WEBVTT - #614 Packers Unscripted: Fantastic finish 0:00:00.480 --> 0:00:10.840 Hi, everybody, Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:10.840 --> 0:00:13.680 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, joined by my 0:00:13.800 --> 0:00:16.520 partner in crime, West Hodkowitz, were coming to you here 0:00:17.000 --> 0:00:20.040 from our studios at lambeau Field and West. Have you 0:00:20.040 --> 0:00:24.800 caught your breath yet? Thirty to eight the Packers pull 0:00:24.880 --> 0:00:28.960 out a last second victory in San Francisco. With this one, 0:00:29.000 --> 0:00:32.120 we might as well start with the finish. Thirty seven 0:00:32.120 --> 0:00:36.839 seconds on the clock, no time Out's ball on Aaron Rodgers, 0:00:36.960 --> 0:00:41.040 Davante Adams, Mason Crosby and some really good pass protection 0:00:41.440 --> 0:00:43.919 get the job done for the Packers. Moments of greatness, 0:00:43.960 --> 0:00:46.600 reveal themselves, you know, in those clutch moments, and it 0:00:46.760 --> 0:00:49.360 it's just it's incredible. Coin back and looking at some 0:00:49.400 --> 0:00:51.680 of the transcripts, you know from Kyle Shanahan in the 0:00:51.720 --> 0:00:56.200 locker room for the forty niners thirty seven seconds left, 0:00:56.360 --> 0:00:58.520 they knew there was too much time left on the clock. 0:00:58.600 --> 0:01:00.440 Now that's not to say the green By Packers was 0:01:00.560 --> 0:01:02.520 gonna go down, and at their own will put points 0:01:02.600 --> 0:01:05.280 up against them, but that's way too much time to 0:01:05.319 --> 0:01:07.800 give Aaron Rodgers to make something happen. And even with 0:01:07.840 --> 0:01:09.560 no time out, even with no time Oh it's and 0:01:09.840 --> 0:01:13.080 as Rogers said, and he's so eloquently put afterwards, you know, 0:01:13.240 --> 0:01:15.600 he knew he needed to chunk plays to be able 0:01:15.640 --> 0:01:17.680 to get downfield. They needed to get within the thirty 0:01:17.680 --> 0:01:20.120 seven yard line there, basically to give Mason Crosby a 0:01:20.200 --> 0:01:23.280 chance at this thing. And what are you gonna do. 0:01:23.360 --> 0:01:26.120 You're gonna look towards Davante Adams, and you know, Adams 0:01:26.160 --> 0:01:28.840 pretty much imposed his will on San Francisco in the 0:01:28.880 --> 0:01:31.479 first half. A lot of injuries in their secondary, pretty 0:01:31.480 --> 0:01:34.000 banged up. They were having a hard time, you know, 0:01:34.080 --> 0:01:36.760 trying to defend against him. They eventually shifted to the 0:01:36.800 --> 0:01:39.200 cover to look giving him a little bit more attention 0:01:39.240 --> 0:01:42.360 in the second half. But on that final series, I mean, 0:01:42.400 --> 0:01:44.800 they were content to try to find ways to play 0:01:44.800 --> 0:01:47.640 a semi prevent defense. They still rushed for but they 0:01:47.680 --> 0:01:50.560 put guys back and Aaron Rodgers went to work. Man. 0:01:50.600 --> 0:01:52.920 I mean that first play, as he talked about later on, 0:01:53.080 --> 0:01:54.560 something that they kind of even drew up in the 0:01:54.600 --> 0:01:58.840 dirt at practice on Thursday, for you know, Adams to 0:01:58.920 --> 0:02:01.400 come across and Roger to put that ball where he did, 0:02:01.800 --> 0:02:06.000 just over the outstretched outstretched arms of Fred Almost, Fred Taylor, 0:02:06.240 --> 0:02:09.720 Fred Warner, one of the best in the business inside 0:02:09.720 --> 0:02:12.760 linebacker right now, to get those twenty five yards right 0:02:12.800 --> 0:02:14.760 off the bat. Once they got to midfield, I think 0:02:14.800 --> 0:02:16.919 everybody felt pretty good about their chances to be able 0:02:16.919 --> 0:02:19.120 to at least give Mason Crosby a chance to hit 0:02:19.160 --> 0:02:21.480 the game winner. Yeah, once the ball was on the fifty, 0:02:21.840 --> 0:02:24.200 as Rogers said, he knew going into it, two chunk 0:02:24.280 --> 0:02:26.240 plays is what you need. He got the first one. 0:02:26.280 --> 0:02:29.000 The balls at midfield at that point, you know, I 0:02:29.000 --> 0:02:33.240 mean Crosby's said afterward, his