WEBVTT - #384 Packers Unscripted: Working overtime 0:00:01.120 --> 0:00:21.040 Hi everyone, Welcome to Packers Unscripted and Merry Christmas. From 0:00:21.079 --> 0:00:24.599 Mike Spofford and Wes Hodkwitz from Packers dot Com. We're 0:00:24.640 --> 0:00:28.319 coming to you here from our studios at lambeau Field 0:00:28.360 --> 0:00:30.960 and West. We are back from New Jersey. The Packers, 0:00:31.560 --> 0:00:34.680 for the first and only time in get a victory 0:00:34.680 --> 0:00:37.440 on the road. And it doesn't come easy, not that 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:41.479 we thought it would, but thirty eight in overtime, a 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:45.040 big fourth quarter comeback by Green Bay in this one 0:00:45.120 --> 0:00:48.519 to get the sixth win of the season. I don't 0:00:48.560 --> 0:00:51.000 know where you want to start as far as this comeback, 0:00:51.040 --> 0:00:52.919 because there was a lot that went into it on 0:00:53.000 --> 0:00:55.680 both sides of the ball. Bottom line was the Packers 0:00:55.720 --> 0:01:01.680 were down thirty with one order to play, and they 0:01:01.720 --> 0:01:03.480 came back and got the job done. Here's what I 0:01:03.520 --> 0:01:06.559 really liked about this win for the Packers. They out 0:01:06.720 --> 0:01:10.959 offensed the Jets. The Packers defense, I think, as Joe 0:01:10.959 --> 0:01:12.840 Films said, they made some plays when they needed to. 0:01:12.920 --> 0:01:15.640 But at the end of the day, you go back 0:01:16.000 --> 0:01:19.800 a tale as old as time. It's Aaron Rodgers making 0:01:19.840 --> 0:01:22.560 plays and it's guys around him. The skill position players 0:01:22.959 --> 0:01:25.920 doing their part. Was talking to Corey Linsley after the game, 0:01:26.400 --> 0:01:27.880 and he said, you know it was it was I'm 0:01:27.880 --> 0:01:30.400 not gonna use his exact terminology, but it was frustrating 0:01:30.400 --> 0:01:32.000 where they were at in the middle of the third 0:01:32.120 --> 0:01:35.240 quarter because they felt like they've done some good things, 0:01:35.240 --> 0:01:38.000 but they just didn't have that juice they needed juice. 0:01:38.640 --> 0:01:41.080 And with Rogers playing the way he did in the 0:01:41.080 --> 0:01:43.360 final I guess if you call at the overtime, probably 0:01:43.400 --> 0:01:46.880 final five minutes of that contest, you had Jamal Williams 0:01:46.920 --> 0:01:48.960 step up a hundred and fifty six total yards and 0:01:49.000 --> 0:01:51.320 a touchdown. You had, for the first time ever in 0:01:51.440 --> 0:01:56.560 franchise history, five different guys have sixty receiving yards in 0:01:56.600 --> 0:01:58.840 this contest, each one of them playing a part in 0:01:58.880 --> 0:02:02.080 addition to that, drawing some defensive pass interfere its penalties 0:02:02.080 --> 0:02:06.200 that ended up being really important when the Packers needed 0:02:06.440 --> 0:02:09.480 to rally. This team rallied, and I think it was 0:02:09.560 --> 0:02:13.040 kind of a heat check on Rogers and and everybody 0:02:13.040 --> 0:02:16.640 you can talk forever about wanting to play out the 0:02:16.680 --> 0:02:19.720 season and in pride and jersey and everything like that. 0:02:19.960 --> 0:02:23.720 When you're down fifteen points, Mike and everything's going against 0:02:23.800 --> 0:02:26.280 you against the team that's four and ten that's the 0:02:26.360 --> 0:02:28.480 ultimate gut check, and the Packers were able to pass 0:02:28.520 --> 0:02:31.200 that test. I think what was perhaps even more impressive 0:02:31.200 --> 0:02:33.600 than when you say down fifteen and the fourth quarter, 0:02:33.680 --> 0:02:36.880 as we've been talking about here, after the Packers had 0:02:36.919 --> 0:02:40.120 the early fourth quarter drive, kicked a field goal, they 0:02:40.160 --> 0:02:42.880 got it to thirty five to twenty three. But then 0:02:42.880 --> 0:02:45.400 the next time they got the ball only about nine 0:02:45.400 --> 0:02:48.880 minutes on the clock, down by twelve and on their 0:02:48.880 --> 0:02:51.480 own six yard line when the Jets pinned him