Green Bay Packers got 125 yards and two scores from Emanuel Wilson, five sacks and two takeaways from defense Jeff Hafley, and a breakthrough special teams play in a 23-6 win over the team. Minnesota Vikings on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
With injuries mounting, extra football had to take over the game. Mission accomplished. The Packers also got stellar performances from several backups at important positions, contributing to a valuable intra-division win.
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Here are the good, the bad and the ugly of the Packers' Week 12 win:
good
Second half defense: The Packers defense was outstanding from start to finish, giving up just six points and 145 yards, but the second half was a defense on another level. The Vikings had five possessions, three ending in three-and-outs and the other two ending in interceptions. In pure yardage, including penalties and lost yards on sacks, the Vikings had -1 yardage in the final 30 minutes. Micah Parsons had a pair of sacks, Devontae Wyatt had a pair of sacks on third down inside the 5-yard line, Isaiah McDuffie intercepted a pass under pressure from Rashan Gary and Evan Williams hit a dagger with a late pick. The defensive front, led by Parsons, took over the game and the struggling young quarterback had absolutely no answers.
Special teams: Brandon McManus completed all five of his kicks, including all three field goals, while Daniel Whelan had three punts within 20 yards and had a net average of nearly 45 yards. Zane Anderson changed the game on one of Whelan's punts, forcing the returner to bounce back inside the 10-yard line and creating a huge gain early in the second half. Against PFF's top special teams team, the Packers were excellent in the third.
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Next person: No Josh Jacobs? Emanuel Wilson rushed for a career-high 107 yards and scored twice. No Quay Walker? Isaiah McDuffie recorded nine tackles, a sack, an interception and two stops on third down. No Keysian Nixon for most of the last three quarters? Kamal Hadden took his first snap of the season, Carrington Valentine followed Justin Jefferson and the Vikings receivers combined for four catches. Additionally, Sean Ryan appeared to be settling into his new role as the starting center, and Luke Musgrave drew a 24-yard pass interference penalty on the first touchdown.
Winning the turnover battle: The Packers got the game-tying play from the special teams unit and then got the win on a late interception by J.J. McCarthy. The 3-0 turnover margin represents the Packers' largest margin of victory this season and the sixth time the Packers have avoided a turnover (6-0 in those games). With a fast running game and stingy defense, the Packers dominated possession, holding the ball for over 37 minutes.
Bad
First half defense: It's hard to find much “bad” in this performance, other than a few talkative calls and poor offensive shots in the second half. So let's be picky and go back to the first half, when both Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason rushed for over 40 yards and helped set up two scoring chances. Jones ran for 16 yards on the first play, Mason ran for 22 yards in the second quarter, and Jones had another 14 yards to help set up the field goal to end the half. This game could have remained close if the Vikings continued to run the ball effectively. But the Packers adjusted, put the game away early in the second half and dominated the rest of the way.
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Ugly
Several failed third downs: The Packers were 7-for-14 on third down, but some of the failures were glaring. On third-and-1 at midfield in the third quarter, Emanuel Wilson was stopped for -1 yard on an inside shotgun run. On 3rd-and-3 from the red zone in the fourth quarter, Wilson was stopped for -1 yard after the Packers basically put the ball down Minnesota's throat on a drive. On 3rd-and-3 from the Vikings' 22-yard line midway through the fourth quarter, Wilson was stopped for a 1-yard gain. Three thirds-and-shorts, three failures. The Packers have a great overall third-down offense ranked first in the NFL entering Week 12, but converting on third-and-down is one area where the Packers fall short all too consistently. Being predictable is one thing; blowing up the blocks in front is another.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: The good, the bad and the ugly after the Packers' Week 12 win over the Vikings.
