WEBVTT - #508 Packers Unscripted: Surviving Seattle 0:00:00.840 --> 0:00:14.920 Hi, everyone, Welcome to Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com. 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:18.160 I am Mike Spofford, joined by the one and only 0:00:18.200 --> 0:00:21.080 Wes Hodkowitz, were coming to you here from our studios 0:00:21.560 --> 0:00:27.360 at lambeau Field, fresh off a dramatic three Green Bay 0:00:27.400 --> 0:00:31.200 Packers victory in the NFC Divisional playoff over the Seattle 0:00:31.240 --> 0:00:34.760 Seahawks West. There are any number of angles we could 0:00:34.800 --> 0:00:38.239 go about analyzing and discussing this game, but I'm just 0:00:38.240 --> 0:00:42.360 gonna start right here. When it was three at halftime, 0:00:42.800 --> 0:00:45.560 when it was ten in the middle of the third quarter, 0:00:46.360 --> 0:00:49.640 you still just knew it was gonna come down to 0:00:49.800 --> 0:00:52.120 the end, right, I mean you just you knew it. 0:00:52.200 --> 0:00:56.160 And that's exactly how it played out. So I thought 0:00:56.240 --> 0:00:59.120 this game on so many levels illustrated just the absolute 0:00:59.120 --> 0:01:01.920 brilliance of both Are Rogers and Russell Wilson. Yeah. I 0:01:02.240 --> 0:01:05.840 said that all week long last week, starting with Russell Wilson. 0:01:06.520 --> 0:01:09.679 Phenomenal performance by him. I know it wasn't picture perfect, 0:01:09.680 --> 0:01:11.360 but as I said to you from the beginning, Mike, 0:01:11.400 --> 0:01:14.280 with him, he can win, for lack of a better 0:01:14.400 --> 0:01:17.959 term here, term here dirty, not in that sense, but 0:01:18.000 --> 0:01:20.680 in terms of like he can do it ugly and 0:01:21.840 --> 0:01:24.319 Seattle said they wanted to run the both Marshawn Lynch. 0:01:25.280 --> 0:01:27.240 I somewhat felt all along that that was an ill 0:01:27.280 --> 0:01:31.000 advised plot. They did it, they did not, They tried. 0:01:31.400 --> 0:01:34.240 They tried, so they went back to their bread and butter, 0:01:34.319 --> 0:01:37.960 which is asking Russell Wilson to just do superhuman things. 0:01:38.319 --> 0:01:40.840 Evening at the improv at lambeau Field. I mean, it 0:01:40.880 --> 0:01:42.720 was just he was just making it up as he 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:45.280 went along, which is what he's done all season to 0:01:45.360 --> 0:01:48.080 get the Seahawks as far as they got, Yeah, and 0:01:48.160 --> 0:01:50.520 being able to open up some big plays there for Seattle. 0:01:51.160 --> 0:01:52.960 He's the type of quarterback. He's what you need to 0:01:52.960 --> 0:01:55.640 win in this league. The game is never too far 0:01:55.680 --> 0:01:57.600 out of reach for him to come back and mount 0:01:57.640 --> 0:02:03.840 a big rally. Aaron Rodger years, I've been saying for 0:02:03.880 --> 0:02:05.920 so long now because people always think and it's just 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:07.560 all because I worked for the team now and I'm 0:02:07.600 --> 0:02:12.440 Packers dot Com since the very beginning. People want to 0:02:12.480 --> 0:02:15.920 paint this thing of is Rogers passed his prime? Is 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:20.640 he is he passed it or whatever? If you consistently 0:02:20.760 --> 0:02:24.840 beat that drum, you end up looking like a fool. 0:02:26.040 --> 0:02:27.560 Because the one thing I think a lot of people 0:02:27.560 --> 0:02:29.840 don't realize is in addition to Aaron Rodgers being a 0:02:29.919 --> 0:02:33.320 generational talent and making countless amounts of throws in this 0:02:33.360 --> 0:02:36.240 game that a very few number of humans on this 0:02:36.360 --> 0:02:42.360 planet can actually do, Aaron Rodgers still has that greatness 0:02:42.400 --> 0:02:45.160 in him in the most clutch situations. I said all 0:02:45.200 --> 0:02:47.919 last week I was expecting the best version of him, 0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:49.639 and that's what you saw in this They got the 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:52.040 twenty three