deep 0:02:51.760 --> 0:02:55.680 with a punt nine minutes left, twelve point deficit, and 0:02:55.720 --> 0:02:58.799 you're ninety four yards from the first of two touchdowns 0:02:58.800 --> 0:03:01.720 that you need, and the Packers came through. Now, yes, 0:03:01.800 --> 0:03:05.240 the Jets had their share of past interference penalties, but hey, 0:03:05.360 --> 0:03:08.720 the bottom line is they weren't They didn't defend very well. 0:03:08.760 --> 0:03:11.000 I mean, I mean, I know Todd Bowles had a 0:03:11.000 --> 0:03:13.640 bunch of complaints and everything about the calls, but there 0:03:13.720 --> 0:03:15.520 was a heck of a lot of contact there, and 0:03:16.280 --> 0:03:18.400 I thought the game was pretty much called that way 0:03:18.520 --> 0:03:21.120 all along. So the fact that the Jets didn't adjust 0:03:21.160 --> 0:03:24.360 and they continued to just grab and bump and everything 0:03:24.400 --> 0:03:26.400 else with the Packers down the field, that's their own 0:03:26.400 --> 0:03:31.160 fault that the flags kept flying. But Aaron Rodgers, he 0:03:31.320 --> 0:03:34.600 found that level of his game that is so fun 0:03:34.639 --> 0:03:37.240 and so exciting to watch in terms of the passing, 0:03:37.280 --> 0:03:40.200 the scrambling, the checks at the line of scrimmage, even 0:03:40.240 --> 0:03:43.480 a little read option there on two point conversion and 0:03:43.520 --> 0:03:46.120 all of that. A lot that went into this and 0:03:46.320 --> 0:03:48.720 uh um, and as you said, all these different guys 0:03:48.760 --> 0:03:51.800 for the Packers that had sixty plus receiving yards. You know, 0:03:51.920 --> 0:03:55.200 Davante Adams comes now he's just two catches away from 0:03:55.240 --> 0:03:59.240 breaking Sterling Sharp single season franchise record of a twelve. 0:03:59.560 --> 0:04:01.480 A lot of fun stuff in this one. Yeah. And 0:04:01.520 --> 0:04:03.360 the other thing I like too is a lot of 0:04:03.360 --> 0:04:05.800 guys that I think some people counted out played well 0:04:05.840 --> 0:04:09.160 in this game, starting probably with Aaron Rodgers himself for 0:04:09.600 --> 0:04:13.200 forty two passing yards, thirty two rushing, two rushing touchdowns 0:04:13.240 --> 0:04:15.160 for him after he didn't have one. The entire season 0:04:15.920 --> 0:04:18.560 really was dynamic in that way with moving the chains. 0:04:18.839 --> 0:04:22.400 But Jamal Williams, Jamal Williams, if you ever talked to him, 0:04:22.440 --> 0:04:27.359 he's always such a jovial, playful personality. But you really 0:04:27.360 --> 0:04:29.559 in the locker room afterwards, you could get a true 0:04:29.640 --> 0:04:32.520 sense for how much this game meant to him. And 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:34.760 you know the fact that he went from week ten 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:39.159 to week fourteen had twenty total touches, didn't complain, was 0:04:39.200 --> 0:04:41.640 still doing his dancing routine before the games and that, 0:04:41.720 --> 0:04:45.159 but he felt really confident in what he could do 0:04:45.200 --> 0:04:48.280 if he got the opportunity to play. He stepped up. 0:04:48.320 --> 0:04:52.279 Equinimius st Brown, Markquez Veldez, scantlink Um, you know, Justin 0:04:52.360 --> 0:04:54.480 McCrae has to pop in there at left guard after 0:04:54.600 --> 0:04:58.159 Lane Taylor leaves. And you know Jake Kumerou who you know, 0:04:58.240 --> 0:05:03.120 everyone's favorite w water receiver forty nine yard catching touchdown yea. 0:05:03.320 --> 0:05:06.520 And early in the game, it was guys that I think, 0:05:06.560 --> 0:05:09.040 I don't want to say you necessarily didn't think could 0:05:09.040 --> 0:05:10.840 step up in those instances, But I think a lot 0:05:10.839 --> 0:05:12.920 of people had sort of counted out throughout the course 0:05:12.920 --> 0:05:15.839 of this season that made plays for Aaron Rodgers, especially 0:05:15.880 --> 0:05:18.240 down this you know, down the stretch of that football game. Yeah, 0:05:18.240 --> 0:05:20.560 I really liked what Jamal Williams did in this game. 0:05:20.600 --> 0:05:23.400 And as we're sitting here in the studio, I've been 0:05:23.400 --> 0:05:26.120 spending a portion of the day going through the offensive 0:05:26.160 --> 0:05:29.680 game film, finding not just the times Jamal Williams touched 0:05:29.680 --> 0:05:33.400 the football. He had fifteen rushes ninety five yards, six 0:05:33.480 --> 0:05:36.760 catches another sixty one yards, had the one rushing touchdown, 0:05:36.800 --> 0:05:40.040 which was a tremendous display of of just grit and 0:05:40.120 --> 0:05:42.880 balance and everything that went into that seven yard score. 