Packers 31 / Bolts 24
Favre ties Marino's TD mark in victory
Associated Press / Posted 9-23-2007
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Brett Favre threw his 420th career touchdown pass in the fourth quarter of the Green Bay Packers' 31-24 victory over the San Diego Chargers at Lambeau Field on Sunday, tying Dan Marino's all-time NFL record. Favre, who is playing his 17th NFL season and turns 38 next month, was credited with a 57-yard completion to Greg Jennings, who ran a slant pattern from the left side. The touchdown, with 2:03 remaining, gave the Packers a 24-21 lead. Following the touchdown, Favre sprinted down field with his arms in the air and got down on his knees to congratulate Jennings. Favre then picked up his favorite receiver Donald Driver before heading to the sideline where teammates were lining up to hug the new record holder. Favre zeroed in on yet another career milestone just a week after leading the Packers to a road victory over the New York Giants for his 149th win as a starter - passing John Elway's all-time record. Favre started his quarterback-record 240th straight game on Sunday, tying him for second on the all-time list with former Minnesota center Mick Tingelhoff. Former Minnesota defensive end Jim Marshall holds the all-time mark with 270 consecutive starts. Including the playoffs, Favre has started 250 career games. More >>
Packers: A confident 3-0
By Jason Wilde / madison.com
GREEN BAY -- If you want to know just what is happening to the Green Bay Packers, if you want to understand just where this magificent start is coming from and why this is rapidly turning into such a special season, ask Aaron Rodgers, Jon Ryan and Rob Davis. The backup quarterback (Rodgers), the punter (Ryan) and the long-snapper (Davis) spend most of their Sundays like the rest of us -- watching. And so, on this particular Sunday, it gave them a unique perspective on what transpired at Lambeau Field during the Packers' 31-24 victory over the San Diego Chargers. "Today, I really stepped back and kind of watched the guys on the sidelines at times, and I was kind of smiling to myself the whole game, just thinking, `We've got a pretty good team -- and we don't even really know it.' Which is pretty dangerous," said Rodgers, who also watched Brett Favre toss three touchdown passes for the second straight week, giving him 420 for his career and tying him with Dan Marino for the NFL's all-time record. "It's amazing watching the confidence level each week rise a little bit. Not only with the players, but the coaches. I'm hearing everything the coaches are saying (in the headsets), and it's just a different attitude. Last year, it was like we were just waiting for something bad to happen. This year, we expect to win every game. We're a bunch of underdogs, guys who've been cut, guys nobody knows about and nobody thinks are any good, and we've just found a way to come together." More >>No Rust On Jennings' Game
By Nathan Hager / Packers.com
Posted 09/23/2007
No one would have blamed Greg Jennings if he had a less-than-stellar performance Sunday. After all, he sat out each of the Packers' first two wins and coming back to face a stiff Chargers defense isn't exactly a walk in the park for a season debut. Yet, Jennings hardly looked like a player fighting off rust and a lingering hamstring injury when the game was on the line late in the fourth quarter. With just over two minutes remaining, quarterback Brett Favre hit Jennings on a quick slant that the second-year man out of Western Michigan took for 57 yards and a touchdown. Besides putting the Packers up 24-21, a lead they would never relinquish, the catch was significant for several other reasons as well. It moved Favre into a tie with Dan Marino for all-time touchdown passes in a career with 420, and it also served as a great opening day for Jennings. It was also the type of play that Head Coach Mike McCarthy knew his wideout would be capable of. But it was just a matter of getting healthy. "We didn't want to get into a situation where he was going to be up and down every couple weeks," McCarthy said. "So, we had a series of tests that he had to pass. "Frankly, it was just getting to the point of 100 percent. He probably would have liked to play sooner. But he was 100 percent Friday morning after Thursday's rehab so he was ready to go. He did a nice job." More >>Defense Keeps Tomlinson In Check
By Nathan Hager / Packers.com
Posted 09/23/2007
When it was all said and done Sunday, LaDainian Tomlinson's stat sheet read 22 carries for 62 yards, and three catches for 33 yards and a touchdown. Surely those numbers are respectable, but they're also far from the all-world performance that the do-everything Tomlinson normally accounts for. Considering that No. 21 is a threat to score from anywhere on the field, whether it be an explosive run, a well-executed screen pass, or even throwing touchdowns himself, the Chargers possess one of the game's most dangerous weapons. Though the Packers held him in check numbers-wise, it wouldn't be entirely fair to judge Tomlinson on his lack of explosive plays. In other words, Tomlinson may not have had his best game statistically, but that doesn't mean his contributions were small. For instance, tight end Antonio Gates had 11 catches for 113 yards and wide receiver Vincent Jackson finished with 6 catches for 98 yards in large part because concentrating on Tomlinson is always at the forefront of opposing defenses. "He's the type of guy that any play in the game, he can go 100 yards on you," linebacker A.J. Hawk said. "So we knew it was our job to keep him contained. You definitely can't do that with one or two guys, you need all 11 and that's what I think we did a good job with today." More >>Packers control the air waves
Offensive line holds up well under pressure
By TOM SILVERSTEIN / journalsentinel.com
Posted: Sept. 23, 2007
Green Bay - It's sort of a backhanded compliment, but the Green Bay Packers' offensive line wasn't taking any offense when the coaching staff decided to rely on its strength. Over and over and over again. Abandoning any pretense of running the ball, coach Mike McCarthy created a game plan that required his starting line to pass block San Diego's front line man-to-man almost the entire ball game. That meant containing Chargers sack demon Shawne Merriman play after play without posing much of a threat of a running play.Throughout the game, the Packers went with an empty backfield, sending out three receivers and two tight ends in an attempt to force the Chargers to replace some of their linebackers with defensive backs. Most of the time the Packers had to account for the outside linebackers man-to-man, but there was not much likelihood of anyone else blitzing. "In the beginning we knew we had empty back there so we knew we were going to be more or less five-on-five when they were in their 3-4 defense," center Scott Wells said. "That was the game plan. We were going to fan both sides and pick up their outside linebackers so we could account for Merriman. "It put me on an island in the middle, but we game-planned that." More >>
Additional Game Links --Games Stats
Packers seem to be on the rise
Favre downplays TD pass mark
Jennings catches some love
Running game takes a pass
Stirring Comeback Puts Packers 3-0
Favre's feat steals the show
Game Report: Packers vs. Chargers
Notes: Defense remains greed
Published by PackerPundit On Monday, September 24, 2007 at 5:27 AM.
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