yard game from Aaron Jones early, but otherwise 0:02:52.040 --> 0:02:53.959 they couldn't really run the ball the way I thought 0:02:54.040 --> 0:02:57.920 that they might be able to against Seattle's struggle. So 0:02:57.960 --> 0:02:59.760 it had to be on Aaron Rodgers. It had to 0:02:59.760 --> 0:03:03.639 be Davante Adams and Rogers played I I felt like 0:03:03.800 --> 0:03:08.040 a fantastic football game. And the third down completions nine 0:03:08.040 --> 0:03:12.160 of four town nine fourteen on third down, three huge 0:03:12.320 --> 0:03:16.320 third down conversions by Jimmy Graham and Davante Adams has 0:03:16.360 --> 0:03:19.440 just an iconic performance. Eight receptions for hundred sixty yards 0:03:19.480 --> 0:03:24.240 and two touchdowns. The other thing too about that, I mean, Mike, 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:27.880 how many of those catches were just like gotta have 0:03:28.000 --> 0:03:31.880 them grabs that were fully contested. He ran that forty 0:03:31.919 --> 0:03:35.160 yard we're talking about that post corner route, just a 0:03:35.200 --> 0:03:38.600 magnificent route adjustment gets in for the forty yard touchdown. 0:03:38.920 --> 0:03:41.240 But then to make that thirty two yard catch kind 0:03:41.240 --> 0:03:42.880 of over his shoulder with just a little bit of 0:03:42.920 --> 0:03:45.040 separation off a fade route that they put together at 0:03:45.040 --> 0:03:47.640 the line of scrimmage. It speaks to his greatness and 0:03:47.680 --> 0:03:50.720 it obviously is another testament to Aaron Rodgers and what 0:03:50.880 --> 0:03:53.200 has been just an incredible Hall of Fame career. Well, 0:03:53.240 --> 0:03:56.880 you you can say so much about Aaron Rodgers and 0:03:56.920 --> 0:03:59.480 Davante Adams from this game, just to start with the 0:03:59.520 --> 0:04:02.320 play at the end, the thirty two yard completion on 0:04:02.440 --> 0:04:04.320 third and eight when the Packers are on their own 0:04:04.320 --> 0:04:06.680 twenty two yard line there with just over two minutes 0:04:06.720 --> 0:04:11.240 to go. Rogers actually said after the game, Adams didn't 0:04:11.280 --> 0:04:15.880 just adjust the route. He was better than the check, 0:04:16.240 --> 0:04:19.200 like the check that's in the playbook. Adams actually did 0:04:19.200 --> 0:04:22.600 a different check and it was better. And Rogers was 0:04:22.839 --> 0:04:26.479 on the same page with Adams and the throw was 0:04:26.560 --> 0:04:31.400 absolutely perfect. And that was one of many throws. As 0:04:31.440 --> 0:04:33.960 you were just talking about that, I mean, I don't 0:04:33.960 --> 0:04:35.800 know how many times did I lean over to you 0:04:36.320 --> 0:04:38.320 in the press box and say, wow, what a throw. 0:04:38.640 --> 0:04:41.760 I mean, it was at least right. I mean, whether 0:04:41.800 --> 0:04:45.960 you're talking about the third down pass to Jimmy Graham 0:04:46.720 --> 0:04:50.719 in the third quarter, right before the forty yard touchdown 0:04:50.720 --> 0:04:54.440 to Davante Adams, the third and ten pass over the middle, 0:04:54.520 --> 0:04:57.520 the side arm one to Geronimo Allison that kept one 0:04:57.600 --> 0:05:00.560 drive alive there briefly in the fourth quarter. I just 0:05:00.600 --> 0:05:03.160 mentioned the one to Adams, the one to Graham at 0:05:03.160 --> 0:05:05.280 the end of the game where he has to stand 0:05:05.320 --> 0:05:06.960 in the pocket. He's got to hold it as long 0:05:07.000 --> 0:05:09.000 as he can to give Graham a chance to break 0:05:09.080 --> 0:05:12.000 free coming on the crossing route. He takes a shot, 0:05:12.360 --> 0:05:15.880 but puts the ball right on the money. And that's 0:05:15.880 --> 0:05:17.719 just that's only the start of the list of the 0:05:17.760 --> 0:05:19.880 throws that Rogers made in this game. I thought it 0:05:19.920 --> 0:05:23.720 was an absolutely tour to force performance by one of 0:05:23.760 --> 0:05:26.880 the best, by one of the best ever. And statistically 0:05:26.960 --> 0:05:29.320 I looked it up. I wrote about it. The hundred 0:05:29.360 --> 0:05:32.279 and thirteen point seven