STORMING BACK

Packers Put on Furious Second Half Rally to KO Jets

 

Take about digging a hole. The Green Bay Packers made their home debut a memorable one by spotting the visiting New York Jets a 21 – 3 lead before the first brats were washed down with a beer. Packer fans would be excused for heading quickly to the beer counter in an effort to forget a mistake- filled start to the home slate.

Mike McCarthy routinely refers to splash plays. By definition a splash play is one of those big, momentum swinging back breaking plays that energizes the team while demoralizing the opponent. The splash never happened in Seattle and it was ironically enough the Jets who made the biggest splashes in this contest.

SPLASH #1- Aaron Rodgers and rookie C Corey Linsley had their official turnover on a bobbled exchange. It was early in the first period and the Jets are given a 7 -0 gift lead when Geno Smith took it in from the 1. Rodgers seldom makes these types of gaffes and the TD that ensued was neatly gift wrapped and placed on the Jets doorstep.

While McCarthy loves the splash plays his offense gives him he, along with just about everyone else in the Pack’s quarter, loathes giving them away. He is, along with just about everyone else in the Pack’s quarter, is quietly waiting, hoping, praying for his defense to make a splash play. In the first half the D not only had no splash plays they had no answer for Smith and the Jets running game. The D was hardly noticeable as Smith fed the ball to the tandem Chris’s RB combination of Ivory and Johnson. Marshawn Lynch ran over the Packers defense and it looked for a while like the Jets would do the same thing. Smith lofted a beautiful spiral over Sam Shields flailing arms into the hands of new wideout Eric Decker from 29 yard to extend the lead to 14 – 0. The brats were beginning to have a sour taste.

While there was no splash on the Packers side Mason Crosby had a little bloop to put 3 points on the board. It wasn’t a splash but at least it was points. Trading TD’s for Field Goals is not a recipe for success in the NFL. One of the aforementioned Chris’ – this time Ivory – blew the lead to 21- 3 for the Jets when he plowed in from the 4 yard line. The only splash heard in Lambeau was the sound of even more beer being poured in an effort to ease the pain of what appeared to be a blowout. Crosby hit 2 more FG’s – one from 5 that was straight as an arrow to give the Packers a grand total of 9 points for the game, not exactly what the hometown faithful had been hoping for in the opener.

But – wait for it… wait for it…

SPLASH #2 – Tramon Williams gets an interception after DE Mike Daniels steamrolled Smith causing the ball to flutter. It was a splash play but not translated into points as Aaron Rodgers had less than 2 minutes in the half and the goal line a vast 97 yards away. The ensuing drive itself contained no outright splash plays but after Rodgers calmly and methodically drove the Pack the distance that culminated in a 6 yard toss to Randall Cobb with a scant 8 seconds left. While the driver contained no splash play in nonetheless reinvigorated the Packers hopes as the lead was cut to a manageable 5 point deficit going into the half.

The Packers defense has taken their lumps early this year and rightly so. After an embarrassing  whiff-fest of non-tackling in Seattle the D hardly put up much of a challenge to Geno Smith and Gang Green as Rex Ryan snickered away. But long TD drives to close a half have a funny effect on a team. The defense that stepped out onto the field for the second half hardly resembled the cheesecloth curtain D of the first 6 quarters of the season.

SPLASH #3 - The Jets also aided the Pack’s cause by their inability to count. After Rodgers was uncharacteristically picked off before the Jets began to celebrate the officials had flagged them for 12 men on the field. Much is made by the denizens that whine of the Packers fate and wonder when Green Bay will be on the receiving end of a blunder. Well, this play was a gift that washed out the interception and put the ball back in Rodgers’ capable hands. Call it a reverse splash play but it is what it is and the Packers were not about to throw it back. This one was a keeper.

