Packers Edge Michael Vick and the Eagles 27-20

The Green Bay Packers held up against Mike Vick, and the Philadelphia Eagles in what was almost a late comeback. The Packers stuffed Vick behind the line of scrimmage on a 4th and 1, with Clay Matthews leading the way, symbolizing his performance for the night, in order to win 27-20.

From the get go the game was very slow and looked to be low scoring in what was predicted to be a high scoring offensive game. That didn’t happen in the first half. The Eagles opened up the scoring with a field goal by David Akers after Aaron Rodgers had turned the ball over on a possession that looked average to say the least, and the turnover capped it off for the Packers. Mason Crosby then answered with a field goal of his own, and from there it was all Packers in the first half. The offense finally got the ball moving, and capped off a drive in the 2nd quarter with a touchdown pass to Donald Driver. Then the Eagles offense took a blow (or boost depending on how you look at it) when Kevin Kolb was chased down and sacked hard by Clay Matthews as his helmet hit hard against the field. Originally the Eagles stated he had hurt his jaw, but it was later found out he suffered a concussion. His play leading into half time was very sloppy allowing the Packers one last drive and a Green Bay record 56 yard field goal by Mason Crosby to go into halftime 13-3.

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Starting the 2nd half the Eagles went in without Kevin Kolb and Inside Line Backer Stewart Bradley who also went out with a concussion. This allowed Michael Vick to take over, and he left an impression in the half. The Eagles started out moving the ball until Charles Woodson forced a fumble from Running back Eldra Buckley on the first drive of the 3rd quarter. From there the Packers ran the ball with Brandon Jackson (filling in for an injured Ryan Grant) and John Kuhn, on a 63 yard drive ending with a John Kuhn touchdown. With the score 20-3 the game looked all but done for the Eagles, until Michael Vick started playing like it was the mid 2000’s and ran and passed the ball proficiently with the Packers having no answer. LeSean McCoy ran it in from 12 yards out for a touchdown to bring the game within 10, at 20-10. The Packers answered right back with a great return by Jordy Nelson to midfield, allowing Rodgers to have a short field, and throw a perfect 32 yard touchdown pass to Greg Jennings on a quick score by the Packers. That was the last we’d see of the offense though, as the rest of the game they couldn’t find a rhythm, and went scoreless in the 4th. Meanwhile Vick paved the way for a 72 yard touchdown drive ending with a 17 yard pass to Jeremy Maclin, and bringing the game within 10 again. The Packers offense still couldn’t contribute, and the Eagles had the ball again, and drove it deep in Packers territory before the defense stepped up and forced a field goal after Vick couldn’t complete a 3rd down pass. While the offense sputtered once more, the Eagles had another chance late in the 4th with no timeouts, and the score being 27-20 with the game still in reach. The Eagles drove the ball to the Packers 42 before facing a 4th and 1, with Vick running out of the shotgun. Clay Matthews shed two blocks on the play, and stuffed Vick for no gain, and the game deciding turnover on downs. The offense took the victory formation from there, and ended the game 27-20 and a 48 year winless drought in Philadelphia.

Clay Matthews shined in this game with 7 tackles, all solo and 3 sacks for the game. He was all over the field and managed to disrupt the Eagles for most of it. The Packers had 5 overall sacks; even with only 4 healthy defensive linemen dressed for the game. The Eagles had some injury problems alongside Kolb and Bradley, as they lost their center Jamaal Jackson and Fullback Leonard Weaver for the season. The Packers also had Ryan Grant hurt in the 1st half, after an Eagles player landed on his right ankle after a tackle, it is said he has a sprain, and could miss the Bills game. Another side note, Jermichael Finley had 4 receptions and only 47 yards as the Eagles keyed in on the tight end. Also, with the way Michael Vick played, do I hear a controversy brewing?

By Byron Reyna
ProFootball-fans.com Green Bay Packers Correspondent