passer rating. That's only his sixth 0:05:32.480 --> 0:05:37.320 highest postseason passer rating for a single game. But when 0:05:37.320 --> 0:05:40.480 you look at those handful of five or six throws 0:05:40.560 --> 0:05:46.280 that were absolutely pinpoint spot on in difficult spots. I 0:05:46.279 --> 0:05:49.800 I thought it was just it was masterful work by him. Yeah, 0:05:49.839 --> 0:05:51.600 And it's the reason why I will continue to say 0:05:51.600 --> 0:05:53.600 I mean, it's just a garbage argument when people put 0:05:53.640 --> 0:05:56.200 out this below average or average whatever you want to 0:05:56.279 --> 0:05:59.760 label him as, keep doing it, go ahead, it's fine. 0:06:00.200 --> 0:06:02.280 But the reality is is this is a human game 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:05.479 played by real people that actually have, like you know, 0:06:05.640 --> 0:06:08.640 a brain and a personality and things they enjoy doing 0:06:08.640 --> 0:06:11.200 off the field instead of just playing football for sixty 0:06:11.200 --> 0:06:13.039 minutes and going back into a corner for the next 0:06:13.040 --> 0:06:16.400 seven days. And Aaron Rodgers, I think when you look 0:06:16.440 --> 0:06:19.440 at just what it requires to play this game at 0:06:19.480 --> 0:06:22.840 its highest level, I thought him and Russell Wilson just 0:06:22.920 --> 0:06:24.960 put on a clinic for what it takes to play 0:06:25.040 --> 0:06:27.440 quarterback in two thousand, nineteen and two thousand and twenty. 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:30.239 They were just epitome of everything that is great about 0:06:30.240 --> 0:06:32.520 this sport. And why I think you can't make just 0:06:33.640 --> 0:06:36.960 asinine comments about you know, this being the end of this, 0:06:37.080 --> 0:06:38.400 or this being the end of that, or he isn't 0:06:38.400 --> 0:06:40.680 the player he once was. It can always change. And 0:06:40.680 --> 0:06:43.279 here's the beautiful thing, Mike, It's not just Aaron Rodgers 0:06:43.680 --> 0:06:46.120 Matt Ryan has up and down years. Philip Rivers has 0:06:46.160 --> 0:06:48.960 had up and down years. Guys have up and down years. 0:06:49.040 --> 0:06:52.560 Because spoiler alert, it's a pretty dang hard position to 0:06:52.600 --> 0:06:55.640 play in the NFL, and for Rogers to step up 0:06:55.640 --> 0:06:58.640 in that situation with the temperature being what it is, 0:06:58.680 --> 0:07:01.120 the stakes being as high as they were, Packers got 0:07:01.160 --> 0:07:03.080 off to the fast start they needed. They haven't these 0:07:03.120 --> 0:07:04.800 last few weeks. It's been really tough trying to get 0:07:04.839 --> 0:07:07.520 points on that opening drive. Seattle wins the toss to 0:07:07.600 --> 0:07:10.240 fur and the Packers march right down. They needed to 0:07:10.280 --> 0:07:11.880 set the tone in this game, and then when they 0:07:11.880 --> 0:07:13.920 needed to get their form in an offense going late, 0:07:14.520 --> 0:07:17.000 they were able to accomplish that again as well. Yeah, well, 0:07:17.280 --> 0:07:21.760 certainly Davantae Adams took his place in the Packers record 0:07:21.760 --> 0:07:24.880 books here with this eight catch, hundred and sixty yard performance. 0:07:25.680 --> 0:07:29.240 It is the most receiving yards in a single postseason 0:07:29.240 --> 0:07:32.440 game in franchise history, one more than the hundred and 0:07:32.440 --> 0:07:35.280 fifty nine that ja Michael Finley had in the two 0:07:35.320 --> 0:07:40.200 thousand nine wild card overtime shootout against the Arizona Cardinals. 0:07:41.000 --> 0:07:43.560 But you think about it was Davanta Adams is at 0:07:43.600 --> 0:07:46.560 the top of a list that includes Max McGee from 0:07:46.600 --> 0:07:49.760 Super Bowl one, Jordy Nelson from Super Bowl forty five, 0:07:49.840 --> 0:07:54.320 Antonio Freeman from Super Bowl thirty one, John Jefferson from 0:07:54.440 --> 0:07:57.320 the big postseason game that he had in the early eighties. 