Packers finally get a road win after defeating the lowly Jets
The Packers avoided going winless on the road as they defeated the New York Jets 44-38 in overtime at the Meadowlands on Sunday.
It didn’t start out well for the Packers as they fell behind 14-0 and 21-7. In the fourth quarter, they trailed 35-20 before rallying to score 18 unanswered points to take a 38-35 lead with over a minute to go for the Jets, who got a long kickoff return and were in position to score a touchdown late, but they had to settle for a field goal and a 38-38 tie after four quarters. The Packers won the toss and marched down the field, aided by some penalties by the Jets. Aaron Rodgers finally hit Davante Adams in the endzone, ending the game and a 9-game losing streak going back to last season.
Some thoughts on the game:
The Packers won despite a poor day on special teams. They gave up a 99-yard kickoff return to Andre Roberts after scoring their first touchdown and a 51-yard return after they took a 38-35 lead, setting up the Jets’ tying field goal. Also, after the Jets scored a touchdown to take a 28-20 lead, J’Mon Moore fumbled the ball away on the ensuing kickoff return, setting up another Jets’ touchdown and a 35-20 lead. That is 17 points given up due to poor play on special teams.
Jamaal Williams had a nice day on the ground, totaling 95 yards on 15 carries and added 6 receptions for 61 yards, giving him 156 total yards for the day.
Davante Adams was busy, catching 11 passes but for only 71 yards. In fact, his longest reception was the game-winner. Obviously, the Jets took the deep ball away from Adams on this afternoon and forced other receivers to make plays. Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Jake Kumerow made some plays down the field.
Speaking of Kumerow, he came into the game totaling only 2 receptions for 16 yards. He had 3 receptions for 68 yards and his first career touchdown in this game. Hopefully it’s the start of some great things for the receiver from Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Aaron Rodgers has been ripped by the press and by fans a lot this year, and much of it was deserving, but he had his best overall game in quite a while, rushing for two touchdowns, passing for two, and throwing for over 400 yards. In fact, he is the only quarterback in NFL history to achieve all of those milestones in the same game and he has done it twice in his career. The other time was in 2011 vs Denver.
There was a lot of yellow on the field with 26 accepted penalties in this game. It’s not a big surprise when you have two teams with losing records. The Jets were flagged 16 times for 172 yards, including some killer ones in overtime.
Davante Adams has 111 receptions for the year so far and will likely break Sterling Sharpe’s single-season franchise record of 112 next week vs Detroit.
The last time the Packers won on the road before this game was at Cleveland last season as they escaped 27-21 in overtime vs the Browns, who would eventually finish 0-16. Both of the last two road wins for the Packers ended on a touchdown reception by Davante Adams in overtime.
I know the Jets are a bad team, but the Packers showed a lot of poise in coming back from a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter. How many of you thought the Packers were going to win this game when the fourth quarter started?
With the win, the Packers avoid finishing in last place in the NFC North and also avoid double-digit losses for the season. It doesn’t seem like much when you aren’t going to the playoffs, but you have to look for anything positive during a lost year such as this one.
Speaking of which, there was a lot of talk about whether the Packers would be better off losing for better draft positioning. It sounds ideal on the surface, but the players aren’t going to tank the rest of the season. Many of them are fighting for roster spots next year. Also, it gives the team a chance to develop some chemistry and have something to build on for next season. Besides, what does having a top-10 pick mean anyway? There are so many examples of teams who have blown high draft picks throughout the history of the league. The Packers are going to have chances to draft quality players, so I’m not going to worry about that.
It does feel good to get a win and end that awful streak of road losses. They will have to be a lot better on the road next year if they expect to go anywhere. They have one more game left before they call it a season. Next week, the Packers return home to face the Detroit Lions, who have won their last three games vs Green Bay. Let’s enjoy this win for now before we focus on Detroit later this week.
Finally, I am sure that most of you celebrate Christmas. Hopefully you get some nice gifts, but most of all, I hope you spend some quality time with your loved ones. Whether you celebrate it or not, may you all have much joy and peace not only this week, but throughout the rest of the year and in 2019 and beyond!
Go Pack Go!
@DieHardPackrFan #DHPF #GregGoshaw @gg901
