Packers run into the victory column in their home opener
The Packers rushed for 261 yards as they defeated the Colts 16-10 in their first game of the season at Lambeau Field to improve to 1-1.
Malik Willis, starting for the injured Jordan Love, got the ball first and drove the team downfield, mostly on running plays, ending their first drive with a field goal. After forcing a punt, the Packers drove downfield again, scoring on a touchdown pass to Dontayvion Wicks, the first career TD pass for Willis. The 10-0 lead would end up being the halftime score. After the Packers and Colts traded field goals, the Colts scored a touchdown with less than 2 minutes to go. The Colts got the ball back, but all they could get was a desperation pass that was intercepted short of the endzone.
Thoughts about this win:
The Packers were slight underdogs in this game due to Love being out and opposing QB Anthony Richardson making highlight plays in their previous game vs the Texans, even though they lost a close game at home. Promising news for the Packers though is that the Colts showed they were vulnerable to the running game and the Packers came out running and running.
Malik Willis did what he had to do, throwing only 14 times but completing 12 of them for 122 yards and a touchdown. He was not sacked and did not throw an interception, and even made plays with his legs.
Josh Jacobs showed us why the Packers went out and got him. He had a great game, rushing for 151 yards. His only blemish was a fumble that ended up in the endzone, which would have given the Packers a 17-0 lead, assuming the extra point was successful, which you can never guarantee these days.
The secondary just continues to come up with interceptions. Xavier McKinney has his second of the season already. Eric Wilson had a beautiful interception. He made a diving catch as if he was the intended receiver on that play. Evan Williams iced the game with an interception on the final play of the game. Quay Walker almost iced the game as he had an interception go through his hands. The team had to sweat it out for a little bit longer before Williams ended any threat.
I thought a key point of the game came at the start of the 4th quarter. The Colts were trailing 13-3 but had a very effective drive going with Jonathan Taylor leading the way. Facing a 3rd and 1 to start the 4th quarter, instead of pounding it with Taylor, they pitched it back wide to Trey Sermon, who got stuffed for a loss of 4 yards. They had to settle for a 50-yard FG attempt, which they missed. The Packers went the other way and got a FG of their own and a 16-3 lead.
Speaking of field goals, Brayden Narveson connected on 3 of them, including one from 46 yards, but he missed one from 45 yards away. Punter Daniel Whelan’s last punt was clutch, pinning Indy at their own 5-yard line.
Head Coach Matt LaFleur often doesn’t get enough credit because he had a franchise quarterback starting in most of his games on the sidelines, but I think this is one of his most impressive coaching jobs since he got the job in Green Bay. You can point to the playoff game on the road vs the Cowboys last season or the Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit among others, but this game has to be up there.
I don’t know about anyone else, but there is something about a game featuring an old-fashioned running attack. The Packers carried the ball 53 times in this game. Now that’s old-school.
Now that the Packers got a win without Love and things have settled down a bit, we shall see when he is ready to return. He won’t be ruled out of next week’s game quite yet, but there is a great chance he may have to be sidelined another game or two. At least we know that the team has a decent chance to win some games in the short term as they wait for him to come back into the lineup. Next up for the Packers, another Noon (Central Time) kickoff, this time on the road at Tennessee to play the Titans. Have a great week Packer fans! Let’s enjoy this win for now!
Go Pack Go!
@DieHardPackersFan #DHPF #GregGoshaw @gg901