0:07:57.360 --> 0:07:59.800 I mean, Davantae Adams hundred and sixty yards is at 0:07:59.840 --> 0:08:02.840 the top of that list. And he and there were 0:08:02.880 --> 0:08:06.120 times in the game where he absolutely looked dominant doing it. 0:08:06.200 --> 0:08:08.200 I mean there was the one, the one drive in 0:08:08.400 --> 0:08:11.920 the first half where Rogers just on different routes against 0:08:11.960 --> 0:08:15.800 different coverages, it was just bing, bing bing seventeen seventeen seventeen, 0:08:15.840 --> 0:08:18.400 just kept hitting him every time for a first down, 0:08:18.480 --> 0:08:21.960 Packers marching right down the field. A couple of the 0:08:22.000 --> 0:08:25.360 fans who were chiming in while I was live blogging 0:08:25.760 --> 0:08:29.080 kept using the word surgical the way Rogers and Adams 0:08:29.080 --> 0:08:31.280 were connecting and moving the ball in the first half. 0:08:31.320 --> 0:08:35.080 I thought that was a very apt description. And uh, 0:08:35.240 --> 0:08:38.040 Rogers talked after the game about how his his connection, 0:08:38.120 --> 0:08:41.440 that that chemistry, that telepathy, whatever you want to call it, 0:08:41.480 --> 0:08:44.480 with Adams is just on another level now. And Rogers 0:08:44.520 --> 0:08:46.960 actually brought up that it's it's getting like it was 0:08:47.040 --> 0:08:50.400 with Jordy Nelson, and that is not a comparison that 0:08:50.440 --> 0:08:53.520 he would make lightly. I mean, he's he's never said 0:08:53.559 --> 0:08:56.560 it in that way before about Adams, but in this game, 0:08:57.160 --> 0:08:59.720 that's how it felt and that's how it looked, because 0:08:59.720 --> 0:09:02.440 it's not just the gold standard for Rogers in a receiver, 0:09:02.600 --> 0:09:05.720 that's the gold standard for any receiver in quarterback scenario. 0:09:06.000 --> 0:09:08.240 When him and Nelson had and being able to be 0:09:08.360 --> 0:09:11.480 on that second level ten years together, Yeah, it's an 0:09:11.480 --> 0:09:14.880 incredible run. And now you see Davante Adams now in 0:09:14.960 --> 0:09:16.959 year five of this thing, you're six of this thing 0:09:17.000 --> 0:09:20.800 now being able to develop that relationship now with Rogers 0:09:20.840 --> 0:09:24.880 and obviously be able to have that telepathy in their communication, 0:09:24.920 --> 0:09:26.880 how they deal with each other. It was interesting to 0:09:27.000 --> 0:09:29.760 talking to Geronimo Allison the locker room after the game. 0:09:29.800 --> 0:09:32.640 He said, you know, all week long, you know, Tavante 0:09:32.640 --> 0:09:34.439 just had this look in his eye like it was 0:09:34.520 --> 0:09:36.120 just like he was kind of in on a secret, 0:09:36.280 --> 0:09:37.959 like he just he knew he was going to play 0:09:38.040 --> 0:09:40.800 well in this game. And Davante was asked about that 0:09:40.880 --> 0:09:44.839 after Alison made those comments, and his thought was two things. One, 0:09:45.040 --> 0:09:48.240 he played really well against Seattle, last year ten catches 0:09:48.280 --> 0:09:50.760 a hundred and sixty six yards and the last time, 0:09:50.800 --> 0:09:52.600 this is what I really enjoyed the last time the 0:09:52.600 --> 0:09:56.679 Packers came off of a by five years ago. Also 0:09:57.200 --> 0:09:59.600 in the in the PLAYFFS, he also played really well 0:09:59.640 --> 0:10:02.880 against Elis. Those are things that actually bolstered his confidence 0:10:02.920 --> 0:10:04.800 going into this, and he said it's because of like anything, 0:10:05.200 --> 0:10:07.520 if I go up against a cornerback who has success 0:10:07.720 --> 0:10:10.360 the same cornerback, the same team, the same circumstances a 0:10:10.440 --> 0:10:12.480 year later, that's going to be in the back of 0:10:12.559 --> 0:10:15.000 his mind. So he's like, I can't see how that 0:10:15.120 --> 0:10:18.040 wasn't something Seattle was thinking about in despite you know, 0:10:18.080 --> 0:10:21.200 the extra tension they gave him. He I thought, put 0:10:21.240 --> 0:10:24.280 on just a clinic when it came to his footwork, 0:10:24.400 --> 0:10:27.080 in his fundamentals and what was asking at that receiver position. 