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Carmen Vitali
NFC North Reporter
The outcome of Sunday Night Football between the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings on New Year’s Eve was never really in doubt. The Vikings were starting their fifth-round rookie quarterback as a last resort. They had already lost star tight end T.J. Hockenson to an ACL tear the week prior. Their complex defense was in danger of being figured out.
Meanwhile, the Packers have been trending up. First-year starter Jordan Love has shown tangible growth every week. Despite the fact they wouldn’t have their top two corners in Jaire Alexander (suspended) and Eric Stokes, who went back on IR last week, or big-play wide receiver Christian Watson, there was no panic for Green Bay. Heck, they had gone a lot of the season without all three of those players, anyway. Their young players would see them through, as they had all year.
After all was said and done, Green Bay won the last game of 2023 by a score of 33-10.
Love completed 24 of his 33 passing attempts for 256 yards and three touchdowns. He finished with a 125.3 passer rating, his second-highest mark of the season. More than one of those touchdown throws came off his back foot, too. Love showed the ability to improvise and evade pressure, throwing off platform without sacrificing accuracy. Jayden Reed was electric in the first half, catching six passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns. He was pulled at the half due to a chest injury. But it didn’t matter. Love promptly went out and hit Bo Melton for a nine-yard touchdown pass at the end of the third to make the score 30-3.
Running back Aaron Jones was healthy and heavily involved. He added dimension to the offense, carrying the ball 20 times for 120 yards — a 6.0 yard-per-carry average.
The game served as a progress report for Love. The last time these two teams met in Week 8, Love looked utterly lost against Minnesota defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ scheme. He completed…
Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/packers-putting-together-late-push-for-a-playoff-spot
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Publish date : 2024-01-01 04:58:27
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