Friday, September 21, 2018

Five Moments That Changed the Packers vs Vikings Game | Ticket King Green Bay

The rivalry between the Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota Vikings has probably overtaken the Bears – Packers rivalry. This past Sunday, the Packers and Vikings played one of their most interesting games to date, finishing in a 29-29 tie. This is a game that the Packers should have won. Let’s delve into some game-changing moments. 

Moment #1: The first sack of Aaron Rodgers- The Packers got the ball on their own 25 to start the game and they were moving the ball over the first few plays. On 2nd and 8 from the 27, Rodgers found Cobb for a 14-yard completion. Two straight rushes by Jamal Williams totaling 11 yards had produced another first down. After an incomplete pass, the Packers faced 2nd 10 from the Vikings 48 when Rodgers dropped back to pass and was split-sacked by Everson Griffen and Sheldon Richardson. This killed the drive and the Packers had to punt. 

Moment #2: Offensive pass interference on Davante Adams- The Packers were facing 3rd and 9 up 14-7 with 5:38 left in the second quarter. Aaron Rodgers dropped back to pass and found Davante Adams up the left sideline for 24 yards. However, the play was called back due to pass interference on Adams. The Packers ended up punting. 

Moment #3: Holding calls back Graham touchdown- After forcing a Vikings' punt to start the second half, the Packers got the ball up 17-7 and started marching down the field. The Packers were facing 3rd and 4 from the 12 when Rodgers found Graham for a touchdown to increase the Packers lead. The score was called back for holding on Lane Taylor. The Packers settled for a field goal. 

Moment#4- Clay Matthews roughing the passer- Trailing 29-21 late in the 4th, Kirk Cousins threw a desperation heave that was picked off by Jaire Alexander. However, it was overturned by a very sketchy roughing the passer penalty on Clay Matthews. The Vikings scored a touchdown and a 2-point conversion to send the game to overtime. 

Moment#5- Aaron Rodgers sack in overtime- Despite everything else that had happened before this, the Packers had a chance to win the game. They were facing 3rd and 4 from the Vikings 40 when Rodgers dropped back to pass and was sacked by Mackenzie Alexander off the blitz. The Packers were forced to punt, and minutes later another Daniel Carlson missed field goal, his third of the day, and the game finished in a 29-29 tie. By the way, Carlson has since been released and replaced by Dan Bailey. 

Friday, September 14, 2018

The Packers vs Bears Game That Will Go Down In History | Ticket King Green Bay


The Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears began the season on Sunday Night Football this past weekend, clashing in what will go down as one of the most memorable football games played since Aaron Rodgers took over for Brett Favre. Coming into this game, Bears fans were thrilled to have Khalil Mack join the team, just in time for the opener. Would he make an impact right out of the gate? The Bears had so much more to prove, with a new head coach, a second year Quarterback, one of the top pass rushers in the league, all going against one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. This was to take place under the spotlight of a Sunday Night NFL game that was sure to draw fans from across the country. When it was over, records were broken, both teams performed at a level that surpassed expectations, and once again, Aaron Rodgers added another “instant classic” to his already storied career, in a game that will surely be mentioned during his Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

It was a three-hour rollercoaster of emotions for Packers fans everywhere. First, the Packers offense stalls out of the gate, looking completely lost. Seeing that he led just one short drive in the preseason, many fans wondered if Rodgers would play very well in this game. At worst, Rodgers might need the first few weeks to shake off the rust. Fans didn’t get a chance to see what he could do, because the offensive line turned out to be “soft butter” for the hot knife that was the Bears pass rush. In fact, it was a complete stall on both sides of the ball that surprised Packers fans. What happened to that revamped and rebuilt defense, with their new coordinator? During the first 30 minutes of play, they looked like the same old Packers defense that couldn’t get off the field to save their life. They made the Bears offense look as good as it has in years. With all due credit, Trubisky was 11 of 14 with a 99.1 passer rating in the first half, and followed his team into the locker room with all the confidence that they would come out for the third quarter and put the Packers away. The fans at Lambeau saw Rodgers get carted off the field, DeShone Kizer get his butt handed to him by the Bears defense, and nobody thought that the Packers would win, much less see Rodgers back under center in the third quarter.

The original fear was a torn ACL for Rodgers, with the season over, again. The energy in the building was gone. Was it time for Packers fans to admit that we had an injury prone, and permanently diminished quarterback? He has already had three major injuries, two of them being broken collarbones. He has had two concussions, along with a history of hamstring problems. This would have been his fourth major injury, and at age 34, he may finally have run out of lives, so to speak.

But yet again, Aaron showed us why he is one of the best we’ve ever seen. When he came walking out of the tunnel on a sprained knee at the start of the second half, Lambeau came unglued. Did his return inspire the lagging Packers defense? Well, they did manage to hold the Bears to a field goal on the next drive, but now it was 20-0.  

What transpired over the next 24 minutes and 14 seconds of the game time defied pretty much every rule of logic in the book. Aaron Rodgers got the ball, and on one leg he led one of the most amazing comebacks in the history of the franchise. He first took the team down the field for a solid drive, coming up short, but showing us that he could manage to stay on the field. The Packers got a field goal to start. The defense pulled off a stop, and there was a glimmer of hope. Things were looking up when the Packers got the ball back and scored a touchdown. The defense pulled off a three and out. Aaron gets the ball back and three minutes later, touchdown. It’s now 20-17. The Bears march down the field and finish the drive with a field goal. 23-17. All this time, we’re watching Aaron Rodgers play the short game, aside from that first 39 yard touchdown strike to Allison. The short passing game was the only remedy for a hobbled quarterback, going up against a not stop pass rush. He was connecting, his passer rating hit +154 at one point, but could he lead a winning drive and could the Packers defense then stop the Bears from scoring a mere field goal to pull off a win on the road? Rodgers got the ball back one more time with three minutes to go, and needing a touchdown to pull ahead for the first time of the night. We’ve seen this all before.

When Randall Cobb got away from the Bears defense and crossed the goal line for the go-ahead touchdown, Lambeau field erupted. Still, there was too much time on the clock, the Bears had all of their time outs, and they just needed to chew up enough yardage and time to kick one for the win. We’ve seen this one before too, and we know just how this one has ended before. Not this time. That new-look defense showed us how good they can be, pretty much throughout the second half. Now with the lead, Mike Pettine could finally dial up the exotic stuff he couldn’t earlier in the game. In fact, they forced the Bears off the field, twice. The first time the stopped them on fourth down, Clay Matthews hit Trubisky way too late, and the Bears got fifteen yards and a second chance. A few moments later, the Packers defense got the Bears to fourth down again, and this time they got off the field.

In one hundred years of football, the Packers have only come back one other time from such a deficit. Aaron Rodgers did what was nearly impossible, did it with ony good leg, showing us why he is currently the best quarterback in football. Sorry Patriots fans, Rodgers has never had the offensive line that Brady has year after year. This one will be rememberd for years to come.