Imagine you were told before the season that quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the starting offense would be removed from a December game late in the third quarter, that Scott Tolzien would be given a rare opportunity for on-field action.
It's very likely your mind would envision a massive victory for the Green Bay Packers, a thorough beating of an unworthy opponent as a championship-caliber team inched closer to the playoffs, where the truly important games take place.
But in this particular year, with the strangeness of a six-game winning streak, the bizarre nature of a mid-season collapse and a mild resurgence entering Sunday, the above scenario seemed altogether unlikely.
The Packers, a team picked by so many as Super Bowl favorites during the summer, were being dismantled by a much better, much stronger opponent: Arizona 38, Green Bay 8.
Player of the Game: Cardinals' defense. Facing an offensive line for the Packers that began without one starter and went on to lose three more for portions of the game, the Cardinals generated overwhelming pressure on Aaron Rodgers. With contributions from Dwight Freeney, Calais Campbell and Kareem Martin, among others, they smashed Rodgers repeatedly and forced multiple fumbles.
The final tally of nine sacks for a loss of 78 yards was an accurate reflection of the damage, along with the decision by coach Mike McCarthy to pull Rodgers from the game in the fourth quarter.
Turning point: Already trailing 17-0 after the defense allowed an 80-yard touchdown drive in the final minute of the first half, the Packers received the opening kickoff of the third quarter. Aaron Rodgers handed the ball to James Starks, who promptly fumbled yet again. The ball was scooped up safety Jerraud Powers, and two plays later the Cardinals scored when running back David Johnson scampered in from 14 yards out. In an instant, before 60 seconds had come off the clock, an uphill battle turned into an impossible climb. The Packers trailed 24-0 to a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations.
Big number: 5 — Total fumbles for the Packers, who saw James Starks fumble once — his fourth in the last four games — and Aaron Rodgers twice. Defensive tackle Cory Redding returned a fumble by Rodgers 36 yards for a touchdown.
What went right: Almost nothing. Scoreless for more than 2.5 quarters, Aaron Rodgers dumped the ball off to tailback Eddie Lacy for a 28-yard touchdown that ended the drought. A 2-point conversion followed, which cut the deficit to 31-8 and erased the potential embarrassment of a shutout. Lacy finished with 98 total yards in perhaps the only positive performance of the day. Aside from those two plays — the Lacy touchdown and the 2-point conversion — there was almost nothing the Packers could be happy with, other than a solid performance by Rick Lovato, the new long snapper. Lovato, signed off the street after Brett Goode suffered a torn ACL against the Oakland Raiders, did not appear to have any problems with either Tim Masthay or Mason Crosby on Sunday.
What went wrong:Almost everything. Winners of three straight games against middling opponents, the Packers endured total implosion Sunday in what was supposed to be a litmus test for the playoffs. A bruised offensive line finally shattered, and Aaron Rodgers was sacked nine times. Ball security issues were made worse by ball-hawking defenders, and the Cardinals returned two fumbles for touchdowns.
A group of receivers that has been maligned all season — James Jones, Davante Adams, Randall Cobb — did little to quell ongoing frustrations against aggressive coverage, and they combined for less than 150 yards. So bad was the performance that McCarthy removed Aaron Rodgers and the majority of his offensive starters with nearly half of the final quarter remaining. The Packers were dominated from start to finish, and plenty of questions were raised.
It's very likely your mind would envision a massive victory for the Green Bay Packers, a thorough beating of an unworthy opponent as a championship-caliber team inched closer to the playoffs, where the truly important games take place.
But in this particular year, with the strangeness of a six-game winning streak, the bizarre nature of a mid-season collapse and a mild resurgence entering Sunday, the above scenario seemed altogether unlikely.
The Packers, a team picked by so many as Super Bowl favorites during the summer, were being dismantled by a much better, much stronger opponent: Arizona 38, Green Bay 8.
Player of the Game: Cardinals' defense. Facing an offensive line for the Packers that began without one starter and went on to lose three more for portions of the game, the Cardinals generated overwhelming pressure on Aaron Rodgers. With contributions from Dwight Freeney, Calais Campbell and Kareem Martin, among others, they smashed Rodgers repeatedly and forced multiple fumbles.
The final tally of nine sacks for a loss of 78 yards was an accurate reflection of the damage, along with the decision by coach Mike McCarthy to pull Rodgers from the game in the fourth quarter.
Turning point: Already trailing 17-0 after the defense allowed an 80-yard touchdown drive in the final minute of the first half, the Packers received the opening kickoff of the third quarter. Aaron Rodgers handed the ball to James Starks, who promptly fumbled yet again. The ball was scooped up safety Jerraud Powers, and two plays later the Cardinals scored when running back David Johnson scampered in from 14 yards out. In an instant, before 60 seconds had come off the clock, an uphill battle turned into an impossible climb. The Packers trailed 24-0 to a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations.
Big number: 5 — Total fumbles for the Packers, who saw James Starks fumble once — his fourth in the last four games — and Aaron Rodgers twice. Defensive tackle Cory Redding returned a fumble by Rodgers 36 yards for a touchdown.
What went right: Almost nothing. Scoreless for more than 2.5 quarters, Aaron Rodgers dumped the ball off to tailback Eddie Lacy for a 28-yard touchdown that ended the drought. A 2-point conversion followed, which cut the deficit to 31-8 and erased the potential embarrassment of a shutout. Lacy finished with 98 total yards in perhaps the only positive performance of the day. Aside from those two plays — the Lacy touchdown and the 2-point conversion — there was almost nothing the Packers could be happy with, other than a solid performance by Rick Lovato, the new long snapper. Lovato, signed off the street after Brett Goode suffered a torn ACL against the Oakland Raiders, did not appear to have any problems with either Tim Masthay or Mason Crosby on Sunday.
What went wrong:Almost everything. Winners of three straight games against middling opponents, the Packers endured total implosion Sunday in what was supposed to be a litmus test for the playoffs. A bruised offensive line finally shattered, and Aaron Rodgers was sacked nine times. Ball security issues were made worse by ball-hawking defenders, and the Cardinals returned two fumbles for touchdowns.
A group of receivers that has been maligned all season — James Jones, Davante Adams, Randall Cobb — did little to quell ongoing frustrations against aggressive coverage, and they combined for less than 150 yards. So bad was the performance that McCarthy removed Aaron Rodgers and the majority of his offensive starters with nearly half of the final quarter remaining. The Packers were dominated from start to finish, and plenty of questions were raised.
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and realize he's on the verge of completely losing the team. At which point why keep him around?
