Passing on the turnovers pays off for Packers

by JERRY TAPP

Here are some of the numbers that helped define the Packers 24-16 win over the Carolina Panthers in Green Bay on Saturday:

— The Packers had a 21-3 lead at halftime. It was the seventh game this season where they scored 20 or more points in the first half, most of any team in the league in 2020. Houston, Baltimore, Kansas City, Miami and Tennessee have each scored 20 or more points in the first half in five games.

— This was the sixth game this season where the final outcome was eight or fewer points. The Packers are 4-2 in those one-score games.

— Aaron Rodgers had a TD pass to Robert Tonyan in the first quarter giving him 40 for the season. He became the first QB in NFL history to have 40 or more TD passes in three seasons (Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Dan Marino each had 40+ TD passes in two seasons). Rodgers also becomes the second 37-year-old to have 40 or more TD passes in a season; Manning also did it in his 37-year-old season.

— The Pack has now won six of their last seven games played on Saturday.

— Green Bay has now won four of their last six games versus the Panthers. Ironically, they beat Carolina by the same score, 24-16, in 2019. Each of the last four games against the Panthers was decided by eight points or less.

— Green Bay has now won 11 of their last 12 home games against NFC South teams.

— Since 2010, the Packers are 67-18-2 in games at Lambeau Field, a .782 winning percentage. That’s the second-best home winning percentage of all NFL teams since 2010. The New England Patriots top the list with a 73-13 record at home (.849 winning percentage) since 2010.

— The Rodgers-to-Tonyan TD pass in the first quarter was Tonyan’s 10th TD reception this year. With Davante Adams’ 14 TD receptions this season, Tonyan and Adams become the first Packers teammates to have 10+ TD receptions in the same season since 2016 when Adams and Jordy Nelson each had 10+ TD receptions. It also happened in 2014 with Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb.

— The Pack scored first in the game and is now 29-11-1 (.720) since 2016 in games where they score first.

— Rodgers was sacked five times in the game, the 14th game since 2015 where a Packers QB was sacked five or more times in a contest. The team is 4-10 in those games.

— Rodgers had a rushing TD in back-to-back games for the first time since Games #1 and #2 in the 2016 season.

— The Packers did not have a turnover in the contest, the 10th game this season. That ties them for the second-most turnover-less games in an NFL season. The 2010 Patriots hold the record with 11 games without a turnover in the 2010 season. The Packers can tie the record with no turnovers in one of their two remaining games and break the record if they do not have any turnovers in each of their last two games this season.

— Aaron Jones had 20 carries for 145 yards in the game. The 145 yards tied for the third-most rushing yards in a regular season game for Jones. It was also the 11th 100-yard rushing game in his career. The Packers are 10-1 in those games.

— Jones also had a TD run in the game. Since the start of the 2019 season, Jones has 19 rushing TDs, tied with Christian McCaffrey for most in the league.
— Green Bay had a 21-10 lead going into the fourth quarter. Since 2010, they are 56-1-1 in games when they have a lead of 10 points or more going into the fourth quarter.

— The Packers had 195 yards rushing in the game, the second game this season where they had 195 or more yards rushing (they had 259 in Week 2 versus the Lions). The last time they had two games in a season where they had 195 or more yards rushing in a game was in 2013. In the Super Bowl era (since 1966) the Packers are 55-5-3 in games when they amass 195 or more rushing yards in a game.

— Rodgers had only 143 yards passing in the game. In all the games he has started at QB for the Packers, it was the eighth game of his career where he was under 150 yards passing. It was, however, the first of those eight games that the Packers won.

— Davante Adams has seven receptions for 42 yards, 6.0 yards per catch. That 6.0 yards per catch was the lowest in a game since a November 3, 2019 game against the L.A. Chargers. It was tied for the sixth lowest yards-per-catch in a game (games with at least one reception) for Adams of his 98 career regular season games.

— The Packers offense had 291 total yards in the game. Since 2015, they are 7-13 in games where they have less than 300 yards of total offense.

— Green Bay had 29:09 time of possession in the game, only the fourth game this season where they lost the T.O.P. stat to their opponents.

— Adrian Amos (pictured above) had a sack, seven combined tackles and three passes defended for the Packers defense in the game. It was the first time since 2009 that a Packers defensive player recorded these numbers in a game (Charles Woodson had a sack, seven combined tackles and four passes defended in a 11-26-2009 game against the Lions).

— Za’Darius Smith had sack in the game. He is the first Packers defensive player to have 10 or more sacks for the team in back-to-back seasons since Clay Matthews did it in 2009 and 2010.

— The Packers held the Panthers to 16 points. They have now won 14 straight games when they hold the opposition under 20 points in a game. Since 2010, Green Bay is 55-9 (.859) in games where they hold opponents under 20 points in a game.