0:05:44.000 --> 0:05:46.320 But finding all these other things on film that he 0:05:46.360 --> 0:05:49.159 did that will be I think a really interesting piece 0:05:49.160 --> 0:05:50.719 for my what you might have missed this week. The 0:05:50.720 --> 0:05:52.960 way he carried out play fixed, the way he picked 0:05:53.000 --> 0:05:56.640 up blitz is, the way he just occupied linebackers as 0:05:56.880 --> 0:05:59.840 as a safety valve type of receiver. All these things 0:05:59.839 --> 0:06:02.520 that went into some significant plays that the Packers made 0:06:02.520 --> 0:06:05.320 in the game. So my hat's off to Williams. You 0:06:05.360 --> 0:06:08.520 talk about his jovial personality, is dancing and everything like 0:06:08.560 --> 0:06:12.920 that between the whistles, so to speak, from the snap 0:06:13.000 --> 0:06:15.560 to the whistle, I guess I should say, and when 0:06:15.600 --> 0:06:18.280 that helmet is on, this is a different breed of cat. 0:06:18.360 --> 0:06:21.680 He really plays hard, but then after the whistle it's 0:06:21.720 --> 0:06:24.000 like he's smiling and dancing and you know, kind of 0:06:24.000 --> 0:06:27.200 hopping around. He's a he's he's a different kind of guy. 0:06:27.240 --> 0:06:29.880 But boy, he's been he's been really fun to watch here. 0:06:30.080 --> 0:06:31.799 This is where I get kind of frustrated with Packer 0:06:31.880 --> 0:06:33.960 fans because it was and I'm not trying to single 0:06:33.960 --> 0:06:36.360 anybody out or rip on anybody here, but you know, 0:06:36.400 --> 0:06:38.840 they were midway through the season there was a lot 0:06:38.839 --> 0:06:40.960 of people wondering why the Packers, you know, just aren't 0:06:40.960 --> 0:06:43.839 going full time to Aaron Jones. But if you really 0:06:43.839 --> 0:06:46.320 break it down, like with with Williams being a fourth 0:06:46.400 --> 0:06:49.960 round pick last year, Jamal Williams fits this offense as 0:06:50.000 --> 0:06:52.400 well as any running back I think the Packers have 0:06:52.520 --> 0:06:55.560 had during my time on the beat. Jones is really explosive. 0:06:56.320 --> 0:07:00.599 Eddie Lacey was a phenomenal power back. But the about 0:07:00.680 --> 0:07:03.640 Williams is I was thinking about this during the game 0:07:03.680 --> 0:07:07.560 on Sunday. This is no disrespect whatsoever to James Starks, 0:07:08.080 --> 0:07:13.280 but he is a more durable, better pass protecting version 0:07:14.000 --> 0:07:16.600 of Starks. Now, Starks eventually got there in his career. 0:07:16.640 --> 0:07:18.560 He became a better pass catcher and became a better 0:07:18.560 --> 0:07:21.840 pass protector. But Jamal Williams has done that from day one, 0:07:22.200 --> 0:07:24.880 in addition to the fact of being a prototypical between 0:07:24.920 --> 0:07:28.520 the tackles power rusher in a lot of ways, as 0:07:28.560 --> 0:07:30.960 much as Aaron Jones is a phenomenal runner. Is gonna 0:07:30.960 --> 0:07:32.880 be really is going to be successful in this league. 