It had to be an exhausting yet satisfying flight home for the Green Bay Packers following the triumphant trip to Glendale, Arizona Thursday night. The Packers knocked the Cardinals from the ranks of the unbeaten with the dramatic 24-21 victory, secured in the final seconds when Rasul Douglas intercepted Kyler Murray in the end zone. The win, Green Bay’s seventh straight, moves them to the top of the seeding heap in the NFC as the season nears it’s midpoint.
Once again, the team found a way to win despite being severely shorthanded and having only a couple of days to prepare for a Cardinal team that was beating it’s first seven opponents by an average of more than 18 points a game.
A determined defense kept the exciting Murray bottled up in the first half, allowing just one big play, seven points and only 98 yards. The offense muscled up with running backs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon shouldering the load with Aaron Rodgers being asked to make do in the passing game with untested players like Juwann Winfree and rookie Amari Rodgers. Rodgers still found Randall Cobb for a pair of touchdowns.
Secondary coach Jerry Gray handled the defensive calls with coordinator Joe Barry back home in Green Bay along with wide receivers Davante Adams and Allen Lazard following early week positive COVID-19 tests. Missing another game were front liners David Bakhtiari, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Jaire Alexander, Kevin King and Za’Darius Smith.
Carrying out the hastily culled game plan with so many back up players stepping up and against a team considered the NFL’s best left the team drained, exhausted but extremely satisfied.
The team touched down in Green Bay early Friday morning and welcomed the badly needed “mini-bye” three day weekend, but the feelings of accomplishment were tempered by even more difficult medical news.
The Packers were extremely fortunate on the injury front in 2020, roaring to a 13-3 record and the NFC’s top seed but that certainly isn’t the case this season.
Two more players suffered season ending knee injuries at State Farm Stadium. Rookie running back Kylin Hill and tight end Robert Tonyan went down just minutes apart. Hill returned a kickoff after Arizona pulled to within 17-14 late in the third quarter and after coming out of his end zone, he crashed into Jonathan Ward after a 13 yard return. Both players stayed down for several minutes, Hill had to be carted off the field, Ward was taken to the locker room on a stretcher after suffering a concussion. For Hill, the impact left him with a torn anterior cruciate ligament that will now require season ending surgery.
Seven plays into the same Packer drive, Tonyan got open across the middle and picked up 33 yards bu as soon as he met the oncoming safety, his leg planted hard on the turf and he went down. After walking to the sideline on his own, Tonyan left the stadium with crutches. After the game, Matt LaFleur was emtional talking about the injury and on Friday, Tonyan’s agent, Jack Bechta, confirmed it was another ACL tear that will require surgery.
LaFleur met the media late Friday afternoon and talked about losing two more players including a key piece for the offense.
Tonyan had a breakout season last year with 52 receptions good for 586 yards and 11 touchdowns which was the most among tight ends in the league. This year, with the Packers depleted on the offensive line and facing imposing front fours nearly every week, Tonyan was asked to help more in pass protection than joining the route trees, limiting him to 18 catches for 204 yards and two scores, the second coming last Sunday against Washington.
The Packers still have the veteran Marcedes Lewis, Josiah Deguara and Dominique Dafney and Taylor Davis in the tight end room.
Hill was the primary kickoff returner who saw just spot duty in the backfield after an encouraging pre-season. LaFleur used Malik Taylor to finish the game Thursday night but they’ll consider other candidates for the return job moving forward.
Za’Darius Smith posted an interesting tweet Friday, “Just back in Green Bay, I can’t wait to get back on the field with my bros. #GoPackGo.” Smith battled a back injury all off-season, returned to play 18 snaps against New Orleans before undergoing surgery. Thought to be lost for the year, Smith has been recovering at home. LaFleur said the team hasn’t ruled out a possible return this season but he’ll have a better idea how the recovery is going once Smith meets with the team’s medical staff.
Other players nursing injuries were asked to stay in Green Bay to get treatment over the long weekend while the rest of the squad was cut loose until Monday. LaFleur even gave his coaching staff a welcome couple of days off.
When they return, the Packers have a difficult four game stretch of games, at Kansas City, home to Seattle, off to Minnesota and the L.A. Rams at Lambeau before they finally get their scheduled bye week off in early December.
