Even ugly wins qualify as wins. The Green Bay Packers pulled out an ugly 24-16 win over the Carolina Panthers on Saturday night. The Green Bay offense produced 145 rushing yards from Aaron Jones and only 143 passing yards from Aaron Rodgers, but Green Bay was able to ride a dominant first half to remain in possession of the NFC’s number one seed.
Key Green Bay Stats
Aaron Rodgers broke one more record on Saturday night when he became the first quarterback in NFL history to have three seasons of 40+ touchdown passes. Rodgers rushing touchdown in the first half also gave him the franchise lead for rushing TDs by a quarterback (31). On top of that, Robert Tonyan became only the third tight end in Green Bay history to catch ten touchdown passes in a single season.
Offensive Struggles
Once they finished making history, the Packers’ offense stalled worse than they have under Matt LaFleur. After three straight touchdown drives to open up the game, Green Bay punted on five straight drives and six of their next seven.
“Credit to them, they came out ready to play in the second half, and we didn’t. We need to come out ready to play just like we did at the beginning of the game,” said Aaron Jones.
The Packers’ saving grace was another clutch 50+ yard field goal from Mason Crosby, who is 16/16 on the year, to put the game out of reach in the 4th quarter.
Carolina’s offense was not impressive, but the impressive quantity of opportunities they had in the second half eventually led to some success. The Panthers were only 1-5 in the red zone, a statistic that was highlighted by a fumble from Teddy Bridgewater on a quarterback sneak from the one-yard line.
“The play at the goal line was obviously the killer, and we were disappointed with that and our red zone performance all night,” said Panthers Head Coach Matt Rhule.
The highlight of the night for Green Bay was their star running back, Aaron Jones. On his first run of the night, Jones torched the Panthers defense for a 47-yard dash into Carolina territory. Jones ended with 145 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries and ultimately carried the Green Bay offense.
No Big Passing Plays
As per usual in the Matt LaFleur era, a rare, poor offensive game was highlighted by the inability to take shots down the field in the passing game. Aaron Rodgers averaged 4.5 air yards per attempt and only 2.37 seconds per throw, which are both the lowest for Rodgers since Next Gen Stats started tracking in 2016. The Panthers either rendered Davante Adams useless, or Rodgers and LaFleur could not get him going on Saturday.
“They really didn’t give him (Adams) a lot of single coverage, maybe one or two times, but either way we need to find ways to get him the ball more. He is so dynamic, and our entire offense is better when he has the ball,” said Rodgers.
Green Bay’s Defense
Defensively, Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith both added another sack to their season total, and the rookie linebackers played a huge role in the running game. Krys Barnes and Kamal Martin played the majority of middle linebacker snaps in the Packers nickel defense and were much more efficient than the Packers have been with Christian Kirksey at that position.
With Josh Jackson as a healthy scratch on Saturday, Kevin King played a major role in the Green Bay defensive scheme and did not play it well. King allowed multiple big plays on defense and allowed Robby Anderson to heat up during the Panthers’ second-half comeback. After returning from injury, King has not performed like someone who will have their contract renewed this offseason.
Highlights:
That’s five straight games with a TD catch for @RobTonJr!#CARvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺 NFL Network
Watch live 📱 https://t.co/dzY7gmCcsR pic.twitter.com/Fk8I5Qnr20— Green Bay Packers (@packers) December 20, 2020
Tonyan caught Rodgers’ 40th TD of the season to start the game off with a 7-0 lead.
🧤🧤🧤
Watch live: https://t.co/0dAhX8rEaX pic.twitter.com/p12xqsC9vB
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) December 20, 2020
Bridgewater ran in the Panthers only TD of the day to close the gap to 21-10.
51 yards?@crosbykicks2 is AUTOMATIC.#CARvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺 NFL Network
Watch live 📱 https://t.co/dzY7gmCcsR pic.twitter.com/sJJfkKD1h8— Green Bay Packers (@packers) December 20, 2020
Crosby drilled a 51-yard field goal to give the Packers their 11th win of the season.
A Look Ahead
No matter how they won, the Packers control their destiny moving forward. Everyone in the Green Bay locker room has placed a clear emphasis on having the NFC playoffs run through Lambeau Field.
“We want everything to run through Lambeau, and we know we control everything that happens moving forward,” said Jones.
The Packers face the Tennessee Titans next week and will have to stop Derrick Henry to get their 12th win of the season. The Panthers receive their tenth loss of the year but will focus on their young defense, which gave Aaron Rodgers fits, as the bright spot moving forward.
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Main Image Credit: Embed from Getty Images
