Slow adjustments lead to difficulty in overcoming deficit for Packers

MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. – Totalling only 3 points in the first half as they trailed the Minnesota Vikings (14-2) by 10 proved to be too large of a gap for the Green Bay Packers (11-5) to overcome, even with late momentum. 

Packers Tight End Tucker Kraft said that going into the post-season, the team has too much on the line to have such a slow start to the game. 

“I just try to look at the reality of the outcome. We came out slow and that’s always just a recipe for disaster because then we have to rely on our hurry up. Though it is successful, it’s not always a great position to be in,” said Kraft. 

“Pre-snap penalties, got behind the sticks and some calls that didn’t go our way. That’s just the game.”

Kraft also said that as they continue to face more competitive teams, the urgency for being able to adapt and find success against a talented and well-schemed defence becomes more important. 

“They’re the team that’s going to try to cover up all of the deep shots and they’re going to try to limit explosives and let you take the profit. They’re going to try to rally and tackle. That’s just what their defense does,” said Kraft. 

“They play some non-traditional coverages and they put some guys in weird spots so it might be hard to identify sometimes, but it’s just a credit to the Vikings. They’re a good team. They proved that they are where they are for a reason, and we never slighted them for a second.”

Despite the 2-point deficit in the final score, Kraft said that he has faith his team will still have a successful post-season. 

“We’re a resilient team. We’re still a young team. We’re still fighting things out a play at a time, but we’re fighters. All we need is to be guided in the right direction,” said Kraft. 

Packers Quarterback Jordan Love said that he, too, was disappointed in his offense’s performance behind the ball. 

“We know it wasn’t good enough. There were a lot of areas tonight that we were off to a slow start. Obviously not putting up any points early on didn’t help us, but we know what type of team we are and there’s just a lot of stuff to clean up,” said Love. 

According to Love, one of the main areas in which the team was lacking was their ability to get a fast start and get in front on the scoreboard early. 

“We prepare throughout the week, but teams always have their flavor of the week and you never know what they might be throwing at you and that’s just part of it. You’ve got to be able to adjust to whatever they’re throwing at you — whether that’s something you’ve planned for something you haven’t planned for. I don’t think we did that well enough or early enough,” said Love. 

Though their second loss to the Vikings this season plummeted the Packers to an 11-5 record, Love said that he is hopeful the team will be able to clean up their slow start and find a way to reach the endzone early on going into their final regular season game against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, Jan. 5, at Lambeau Field. 

“It’s tough. Obviously, it ended up being a close game, but it’s hard when you put yourself in a hole and they put up points early so you shoot yourself in the foot. There’s so much stuff to clean up and get better at. We’re still a really good team but if we don’t put up points early it’s really hard to climb out of that hole. When you play a good team like the Vikings, it makes it even tougher so we’ve got to figure out ways to start faster and put up points,” said Love. 

The Packers are guaranteed a spot in the post-season playoff as they are currently seeded to face the AFC’s Philidelphia Eagles in the NFC Wildcard Round on Sunday, Jan. 12.