range was, you know, fifty 0:02:33.320 --> 0:02:36.200 four to fifty six yards. Maybe you could push it 0:02:36.240 --> 0:02:39.519 a little further if you absolutely had to, uh, one 0:02:39.560 --> 0:02:43.080 more completion, one more chunky yardage there got that kicked 0:02:43.120 --> 0:02:45.720 to fifty one, and you know that certainly well within 0:02:46.240 --> 0:02:49.800 Crosby's range. I thought it was interesting that Adams right 0:02:49.840 --> 0:02:53.000 after the game said that in some ways the fact 0:02:53.040 --> 0:02:56.080 that there were no time outs might have worked to 0:02:56.120 --> 0:02:59.559 the Packers advantage because with no time outs, the Forts 0:02:59.600 --> 0:03:03.560 were regarding the boundaries they were they were leaving the 0:03:03.600 --> 0:03:06.360 middle of the field open, thinking that a couple of 0:03:06.400 --> 0:03:09.120 completions in the middle of the field and the time 0:03:09.160 --> 0:03:10.880 it would take to go up and spike the ball 0:03:11.400 --> 0:03:14.240 that maybe the Packers wouldn't quite have enough, And it 0:03:14.240 --> 0:03:16.800 turns out they did. They had three seconds to spare, 0:03:16.840 --> 0:03:21.359 even with the one incomplete pass in between the two completions, 0:03:21.400 --> 0:03:25.200 the two spikes, three seconds to spare, and uhum, and 0:03:25.280 --> 0:03:28.400 the Packers get out of San Francisco with with an 0:03:28.440 --> 0:03:32.800 incredibly uplifting victory. Um. You know, these two teams long 0:03:32.840 --> 0:03:35.120 ways to go in this season, obviously, but these I 0:03:35.160 --> 0:03:37.320 think are two teams we're gonna be talking about come 0:03:37.440 --> 0:03:40.560 December when we're you know, looking at playoff picture and whatnot. 0:03:40.680 --> 0:03:43.080 Very much so because the weapons now for San Francisco 0:03:43.120 --> 0:03:45.360 are more than just their running backs. I mean, you know, 0:03:45.480 --> 0:03:47.960 Deebo Samuel, he's going to be a problem here for 0:03:48.000 --> 0:03:50.880 the NFL. I thought, George Kittle when he's healthy, it's 0:03:50.920 --> 0:03:53.000 him and Travis Kelsey as far as one A, one 0:03:53.040 --> 0:03:55.360 B for the best of that position. But what it 0:03:55.400 --> 0:03:57.520 struck me the most about that final drive was the 0:03:57.560 --> 0:04:00.640 psychology of it. And Rogers explain, you know, you can't 0:04:00.640 --> 0:04:04.320 be looking for checkdowns there. That's that's bad. But they 0:04:04.360 --> 0:04:08.480 also the way they bracketed. The sidelines were basically protecting 0:04:08.800 --> 0:04:11.280 against allowing any pass in the middle field to get 0:04:11.280 --> 0:04:13.600 to the sideline. So what does Green Bay do. Davante 0:04:13.640 --> 0:04:16.360 Adams goes down the first time, gets the seventeen yards, 0:04:16.360 --> 0:04:19.520 gets down again. Playing with a backup left tackle and 0:04:19.560 --> 0:04:22.599 all these moving pieces, they managed to set their formation, 0:04:22.760 --> 0:04:26.479 spiked the ball, and Mason Crosby, for what the ninth 0:04:26.520 --> 0:04:28.760 time in his career now goes out there and drills 0:04:28.760 --> 0:04:31.160 home a game winner. NOE got a little close for 0:04:31.279 --> 0:04:33.760 comfort in terms of the pass rush or the you know, 0:04:33.800 --> 0:04:37.840 the attempted block there by San Francisco. But be that 0:04:37.960 --> 0:04:40.280 as it may, horseshoes and hand grenades, the Green Bay 0:04:40.279 --> 0:04:42.560 Packers came out. They found a way to win this thing. 