Slow Start, Strong Finish.

BEARS 3 - PACKERS 10

Last Sunday's thriller against the Chicago Bears seemed to go the way much of the season has gone for the Packers. Slow start, strong finish. With a 10-3 victory over their black and blue rivals, the Packers close out the regular season assured of the 6th seed in the NFC playoff tournament.


Much has been made of coach Mike McCarthy and QB Aaron Rodgers' apparent inability to win close games. In this case, a "close game" is defined as being decided by 4 or less points. This number seems rather arbitrary though, as a game lost by 4 points is the same as a game lost by 6 points - To clarify, a touchdown would win it. Before I emerge from this digression, I'd like to take a moment to fantasize about the consternation experienced by the Bears for letting the Packers slip this close one past the goalie, as it were.

Now, here's how our guys graded out at a glance:

As mentioned, the offense really sputtered out of the gate. They struggled to find a rhythm, couldn't run the ball, and the passes that weren't overthrown were simply dropped. On the ground, Aaron Rodgers again eclipsed the running backs as the leading rusher, gaining 21 yards on 7 "carries." RB James Starks got 5 carries for 20 yards, and RB Brandon Jackson gained 19 yards on 7 carries. In a moment of candidness (or tactlessness, depending on your view) Rodgers made it clear in a post-game interview that the Packers cannot expect to win in the playoffs if he is their leading rusher. It wasn't until the score was finally tied late in the third quarter at 3 all, that Rodgers and the receiving corp found their stride. In fact, ESPN Stats and Info published an interesting chart on Rodgers performance withe the Pack trailing, and then playing with the score tied. Check it out:

..................Trailing.........Tied 3-3

Comp-att .....4-10..............14-16
Yds/att ........ 5.0................10.3
TD-Int ..........0-1.................1-0
QB rtg .........16.7...............130.5

The key drive came at the top of the 4th quarter, when Rodgers found WR Donald Driver deep for 21 yards, then on the very next play, hooked up with WR Greg Jennings on a 46 yard bomb down the right side to the 1-yard line. Again, on the next play, Rodgers found TE Donald Lee with room to spare in the end zone and tossed it in for the touchdown. It was the only Lambeau leap the fans would enjoy that day. Whether or not the Bears played to win is debatable, though they certainly seemed intent on beating the Packers. Regardless, Green Bay had better be quick to find their stride next week in Philadelphia. Grade: C

On defense, the Pack was stout once again. The Bears arrived in Green Bay averaging over 21 points per game, but left with just 3 - and not for lack of trying. QB Jay Cutler's stats tend to dip in Green Bay, and the Packers continued their trend of forcing the Bears' gun-slinger to attempt low percentage plays. All in all, Green Bay held Cutler to just 168 yards, completing 21 of 39 throws. He tossed 2 interceptions and, most importantly, 0 touchdowns. With such a narrow margin of victory, the turnover battle was paramount. Looking to score with about 9 minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, safety Charlie Peprah stepped in front of an end-zone-bound pass from Cutler intended for WR Johnny Knox, and came away with the pick and the touchback. The second interception proved to be a game winner. With the Bears driving deep into Packers territory with just minutes to play, pro bowl safety Nick Collins nabbed a pass intended for WR Devin Hester, dashing any hope Chicago had for an overtime period. With the offense struggling so mightily, it's comforting to have such a suffocating defense to fall back on. Grade: A+

Close games usually mean added pressure on special teams, and punter Tim Masthay was up to the challenge. Of his 8 punts, 6 went inside the 20 (2 of those 6 landing inside the 10). He averaged 43.5 yards and had a long of 56 yards. With Chicago's special teams duo of Hester and Manning, directional punting was key. A quiet day from Devon Hester equals an 'A+' for the special teams. Grade: A+

Overall, The Packers earn an A (or an A- if you're feeling stingy). They came away with a close victory that could have easily gone down as another loss by 4 or less. They also made the playoffs with the victory. That's definitely worth some extra credit.

Philadelphia is next. QB Michael Vick, who came in after Kevin Kolb was knocked out, nearly led the Eagles to a comeback in the season opener against the Packers. This time, Vick will get the entire game to keep Green Bay on their toes. More coverage to come!

Editor's note: I was remiss in not mentioning the outstanding play of Packers newcomer, LB Erik Walden. You may remember that DDS introduced you to #93 on October 29th, when he was brought in with a group of linebackers to stop the bleeding caused by excessive injury. Until the Bears game, he'd played average at best. But getting the start must have put a little extra gas in his tank, as he notched 11 tackles, 10 of them solo, and 2 sacks. Way to come up big!