John C. Redfern
09/14/08
Senior Writer
SUMMARY: QB Rodgers threw three touchdowns, RB Jackson ran for one touchdown, and the defense got two crucial interceptions for returned touchdowns to beat the Lions 48-25.
HIGHLIGHTS: 1. Scout. 2. Espn. 3. Packersnews. 4. JSOnline. 5. WSJ.
QUOTES:
RB Jackson [on redeeming himself after dropping a key fourth-quarter pass]: “I was hurting after that drop. Normally, I would never drop balls like that. Just coming back and learning from the mistakes, just trying to make a play.”
WR Jennings [on what the victory says about the team]: “That we never give up. Obviously, it shows that he’s very poised, and as an offense, that we can settle in and actually move the chains when we need to.”
Coach McCarthy: "We did a lot of good things in this football game, but you can tell, just the feeling in the locker room, is we made some big mistakes. Those are the things we need to eliminate as we move forward. It’s an excellent win. Winning is all that matters, and that’s our focus, but there’s a lot of things in this game we can build off of and learn from.”
PLAY-OF-THE GAME: After the Lions scored 16 unanswered points to grab a 25-24 fourth-quarter lead, QB Rodgers fired a quick slant pass to WR Jennings who turned it up the field for a 60 yard gain. Then, K Crosby kicked a 39 yard field goal giving a 27-25 lead to the Packers.
TURNING POINT: After giving up a 21-3 lead at halftime, the Packers shockingly allowed the Lions to score 16 unanswered points to take the lead 25-24 with 7:41 left in the game. With the Lions moving the ball downfield with 5:15 left in the game, CB Woodson intercepted a pass to set up a scoring touchdown making the score 34-25 & icing the game.
GAME BALLS: 1. CB Woodson. 2. QB Rodgers. 3. RB Jackson. 4. LB Hawk. 5. WR Jennings.
REPORT CARD—THE GOOD, BAD, & UGLY [GBPG Grades] [USA Today Grades]:
Rushing Offense—B [B] [B-]
The Packers rush 30 times for 123 yards averaging a 4.1 yard per carry. RB Jackson had 7 carries for 61 yards averaging 8.7 yard per carry and one touchdown. RB Grant had a poor 15 carries for 20 yards. QB Rodgers had 4 carries for 25 yards. The offensive line struggled against an inspired Lions defense, with the experienced tackles "Tauscher and Clifton repeatedly beaten off the edge" having an awful game. Generally, C Spitz and G Colledge were solid and G Moll was adequate. "The Packers’ failure to keep the Lions’ defensive tackles from disrupting running plays, often from the backside, contributed to starting RB Ryan Grant’s rough day."
Passing Offense—B+ [A] [A-]
QB Rodgers had another great game with few mistakes. He passed for 24 of 38 for 328 yards, three touchdowns, and two fumbles with a 117.0 passer rating. While the team built a big lead in the first-half, the offense struggled in the second half with key dropped passes. The Packers had seven drops--one each by Kuhn, Driver, Jennings and two each by Jackson and Jones. WR Jennings had 6 catches for 167 yards. WR Driver had 7 catches for 52 yards and one touchdown. WR Jones had 4 catches for 29 yards and one touchdown.
Rushing Defense—A [A] [A-]
The rush defense was stellar holding the Lions to 49 yards. RB Smith had 10 carries for 40 yards. DT Jolly, DT Coke, and DT Pickett were stout in the middle-of-the defensive line leading the tough run defense. Linebacker Hawk finished with a team-high 7 tackles and two sacks.
Passing Defense—B+ [A-] [B+]
QB Kitna completed 21 of 41 passes for 276 yards, two touchdowns, three interceptions, & five sacks. The Packers got good pressure with the front line and blitzes. DE Kampmann had 1.5 sacks. DE Jenkins had a sack. Atoning for earlier mistakes, CB Woodson had two interceptions with one returned for a touchdown. S Collins returned a 42 yard interception for a touchdown. "Up until that mad flurry, lackluster pass coverage fueled the Lions' big comeback in the second half. Williams and Rouse were primary culprits." S Rouse had a decent game, except for the two big scoring plays having his partial coverage responsibility. As McCarthy said: "Aaron did some things well; he did some things he needs to improve on....A couple of his minuses were obvious on the big plays for Detroit as far as alignments, angles, things like that.”
Special Teams—B- [B-] [D]
The Packers had 4 kick returns for 99 yards, while the Lions had 7 kick returns for 150 yards. P Frost had five punts averaging 47.2 yards gross, 35.8 net, and 4.3 seconds hang time. Frost's gaffes cost a safety and more. As a reviewer said:
K Crosby hit field goals of 25 & 39. His 9 kickoffs averaged 70.9 & 3.85 with 3 touchbacks.
Coaching—B+ [A-] [B+]
McCarthy executed a balanced game plan with a decent running game & a strong passing game. In 3rd down efficiency, the Packers were 9 for 16. In Red Zone efficiency, the Packers were 3-4. The team had 8 penalties for 62 yards and three fumbles.
Overall—A- [A]
With a strong finish performance in a road game against an inspired NFC rival, the Packers hold on to go 2-0 in the 2008 season.
Overall CBS Sportsline Grade: B- "Rodgers was brilliant, but it took two touchdown returns of interceptions to hold off the Lions' late rally. The Packers got a little too complacent after taking a big lead."
Cheesehead TV Good, Bad, & Ugly: Good--Woodson, Rodgers, & Kampman; Bad--Offensive Line, Williams, & Rouse; Ugly--Frost.
COMMENTARY: An important “testament-of-will” road win.
PREVIEW: McCarthy's To Do List This Week. Adjustments for Cowboy's game. It's defense, defense, defense. A huge home game against the high-scoring 2-0 Cowboys is next. They can make an strong impression to the league at Lambeau Field in a nationally-televised night game.