0:04:42.640 --> 0:04:44.360 They had the way to the world on them in 0:04:44.400 --> 0:04:48.760 the fourth quarter. So many different circumstances, some questionable officiating, 0:04:48.760 --> 0:04:52.640 I mean, different variables, but more than anything, San Francisco 0:04:52.680 --> 0:04:54.960 showed a never say die attitude and they came back 0:04:55.040 --> 0:04:57.479 to put themselves in that ball game. But ultimately, Mike 0:04:57.560 --> 0:04:59.360 I said it in Insider Inbox, you and I've talked 0:04:59.400 --> 0:05:01.680 about this week, the Green Bay Packers were the better 0:05:01.720 --> 0:05:04.680 football team and Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams were the 0:05:04.680 --> 0:05:07.120 two best players on the field. That's what showed him 0:05:07.120 --> 0:05:10.919 crunch time. Yeah, absolutely, the Packers. The Packers were the 0:05:11.000 --> 0:05:13.279 better team on the field in this game for the 0:05:13.440 --> 0:05:15.640 vast majority of I mean the fact that the forty 0:05:15.720 --> 0:05:17.840 Niners never had the lead in the game until there 0:05:17.839 --> 0:05:20.520 were thirty seven seconds left on the clock. That says 0:05:20.520 --> 0:05:22.760 a lot. With the Packers playing on the road. We 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:24.960 had talked about it last week, how important it was, 0:05:25.600 --> 0:05:27.640 Rogers had talked about it after the Detroit game La 0:05:27.720 --> 0:05:29.680 Fleur as well, how important it was to get off 0:05:29.720 --> 0:05:32.560 to a fast start. The Packers were able to do that, 0:05:33.080 --> 0:05:36.240 getting out to a seventeen nothing lead in the second quarter. 0:05:36.360 --> 0:05:39.320 The defense was playing really well, the offense was moving 0:05:39.360 --> 0:05:42.120 the ball. The seventeen nothing could have been even better. Obviously, 0:05:42.200 --> 0:05:45.080 the Packers had had a failed fourth and one in 0:05:45.160 --> 0:05:48.040 the red zone there that that left points out there. 0:05:48.920 --> 0:05:50.760 But they got off to the start that they needed 0:05:50.800 --> 0:05:54.479 to and for the most part, really up until that 0:05:54.560 --> 0:05:59.279 final drive by San Francisco, the Packers prevented the San 0:05:59.279 --> 0:06:02.599 Francisco Amentum shifts because they were there. There were the shifts, 0:06:02.600 --> 0:06:05.600 but they prevented them from becoming that that tsunami where 0:06:05.640 --> 0:06:08.840 the other team just completely takes over and suddenly you're 0:06:08.880 --> 0:06:11.640 you're totally on your heels and you can't figure out 0:06:11.839 --> 0:06:15.159 how to how to stem the tide. That never really happened. 0:06:15.200 --> 0:06:18.279 San Francisco give them credit. They put together Garoppolo puts 0:06:18.320 --> 0:06:21.080 together the drive. The big play to Kittle was was 0:06:21.120 --> 0:06:24.440 really the backbreaker for the Packer defense there and uh 0:06:24.480 --> 0:06:27.080 and San Francisco gets into the end zone, but Aaron 0:06:27.160 --> 0:06:29.039 Rodgers had just enough time to go the other way. 0:06:29.120 --> 0:06:31.680 And in Rogers and Adams have already discussed them just 0:06:31.720 --> 0:06:33.839 how how talented they are and to be able to 0:06:33.839 --> 0:06:35.800 have that connection, being able to find a way to 0:06:35.800 --> 0:06:37.680 win that football game, all the credit to them in 0:06:37.680 --> 0:06:39.760 the world. When we saw we saw the back shoulder 0:06:39.800 --> 0:06:41.919 throws early and then you see the balls over the 0:06:41.920 --> 0:06:44.400 middle late in the game. I mean, when Aaron Rodgers 0:06:44.440 --> 0:06:47.160 needs it, it's there's there's no secret you know who's 0:06:47.200 --> 0:06:49.360 going to get the football. But I'm gonna mention this 0:06:49.440 --> 0:06:51.400 because he'll be the last person to bring it up. 0:06:51.400 --> 0:06:53.440 But I mean the game plan that Matt Laflour and 0:06:53.480 --> 0:06:55.479 his coaches put together, and the way they coached that 0:06:55.520 --> 0:06:57.920 football team. I thought, really shine through in this game. 0:06:58.520 --> 0:07:01.000 Uh first and form do you look at you know 0:07:01.080 --> 0:07:04.680 you have Yoshneimen making a spot start at left tackle. 