0:07:33.280 --> 0:07:35.480 You know, Davante Adams made a comment after the game, 0:07:35.520 --> 0:07:39.239 and it's somewhat hyperbole saying that, you know, Jamal Williams, 0:07:39.240 --> 0:07:41.920 for other teams could get the snaps. We know how 0:07:41.920 --> 0:07:44.920 the league is structured now, but he is that type 0:07:44.920 --> 0:07:46.720 of running back. So if he needs to play eight 0:07:46.880 --> 0:07:49.200 five snaps or whatever it ended up being in this contest, 0:07:49.240 --> 0:07:51.280 he can do that. So that's why I've never really 0:07:51.360 --> 0:07:53.960 understood this reputation he's gotten with some fans is that, 0:07:54.360 --> 0:07:57.160 you know, Jamal Williams is exactly what the Packers have 0:07:57.240 --> 0:07:59.720 looked for historically from the running back position. Yeah, he's 0:07:59.720 --> 0:08:01.840 a tough son of a gun. That's I mean. When 0:08:01.840 --> 0:08:04.320 I watch when I watch him play, I just it 0:08:04.440 --> 0:08:07.480 just speaks toughness to me. Whether he's blocking, whether he's 0:08:07.480 --> 0:08:09.840 got the ball in his hands, there's a there's just 0:08:09.880 --> 0:08:12.040 a way he plays the game that that you can 0:08:12.080 --> 0:08:14.760 really appreciate. Um, I want to get to a couple 0:08:14.800 --> 0:08:17.480 of things on the defensive side of the ball as 0:08:17.480 --> 0:08:19.720 far as this comeback was concerned. But first West, the 0:08:19.760 --> 0:08:22.520 Green Bay Packers get ready for game day with the 0:08:22.560 --> 0:08:27.240 powerful noise canceling technology of Bo's Quiet Comfort thirty five headphones. 0:08:27.280 --> 0:08:31.240 To learn more at www dot bos dot com. Slash 0:08:31.240 --> 0:08:35.160 Packers Bows the official headphones of the Green Bay Packers, 0:08:36.160 --> 0:08:38.040 and at home or here in the stands, we all 0:08:38.080 --> 0:08:39.920 know that Green Bay fans give it their all and 0:08:39.920 --> 0:08:42.440 that takes a lot of energy. So grab a warm 0:08:42.480 --> 0:08:45.240 bowl of Campbell's Chunky Soup. It's meaty goodness fuels the 0:08:45.280 --> 0:08:48.960 greatness of Packers fans everywhere. Try the delicious classic chicken 0:08:49.000 --> 0:08:51.960 noodle soup. Just visit your local supermarket and ask for 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:56.600 Campbell's Chunky Soup. Official sup partner of the Green Bay Packers. Okay, 0:08:56.640 --> 0:08:59.000 as I look back through some of the film and 0:08:59.040 --> 0:09:02.080 looking at the play by play of this game, I 0:09:02.120 --> 0:09:04.440 give a lot of credit to the Packers defense, not 0:09:04.559 --> 0:09:08.720 only the sack by Blake Martinez early in the fourth 0:09:08.800 --> 0:09:11.800 quarter that got a stop and then led to the 0:09:11.840 --> 0:09:14.719 first of those points in the eighteen straight points the 0:09:14.720 --> 0:09:18.160 Packers scored when it was thirty five to twenty, and 0:09:18.200 --> 0:09:21.079 then the defense did take advantage of some Jets penalties 0:09:21.120 --> 0:09:23.880 that got them off schedule some long down and distances. 0:09:23.960 --> 0:09:28.000 But after the Packers take the lead thirty eight thirty five. 0:09:28.679 --> 0:09:31.120 A breakdown on special teams. Packers had a lot to 0:09:31.160 --> 0:09:33.679 overcome on special teams in this game. Andre Roberts with 0:09:33.760 --> 0:09:37.800 the long returns, the fake punt, all of that. Roberts 0:09:37.800 --> 0:09:41.319 returns that kickoff with the Jets trailing now thirty five 0:09:41.520 --> 0:09:45.600 returns at fifty one yards gets it inside Green Bay's 0:09:45.679 --> 0:09:48.320 forty yard line. There's still over a minute on the 0:09:48.360 --> 0:09:51.640 clock here, Wes and the Packers defense has to take 0:09:51.679 --> 0:09:54.680 the field just protecting a three point lead. Sam Donald 0:09:54.880 --> 0:09:57.040 was having a great game, maybe one of his best 0:09:57.080 --> 0:10:02.280 games of his rookie season. Completes two eight passes. It's 0:10:02.320 --> 0:10:05.200 first down on the fifteen yard line with thirty six 0:10:05.240 --> 0:10:08.840 seconds to go. Sam Donald has three cracks to win 0:10:08.920 --> 0:10:12.120 this game for the New York Jets. The Packers defense, 0:10:12.280 --> 0:10:16.040 playing without Jairo Alexander, the top cover corner who left 0:10:16.040 --> 0:10:18.280 the game in the first half with a groin injury, 0:10:18.559 --> 0:10:22.800 rises up, get some pressure, gets forces three straight in completions, 0:10:22.800 --> 0:10:25.040 and the Jets have to settle for the tying field goal. 0:10:25.720 --> 0:10:28.200 First down on the fifteen yard line with thirty six 0:10:28.240 --> 