Packers fall to Vikings 31-29

Packers can’t get out of their own way vs Vikings

It was a gorgeous 72 degree day at Lambeau Field with nothing but good Sunday football vibes, but that quickly turned into a first half of misery as the Packers found themselves in a 28-0 deficit. QB Jordan Love showed a lot of rust in his return making a lot of questionable Brett Favre-esque throws, finishing the game 32 of 54 with 389 yards, 4 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. WR Jayden Reed had a huge game finishing with 7 catches for 139 YD and a TD. Key defenders CB Jaire Alexander and CB Carrington Valentine were ruled out before the game and the GB defense did not wake up until the second half.

Be sure to check out the full game recap of the Packers furious second half comeback that fell just short at the end.

Gut Reactions: Vikings & the Packers beat the Packers

Aaron Nagler chats with Packers fans worldwide after Green Bay comes up short against the Vikings.

Lame Calls and More Lame Calls

Matt LaFleur deserved all the accolades and coach-of-the-year talk for the Packers’ previous two wins, and then wiped it all away by his horrendous decision to play Jordan Love against the Vikings. Don’t be misled by the 31-29 score; until the last 10 minutes the game was a non-competitive beatdown, made possible by putting Love back on the field too soon.

Medical clearance doesn’t mean a player is back to 100 percent, and Green Bay’s coaching staff had to know that anyone with Love’s injury — and such little recovery time — would be limited in lateral mobility. Not to mention seeing it in practice all week. The result was a quarterback who could not roll out, could not scramble effectively and struggled to evade pressure, all while playing the league’s hottest team that also happens to be the most successful at getting after opposing QBs. Love’s partial recovery also meant he could not fully plant his front foot when throwing, leading to passes that were often floated, under-thrown or behind his receivers. By playing Love, LaFleur limited the Packers’ offense, giving the best defensive coordinator in the NFL a reason to smile and salivate.

This is usually a space for Game Balls and Lame Calls, but there’s definitely more of the later than the former this week.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Vikings vs Packers

Aaron hands out the Good, the Bad and the Ugly from the Green Bay Packers Week 4 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

Packers Snap Counts: Week 4 Vs. The Vikings

The Packers elevated two CBs, Robert Rochell and Kamal Hadden, due to injuries that prevented Jaire Alexander and Carrington Valentine from playing. Kitan Olapado, Brenton Cox, Travis Glover, and Colby Wooden were healthy scratches while Jordan Morgan, Alexander, and Valentine were inactive due to injury. Malik Willis was active but did not play. Wyatt and Watson left the game and did not return.

See who ended up playing and how much in this week’s look at the Snap Counts.

Pack's What She Said: Packers Rally Falls Short

On the latest installment of Pack’s What She Said, Maggie and Perri review the Packers 31-29 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

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The Lass Word: Vikings 31 Packers 29

Maybe it was all the publicity about Aaron Jones returning to wreak havoc on his former team.  Maybe it was the hype about Sam Darnold being the comeback player of the year.  Or maybe it was the knowledge that the big play specialist in their secondary, Jaire Alexander, would not suit up.  Whatever the reason, the Green Bay Packers came out on the field for this critical division showdown tentative, nervous and appearing somewhat psyched out.

You could see it Jordan Love’s passing, as he tried to aim and steer the ball to his receivers instead of just letting it rip.  You could see it in the receivers, dropping passes because of jittery hands and heads on a swivel.  You could see it in the secondary, with the back seven holding and grabbing when it wasn’t even necessary.  You could see it in the kicker, who missed field goals he should make in his sleep.  

The end result was another barrage of backbreaking mistakes.  Maybe you can get away with penalties, inaccurate passing, turnovers and missed tackles against the likes of the Colts and the Titans.  But when you play good teams, and the Vikings 4-0 record tells you they are very good, the mistakes will bury you.

Despite all the adversity, somehow, some way, the Packers kept battling.   Give them credit for that.  But the self inflicted wounds were too deep, and a game Packers team flatlined when a desperate onside kick attempt failed.  The easiest road to the playoffs is to win your division, but Green Bay now trails Minnesota by two games plus a tiebreaker.  They are on a path to once again have to fight for a wild card spot.  And there is much work to be done to meet that challenge.

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