0:07:05.080 --> 0:07:07.520 I went back and did the math Mike. One thousand 0:07:07.520 --> 0:07:09.960 and forty four days since the last time that young 0:07:09.960 --> 0:07:13.240 man started in a meaningful regular season game. You have 0:07:13.320 --> 0:07:16.120 to go back to, you know, his time at Virginia Tech, 0:07:16.800 --> 0:07:20.040 and here he is protecting the blindside of the NFL's 0:07:20.320 --> 0:07:25.080 reigning league MVP. Niman did an exemplary job in that game. 0:07:25.240 --> 0:07:28.160 But it's also Matt Lafleur and his coaching staff being 0:07:28.200 --> 0:07:31.480 really smart with their game plan right. They understood you 0:07:31.520 --> 0:07:33.840 can't put the you can't put everything on this kid 0:07:33.880 --> 0:07:36.400 against Nick Bosa. There were times where it needed to 0:07:36.440 --> 0:07:40.560 be that, but Mercedes lewis best blocking tight end the 0:07:40.640 --> 0:07:44.480 National Football League taken on Bosa sometimes even one on one. 0:07:45.040 --> 0:07:47.360 Robert Tounyan had that chip block that made all the 0:07:47.440 --> 0:07:49.440 raves on social media on Monday, where he was able 0:07:49.480 --> 0:07:54.120 to get the pancake of Bosa down. That young offensive 0:07:54.160 --> 0:07:57.120 line gives up one sack in this game and Rogers 0:07:57.160 --> 0:08:00.400 gets the ball out quickly. It was your Quintus essential 0:08:00.480 --> 0:08:02.760 team victory in the way they went about this thing 0:08:03.040 --> 0:08:04.800 and the fact that they were able to establish the 0:08:04.840 --> 0:08:07.120 momentum that they had despite the fact they were without 0:08:07.160 --> 0:08:10.480 their top two offensive line. Yeah. Absolutely. You look at 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:12.520 and I mentioned this in a couple of different places 0:08:12.520 --> 0:08:15.600 on our website. You look at that starting offensive line 0:08:15.600 --> 0:08:19.239 on Sunday night, the two rookies at center and right guard. 0:08:19.280 --> 0:08:21.800 You had John Running at left guard as you just mentioned, Josh, 0:08:21.840 --> 0:08:24.800 and I'man at left tackle. Those four guys, four fifths 0:08:24.800 --> 0:08:29.400 of your offensive line collectively had five NFL starts to 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:32.000 their name heading into that game on Sunday night. Now 0:08:32.080 --> 0:08:34.040 they have nine. They almost doubled it. They went from 0:08:34.040 --> 0:08:36.640 five to nine. They all they all added another start, 0:08:37.400 --> 0:08:39.840 but obviously nine, and it was his first for Running, 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:41.760 it was his second. For the two rookies that was 0:08:41.800 --> 0:08:44.120 their third, having you know, with this being Week three 0:08:44.440 --> 0:08:48.000 and then being starters in the opener this year. That 0:08:48.120 --> 0:08:51.880 was pretty remarkable to me how that group held up 0:08:52.280 --> 0:08:55.400 throughout the course of four quarters the way that it did. 0:08:55.440 --> 0:08:58.040 But you also mentioned the game plan. Now I'm not 0:08:58.080 --> 0:09:00.679 saying obviously that we haven't seen the Kers do this, 0:09:01.240 --> 0:09:05.480 but the vast majority of the time on third down 0:09:05.840 --> 0:09:09.040 it was shotgun, empty backfield, spread them out. And you 0:09:09.080 --> 0:09:11.600 may say, well, aren't you leaving you know, isn't that 0:09:11.679 --> 0:09:14.680 leaving the offensive line vulnerable? No, that was a That 0:09:14.800 --> 0:09:17.000 was a plan on third down to get the ball 0:09:17.040 --> 0:09:19.000 out of Rogers hands. He was gonna have as many 0:09:19.000 --> 0:09:21.600 targets as possible. He was going to scan the field 0:09:21.600 --> 0:09:23.800 before the snap, and he was gonna know where he 0:09:23.880 --> 0:09:27.559 was going to not leave him vulnerable to that third 0:09:27.559 --> 0:09:29.880 down pass rush of a Nick Bosa or an Eric 0:09:29.960 --> 0:09:32.480 Armstead or a d Ford or a blitzing Fred Warner, 0:09:32.600 --> 0:09:35.520 whatever the case might be. That was the plan. I 0:09:35.520 --> 0:09:38.840 I can probably count on three fingers or less the 0:09:38.920 --> 0:09:41.400 number of times on third down that the Packers did 0:09:41.440 --> 0:09:45.160 not empty the backfield and go shotgun. The plan was 0:09:45.240 --> 0:09:47.360 clear about getting the ball out of Rogers hands in 0:09:47.400 --> 0:09:50.480 those