Flags fly in Packers’ victory
Ravens on short end of penalty-filled game
Published: December 08, 2009, 12:30 am
Story tools:
Share this story:
GREEN BAY, Wis. — The standings say the Green Bay Packers are in good shape for the playoffs. But Monday night’s victory over the Baltimore Ravens showed they still have some work to do to be taken seriously once they get there.
Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdown passes, including two to tight end Jermichael Finley, and the Packers beat the Ravens, 27-14, in a penalty-filled game Monday night.
It was the fourth straight win for the Packers (8-4), solidifying their spot in the NFC wild card race. But it certainly wasn’t pretty.
The teams committed 23 penalties for 310 yards, tying for the second-highest yardage total in an NFL game.
The Ravens (6-6) struggled in coverage without star safety Ed Reed, who sat out with hip and ankle injuries.
Baltimore was called for five pass interference penalties, the most by a team in a single game since the New York Giants in 2001. The Packers were flagged four times for pass interference.
Rodgers was 26 of 40 for 263 yards with two interceptions, his sixth and seventh of the season.
While Reed’s replacement, Tom Zbikowski, came up with one of the interceptions, the Ravens’ secondary had trouble.
Aside from the penalties, Baltimore allowed Finley to catch seven passes for 79 yards. His second touchdown was a 19-yarder in which he extended the ball over the goal line to give Green Bay a 24-14 edge with 10:31 remaining in the game.
Baltimore’s Joe Flacco was 15 of 36 for 137 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions. The Packers sacked him three times.
The win was a continuation of a significant momentum swing for the Packers, who were 4-4 after looking bad in back-to-back losses to Minnesota and Tampa Bay in early November but haven’t lost since.
They’ve worked out some of their pass protection problems — Rodgers was sacked only once Monday night — and their defense appears to be getting more comfortable in the 3-4 scheme installed by defensive coordinator Dom Capers in the offseason.
The Ravens managed only 185 total yards.
Newsletters
Sign up now for daily and weekly newsletters from BuffaloNews.com and get quick links to the info you want delivered directly to your inbox.Reader comments
Log into MyBuffalo to post a comment
MyBuffalo is the new social network from Buffalo.com. Your MyBuffalo account lets you comment on and rate stories at buffalonews.com. You can also head over to mybuffalo.com to share your blog posts, stories, photos, and videos with the community. Join now or learn more.
Comments have been disabled.
Due to a high volume of submissions that violate The News’ guidelines, commenting is no longer available on this story. If you’d like to share your thoughts on this story, click here to get information on contributing to The News’ opinion pages.