The Green Bay Packers‘ offense came alive after a slow start and with it came a 35-18 wildcard victory over the Washington Redskins Sunday afternoon. After two ugly losses to end the regular season the Packers stayed alive in their quest to avenge last year’s disappointing loss in the NFC Championship game. Next stop is Arizona.
For the first quarter yesterday it sure looked like the Packers would be cleaning out their lockers today. The offense once again looked lost and the Packers quickly fell behind 11-0 after giving up a safety, field goal and touchdown to the Redskins. But this time things were different. The offense woke up from its slumber and scored 17 second-quarter points to take the lead. It was like the beginning of the season with Aaron Rodgers getting a couple of free plays off Redskins’ penalties and making them count.
Even more impressively was after the Redskins took back the lead on the opening drive of the third quarter the Packers went 80 yards in 11 plays and never trailed again. Running backs Eddie Lacy and James Starks both scored touchdowns as did receivers Randall Cobb and Davante Adams. It was exactly the type of balance the Packers need on offense.
And once again the Packers’ defense was dominant. They harassed Kirk Cousins all day and made critical stops when they had to. It continues an excellent stretch of football for the defense going all the way back to the second half of the Carolina Panther game. They will certainly need to continue that next week against the Cardinals for the Packers to advance to this year’s NFC Championship game.
Overall the Packers looked like a different team against the Redskins. They were fired up and played with emotion on both sides of the ball. The bad body language exhibited by Rodgers the last few weeks was replaced with smiles and congratulatory pats on the back with teammates. It was good to see.
The Packers now need to find a way to duplicate the effort against the team currently favored to win the Super Bowl. The Packers 38-8 loss to the Cardinals on December 27 is still fresh in their minds so maybe going to Arizona is the best thing for the Packers. They have a little extra motivation beyond just advancing in the playoffs.
The Packers may not have won the division this year but they once again are in the divisional round of the playoffs two wins away from the Super Bowl. This would be the most unlikely of runs if they were to get there, but stranger things have happened in the NFL.