potential pass rush situations, and for the most part, 0:09:50.480 --> 0:09:52.280 the way the Packers were moving the ball, it was 0:09:52.360 --> 0:09:54.559 it was hard to argue with the results. Yeah, and 0:09:54.559 --> 0:09:57.520 and exactly and being able also early on, you know, 0:09:57.559 --> 0:09:59.600 I felt like getting off to a fast start. We'll 0:09:59.600 --> 0:10:02.520 talk about the defense here momentarily, but to get off 0:10:02.520 --> 0:10:05.000 to the fast start that they did getting out of 0:10:05.040 --> 0:10:07.439 the gate. Rogers talked about it afterwards. He's been so 0:10:08.520 --> 0:10:11.120 reiterating how much he wanted them to get off, you know, 0:10:11.160 --> 0:10:13.400 the energy, to come out the right way. They did 0:10:13.440 --> 0:10:15.880 that in this game. And you know they haven't broken 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:19.439 a seventy yard run yet this season, but a j. 0:10:19.640 --> 0:10:23.400 Dillon and Aaron Jones combining carries for a hundred yards 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:26.880 just really clean, consistent production and being able to do 0:10:26.920 --> 0:10:29.440 it against that front. I think that allowed those offensive 0:10:29.440 --> 0:10:32.000 linemen to get comfortable. I thought you really saw Josh 0:10:32.040 --> 0:10:34.520 Meyers athleticism in this game and his ability to get 0:10:34.559 --> 0:10:37.319 to the second level. I think, as I've continued to 0:10:37.360 --> 0:10:40.080 say on this broadcast, Billy Turner is one of the 0:10:40.080 --> 0:10:42.960 most underrated players on this team. And the fact is 0:10:43.000 --> 0:10:45.760 he's been a really stable presence at right tackle since 0:10:45.800 --> 0:10:47.959 they put him their last season. Yeah, we sure didn't 0:10:47.960 --> 0:10:50.120 hear much from de Ford on Sunday night, and that 0:10:50.200 --> 0:10:52.760 was that was Turner's assignment. And yes there were some 0:10:52.880 --> 0:10:55.160 chips on on that side as well, but obviously the 0:10:55.240 --> 0:10:59.120 chipping was mostly focused at left tackle with Nieman and 0:10:59.280 --> 0:11:02.560 and Uh and Turner. Turner was a country not heard 0:11:02.600 --> 0:11:05.000 from and that worked out perfectly. And that's exactly what 0:11:05.040 --> 0:11:06.960 you're looking for. When you decide we're going to take 0:11:07.000 --> 0:11:09.560 this one spot that's vacant, and we're gonna put a 0:11:09.600 --> 0:11:11.960 young player in there that's never started an NFL game. 0:11:12.440 --> 0:11:14.200 You don't want to have to worry about the right 0:11:14.240 --> 0:11:16.120 side there. And I thought Turner held up his end 0:11:16.160 --> 0:11:18.840 of the bargain. But I'll just close on this. In 0:11:18.880 --> 0:11:21.600 regards of the offense, for Davante Adams, with all the 0:11:21.640 --> 0:11:24.439 attention he's received to have twenty five catches, the most 0:11:24.480 --> 0:11:27.360 catches and franchise history through the first three games of 0:11:27.360 --> 0:11:31.240 the season, to have three receiving yards already, have you know, 0:11:31.440 --> 0:11:35.040 come back from a nasty, nasty, vicious hit from Jimmy 0:11:35.080 --> 0:11:37.520 Ward that should have been a helmet to helmet to 0:11:37.640 --> 0:11:39.560 do all that and get back on the field and 0:11:39.600 --> 0:11:42.120 clumb up with two huge catches for forty two yards 0:11:42.120 --> 0:11:45.520 in the clutch. Davante Adams, as we continue to see Mike, 0:11:45.679 --> 0:11:48.040 it's so fun when you can watch a guy ascend 0:11:48.120 --> 0:11:51.599 to a certain level, but watching him now sustain and 0:11:51.800 --> 0:11:54.600 elevate from that level and all pro level has been 0:11:54.600 --> 0:11:56.800 a really treat. Has there been a really big treat? Yeah, 0:11:56.800 --> 0:11:59.400 no question about it, Absolutely no question about it. Some 0:11:59.400 --> 0:12:02.320 shoutouts to our sponsors. Here West Serious x M NFL 0:12:02.440 --> 0:12:05.000 Radio delivers hard hitting analysis and up to the minute 0:12:05.120 --> 0:12:09.679 NFL