0:10:30.199 seconds left and three shots at the end zone to 0:10:30.240 --> 0:10:33.680 win the game. That's a that's a tough situation for 0:10:33.760 --> 0:10:36.280 any defense to be in. And uh and the Packers 0:10:36.320 --> 0:10:38.160 defense did what it had to do. A couple of 0:10:38.200 --> 0:10:39.920 things to this one. I just want to read you 0:10:40.040 --> 0:10:43.160 some stuff off the you know, possession and drive chart 0:10:43.960 --> 0:10:46.600 the Jets after they missed that field goal early on 0:10:46.679 --> 0:10:49.679 touchdown touchdown, touchdown punt and then they kneeled out the 0:10:49.720 --> 0:10:52.800 half touchdown touchdown on the third quarter, the fourth quarter 0:10:53.120 --> 0:10:55.800 punt punt, punt field goal in that field goal only 0:10:55.840 --> 0:11:00.160 came after as you mentioned, that lengthy return three and out, 0:11:00.640 --> 0:11:04.800 four plays for thirty two yards, seven plays for I'm sorry, 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:08.080 four plays for seventeen yards, seven place for nineteen yards, 0:11:08.280 --> 0:11:11.000 six place for twenty three in the field goal. You know, 0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:14.240 I think one of the underrated heroes in this with 0:11:14.280 --> 0:11:16.400 what they did that stood out to me was Tyler 0:11:16.480 --> 0:11:19.440 Lancaster Um. And I know we've been talking about him 0:11:19.440 --> 0:11:22.199 for a while now. There was a couple of weeks 0:11:22.200 --> 0:11:24.680 ago where Kenny Clark I was talking to him about 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:29.240 Lancaster and he said that he is farther ahead of 0:11:29.280 --> 0:11:31.720 where Clark was during his rookie season going into the 0:11:31.720 --> 0:11:33.840 month of December, and I thought that was a really 0:11:33.880 --> 0:11:36.960 nice compliment, and I questioned my mind. I was like, 0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:39.840 is that actually true? But then as we've seen him 0:11:39.880 --> 0:11:41.880 play down the stretcher And now, mind you, Tyler Lancaster 0:11:42.000 --> 0:11:43.640 is older now than Kenny Clark was when he was 0:11:43.640 --> 0:11:47.439 a twenty one year old rookie. But they found something 0:11:47.559 --> 0:11:49.840 in him, and they found a guy that isn't just 0:11:49.880 --> 0:11:51.480 going to be a player this year. He looks like 0:11:51.520 --> 0:11:54.319 he could be a featured person in those run packages 0:11:54.400 --> 0:11:59.040 going forward. The Jets did go super conservative there at 0:11:59.080 --> 0:12:00.600 the beginning of the fourth quarter. They ran the ball 0:12:00.600 --> 0:12:04.880 a lot, but Lancaster dean lowery that front. Even Montrevia's 0:12:04.880 --> 0:12:07.719 Adams did not give up any room there. And then 0:12:07.800 --> 0:12:11.200 you also had guys like Tony Brown making plays on 0:12:11.280 --> 0:12:14.280 the edges. Uh, a cornerback that is not expected to 0:12:15.120 --> 0:12:17.120 tackle for a loss for three yards, stopped him on 0:12:17.160 --> 0:12:22.280 another force them into those punch situations. And yeah, they 0:12:22.280 --> 0:12:24.280 didn't get the takeaways that I said they would need. 0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:27.600 Uh And and Sam Donald's passer rating was higher than 0:12:27.640 --> 0:12:29.880 I'm sure they wanted it to be. But when it 0:12:29.920 --> 0:12:31.840 came down to crunch time, they made the big plays 0:12:31.840 --> 0:12:33.640 that they needed to to get the ball back to 0:12:33.679 --> 0:12:37.000 the offense. The Packers can't come back from that deficit 0:12:37.080 --> 0:12:39.040 if they don't get the ball back. Taron Rodgers and 0:12:39.040 --> 0:12:41.480 the defense fulfilled its job in that way. Yeah, and 0:12:41.520 --> 0:12:44.320 even if you take out obviously, one of the touchdowns 0:12:44.320 --> 0:12:46.480 early in the game was the ninety nine yard kickoff 0:12:46.520 --> 0:12:51.000 returned by the Jets. But looking defensively, the Packers allowed 0:12:51.080 --> 0:12:53.760 three touchdown drives within the first