With their dominant 41-17 win over the Minnesota Vikings, the Inexperienced Bay Packers continued their march to the playoffs and ensured that the 2 groups would break up their collection for the fifth time in eight years – stopping both crew from getting a 2-0 document a 3rd time.
As is custom, the break up nature of their collection doesn’t mirror their information or the closeness of the standings. As an alternative, it’s been a testomony to the ability of familiarity, stakes, and preparation.
Preparation appeared to be the distinction; the Vikings had been victims of dangerous luck, however they had been better victims of their poor execution.
The Minnesota Vikings Have been Unprepared
No drive higher encapsulates how unprepared the Vikings appeared than the Packers’ second drive of the third quarter, which they took into the fourth quarter. It began with a fumble attributable to nostril deal with Kenny Clark, who was lined up on proper guard Ed Ingram. He bulldozed by means of Ingram, discovered himself towards backup proper deal with Oli Udoh and muscled his means by means of that to pressure a strip sack of Kirk Cousins, which he then recovered.
Cousins, who had been holding on to the ball for a lot too lengthy, missed that star receiver Justin Jefferson was lined up towards cross rusher Preston Smith and predictably broke open instantly.
The Vikings protection compelled a third-and-ten after which lined up towards a future Corridor-of-Fame quarterback and several-time MVP in the midst of a profession resurgence with solely ten males on the sphere. The Packers transformed.
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Maybe in an effort to make up for that, they adopted that up a number of performs in a while the subsequent third down they noticed with 12 males on the sphere.
Sadly for the Vikings, that’s unlawful.
That penalty – which maybe wouldn’t have mattered, as in addition they dedicated defensive offsides on the identical play – pushed the Packers to the Minnesota 12-yard line after they may have compelled a discipline purpose. The Packers turned that right into a landing two performs later.
That collection wasn’t the lone collection they couldn’t execute. The Packers ended up scoring in almost each means conceivable. Keisean Nixon, maybe one of the best returner within the league now that he’s taken over for Amari Rodgers, scored his first profession return landing seconds after the Vikings put up the primary factors within the recreation.
Darnell Savage, benched a couple of weeks in the past rather than Rudy Ford, picked off Kirk Cousins 5 minutes later and returned the ball 75 yards for a landing. The choose was one of many three that Cousins threw on the day.
The Vikings additionally noticed a Mason Crosby discipline purpose, a Rodgers dashing landing, an AJ Dillon dashing landing, and a Rodgers passing landing, caught by tight finish Robert Tonyan.
On offense, Minnesota couldn’t get a lot going. The Packers determined to maneuver cornerback Jaire Alexander round to comply with Jefferson on a majority of snaps and bracketed him with a security on high. That double crew turned out to be efficient, holding Jefferson to a career-low one catch for 15 yards.
Critically, certainly one of Cousins’ interceptions got here as his goal, Jefferson, fell to the bottom. It wasn’t the one time a Cousins goal hit the ground earlier than any contact, and it wasn’t due to harm.
Lambeau Discipline was slippery, and numerous Vikings, together with Adam Thielen and T.J. Hockenson, had points staying upright. The answer got here within the type of completely different cleats – these with seven studs as an alternative of the customary 5.
That the Vikings had these cleats available wasn’t luck; the gear workers, head coach, and gamers knew these cleats had been needed, with the teaching workers emphasizing these cleats early within the observe week.
However figuring out methods to put together and getting ready are completely different. Many gamers didn’t placed on the cleats in the course of the week and didn’t begin the sport in them. After a couple of dangerous collection, they ended up altering cleats and enjoying with a lot surer footing. Gamers like receiver Ok.J. Osborn, who did put on the seven-stud cleats in observe all week and to begin the sport, by no means had points with footing all through the match.
Errors and modifications in fortune can come about due to probability simply as a lot as an absence of preparation. The primary is excusable, however the second isn’t. The Vikings weren’t ready to play a highway recreation in January, an embarrassing truth for a crew stocked with veterans and armed with the data they wanted with a view to succeed.
The Inexperienced Bay Packers Are Poised To Roll within the Playoffs
On the Packers facet, this outcome extends their successful streak to 4 and retains them alive for the playoffs. They wanted to win out to make it and, to this point, have achieved that purpose. They nonetheless want a win subsequent week towards the Detroit Lions, who simply put collectively an enormous win over the Chicago Bears and themselves are a special crew within the second half of the season.
However on this recreation towards the Vikings, we noticed why the Packers had been favored. They performed extra environment friendly soccer on each side of the ball, and so they put collectively among the thrilling issues we noticed prior to now few weeks.
Whereas the purpose complete overstates their offensive output, the offense nonetheless put up 27 factors on their very own earlier than pulling their starters pretty early within the fourth quarter. The connection to Christian Watson wasn’t fairly what it has been over the previous few weeks, however constant connections to Tonyan, Randall Cobb, and Allen Lazard had been huge for a crew that received out to a giant lead early and didn’t want the offense to do an excessive amount of.
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Extra importantly, the Packers’ protection confirmed up huge. They benefited from two accidents alongside the Vikings’ offensive line, forcing Minnesota to play their third-string heart and backup proper deal with, however they took benefit of that chance.
Cousins was underneath fixed stress, whether or not it was from the robust inside now bolstered by a heavier snap depend for T.J. Slayton or the improved depth introduced on by bringing in Justin Hollins from the Rams. Eight quarterback hits and two sacks later, it’s simple to see why the offense was out of sync and will solely rating three factors earlier than the offense started pulling varied starters.
In fact, devoting additional consideration to Jefferson seemingly performed the largest position within the tepid Vikings offensive output – unfavorable 0.20 anticipated factors per play with unfavorable 0.38 anticipated factors per Kirk Cousins dropback – in addition they stuffed the run and capitalized on targets to different gamers. Whether or not it was recovering an interception that flew off tight finish T.J. Hockenson’s fingers or recovering the Cousins strip sack, the Packers noticed errors from the Vikings and turned them into issues.
The Vikings, then again, couldn’t get something out of their alternatives. A blocked punt that introduced the Vikings offense to the 1-yard line was a discipline purpose, and a turnover on downs was an interception. They missed two discipline targets, which suggests they ended 5 consecutive drives in practical turnovers – off of missed discipline targets, interceptions, or fumbles, the Packers had been handed the ball at their very own 36, 40, 40, 24, and the Minnesota 45.
On these drives, they drove the ball 61 yards, 70 yards, 23 yards, 71 yards, and 45 yards. And that’s the place the offense’s 27 factors got here from.
The Minnesota Vikings and Inexperienced Bay Packers Would possibly Be on Reverse Trajectories
It’s laborious to show something in a single recreation. However actually, the Packers-Vikings consequence means that the Packers’ current revival is significant. It additionally raises questions on how the Vikings can deal with themselves within the playoffs after they play so inconsistently.
Over the previous three weeks, we’ve seen Cousins play among the greatest soccer of his profession. However that didn’t seem towards the Packers, and it’s honest to marvel if that was simply an anomaly.
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Nonetheless, the Vikings have clinched playoff place and have the luxurious of experimenting with out an excessive amount of danger. They’ve extra latitude – and margin for error – on determining what’s incorrect and discovering a technique to repair it by the point the postseason rolls round.
Hopefully, that repair consists of counting to 11.