0:10:27.440 --> 0:10:29.079 And then oh, by the way, when you tie all 0:10:29.120 --> 0:10:32.199 that together, he's a pretty remarkable athlete too. Yeah, I 0:10:32.200 --> 0:10:34.440 mean it was that that was a that was a 0:10:34.440 --> 0:10:38.319 remarkable performance, and certainly the Packers want to see Adams 0:10:38.320 --> 0:10:41.120 and Rogers on that same page again next week out 0:10:41.120 --> 0:10:44.199 in San Francisco. But real quickly here was select cousin 0:10:44.280 --> 0:10:47.960 Subs locations are now offering delivery. Whether you're ordering catering 0:10:48.040 --> 0:10:51.240 or your favorite sub, they're delivering right to you when 0:10:51.240 --> 0:10:54.720 you order online at Cousin Subs dot com. Cousin Subs. 0:10:55.240 --> 0:10:58.280 We believe in better defensive side of the ball. Here 0:10:58.320 --> 0:11:02.000 for the Packers, tale of who has curly um. The 0:11:02.040 --> 0:11:06.000 Packers were bottling up the run game, bottling up Russell Wilson, 0:11:06.720 --> 0:11:09.640 frustrating him, you know, not letting him scramble. He's trying 0:11:09.679 --> 0:11:12.280 to get off some passes just as he reaches the 0:11:12.280 --> 0:11:15.360 line of scrimmage, you know, trying to fool the Packers 0:11:15.360 --> 0:11:19.040 into committing to run or pass on on those scrambles. 0:11:19.040 --> 0:11:21.920 And green Bay holds him to just three points in 0:11:21.920 --> 0:11:24.520 the first half, one field goal, one missed field goal. 0:11:25.160 --> 0:11:27.440 They stood up tall enough at the end of the 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:31.040 first half to render um uh hail mary as the 0:11:31.120 --> 0:11:33.160 only chance there at the end of the second quarter, 0:11:33.200 --> 0:11:36.880 which fell incomplete. But then in the second half it 0:11:37.000 --> 0:11:40.800 was a totally different story. Russell Wilson was doing his 0:11:40.920 --> 0:11:44.719 Russell Wilson things, his his improv his making it up, 0:11:44.800 --> 0:11:49.000 his incredible elusiveness. I mean, the Packers sacked him five 0:11:49.080 --> 0:11:51.720 times in this game. Weston. It was like they could 0:11:51.720 --> 0:11:54.880 have sacked him fifteen I mean, there were there were 0:11:55.000 --> 0:11:58.120 so many times. But you know, Green Bay is not 0:11:58.200 --> 0:12:00.560 the first defense that Russell Wilson has has done this to. 0:12:00.679 --> 0:12:02.840 This is just the way this guy plays. He for 0:12:02.880 --> 0:12:04.960 all the times that he does get sacked, he is 0:12:05.120 --> 0:12:08.360 He is incredibly hard to corral and he's very difficult 0:12:08.400 --> 0:12:12.760 to bring down. And really it came down to finally, 0:12:13.960 --> 0:12:17.360 third and six, fourth quarter, right around three minutes to go, 0:12:18.200 --> 0:12:23.640 Preston Smith comes blowing around the right tackle and gets 0:12:23.640 --> 0:12:26.839 a clean shot on him and drops him. Seattle punts 0:12:26.840 --> 0:12:28.520 the ball and then doesn't get it back because the 0:12:28.559 --> 0:12:31.760 Packers get the two big third down conversions, and uh, 0:12:31.880 --> 0:12:34.480 you know that's that's how you close out. That's how 0:12:34.520 --> 0:12:36.960 you close out the Seattle Seahawks is you make the 0:12:37.000 --> 0:12:39.280 big stop on third down and then you don't give 0:12:39.360 --> 0:12:41.960 him the one last chance that you were looking for. Yeah, 0:12:41.960 --> 0:12:43.680 I thought it was apropos when you look at just 0:12:43.720 --> 0:12:46.480 the entire defensive performance the first half. It was Zadarius 0:12:46.520 --> 0:12:49.280 Smith getting the two sacks, Kenny Clark knife through got 0:12:49.320 --> 0:12:51.200 another one. I thought Kenny had a really good start. 