The stretch of ugly blowouts on Thursday Night Football continued tonight as the Packers dismantled the Vikings at home. Minnesota didn't score until the first play of the final quarter of a game the Packers controlled from the outset.
Here are five notes from the game:
Eddie Lacy escaped his sophomore slump:
Lacy came into Week 5 with a season-high of only 61 total yards, and critics were concerned he was looking too tentative. The second-year player out of Alabama responded with a huge game, rushing for 105 yards on 13 carries to go along with two scores.
Christian Ponder faced an onslaught all evening:
Ponder's best, if not only, chance this evening was to not get in a shootout with the Green Bay offense. The worst fears of Minnesota fans were realized when Green Bay jumped all over the Vikings early, and Ponder folded under the pressure of trying to keep up. He was sacked six times and threw two interceptions, including a pick-six by Julius Peppers.
The Packers got good quality out of limited quantity in the passing game:
Aaron Rodgers' first three completions to wide receivers (Randall Cobb, Jordy Nelson, and Davante Adams) all went for touchdowns. It wasn't an outstanding yardage day for Rodgers, who went 12-17 for 156 yards before being pulled at the start of the 4th quarter, but Mike McCarthy chose to ride the running game most of the night.
The Vikings were pinned all night:
Packers punter Tim Masthay booted five punts that were downed inside the Vikings 20 yard-line. The Vikings started six drives from inside their own 20, giving them a long field to overcome even longer odds as the deficit grew.
Packers fans can finally relax... for now:
Aaron Rodgers told concerned fans to "relax" after the team's 1-2 start, and after consecutive blowout wins of division opponents, cheeseheads should feel a lot better. However, protecting Rodgers against better pass rushing teams remains a high priority. The rematch in Week 17 with the Lions will be the benchmark to see how well the protection has improved.
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