By Eric Goska
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| The color purple could be found everywhere at Lambeau Field. (photos by Eric Goska) |
Inches, not yards, best illustrate how stingy the Packers’ defense was in the second half of its latest go-round with the Vikings.
Green Bay surrendered 141 yards in the opening two quarters
of its 23-6 win over Minnesota at Lambeau Field Sunday. It gave up a mere 144
inches in the final two quarters, a total unseen in the last 75 years.
Four yards. Twelve feet. One hundred forty-four inches.
That distance – less than the length of a blue medical tent –
is the extent of what Green Bay permitted after halftime. The Vikings – who ran
15 plays after the break – averaged all of 9.6 inches per offensive snap as a
4-point deficit turned into a 17-point loss.
For the Green and Gold, this was a once-in-a-lifetime performance.
It was the fewest yards given up by the team in the final two quarters of a regular-season
game since at least 1950.
Throw in an incompletion by Vikings quarterback J.J.
McCarthy and that’s nine plays in which the Purple People didn’t gain an inch.
Green Bay defenders ensured Minnesota did not get beyond its
own 36-yard line in the second half. It allowed just two first downs and gave
up only one play of 10 or more yards, that a 10-yard scramble by McCarthy.
Credit the defense for this shutdown, but give an assist to
Jordan Love and the offense and a nod to special teams. This was complementary
football at its finest.
Green Bay ripped off 35 plays and moved the chains 11 times.
It held the ball for 10 minutes, 36 seconds in the third quarter and for 10:49
in the fourth.
Emanuel Wilson gained 52 of his career-best 107 yards
rushing in the second half and chipped in five first downs. Three of Christian Watson’s
game-high five receptions came after the break with two bringing fresh sets of
downs.
Love (13-yard run), John FitzPatrick (11-yard reception),
Chris Brooks (10-yard run) and Malik Willis (4-yard dash) also extended drives.
Whelan, for his part, landed three punts inside the 20 in
the second half. Kicker Brandon McManus booted fourth-quarter field goals of 30
and 40 yards to put the game out of reach.
Sixty-five years have passed since the Packers last held an
opponent to fewer than 10 second-half yards. Henry Jordan, Ray Nitschke, Emlen
Tunnell and others held the 49ers to 8
yards in the last two quarters of a 13-0 win at muddy Kezar Stadium in December
1960.
Green Bay’s previous best effort against the Vikings took
place on Nov. 14, 1971. Dave Robinson, Lionel Aldridge and Jim Carter led the
Packers in second-half tackles as the Packers held the Vikings to 49 yards in a
3-0 loss.
Extra Point
The Packers limited the Vikings to minus-10 yards in the
third quarter. That was their best effort in that quarter since holding the
Falcons to minus-24 in a 23-0 shutout in 1967.
Since 1950, the six regular-season games in which the Packers allowed 25 or fewer yards in the third and fourth quarters combined.
4 Nov. 23, 2025 Vikings GB won, 23-6
8 Dec. 10, 1960 49ers GB won, 13-0
17 Nov. 2, 1952 Eagles GB won, 12-10
18 Oct. 17, 2004 Lions GB won, 38-10
22 Dec. 1, 1985 Buccaneers GB won, 21-0
25 Nov. 29, 1964 Cowboys GB won, 45-21
Never underestimate the power of a sh*tty QB to make your defense look awesome.
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