an undefeated season. Pointing toward the receivers’ empty lockers, Williams says he’s confident the offense will keep humming.
“We have a lot of firepower on offense,” Williams said. “It’s always unfortunate that a guy has to go down and to see another guy come in and do an excellent job. But that’s the way it is. It’s a game of opportunities. The next guy needs to step in and do what he has to do.”
Full story here
Packers make 13-0 look easy
By Michael David Smith
~Oakland and Green Bay may both have NFL franchises, but the Raiders are not in the Packers’ league.
Sunday’s game in Green Bay was so lopsided that the Packers had it wrapped up by the midway point of the second quarter, when they took a 31-0 lead. The entire second half felt like garbage time; the final score was 46-16 but the Packers easily could have made it 60-0 if they had wanted to.
For Green Bay, Aaron Rodgers actually had his worst statistical game of the season, completing 17 of 30 passes for 281 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception, for a passer rating of 96.7. Rodgers has reached the point where he has what qualifies as a bad game for him, and his passer rating is nearly 100 and his team wins by 30. Ryan Grant had a good game on the ground, with 85 yards on 10 carries and two touchdowns.
Green Bay Packers' D.J. Smith reacts after intercepting a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
For Oakland, Carson Palmer threw four interceptions in a generally dreadful game. The Raiders are now a game behind Tebowmania in the AFC West, and their playoff fortunes are falling fast.
Then again, the way the Packers played today, anybody would have lost to them. At 13-0, Green Bay is on another level from the rest of the league, and the biggest question facing the Packers right now is whether they can follow up three more wins in the regular season with three wins in the postseason. This team has a good shot at 19-0.
Full story here
Rapid Reaction: Packers 46, Raiders 16
By Kevin Seifert, ESPN.com
~GREEN BAY, Wis. — A few thoughts on a 60-minute romp at Lambeau Field:
What it means: The Green Bay Packers won their 19th consecutive game, dating to last year and including the playoffs, to grab sole possession of second place on the NFL’s all-time list of winning streaks. The record is 21, held by the New England Patriots. Now 13-0, the Packers have clinched a first-round bye in the NFC playoffs. They can secure home-field advantage throughout with their next victory. Finally, the Packers have set a team record for points scored in a season, breaking their 16-game mark of 461 set in 2009.
Jennings injury: The Packers began removing their starters when the fourth quarter began, but that was too late to avoid a scary injury to one of their best players. Receiver Greg Jennings limped off the field in obvious pain after suffering a left knee injury early in the third quarter. He never put any weight on the leg and ultimately left the field on a cart. We’ll get you further word as soon as we can.
RodgersWatch: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw for 281 yards in about three quarters of plays. Among his most impressive plays: a 37-yard touchdown pass to receiver Jordy Nelson while trying to catch the Raiders in a defensive switch.
Oakland Raiders' Aaron Curry tackles Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. The play was ruled an incomplete pass, and Rodgers was not injured on the ominous looking tackle. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
Rodgers surpassed the 4,000-yard mark for the season in the second quarter, tying for the second quickest to that milestone in NFL history. (Drew Brees did it for the New Orleans Saints in 12 games.)
Injury report: The Packers opened the game without tailback James Starks, but starter Ryan Grant had a 47-yard touchdown run on the Packers’ first official play from scrimmage. Grant finished with 85 yards and had to play late in the fourth quarter because backup Brandon Saine suffered a head injury.
Takeaway city: The Packers defense intercepted Raiders quarterback Carson Palmer four times and also scored on a 5-yard fumble return by linebacker Erik Walden. That’s 27 interceptions for the Packers this season.
First time for everything: Packers tight end Ryan Taylor caught a 4-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. It was not only his first NFL catch, but also his first play from scrimmage on offense, according to ESPNMilwaukee.com corporate cousin Jason Wilde.
What’s next: The Packers will travel to the Kansas City Chiefs next Sunday in search of their 14th win of the season.
Story found here
Packers raid end zone, crush Oakland 46-16
Associated Press
~GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Winning every week is one thing. On Sunday, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers made a legitimate playoff contender look like a team that was ready to pack its bags.
Rodgers threw for 281 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in less than three full quarters’ worth of work, Ryan Grant had two touchdowns rushing and Charles Woodson picked off a pass against his former team as the Packers trounced the Oakland Raiders 46-16.
Packers running back Ryan Grant finds a seam for yardage Sunday against the Raiders. Grant ripped off a 47-yard touchdown, and scored another one as he finally feels healthy and looks to be rounding into form as December rolls on.
The Packers ran their record to 13-0 – leaving them only three games short of completing a perfect regular season. And they did it with a near-perfect performance.
Carson Palmer threw for 245 yards with a touchdown and four interceptions for the Raiders (7-6), who looked like anything but legitimate contenders in the AFC West.
