Packers clinch No. 1 seed: What went right & What went wrong?

The Green Bay Packers avenged their week 11 last-second loss and defeated the Minnesota Vikings 37-10 to secure not only another victory, which was their fifth straight—but they also clinched the number one seed in the NFC for the second consecutive season—ensuring that the NFC road to the Super Bowl comes through the frozen tundra.

Let’s check out what went right in the Green Bay Packers’ big win Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

The Packers’ defense came to play, especially the run defense.

Once news broke Friday that Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was placed on the reserve/COVID list, the Vikings playoff hopes resided on star running back Dalvin Cook and their rushing attack.

With the Packers recent struggles in stopping the run, the concern was real, and rightfully so.

However, Joe Barry & Co. made sure that wasn’t going to happen, shutting Cook entirely down. Cook finished the game with nine rushing attempts for whopping thirteen yards, his season’s lowest total.

The defensive performance was quite impressive, given the fact any hope laid on Cooks’s shoulders with a backup quarterback who hasn’t played in a game since 2019. The carries were lower than expected, but overall the Packer’s defense did a marvelous job containing Cook, turning any chance the Vikings had in making the playoffs to zero.

Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams continue to be unstoppable. 

If you have watched this Packers offense over the last few seasons, you probably have grown to be accustomed to these types of performances, but once again, Rodgers and Adams proved they are on an entirely different planet.

Rodgers all but secured what could be back-to-back MVPs and his fourth award with his performance on Sunday. The newly crowned franchise leader in touchdowns was extremely efficient, attempting 38 passes and completing 29 of them for 288 yards and two touchdowns for a 114.8 passer rating.

Whether it’s the back-shoulder throw and catch or across the middle on third down, Rodgers continued to find Adams routinely, hooking up for eleven receptions for 136 yards.

Lately, the dynamic duo has been unstoppable and doesn’t look close to slowing down.

It seems Mason Crosby and the field goal unit may have figured things out.

Over the season, I have written a few articles calling for Crosby to be better and how important that is going forward for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.

Sunday, Crosby converted all three of his field-goal attempts and all four of his extra-point attempts.

The first attempt almost spelled disaster as the holder and punter Corey Bojorquez seemed to have difficulty getting the ball down. Crosby, the veteran, timed out his progress and got off a clean kick.

It’s not entirely solved, but the special teams field goal unit is slowly putting the pieces together at the most crucial time.

It was a big win against a divisional foe, but not everything went according to plan. Let’s take a look at what went wrong Sunday night against Minnesota.

The Packers don’t actually start the game until the second quarter. Right?

I’m joking, of course, but unfortunately, it seems that way. Heading into week 17, the Packers entered as the 26th ranked offense in the first quarter, averaging only 2.8 points.

Heading into the playoffs, the Packers will have to get off to better starts, especially against better teams.

Packer’s red-zone offensive struggles continue.

One of the things that went right for the Packers was their field goal unit, but unfortunately, it resulted in the offense stalling in the red zone, something they have struggled all season with, coming into the game ranked 19th in the NFL at 58.2% in conversion rate.

The first two Packer drives were efficient and productive marching down the field but they could not convert key third-downs.

The Packers finished the game converting three out of their seven trips in the red zone to touchdowns—something that also needs to improve heading into do or die games.

With the number one seed clinched, the Packers will turn their attention to possibly resting some starters and, more importantly, getting key players back from injury.

The one-seeded Packers will wrap up the regular season on the road against the Detriot Lions. After the game, Rodgers, Adams, and head coach Matt LeFleur talked about resting players and who would play to close out the season with a bye week looming.

Time will tell who plays and who doesn’t, but this week’s key factor is monitoring the injury report, as a couple of All-Pro’s could be heading back to solidify this roster.