Packers get gritty (and Griddy) win over the Minnesota Vikings
The Packers improved to 8-8 after their dominant 41-17 pounding of the Minnesota Vikings.
After forcing the Vikings to punt on their opening possession, the Packers went nowhere and had to punt themselves but had it blocked and set up Minnesota in prime position to score a touchdown to open up the scoring. The defense held and forced the Vikings to kick a field goal. Their lead lasted only 13 seconds as Keisean Nixon took the kickoff back 105 yards for the touchdown. They added another touchdown return on a pick-6 by Darnell Savage before the quarter ended. Then the offense came to life. They led 41-3 before the Vikings scored some touchdowns late for score cosmetics.
Thoughts about this awesome win:
When Pat O’Donnell got his punt blocked to give the Vikings the ball at the Packers 1-yard line, I know what many of you were thinking. Were the special teams going to be our undoing again? I can’t blame you, especially with last year’s playoff game vs the 49ers still fresh in our minds.
I thought the goal-line stand was huge. The defense showed they weren’t going to be pushed around. The Vikings got their field goal, but then they gave the lead away on Nixon’s kickoff return for a touchdown. It was the first one for the Packers since Randall Cobb ran one back vs the Saints in his first game as an NFL player back in 2011. If you remember, it was the Packers’ first game since winning Super Bowl XLV. Have the Packers found their Devin Hester? At the very least, they may have found their Desmond Howard or perhaps their own Dante Hall. Remember him with the Chiefs back in the 2000’s?
Kirk Cousins was under a lot of pressure in this game. He hung in there in the second half, but in the first half, he couldn’t do much right. His pass on 4th down was deflected and intercepted by Darnell Savage, who took it the distance for his first career touchdown. Both Savage and Nixon had their first career touchdowns in this game.
The Packers had that punt blocked, but overall, they were the better team on special teams in this game. Minnesota’s kicker, Greg Joseph, missed two field goals, the second one late in the first half. Aaron Rodgers completed a few passes and then turned things over to Mason Crosby to try a 56-yard field goal before the half. His kick bounced off the crossbar and went through and even reached the net. It was the first time I can recall that he got the benefit of one of those bounces. He’s still got it. He lived up to his name as Mason Crossbar, a name that Skip Bayless gave him after he kicked those two “lucky” (in Skip’s opinion) field goals late in the game on the road vs the Cowboys to knock them out of the playoffs.
The defense gave up some yards, but they were aggressive for much of the game. They were physical and took it to the Vikings. That is how you beat that team. They forced 4 turnovers, 3 on interceptions and a fumble, and they scored touchdowns on all 4 takeaways, 1 directly on the pick-6 by Savage. That is what wins football games. They had a little bit of everything. Rodgers even ran it in himself late in the fourth quarter.
Jaire Alexander had some help, but he backed up his words when he said that Justin Jefferson’s huge game in Week 1 vs the Packers was a fluke. He helped frustrate Jefferson for much of the game and even did the Griddy, Jefferson’s patented celebration move. Say what you want about all of the antics, but if you talk the talk, you’d better walk the walk, and Jaire sure walked the walk or at least danced it.
I probably shouldn’t even mention this guy, but what’s up with Za’Darius Smith? The Packers took a chance on him in 2019 and made him a starter. He energized the defense and the fans embraced him. He got hurt his final year in Green Bay and the Packers weren’t going to bring him back for that much money. He goes to the Vikings and has a fine year, but he had almost no impact on this game. He refused to shake hands with any of the Packers before the game and he quickly ran off the field after the game while other players were embracing and chatting on the field. If you burn bridges like that, you’d better make it worth your while. It’s doubtful the Packers will invite him back for a roster spot, and it may be a long time, if ever before he will end up in the Packer Hall of Fame.
This is certainly a gratifying win for us Packer fans. It keeps us alive for a playoff spot, especially since the Browns won at Washington. Now the Packers only have to win next week vs the Detroit Lions and they are in the playoffs. There is another reason why this win is so sweet. Could you imagine the trash talking from the Vikings’ fans had their team won and knocked the Packers out of playoff contention? There is still a possibility these two teams could meet in the opening round of the playoffs, but with the Vikings in the #3 spot at the moment and the #2 49ers needing to lose next week and the Vikings needing to win, it isn’t very likely right now.
The Packers have come a long way from their struggles in the middle of the season, especially during their 5-game losing streak. A few weeks ago, probably not many people would have thought it was possible the Packers would defeat the Vikings, let alone blow them out, even with Minnesota’s propensity to give teams huge leads and play sloppy football for long stretches during games, whether they came back to win or not.
The Packers have come this far, but they still have one more game left to play before they are officially in the playoffs. They have to play the Lions, which will be in Lambeau Field, but Detroit is capable of putting up a lot of points on the board. The Packers will need to be ready for this game. For now though, let’s be happy and celebrate this win for a few days. Happy New Year Packer fans! The year 2023 is off to a great start already!
Go Pack Go!
@DieHardPackerFan #DHPF #GregGoshaw @gg901