With little actual drama in the game, the biggest concern for the Packers was an apparent left knee injury to wide receiver Greg Jennings in the third quarter.
Green Bay Packers' Greg Jennings gives a thumbs up to the crowd as he is taken off the field on a cart after being injured during the second half of an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jim Prisching)
Green Bay defensive lineman Ryan Pickett also walked to the locker room after sustaining a head injury in the third quarter. Also, running back Brandon Saine suffered a possible concussion in the first half.
Rodgers got an early rest in the blowout, as backup Matt Flynn took over late in the third.
Oakland was playing without injured running back Darren McFadden , along with wide receivers Jacoby Ford and Denarius Moore . And the Raiders made plenty of mistakes to help an opponent that doesn’t really need it. Palmer threw an interception on the Raiders’ first possession, and Oakland committed eight penalties in the first half alone.
And while the Packers’ play has been far from perfect for most of the season, especially on defense, this one was total domination.
Green Bay had four touchdowns and a field goal on its first five possessions. Things got out of hand so quickly that the Raiders tried a fake punt midway through the second quarter. As was the case for most things the Raiders attempted Sunday, it didn’t work.
Grant rediscovered his big-play ability for the Packers, breaking a 47-yard run two plays after Palmer threw an interception to rookie linebacker D.J. Smith on the Raiders’ first possession.
The Packers were without injured running back James Starks , who had surpassed Grant in the Packers’ rotation. Until that play, Grant hadn’t looked like his explosive old self for most of the season.
After a defensive stop, Rodgers directed a 10-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Taylor – the rookie’s first career touchdown.
Trailing 31-0 with about six minutes left in the half, the Raiders tried the fake punt. But Shane Lechler threw high to Rock Cartwright for an incompletion, and the Packers took over at the Oakland 28-yard line.
The Raiders ran into more bad luck on the second-half kickoff, when Green Bay’s Randall Cobb appeared to step out of bounds during a 50-yard return. Officials said the replay system was malfunctioning, and the Raiders couldn’t challenge.
But Jennings had to go to the locker room after hurting his left knee early in the third quarter, and the Raiders finally got on the scoreboard when Michael Bush ran for a 2-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 34-7.
Packers outside linebacker Erik Walden scored on a fumble return late in the third quarter. Walden has been in trouble off the field for the Packers and was charged Wednesday with misdemeanor disorderly conduct-domestic abuse following an altercation with his girlfriend.
Full story here
Green Bay Packers defeat New York Giants 38-35, remain undefeated
By Mike Vandermause, Green Bay Press-Gazette
~EAST RUTHERFORD, N.Y — Mason Crosby kicked a 30-yard field goal on the last play of the game, keeping the Green Bay Packers’ undefeated season going with a 38-35 victory over the New York Giants on Sunday.
The Giants had tied the game at 35 with 58 seconds left on a 2-yard touchdown pass from Eli Manning to receiver Hakeem Nicks and a two-point conversion run by D.J. Ware.
Aaron Rodgers then drove the Packers downfield, hitting four straight passes to put Crosby in field-goal position at the Giants’ 12-yard line with 3 seconds left.
Green Bay Packers kicker Mason Crosby (2) is mobbed by teammates after kicking the game-winning field goal Sunday against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. / Evan Siegle/Press-Gazette
The Packers took the second-half kickoff and drove 80 yards in 10 plays, with Rodgers hitting Greg Jennings on a 20-yard touchdown pass and 28-17 lead with 9:50 remaining in the third quarter.
The Giants responded with a five-play, 71-yard scoring drive, with Manning hitting Hakeem Nicks on a 4-yard scoring pass against Charles Woodson. Nicks caught four passes for 71 yards on the drive.
On the first play of the second quarter, Clay Matthews intercepted Manning and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown to give the Packers their first lead of the game, 14-10.
But Aaron Rodgers was picked off deep in Packers territory by Chase Blackburn, who returned it 9 yards to the Giants’ 12. Two plays later Brandon Jacobs scored on a 1-yard TD run to put New York ahead 17-14.
The Packers responded with an 11-play, 80-yard drive for a touchdown, with Rodgers connecting with a wide open Donald Driver on a 13-yard scoring pass.
Clay Matthews first half pick-six of Eli Manning was the biggest play of the game for the defense and one of few times the Giants offense was stopped by the Packer defense.
Mason Crosby missed a 43-yard field goal on the final play of the half that could have given the Packers a 24-17 lead.
Manning connected with tight end Travis Beckum on a 67-yard touchdown pass on the third play of the game, with Charlie Peprah getting beat in coverage.
The Packers responded with a 64-yard TD drive getting capped off on a Rodgers 12-yard touchdown pass to Jermichael Finley.
Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes booted a 38-yard field goal to put the Giants ahead 10-7.
The Packer Express returns to Green Bay to face the Raiders on Sunday at Lambeau Field.