Aaron Rodgers made his case for league MVP as the Packers put away the Bears with two late touchdowns in a 35-16 victory that clinched the top seed in the NFC playoffs. Assisted by Davante Adams' team record 115 catches despite missing two games, Rodgers’ finished with a team record 70.7 pass completion percentage and 48 touchdown passes, and his passer rating of 121.5 is the second-best in NFL history, behind his own NFL record of 122.5. He might even have done better—or worse, depending on the “breaks”; Marquez Valdes-Scantling, after catching a 72-yard touchdown pass in the first half, dropped another long ball that he had in his hands just yards from the end zone in the third quarter, which seemed to have spooked Rodgers, since he proceeded to throw two bad passes that should have been intercepted. But he recovered in the fourth quarter, completing 8 of 9 and a score after completing all ten of his passes—three for scores—in the first half.
Although the Packers dominated the final score, they didn’t “control” the game by any stretch; the Bears ran 30 more plays and had the ball for 11 more minutes, but they just didn’t do enough when they had the ball, settling for field goals, turning the ball over three times, once on downs. The Packers didn’t run the ball much in this game—only 79 yards—thanks to two short field touchdowns and the 72-yard pass play. The poor play in the third quarter was concerning, but the Bears were not a good enough to team to take advantage. Mitchell Trubisky completed almost 80 percent of his 42 passes, but for no touchdowns and one interception.
The Packers finished as the only 13-win team in the NFC, and Matt LaFleur’s 26 wins in his first two seasons are tied for the most by a first-time head coach in NFL history. The team for the most part certainly has played like it has been on the same page as compared to last season, when it seemed the Packers just had more than their share of good fortune, particularly in turnover ratio. As the number one seed in the playoff, the Packers in the 7-team playoff scenario will be the only team in the conference with a bye. Whether that is “good” or not is a matter of opinion, remembering 2011, but this time at least Rodgers will not have two weeks off to get rusty. This will also be the first time since 2011 that the Packers will play at home if they do make it to the NFC Championship Game, and this being a better team than last year’s, things are shaping up to be looking OK.
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