news that true football fonetics need seven three six 0:12:10.240 --> 0:12:13.120 And at Cousin Subs, we have something for everyone like 0:12:13.120 --> 0:12:16.040 our Wisconsin cheese curds, mac and cheese, golden fries, and 0:12:16.080 --> 0:12:19.120 creamy shakes, all paired with your favorite sub or sub 0:12:19.160 --> 0:12:22.040 in a bowl. Cousin Subs, we believe in better. We 0:12:22.120 --> 0:12:24.160 got a new guy on the cousins train to Did 0:12:24.200 --> 0:12:30.800 you see that our social media coordinator over your Stephen Huddy? Yeah, 0:12:30.840 --> 0:12:33.560 Stephen is Yeah, he's becoming a big Cousin Subs TWEE 0:12:33.559 --> 0:12:35.360 did me a nice little photo, because maybe that's what 0:12:35.440 --> 0:12:37.520 the things should be. Like, Hey, if you tweet your 0:12:37.840 --> 0:12:39.439 your cousin's food at me, I'll give you a show 0:12:39.520 --> 0:12:43.040 dout on in script it don't give any any ideas well. 0:12:43.080 --> 0:12:45.720 On the defensive side of the ball in this game 0:12:45.720 --> 0:12:48.760 for the Packers, it was it was a strong start 0:12:48.920 --> 0:12:53.080 an incredibly athletic interception by j R. Alexander on the 0:12:53.160 --> 0:12:56.480 deep ball to George Kittle. Unfortunately, the Packers did not 0:12:56.559 --> 0:13:00.839 turn that turnover in into points and really west. The 0:13:01.960 --> 0:13:05.320 unfortunate thing with the way the defense was playing was 0:13:05.360 --> 0:13:08.320 that that long kickoff return was allowed right before halftime 0:13:08.360 --> 0:13:10.960 because then the forty Niners only had about thirty yards 0:13:11.040 --> 0:13:12.840 to go. They were able to get in the end zone. 0:13:13.840 --> 0:13:17.000 UM and still probably shouldn't have if because I think 0:13:17.120 --> 0:13:19.080 I agree with Matt Lafleur. I think it was intentional 0:13:19.120 --> 0:13:21.040 grounding on Jimmy Garoppolo. I think he was going to 0:13:21.120 --> 0:13:23.160 throw an interception in the end zone if he actually 0:13:23.160 --> 0:13:25.720 tried to throw it, and so he spiked the ball 0:13:25.760 --> 0:13:28.679 into the ground. That aside, the Packers were on their 0:13:28.720 --> 0:13:31.000 way to a first half shutout, which would have actually 0:13:31.040 --> 0:13:34.600 been a four quarter shutout. Going back to the second 0:13:34.640 --> 0:13:38.760 half of the Monday night game against the Lions, and uh, 0:13:38.840 --> 0:13:41.400 and you know, this is a defense that obviously knows 0:13:41.440 --> 0:13:44.640 the Darius Smith lost Chris Barnes to a concussion in 0:13:44.640 --> 0:13:47.240 the game along the way Kevin King they find out 0:13:47.320 --> 0:13:50.199 he's ill, and and uh is out for the game. 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:54.520 UM on game day, and uh and I thought the defense. 0:13:54.559 --> 0:13:56.880 I know the final drive was frustrating to a lot 0:13:56.920 --> 0:13:59.680 of fans. I get it, but that's also the way 0:13:59.720 --> 0:14:01.800 this the way this thing can work in the NFL. 0:14:01.920 --> 0:14:05.840 I thought this Packer defense two, in my eyes, took 0:14:05.880 --> 0:14:08.360 a big step forward from where it was the first 0:14:08.360 --> 0:14:10.840 two weeks of the season. It did, and especially from 0:14:10.880 --> 0:14:13.320 the standpoint of it needed to start fast. I think 0:14:13.320 --> 0:14:14.959 that was the thing I talked about. They needed to 0:14:15.040 --> 0:14:16.800 set the temple. They need to stop the run. In 0:14:16.800 --> 0:14:18.920 San Francisco, a team that ran all over him two 0:14:19.000 --> 0:14:21.440 years ago could not run the football against him in 0:14:21.480 --> 0:14:23.400 this game that frankly kind of gave up on it, 0:14:23.440 --> 0:14:25.680 even though they weren't. They weren't. They were never out 0:14:25.680 --> 0:14:28.160 of the Packers were leading the whole time, but they 0:14:28.160 --> 0:14:31.080 were never It was never a completely abandoned the run 0:14:31.240 --> 0:14:34.440 situation for an offense, yet San Francisco just never wanted 0:14:34.480 --> 0:14:36.560 to commit