Season’s second overtime contest sees Packers prevail

Green Bay’s 4th quarter capitulation in Minnesota was a movie that Packers fans have seen far too often in recent years, prompting major backlash towards all parties involved. On the road again, they headed to MetLife Stadium with no other way to respond than with a victory over the New York Jets.

The Jets began their season with a strong win, albeit against a terrible Tennessee Titans side, but the production of Geno Smith and excitement factor of their youngsters gave fans a reason to show up to MetLife today, as they looked to go 2-0 for the first time in over a decade.

Green Bay were once again their own worst enemy, with early penalties to shoot themselves in the foot throughout a scoreless first quarter, which also saw Jayden Reed need to be carted off and ruled out for the game with a scary head injury.

Such was the lifeless defensive nature of the opening quarter that it took nearly an hour to complete, with the Packers’ first first down not coming until the final play of the term.

Sometimes it only takes one drive to kickstart an offense, as Jordan Love led the team downfield and found MarShawn Lloyd for his first career touchdown and the opening score of the afternoon.

The teams remained keen to go tit-for-tat, as New York responded with 7 points of their own through Braelon Allen, as some offense began to inject itself into the game.

The scores remained tied at halftime, with it all to play for in the second half of a gritty battle in the New York rain.

Weather continued to add to the defensive nature of the game, but a 5-minute spurt of dominance gave the Jets the stronghold, first with Garrett Wilson scoring his first touchdown in almost a calendar year, followed soon after by a takeaway, as Harrison Phillips picked up a fumble by Lloyd.

Green Bay certainly didn’t panic when faced with a 10-point deficit midway through the final term, showing newfound late-game composure to construct their best offensive drive when they needed it most. Christian Watson continued his hot start to the season by finding the end zone.

Skyy Moore pulled a rabbit out of his hat with a 63-yard punt return to give the Packers exactly what they wanted in unsuitable conditions, as they put forth their bid to snatch victory late. Alas, it wasn’t immediately to be for Love and his team, settling for a field goal to send the game to overtime.

The Jets got the first taste of the ball in overtime, but it didn’t last long, going 3-and-out quickly on the back of a pair of sacks, ultimately giving the Packers the golden ticket to set up rookie kicker Trey Smack for a game-winning field goal, as they escaped a danger game with a 3-point win.

It wasn’t convincing, but Green Bay did just enough to withstand the Jets and avoid the potentially significant ramifications of a potential loss. They’ll need to improve out of sight if they are to achieve anything major this season, but they’ll fancy their chances over the next month.

The Jets’ rebuild is finally paying off. While a playoff berth this season remains incredibly unlikely, this team is finally giving fans a reason to show interest and an ability to compete with the best. The green shoots will continue to grow and a few upsets could certainly be on the horizon this year for New York.

Touchdowns
Green Bay: Lloyd, Watson
New York Jets: Allen, Wilson

Top Performers
Green Bay: Van Ness, Cooper, Bullard, Williams, Smack, Whelan
New York Jets: Smith, Wilson, Stiggers, Enagbare, McNamara

Injuries
Green Bay: Reed (neck), Bako-Bewele (knee)
New York Jets: McCrary-Ball (ankle), Mauigoa (quad), Onyemata (groin), Taylor (thumb)

Crowd: TBC