The game lived up to the hype, believe it or not. For months the date was circled on the calender for Packer and Viking fans alike. Leading up to the game as the weeks wore on it looked as if it was Adrian Peterson who would dominate the stat sheet when all was said and done. Instead it was Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers who put up the big numbers.

The two teams traded blows as the game opened. Rodgers moved the ball down field on the opening drive only to fumble following a Jared Allen sack, one of his 4.5 on the night. Favre responded by leading the Vikings to the one before tossing a touchdown pass to Visanthe Shiancoe.

On the following possession Rodgers hit Jermichael Finley for a 62-yard TD and the battle continued, though you got the feeling that it was only a matter of time before the Vikings took control of the game.

The reason: Rodgers was under constant, and constant being an under statement, pressure from the Vikings defensive line all night long. Jared Allen was absolutely relentless in his rush and seemed to have set up camp in the Packers backfield hounding Rodgers from the first snap of the game. Despite all the pressure, Rodgers was able to put up some huge numbers through the air.

Favre was able to do the same, something most didn't think he would have to do. Unlike Rodgers though, Favre had what seemed like minutes to throw at times and had to be far more comfortable in the pocket than his counterpart.

It was a far cry from the game people thought they were going to see. The consensus was that Adrian Peterson would be piling up yards at a record pace. Instead he was held to just 55-yards and 2.2-yards per carry and was stripped of the ball by Clay Matthews who returned it 42-yards for a Packers touchdown. If you rattled off those stats to an unsuspecting fan, he might ask you how much Green Bay won by.

The game was as entertaining as billed, and as I suspected, Rodgers was able to keep his team in the game for the most part. The turnovers and the offensive line play were just too much to overcome in the end.

So what did we learn from this match up between these two NFC North opponents?

1. The Packers offensive line is terrible. This was a nightmare match up for Green Bay, and the eight sacks brings the Packers total to 20 on the season. That leads the league.
   
2. Aaron Rodgers is really good. Despite all that pressure, he still managed a passer rating of 110.6 and threw for nearly 400 yards.
   
3. Can't we just agree that Brett Favre leaving the Packers worked out for both parties? C'moon.
4. The Vikings could be a scary team to face if you can hold Adrian Peterson to 55 yards and they can still control a game.
5. The Packers offensive line is terrible.
6. Favre is pretty, pretty, pretty good. You gotta give it up to him for that performance. But seriously, does "Jaws" have to be so ga-ga over him.
7. Are Packer fans sick of Deanna Favre yet? I was...in 2002.
8. Jared Allen is a complete terror on that defensive line. Did you enjoy that performance Bears fans? Ask yourself this, "Can Orlando Pace stop him?"
9. The word "fun" was used too much before, during and after the game.
10. The Packers offensive line is terrible.

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Write comment

Name

Email

Website

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (registered users only)

Add Comment