Aaron Rodgers
The Green Bay Packers offense, under new head coach Matt LaFleur is really starting to heat up with Aaron Rodgers driving the ship.
Rodgers threw for 429 yards and five touchdowns and he ran for another as the Packers rolled to a 42-24 win over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
Rodgers completed 25 of 31 passes to eight different receivers, who all finished with at least two catches. And he did it again, for the third week in a row, without his top target Davante Adams, who is sidelined with turf toe.
The turning point in the game came late in the first half when the Raiders were driving for a potential touchdown. It would have given Oakland a 17-14 lead. Instead, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, while reaching the ball towards the goal line, fumbled and the ball went into and out of the end zone. By rule, a touch back gave the ball to the Packers at the 20-yard line.
The Packers ended up taking the ball 80 yards for a touchdown with 12-seconds left in the first half. They also came out of the locker room and put another long touchdown drive together which in effect was a 21-point turn-around from the end of the first half. Instead of being down 17-14, the Packers led 21-10 at halftime.
Carr finished 22-of-28 for 293 yards, two touchdowns and two turnovers for the Raiders (3-3), who lost their eighth straight against Green Bay.
Rodgers became the first quarterback in Packers history to finish a game with a perfect passer rating (158.3).
Just two days earlier, the Packers weren’t sure if they were going to have Geronimo Allison (concussion) or Marquez Valdes-Scantling (knee), but both were upgraded on Saturday and played a role in Sunday’s win.
Valdes-Scantling finished with two catches for 133 yards, while Allison had four catches for 33 yards.
Darren Waller had a big day for the Raiders. The tight end caught seven passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns. The Raiders also tallied 155 yards rushing against the Packers defense.
Blake Martinez continued his fine season for the Packers. He tied a career high with 16 tackles on Sunday and leads the NFL with 76 (48 solo). That’s seven more than any other defender.
The Packers didn’t record a single quarterback sack.
Next up for the Packers is a trip to Kansas City to face the Chiefs on Sunday night. Kansas City will play without their MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who will miss 3 to 6 weeks with a knee injury.