Monday Morning Aftermath: The Green Bay Packers Are Super Bowl Champions

The Green Bay Packers are world champions. The Lombardi Trophy is coming back to Titletown after a 31-25 victory over the the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Next Man Up

With 15 players on injured reserve, “Next Man Up” has been the Packers’ unofficial motto all season long. Fittingly, the team destined to become champions of Super Bowl XLV lost two key players to injury in the first half. An injury-replacement player himself, linebacker Desmond Bishop, summed up the Packers’ team identity nicely.

“That’s who we are,” Bishop said. “And it’s who we’ve been all season. If you’re the next man up, you’re expected to find your helmet and find a way.”

Donald Driver went down early with an ankle injury and cornerback Charles Woodson broke his collar bone. Both players are locker room leaders, and Woodson was so emotional during halftime that he couldn’t even finish his speech.

If I would have told you that backup cornerbacks Jarrett Bush and Pat Lee would play significant time in the Super Bowl, would you have given the Packers a chance? How about if I told you that Jarrett Bush would have a key interception; would you still believe me? Well, it all happened, and it’s been that sort of year for the Packers. No matter which number is sewn on your jersey, the coaching staff expects you to take the field and perform just as well as the guy in front of you. And perform they did. In Driver’s absence, wide receiver Jordy Nelson recorded 9 receptions for 140 yards and a touchdown, breaking a Packers’ Super Bowl record for receiving yards set by the legendary Max McGee back in Super Bowl I.

Win The Turnover Battle, Win The Game

Jarrett Bush redeemed himself in a big way. The last time these two teams met, Bush’s interception was negated due to penalty, and he never got the chance to play the hero. Super Bowl XLV was a different story. Bush came up with a big interception — one of three Pittsburgh turnovers — that Aaron Rodgers and the offense cashed in for 7 points.

In fact, all three Pittsburgh turnovers resulted in 21 points for the Packers. As big as Bush’s pick was, it was overshadowed by Nick Collins early pick-6 and Clay Matthews forced fumble of Rashard Mendenhall late in the game. The usually sure-handed Mendenhall only fumbled twice in the regular season and twice in the playoffs.

And the Packers? They had zero turnovers, which brings me to the most valuable player of Super Bowl XLV…

MVP

After the game, I wondered who the MVP would be. I thought maybe Greg Jennings for his 2 touchdown grabs and his big third-and-long reception to keep the Packers’ hopes alive on their final clock-killing drive. I thought maybe Jordy Nelson for his record performance. But I was wrong, and a deserving Aaron Rodgers was named the game’s most valuable player.

It’s easy to look past Rodgers’ performance because the Packers demand so much of him. He didn’t record the best performance of his life, but his final tally was fantastic. Going 24-for-39 passing for 304 yards, 3 touchdowns, and zero interceptions is a great Super Bowl performance. I can think of one instance where Rodgers made a poor throw. And had his receiving corps not dropped 6 passes, Rodgers numbers would have been astronomical.

Elite Company

Head coach Mike McCarthy joins some pretty elite company as a Super Bowl winning coach of the Green Bay Packers. The only other Packers’ coaches to do that were named Lombardi and Holmgren. McCarthy said after the game that he drives down “Holmgren Way” on his way to work every day. And if he continues to prepare his players as he did all season, he’ll have his own street sign before he knows it.

Final Thought

How fitting was it that the unsung hero of the defense, Tramon Williams, broke up a pass on 4th-and-5 to seal the victory?

 

Go celebrate Green Bay, you deserve it.