to it at all. So you look at 0:14:36.560 --> 0:14:39.280 the scoreboard, then I understand that that's the ultimate indicator 0:14:39.280 --> 0:14:41.280 of where things are at. But that's the reason why 0:14:41.320 --> 0:14:43.240 Green Bay was able to start pinning its ears back. 0:14:43.320 --> 0:14:45.720 Gets four sacks in this game after really struggling to 0:14:45.720 --> 0:14:48.320 get pressure the first few weeks. I thought Preston Smith 0:14:48.360 --> 0:14:49.960 had his best game of the season, looked like a 0:14:50.000 --> 0:14:53.760 stud throughout a lot of pressure uh, Kenny Clark was 0:14:53.920 --> 0:14:56.480 a man possessed and made one of the biggest players 0:14:56.520 --> 0:14:59.160 in the game by forcing what ended up being I mean, 0:14:59.160 --> 0:15:02.880 the game turn really into trying to judge what Jimmy 0:15:02.920 --> 0:15:05.760 Garoppolo's passes were doing, you know, And it was funny 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:07.960 to hear Garoppolo talk after the game about, yeah, you 0:15:08.000 --> 0:15:10.120 know that was kind of on the refs with my 0:15:10.200 --> 0:15:13.040 pass at the fumble unless and maybe someone can't explain 0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:16.320 it to me, but I grew up underneath the understanding 0:15:16.360 --> 0:15:18.960 that if it's a pass that goes backwards, no matter 0:15:19.040 --> 0:15:21.160 which if it goes in directly or if it goes 0:15:21.200 --> 0:15:23.560 it's it's a fumble. Yeah. The only time it's not 0:15:23.760 --> 0:15:25.800 is if if if it comes out of his hand 0:15:25.960 --> 0:15:28.720 forward and the defense bats it backwards, then it's a 0:15:28.760 --> 0:15:31.960 forward pass to quite frankly, was I think Garoppolo on 0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:33.920 the play that he fumbled in the fourth quarter, I 0:15:33.920 --> 0:15:35.560 think he was trying to do the same thing that 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:37.400 he did at the end of the first half. He 0:15:37.440 --> 0:15:39.320 was trying to basically just spike the ball and get 0:15:39.400 --> 0:15:41.440 rid of it to avoid the sec Well, that time 0:15:41.480 --> 0:15:43.960 it cost him because his shoulder got turned, the ball 0:15:44.000 --> 0:15:47.080 went backwards and it was alive and Deveandre Campbell recovered 0:15:47.080 --> 0:15:48.680 it for Green Bay. It was funny too when you 0:15:48.720 --> 0:15:52.160 mentioned the intentional grounding, and I don't disagree. I even 0:15:52.160 --> 0:15:54.960 tweeted during the game, this, that's intentional grounding. But of all, 0:15:55.080 --> 0:15:57.760 out of all the in my own eye botched calls 0:15:57.840 --> 0:15:59.680 throughout that game, that was the one I at least 0:15:59.720 --> 0:16:02.720 under stood the rationale for it because the referee said, well, 0:16:02.760 --> 0:16:05.120 he was trying to throw it to Kittle. Fine, I 0:16:05.160 --> 0:16:07.440 can understand that, but I want to get into the 0:16:07.480 --> 0:16:10.040 call stuff. But between the catch that's a new head, 0:16:10.120 --> 0:16:13.080 Between the defensive past interference on Eric Stokes, between the 0:16:13.120 --> 0:16:15.960 hit on DeVante, there was so much about that game 0:16:15.960 --> 0:16:18.440 that was ob to so that it just it goes 0:16:18.480 --> 0:16:22.400 without saying. But that being said, the Packers defensively, the 0:16:22.440 --> 0:16:24.800 reason they won this game is because of how they 0:16:24.800 --> 0:16:26.760 played in the first half and how they were able 0:16:26.760 --> 0:16:29.000 to keep San Francisco off the board allow themselves to 0:16:29.000 --> 0:16:32.440 get off to a fast start. Yes, there was production late, Yes, 0:16:32.480 --> 0:16:34.800 there were some injuries there. They lose Chris Barnes, they 0:16:34.800 --> 0:16:38.000 had to adjust to that. But all that being said, 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:41.000 you know, I was really impressed by how this defense 0:16:41.040 --> 0:16:44.000 has really picked itself up after a rough first six quarters. 