3rd downs due to penalties don't count statistically. I get your overall point - the D wasn't perfect. But they were pretty damn good, especially compared to the other two units. I don't really understand how we could not acknowledge they were a key to the win.
Sorry - must've come across as a prick in my reply which wasn't intended.
Haha! I didn't think you were coming across as a prick for one minute. Never.
I think the D is playing a lot better these days, definitely the unit on the upswing. And if those 'gifted' conversions hadn't happened in
crunch time, then I don't think I'd even remember. It was just that end-of-game moment where we needed a stop or at least hold them to an FG in order to ice the game, and they folded.
The D, in my eyes, was a bit like the reverse Heineke.
He was awful in the first half, with a horrible interception, almost a few more picks, and a very lucky fumble TD that got overturned. But in the second half, he was money. (20 unanswered points from the Offense at one point!)
The Defense conversely, was on it for three-quarters of the game, before that horrible last few minutes.
Let's face it, if they'd have given up the score on that last crazy lateral bonanza (and for a minute there I thought they were going to do it. We didn't look like we could tackle at all!) then we'd have been singing a different tune this morning.
We'd be bemoaning how the defense gave up 14 points in the last 4 minutes.
(Note: We can complain about the Refs, but they penalized GB more times for more yards, do it more than evened out)
Fortunately, Rodgers threw that last-gasp lateral, and the guy catching it muffed it.
This win was a real team effort. The D did most of the hard work early as Heineke had his jitters, then the Offense did the job in the second half.
I also think that the context of who GB are this year matters. Rodgers lost his safety blanket (Adams) and their O-line is as disastrous as ours is. They have next to no effective running game. Rodgers has been trying to establish chemistry with Lazard, but he got dinged up in this game. Looking at them over the past couple of games... 3rd down efficiency: Against the Giant: 4 out of 10. Against the Jets: 1 out of 11. Against us 0 out of 6.
This ain't your Grandpa's Packers at the moment.
Also, a lot to be said for the fact that our Offense kept GB off the field by dominating TOP. Meaning our D wasn't gassed like they've been in recent games.
I think you can see a lot of seeds for what Rivera and co envisaged this team to be in this weeks win. Just a shame we can't get some sort of Heineke/Wentz hybrid QB. Size and arm strength combined with moxie and competitive spirit. With a repaired O-line we'd be unstoppable! LOL
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