three quarters of the 0:12:53.760 --> 0:12:57.520 game of seventy five plus yards. Donald was having his 0:12:57.600 --> 0:13:00.520 way at certain times. The absence of Alec Xander was 0:13:00.559 --> 0:13:04.560 a factor, and for the way the Packers were shutting 0:13:04.559 --> 0:13:07.080 down the run, I thought playing the run really really well. 0:13:07.360 --> 0:13:09.640 One of the things you do miss when you have 0:13:10.440 --> 0:13:13.160 Lancaster in the game. For example, as opposed to a 0:13:13.240 --> 0:13:15.600 Kenny Clark Mike Daniels, you don't get quite as much 0:13:15.679 --> 0:13:18.120 of the pass rush because he's just not a natural 0:13:18.160 --> 0:13:22.720 pass rusher. He really is a prototypical run stopper. But 0:13:23.480 --> 0:13:27.040 those last four possessions that you rattled off sixty total 0:13:27.160 --> 0:13:30.760 yards over four possessions with the game on the line, 0:13:30.760 --> 0:13:33.040 when they had to get a stop every single time, 0:13:33.080 --> 0:13:36.000 and in fact, they kind of stopped him an extra 0:13:36.080 --> 0:13:39.439 time because the fake punt. You know that the Jets 0:13:39.520 --> 0:13:42.520 ran on fourth and inches after after those guys stacked 0:13:42.600 --> 0:13:46.160 up the third down quarterback sneak. Then the Jets lined 0:13:46.240 --> 0:13:48.160 up in punt formation but snapped it to the up 0:13:48.200 --> 0:13:51.160 guy and and converted anyway, so the defense had to 0:13:51.160 --> 0:13:55.600 get another stop. Beyond that, I just I give that 0:13:55.720 --> 0:13:57.319 unit a heck of a lot of credit because when 0:13:57.320 --> 0:13:59.760 you look at you look at the personnel that was 0:13:59.800 --> 0:14:04.400 out there compared to where the Packers were personnel wise 0:14:04.440 --> 0:14:06.320 at the start of the season, and all these guys 0:14:06.320 --> 0:14:08.320 who were not in the game and on injured reserve 0:14:08.360 --> 0:14:11.560 and everything else. Um, that was a that was a 0:14:11.640 --> 0:14:15.880 really commendable down the stretch defensive performance on a day 0:14:15.880 --> 0:14:18.280 when things weren't necessarily going all that wealth for the 0:14:18.280 --> 0:14:20.680 first three quarters, you know, and Mike Petton, this defense 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:23.000 will probably finish somewhere in the teens, I think in 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:25.360 terms of total defense, however you want to measure that. 0:14:25.440 --> 0:14:28.160 But again, I just don't think there's any statistics that 0:14:28.240 --> 0:14:30.360 really tell you the true story of how this team 0:14:30.400 --> 0:14:34.240 played this year. For my money, and I love Dom Capers, 0:14:34.240 --> 0:14:35.920 I hope at some point be able to sit down 0:14:35.960 --> 0:14:38.080 and have a cup of coffee with them again someday. 0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:40.200 But one of the things that kind of had gotten 0:14:40.240 --> 0:14:42.480 away from the Packers the last couple of seasons was 0:14:42.480 --> 0:14:46.320 their adversity defense in their explosive plays. Those are two 0:14:46.440 --> 0:14:51.280 areas this specific group has been exemplary in this season. 0:14:52.440 --> 0:14:54.520 It even hit me during when Robby Anderson caught the 0:14:54.520 --> 0:14:56.720 thirty three yard touched on. There was the breakdown I 0:14:56.760 --> 0:15:00.560 think that was after right after Alexander's right after Alexander 0:15:00.640 --> 0:15:02.440 left the game, and then it was a coverage bust 0:15:02.440 --> 0:15:04.680 where two guys went to cover the same guy in 0:15:04.680 --> 0:15:07.480 the flat and then Anderson was kind of running all 0:15:07.480 --> 0:15:09.720 alone down the sideline. The safety didn't have enough time 0:15:09.720 --> 0:15:11.200 to get over there. And it hit me then I 0:15:11.240 --> 0:15:13.400 was like, gosh, we just have not seen a lot 0:15:13.440 --> 0:15:16.760 of those plays this season. The communication, whether that's pett 0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:19.320 and whether that's Blake Martinez, but the way that calls 0:15:19.320 --> 0:15:21.840 have been relayed this year. You haven't seen a lot 0:15:21.840 --> 0:15:23.960 of instances where the Packers are getting caught. For twelve 0:15:24.000 --> 0:15:26.800 men on the field, it's been really impressive. And then 0:15:26.840 --> 0:15:29.960 for them to respond in those moments, Packers could have 0:15:30.000 --> 0:15:32.400 really easily gotten down on themselves going to that fourth quarter. 