Minnesota at Green Bay
Sunday, November 1st, 4:15 ET
(Matchup)
by
Rocky Atkinson
One of the biggest storylines of the NFL season is the return of Brett Favre to Green Bay to take on his former team. These two teams met back on a Monday night in early October and Favre and the Vikings came out victorious 30-23. The Vikings not only got the victory but also covered the 4.5 point closing number. Favre played outstanding in that game going 24 of 32 for 271 yards and 3 touchdown passes. However, his predecessor Aaron Rodgers put up even bigger numbers as threw for 384 yards and really exposed the tough Vikings’ secondary.
The scene has shifted however and now Green Bay has been installed as 3 point favorites in Sunday’s showdown. As it is for every team that faces Minnesota, the Packers will have to keep Adrian Peterson in check to have a chance at winning this game. They did a great job of slowing him down in the first meeting as he rushed 25 times for just 55 yards. The problem this year for opposing defenses is that even if you do contain Peterson, Minnesota finally has a quarterback in Favre who can beat you throwing the ball downfield. Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin, Bernard Berrian, and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe have all stepped up and have become playmakers down the field for Favre to throw to.
On the other side of the ball, Minnesota has been poor against the pass thus far this season and that has got to change on Sunday in order for Minnesota to slow down Rodgers and company. The Packers have a great passing attack as they are averaging 258 yards a game through the air. Greg Jennings and Donald Driver are a dynamic duo and Minnesota struggled to slow those guys down in the first meeting between these teams. Minnesota’s secondary is yielding 234.7 yards a game passing and that does not bode well for a unit that is going up against a quarterback like Aaron Rodgers. The key will be for the front four of the Vikings to get pressure on Rodgers and force him to make quick decisions. If he has time to go through his progressions, he’s already shown he can make big plays against this defense.
Both teams are very stout against the run so this game really could come down to a battle between the quarterbacks. Favre and Rodgers are two marquee QB’s in this league and have already proven they can be effective against the each other’s opposing defenses. Statistically, Green Bay has the better defensive backs as they are only giving up 174 yards a game through the air but they will have to play much better than they did in the first game. Whichever team can get pressure on the quarterback to take the pressure off their secondary will likely win this game.
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