0:16:44.040 --> 0:16:47.400 No one's debating that, no one's denying that, but been 0:16:47.480 --> 0:16:49.640 able to show more of what it's supposed to look 0:16:49.680 --> 0:16:52.680 like despite the fact they don't have you know, Zadarius 0:16:52.680 --> 0:16:55.040 Smith right now. So I thought that was a major 0:16:55.040 --> 0:16:59.320 step forward. Yeah, absolutely, and quite frankly, the final drive, Yes, 0:16:59.360 --> 0:17:02.040 the defense needs to rise up and get a stop 0:17:02.080 --> 0:17:07.359 there with the score one. Unfortunately, it was a mistake 0:17:07.400 --> 0:17:09.639 by the third safety and the dime Henry Black that 0:17:09.720 --> 0:17:13.320 led to the ruptured play with with George Kittle thirty 0:17:13.400 --> 0:17:15.359 nine yards on that play, Well, that's more than half 0:17:15.359 --> 0:17:18.719 of the seventy five yards they they they had to defend. 0:17:18.720 --> 0:17:21.440 And that's that's the one thing you can't do in 0:17:21.480 --> 0:17:23.760 those late game you know, whether it's four minute, two 0:17:23.760 --> 0:17:27.200 minute situations, is you can't give up those huge chunks 0:17:27.200 --> 0:17:29.760 of yard as you have to give yourself the opportunities 0:17:29.800 --> 0:17:32.440 down the field at the thirty five, at the forty five, 0:17:32.480 --> 0:17:34.679 at the at the minus forty five, at the minus 0:17:34.720 --> 0:17:37.880 forty to potentially get those stops and keep the other 0:17:37.880 --> 0:17:41.000 team out of scoring range. The thirty nine yard played 0:17:41.040 --> 0:17:44.159 a Kittle Suddenly the forty Niners went from needing seventy 0:17:44.240 --> 0:17:46.800 five yards to get a touchdown to being in complete 0:17:46.800 --> 0:17:49.160 command with plenty of time on the clock and everything 0:17:49.200 --> 0:17:51.920 that they that they wanted to do. So that that's 0:17:52.040 --> 0:17:55.639 that's the one thing. And the Packers the way that 0:17:55.760 --> 0:17:58.560 the way the last game and a half had been going, 0:17:58.640 --> 0:18:00.800 they were not giving up explore some plays. They just 0:18:00.840 --> 0:18:03.160 gave one up at a bad time. Yeah, totally. And 0:18:03.160 --> 0:18:04.879 and that's also the rich thing. It's kind of what 0:18:05.000 --> 0:18:07.879 I find quizzical with his fans will always say, well, 0:18:07.880 --> 0:18:09.919 why do they do this in two minutes? Well, sometimes 0:18:10.000 --> 0:18:12.119 the way they play there too minute defenses because they 0:18:12.119 --> 0:18:14.000 don't want to give up the big ruptured play that 0:18:14.480 --> 0:18:16.840 not only allows a lot of production but doesn't drain 0:18:16.880 --> 0:18:19.280 any time off the clock. That's that's ultimately the game 0:18:19.320 --> 0:18:22.800 you're sort of playing there a little bit, but you know, overall, 0:18:22.880 --> 0:18:24.760 you know, for to have as many moving pieces as 0:18:24.800 --> 0:18:28.000 they've had, you know, jyr Alexander, as you said, as 0:18:28.200 --> 0:18:30.440 incredible of an interception as you're gonna find a guy 0:18:30.440 --> 0:18:34.080 going from the boundary position coming are there is absolutely 0:18:34.119 --> 0:18:36.920 no way Jimmy Garoppolo thought that pass would be in 0:18:37.040 --> 0:18:40.440 danger of getting picked off. He threw that deep down 0:18:40.520 --> 0:18:43.040 the middle to Kittle, thinking either my great tight end 0:18:43.119 --> 0:18:45.000 is gonna is gonna make this play or it's just 0:18:45.040 --> 0:18:48.200 going to be an incomplete deep ball, and Alexander comes 0:18:48.200 --> 0:18:52.080 swooping over and get that such an and yard return 0:18:52.520 --> 0:18:55.440 out of it to Boot. So yeah, just a tremendous 0:18:55.520 --> 0:18:58.879 play by jar. The point being with that is Alexander's interception, 0:18:58.920 --> 0:19:01.320 the four sacks, the act that Devondra Campbell got yet 0:19:01.359 --> 0:19:04.679 another takeaway this week, which was a fantastic development from 0:19:04.720 --> 0:19:08.520 the inside backer position. The Packers are making plays defensively, 0:19:08.560 --> 0:19:10.280