Packers Night a Huge Success

Here is an article that I made for the WarCry before it became outdated.

The Green Bay Packers started the season off with a bang during the NFL’s annual kickoff game at Lambeau Field. In a night started off with a concert by Kid Rock, Lady Antebellum, and Maroon 5, the Packers beat the New Orleans Saints 42-34. This matchup was between the last two Super Bowl champs, and was the second highest in ratings for this seven year old event.

For the people that missed it, the concert was broadcasted on cable channels and NBC in local counties because of President Obama’s speech to Congress. It was re-aired two days later on a Saturday night where it probably replaced COPS reruns.

The game itself was great. Randall Cobb recorded the second-longest play in NFL history in his first professional game with a 108 yard kickoff return in the third quarter. He was not even supposed to run it out of the end zone on the play. That accompanied an earlier touchdown in which he ran the wrong route and outran the Saints defense for a 32-yard touchdown. Now if only he did what the coaches want him to do.

Aaron Rodgers had a typical Aaron Rodgers day: 27 of 35 for 312 yards passing and three touchdowns. He got a 91.1 out of 100 total QBR rating (ESPN’s new stat for ranking quarterbacks). That made him 2^nd on the list to Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Bills who had the game of his life against the Chiefs. Drew Brees actually had a better night than Rodgers (32 of 49 for 419 yards and three touchdowns) but had a lower QBR rating of 71.6 due to more incomplete passes and a few sacks that he took against a Super Bowl winning defense.

There was drama as nearly every Packer game down the stretch was last year. The Saints got the ball with less than two minutes left needing a touchdown and a two point conversion. In a drive that only a top NFL quarterback could make, the Saints got the ball down inside the Green Bay 10. On 4^th and goal, A.J. Hawk was flagged for pass interference which led to the Saints getting one more chance. They tried running it up the middle with their Heisman winning running back. He was stuffed.
Game over. Packers win. You know it is not a true Packers game without at least one nail-biting moment and this game did not disappoint.

Although this is only one game, it is a good indication of good things to come. The Saints and the Packers are both held by many experts as Super Bowl contenders. Beating them, cements the belief of a great season ahead. Led by the return of many players off injured reserve and Super Bowl MVP, Aaron Rodgers, the Packers fans have much to look forward to as the season moves along.