SPLASH #4 - Rodgers followed his first half performance by engineering an 8 play/ 7 yard drive that ended again with a 1 yard flick to Cobb to

give the Packers a lead they would not relinquish. The subsequent 2 point conversion was successful and at 24 – 21 the Pack had come all the way back. The real splash came in the ensuing melee when stud DE  and DT Sheldon Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson went out of their skulls in the end zone. Wilkerson grabbed Andrew Quarless by the mask and Quarless responded by tearing Wilkerson’s helmet off, a stunt that was curiously not penalized. Richardson on the other hand took the opportunity flail his massive arms at LT David Bahktiari and a clownish windmill rain of empty haymakers. His stunt earned him the big thumb from referee Jeff Rice as he was ejected and will likely face Roger Goodell’s disciplinary circus for hi action. Losing one of their prime defenders at such a critical juncture did nothing to aid the Jets’ cause. The breaks were starting to fall in the Packers’ favor and were beginning to pile up. The lead itself was precarious and McCarthy and Rodgers both knew it. But something funny happened, something that had been seen yet this year and arrived right on time.

The Packers’ defense showed up.

After WR Eric Decker pulled up lame and sat out most of the second Smith suddenly found himself running for his life. Stoked by a lead the defense became stout and gave yardage only grudgingly. Ivory and Johnson found little running room as the Packers defense stiffened. Ryan will ride the horse of ground-n-pound in the belief his are better than yours. Not today.

S Morgan Burnett has been roundly and soundly criticized and rightfully deserves much praise as he began to play instinctively by joining the run defense. Knowing the Jets were limited in receivers Burnett not only recognized the plays he led the team in tackles with 6 to go with 4 assists for a game high 10. If what’s good for the goose is good for the gander then Burnett should be lauded for his run support D. The Jets found few lanes as the Packers squeezed the air out of the Jets rushing attack.

Smith led the Jets ensuing drive from their own 24 when the drive stalled and Nick Folk tied it at 24 – 24 with a field goal from 52. The stage was set for the biggest splash in the pool.

SPLASH #5 – After the Seattle game Jordy Nelson joined Rodgers and McCarthy in the chorus of needing splash-type plays. Earlier in the week Ryan took a left handed swing at rookie S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix when he was asked why the Jets took S Calvin Pryor ahead of Clinton-Dix. Ryan has never met an interview he didn’t like and put out some great bulletin board material when he aid “Don’t get me wrong. They’re both (Pryor and Clinton-Dix) good players. I jut to the one that will smash your face in.” In a refreshing change of pace from the NFL’s nightmarish off season crime report this was nothing but football talk.

So when Rodgers took the field at his own 20 he and Nelson saw an opportunity. Nelson had a career day with 209 yards, his highest output as a pro. Nelson was the lone wideout in a jumbo formation and he put a double move on CB Dee Milliner that has the poor sap still searching Lambeau for his jockstrap. The only player left to beat was Ryan’s “smash your face in” S Calvin Pryor.

The only thing Pryor hit though was the turf as Nelson blew past him like a green and gold freight train. Instead of smashing Nelson’s face in Pryor was last seen was his face smashed into the grass as Nelson enjoyed another leap into the arms of his adorers. This was the coup-de-grace of splash plays, the kind that shatters the opponents will and self-confidence. The Jets’ offense went as cold as the Packers defense went red hot.

But  - wait for it… wait for it…

SPLASH #6 – facing 4^th and 4 with 5:06 Smith dropped back harassed yet again by Daniels and the furious Packer pass rush. Smith heaved a rainbow that hit WR Jeremy Kerley in the end zone for an apparent game-tying Jet TD. Almost as soon as he hit the ground CB Davon House popped up giving the ‘kill’ sign as he pointed back at the line of scrimmage where a the side judge was waving his hands over his head. Prior to the ball being snapped offensive coordinator Marty Morninweg had come up the sidelines in attempt to call timeout. As both former referees and now talking heads Mike Preiria and Mike Carey pointed put only the head coach can call timeout. Rex Ryan could be seen, and probably heard in the top tier of the new section at Lambeau Field mouthing the words “Who called timeout? I didn’t call timeout.” When the culprit revealed himself all Ryan could do was roll his eyes to the heavens in man exasperated look of ‘you’ve got to be kidding me.’

The New York press will have a field day with this one and the blown lead will put a few more grey

hairs in Ryan’s head. Rex ought to be a hoot when he gets grilled as only the New York press can do over the mental mistakes of this one. But the Packers came back from a deep hole to pull out a much needed win.

This win is more than just a W. With the Detroit Lion next the defense can’t afford to stand around and pat themselves on the back. They have to show that they can bring it for 4 quarters. In the meantime the taste of this comeback will be something to savor for a week.