0:12:51.840 --> 0:12:54.000 He had to chase Wilson down was like he had 0:12:54.040 --> 0:12:55.600 him and then he got away, and then he ran 0:12:55.679 --> 0:12:57.559 him down and then got him before he got back 0:12:57.600 --> 0:12:59.560 to the line of scrimmage to get that sad. Yeah, 0:12:59.559 --> 0:13:01.160 and it's fun because it's like, that's kind of what 0:13:01.240 --> 0:13:03.280 it's like when you're playing Russell Wilson. It's like these 0:13:03.280 --> 0:13:05.360 shoes string tackles every once in a while and you'll 0:13:05.400 --> 0:13:08.200 take him. But the second half it shows you again 0:13:08.240 --> 0:13:10.959 why Brian goodykinstant just stopped with Zadarius Smith. He went 0:13:11.000 --> 0:13:14.720 and signed Preston Smith too, because I thought Smith, especially 0:13:14.760 --> 0:13:18.000 in that fourth quarter, was just exceptional, you know, exceptional. 0:13:18.240 --> 0:13:21.800 What was what was his line after the game, defending 0:13:21.920 --> 0:13:24.760 Russell Wilson is like chasing a chicken in a field 0:13:24.800 --> 0:13:27.000 with no fence. I think that was the I think 0:13:27.000 --> 0:13:32.120 that that fantastic description and uh and absolutely spot on 0:13:32.160 --> 0:13:34.320 the way that game was unfolding. But again it goes 0:13:34.360 --> 0:13:36.840 back to the mental toughness of that defense because the 0:13:36.880 --> 0:13:39.800 third quarter was rough. I mean, Seattle marches down the 0:13:39.840 --> 0:13:43.520 field both times, puts up fourteen points and now suddenly 0:13:43.559 --> 0:13:46.720 the complexion of the game changes after very dominant first half, 0:13:47.200 --> 0:13:49.960 but they needed to not only find a stop late 0:13:50.000 --> 0:13:51.959 in the game. They needed to do that because now 0:13:51.960 --> 0:13:53.800 the game was only five points in Seattle had a 0:13:53.840 --> 0:13:56.000 chance to march down the field to pull ahead in 0:13:56.040 --> 0:13:58.640 the waning moments of this game, and they stepped up 0:13:58.640 --> 0:14:01.400 towards that they got a critical stop and being able 0:14:01.440 --> 0:14:04.760 to then execute the four minute offense. This defense, Mike, 0:14:04.800 --> 0:14:07.679 I mean, when all the Chips are down, they always 0:14:07.720 --> 0:14:11.319 find a way to persevere, and it is it's really 0:14:11.360 --> 0:14:14.640 interesting now that they will get an opportunity to see 0:14:14.640 --> 0:14:17.000 if they can get that redemption against you know, Jimmy 0:14:17.000 --> 0:14:19.880 Garoppolo and the San Francisco defense or offense. But we'll 0:14:20.000 --> 0:14:23.080 we'll get more time for that later this week. Yeah, yeah, absolutely, Well, 0:14:24.480 --> 0:14:26.720 we've seen it time and time again, Wes. And this 0:14:26.800 --> 0:14:29.800 is what I focused my entire game recap story on 0:14:29.920 --> 0:14:35.080 that I wrote last night. This Packers team, they make 0:14:35.200 --> 0:14:37.280 the plays in the fourth quarter when they have to 0:14:37.320 --> 0:14:38.840 have them. And as you said, it was like the 0:14:38.920 --> 0:14:42.640 Chips were down, Seattle seemingly had all the momentum in 0:14:42.680 --> 0:14:45.800 the world, and then you look at the sack by 0:14:45.840 --> 0:14:49.480 Preston Smith and then the two third down conversions on offense. 0:14:49.520 --> 0:14:51.520 The past two Adams over the top and then the 0:14:51.520 --> 0:14:54.520 crosser to Jimmy Graham. When you look at it in 0:14:54.720 --> 0:14:56.560 you know, the play by play because of the time 0:14:56.560 --> 0:14:59.520 outs being used in the two minute warning, those were 0:14:59.640 --> 0:15:04.440 three really really big clutch plays that happened within like 0:15:04.640 --> 0:15:08.040 ninety seconds of game clock. And if any one of 0:15:08.080 --> 0:15:11.120 those three plays within that ninety seconds of game clock 0:15:11.720 --> 0:15:15.840 isn't going the Packers way, if the Packers don't do 0:15:15.920 --> 0:15:17.840 what they have to in those moments, we might be 0:15:17.880 --> 0:15:20.320 talking about a different ending here. I mean it was 0:15:20.800 --> 0:15:23.360 there were there were big time moments, and as the 0:15:23.400 --> 0:15:26.200 Packers have done far more often than not this season, 0:15:26.760 --> 0:15:28.840 they came through when they had to come through. They 0:15:28.880 --> 0:15:30.720 really did. And it's funny too because if you look 0:15:30.760 --> 0:15:34.000 at this whole game, uh, you know, Jared Valdeer ends 0:15:34.080 --> 0:15:36.680 up