0:15:32.760 --> 0:15:34.920 Could have continued to wilt, could have continued to get 0:15:34.960 --> 0:15:38.960 gutted for yards. They didn't do that. They stopped. They 0:15:39.000 --> 0:15:42.600 got the stops when they needed and Aaron Rodgers was 0:15:42.720 --> 0:15:44.880 as solid as I've seen him be. Yeah, there was 0:15:44.920 --> 0:15:46.680 still some plays that they missed. There was a couple 0:15:46.680 --> 0:15:48.520 of receivers that were open they didn't get the ball to. 0:15:49.040 --> 0:15:51.320 But in crunch time, when you need to move the chains, 0:15:51.520 --> 0:15:53.800 he made the right reads. He made the right choices, 0:15:54.200 --> 0:15:56.400 and he also scampered in for that read option, which 0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:59.680 I loved on that two point conversion. They've run that 0:15:59.720 --> 0:16:02.360 on a on the two point play, Uh, you know 0:16:02.480 --> 0:16:05.400 a few times over the last few years, and uh, 0:16:05.480 --> 0:16:07.960 he's gone in untouched for the two points more often 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:09.480 than not. And if you think about it, how many 0:16:09.560 --> 0:16:11.600 times this year, Mike, have the Packers put that read 0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:15.200 option on film? The quarterback has never carried it out. 0:16:15.320 --> 0:16:17.560 It's always been given into the running back. You haven't 0:16:17.600 --> 0:16:20.600 seen Rogers fulfilled that place. So for him to scamper 0:16:20.600 --> 0:16:22.600 in the end zone, get the score and then to 0:16:22.680 --> 0:16:25.200 come back with the read option again, I just I 0:16:25.240 --> 0:16:29.000 thought this performance again, Joe Philbin said it perfectly. Was 0:16:29.040 --> 0:16:31.160 it the best performance in history of football. No, no, 0:16:31.840 --> 0:16:34.400 but for them to win it in the way that 0:16:34.440 --> 0:16:36.680 they did, I think says a lot about that entire 0:16:36.720 --> 0:16:38.200 locker room. Yeah, and that's what I was going to 0:16:38.320 --> 0:16:41.680 get at, is this Packers locker room. There were discussion 0:16:42.240 --> 0:16:44.640 outside the building all week long. You know, well, why 0:16:44.720 --> 0:16:47.080 is Rogers gonna play? And why don't the Packers just 0:16:47.120 --> 0:16:50.280 shut down? You know, they're high priced players. Why risk 0:16:50.280 --> 0:16:52.240 any injury and stuff like that. You look at how 0:16:52.280 --> 0:16:54.960 this game went was You can't tell these guys that 0:16:55.080 --> 0:16:59.760 any NFL game is meaningless to them. Tremont Williams takes 0:16:59.800 --> 0:17:04.439 a shot to the face on trying to feel the punt, 0:17:05.160 --> 0:17:07.880 goes off, gets checked for a concussion, gets cleared, goes 0:17:07.920 --> 0:17:11.920 back in the game. David bak tr trying to chase 0:17:12.000 --> 0:17:15.480 down Darryl Roberts on the interception on the first two 0:17:15.480 --> 0:17:17.639 point play, which ended up getting called back because of 0:17:17.640 --> 0:17:20.800 a penalty. Anyway, but he's chasing him down the field 0:17:20.800 --> 0:17:23.600 and you know, comes up kind of lame, so to speak, 0:17:23.640 --> 0:17:26.120 not look not looking like he's walking all that. Well, 0:17:26.200 --> 0:17:29.160 something might have happened. He goes and finishes the game 0:17:29.320 --> 0:17:33.080 without complaint, and the Packers win this thing. And and 0:17:33.359 --> 0:17:36.080 when the Packers think they have it won, Aaron Rodgers 0:17:36.520 --> 0:17:39.600 runs it in for a six yard touchdown and overtime 0:17:39.840 --> 0:17:42.520 