playing and you know, having to start. We haven't 0:15:36.680 --> 0:15:38.800 even we haven't even talked about that yet, but wow, 0:15:38.880 --> 0:15:40.920 what a what a performance by him, And well, you 0:15:40.960 --> 0:15:43.360 know they'll talk for you know, decades to come. Here 0:15:43.840 --> 0:15:46.840 in Packer fans circles about Davante Adams and the performance 0:15:46.880 --> 0:15:49.520 he had and Rogers leading them past Russell Wilson getting 0:15:49.560 --> 0:15:52.520 some playoff revenge against Seattle. But then there's a guy 0:15:52.600 --> 0:15:54.560 like Jared Valdier that I think only like the true 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:57.840 die hards are going to remember this game. But Brian Blaga, 0:15:57.920 --> 0:16:00.880 who successfully cleared the concussion for WoT A call earlier 0:16:00.880 --> 0:16:02.920 in the week, is so he's able to take all 0:16:02.960 --> 0:16:04.960 the first team reps at right tackle. The plan is 0:16:05.000 --> 0:16:07.160 for him to be there. Even won the Stand Up 0:16:07.160 --> 0:16:10.160 Guy Award on Friday. Everybody's feeling really good about this thing. 0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:13.560 And then the day of the game, that dreaded bug, 0:16:13.720 --> 0:16:16.240 that flu bug that's been circling around the locker room, 0:16:16.520 --> 0:16:20.600 it gets Brian Bulaga, and Bilaga, to his credit, was 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:23.080 active for this game. They did have him up. But 0:16:23.200 --> 0:16:26.560 whatever happened, you know, in those hours in between there 0:16:26.600 --> 0:16:28.480 and eventually we'll get a chance to talk to him. 0:16:28.560 --> 0:16:31.160 They ended up having to make a decision basically half 0:16:31.160 --> 0:16:33.320 an hour before the start of the game that they're 0:16:33.320 --> 0:16:36.120 gonna go with Jared Valdere and outside has he even 0:16:36.200 --> 0:16:39.320 said it outside and maybe one rush against Jadeveon Clowney 0:16:39.320 --> 0:16:41.000 where he was able to get inside of him. The 0:16:41.040 --> 0:16:42.800 guy pitched a shut out. This is a guy that 0:16:43.080 --> 0:16:46.080 was retired two months ago at this time, a guy 0:16:46.120 --> 0:16:48.120 that had stepped away from the game, had already played 0:16:48.120 --> 0:16:51.080 in over a hundred regular season contests, had started thinks 0:16:51.120 --> 0:16:53.560 maybe somewhere around a hundred and nineteen he was done. 0:16:54.320 --> 0:16:56.680 And then here he is in a very critical late 0:16:56.720 --> 0:17:00.120 season and the acquisition by Brendan Brian Goodkunst play and 0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:02.400 one of the most important downs of football the Packers 0:17:02.400 --> 0:17:05.440 have seen. Yeah, well, Rogers said after the game actually 0:17:05.480 --> 0:17:08.680 that he saw Bolag a kind of tap himself out 0:17:08.800 --> 0:17:12.280 during warmups where you know, they during warmups, they line 0:17:12.320 --> 0:17:14.440 up with the full offense, but it's kind of on air. 0:17:14.560 --> 0:17:16.600 You know, there's really no defense on the other side, 0:17:16.600 --> 0:17:20.520 and they're just they're just running through certain formations and plays. 0:17:20.520 --> 0:17:22.879 And Rogers said, after one of the players Bolaga just 0:17:23.440 --> 0:17:25.920 kind of walked off to the sideline, you know, signaled 0:17:25.960 --> 0:17:28.080 for valder to go in and finish up, you know 0:17:28.119 --> 0:17:30.880 that round because we and that was and and then 0:17:30.880 --> 0:17:33.480 that was it. Bolaga basically took himself out and knew 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:35.080 that he wasn't going to be able to go and 0:17:35.119 --> 0:17:38.879 that's essentially when the decision was made. And you know 0:17:38.920 --> 0:17:41.679 what val Deer did stepping in, obviously he was huge 0:17:42.160 --> 0:17:45.040 stepping in the fourth quarter in Detroit for the Packers 0:17:45.119 --> 0:17:48.560 to get the first round by when Bolaga got the concussion, 0:17:48.880 --> 0:17:52.240 and then he comes up big yesterday and Rogers was joking, 0:17:52.480 --> 0:17:54.800 you know, on the sideline with him saying, you know, 0:17:54.840 --> 0:17:57.680 isn't this amazing? You were retired like two months ago, 0:17:58.240 --> 0:18:00.800 and val Deer said, dude, I was in the stands 0:18:00.800 --> 0:18:03.399 that Soldier field watching you guys beat the Bears in 0:18:03.440 --> 0:18:06.840 Week one, I mean, his first week of football retirement. 0:18:06.920 --> 0:18:09.679 You know, he's in the crowd in Chicago watching the 0:18:09.760 --> 0:18:13.399 kickoff opener of the NFL season and lo and behold 0:18:13.440 --> 0:18:15.520 the team that he was watching get a victory. Is 0:18:15.680 --> 0:18:18.320 uh the team that he's starting for at right tackle 0:18:18.400 --> 0:18:21.120 in the NFC Divisional playoffs four months later. I mean, 0:18:21.440 --> 0:18:24.960 it's it's really, it's really a pretty remarkable story. You 0:18:25.000 --> 0:18:27.560 couldn't you can't make this stuff up. And you know 0:18:27.640 --> 0:18:30.080 better than anybody might cover in this team. As long 0:18:30.119 --> 0:18:32.359 as you have now. It is one thing to just 0:18:32.400 --> 0:18:34.960 stay in shape. It is another thing to actually be 0:18:35.000 --> 0:18:38.600 in a condition to play all, you know, meaningful snaps 0:18:38.680 --> 0:18:40.560 late in the season after you didn't have an off 0:18:40.600 --> 0:18:42.760 season programmer or training camp or anything like that, and 0:18:42.800 --> 0:18:45.080 to play a full game to not just filling in 0:18:45.119 --> 0:18:47.119 for a quarter like he did in Detroit, which was 0:18:47.359 --> 0:18:49.399 which was solid enough, but he had he had to 0:18:49.400 --> 0:18:52.760 go wire to wire against the Seattle Seahawks and a 0:18:52.800 --> 0:18:55.439 fair number of snaps against Mr Clowney. Yeah, and just 0:18:55.480 --> 0:18:57.879 the you know, that's an important acquisition. And it's funny. 0:18:57.960 --> 0:19:00.880 He actually said afterwards to this this public virus that's 0:19:00.880 --> 0:19:03.760 going around, he caught it too, uh And I think 0:19:03.840 --> 0:19:06.040 David Boctryo was talking with Rob Demovski about this too. 0:19:06.119 --> 0:19:09.159 He worked through it last week and Valdere said, I mean, 0:19:09.200 --> 0:19:11.960 it is it's bad. What he had was bad. And 0:19:12.520 --> 0:19:15.680 he's like, you know, he understands why Brian Blaga was 0:19:15.720 --> 0:19:17.439 in the position he was in and the fact that 0:19:17.480 --> 0:19:20.360 he would have done anything to be out there. But sometimes, man, 0:19:20.400 --> 0:19:24.639 if you get full blown influenza, it'll get you and 0:19:24.680 --> 0:19:27.480 there's no amount of fluids or anything that's gonna get 0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:30.400 you through that. So fortunately for the Packers, again, this 0:19:30.440 --> 0:19:32.280 is a this is a guy that they claimed off 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:35.080 waivers from New England at the end of November, was 0:19:35.160 --> 0:19:39.120 activated what December nine or something like that, and here 0:19:39.119 --> 0:19:41.680 he is now having to play in three critical moments. 0:19:41.920 --> 0:19:44.560 You know, in in that first month with the team. Well, 0:19:44.600 --> 0:19:48.000 just quickly to recap everything else that happened on divisional weekend. 0:19:48.040 --> 0:19:51.680 As everyone knows, the Packers opponent in the NFC Championship 0:19:51.720 --> 0:19:54.439 game next week will be the San Francisco for the Uniters, 0:19:54.520 --> 0:19:56.760 so it is the one seed versus the two seed 0:19:57.280 --> 0:19:59.960 in the NFC. The game will be at Levi Stadium 0:20:00.040 --> 0:20:02.440 in Santa Clara, and obviously we'll be talking all week 0:20:02.520 --> 0:20:06.840 long about how the Packers, uh, you know, looking to 0:20:06.920 --> 0:20:09.600 avenge obviously what happened out there in November, which was 0:20:09.680 --> 0:20:12.520 really the low point of the season quite frankly. In 0:20:12.600 --> 0:20:16.520