gets called back on a holding penalty. You've got to 0:17:42.520 --> 0:17:44.800 score from the sixteen yard line, and boom, he throws 0:17:44.840 --> 0:17:47.760 a pinpoint pass to Davante Adams, his eleventh catch of 0:17:47.800 --> 0:17:51.159 the game, and the Packers win it. These guys, I 0:17:51.200 --> 0:17:54.440 know they're not going to the playoffs, but they played this, 0:17:54.760 --> 0:17:57.159 They played this game, and they're playing out the season 0:17:57.240 --> 0:18:00.040 the right way. Yeah. Absolutely. And the thing of a 0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:03.600 box Tr too, he gets injured on a play because 0:18:03.960 --> 0:18:07.720 he's he's he's a three pound offensive tackle trying to 0:18:07.800 --> 0:18:10.200 run down the field because of the pick six. I mean, 0:18:10.520 --> 0:18:14.040 that's the kind of heart to pick two. Sorry, that's 0:18:14.040 --> 0:18:16.240 the kind of hearty showing on that play. I think 0:18:16.320 --> 0:18:19.120 David box tr knows in his heart of hearts he's 0:18:19.119 --> 0:18:20.840 not going to be able to catch the cornerback, but 0:18:21.240 --> 0:18:24.960 he wants to fulfill the play. Marcus Velde Scantling Corey 0:18:25.040 --> 0:18:28.240 Lindsley praised him after the game because on that twenty 0:18:28.240 --> 0:18:30.880 three yard run that Rogers got to the one yard line, 0:18:31.160 --> 0:18:34.040 veld Is Scantling fulfilling a blocking assignment down field to 0:18:34.080 --> 0:18:35.760 help spring him for a couple of extra I mean 0:18:36.040 --> 0:18:39.080 held that block for for multiple seconds to turn what 0:18:39.200 --> 0:18:42.000 maybe was a ten yard scramble into a twenty plus yards. 0:18:42.000 --> 0:18:44.920 And nobody's going to remember that play ten years from 0:18:44.960 --> 0:18:46.439 now because it isn't going to show up in a 0:18:46.480 --> 0:18:48.560 box score. It's not going to be a big explosive 0:18:48.840 --> 0:18:51.440 that's gonna get you on ESPN. But it's the things 0:18:51.480 --> 0:18:53.879 that allowed the Packers to win this game. And I 0:18:53.920 --> 0:18:56.640 gotta say a quick word about Truman Williams here. He's 0:18:56.680 --> 0:19:01.000 thirty five years old, Mike. He's played like point one 0:19:01.080 --> 0:19:03.720 percent under the total snap counts here, maybe a couple 0:19:03.720 --> 0:19:07.080 of plays of everything he's done on defense going into 0:19:07.119 --> 0:19:09.679 this game. He's sitting there in his locker room. In 0:19:09.760 --> 0:19:12.879 his locker afterwards, he has stitches above his right eye. 0:19:13.400 --> 0:19:15.720 And he was asked about that hit. He didn't even 0:19:15.800 --> 0:19:18.520 call it a dirty head. He's like, that's football. He 0:19:18.600 --> 0:19:20.520 even kind of put it on himself for not fear 0:19:20.560 --> 0:19:22.800 catching it, saying I've kind of, you know, lived that 0:19:22.840 --> 0:19:25.119 way throughout my career as a returner, and sometimes it 0:19:25.119 --> 0:19:26.919 bites you, and it bit him on that head, you know, 0:19:26.960 --> 0:19:29.679 on the head a little bit. But this is a 0:19:29.680 --> 0:19:32.000 guy that doesn't need to be out there either. I mean, 0:19:32.080 --> 0:19:34.600 he could have just called it a game. He passes 0:19:34.640 --> 0:19:37.600 a concussion protocol, he gets back out there. I mean, 0:19:37.640 --> 0:19:39.080 I think that tells you everything you need to know 0:19:39.080 --> 0:19:41.119 about this team and what it means to them to 0:19:41.160 --> 0:19:44.080 play this thing out. I get the frustration at times 0:19:44.080 --> 0:19:46.280 with fans. I understand they want to top ten pick. 0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:50.199 But the realistic thing is, and Joe Philbin said it 0:19:50.320 --> 0:19:52.320 as well and as eloquently as I think you ever 0:19:52.320 --> 0:19:55.680 could on Monday morning, the future is the future. It's 0:19:55.680 --> 0:19:57.520 going to get there. Whether he's the coach, whether these 0:19:57.520 --> 0:20:00.520 players are here, it doesn't matter. There's an number on 0:20:00.600 --> 0:20:02.600