Aaron Rodgers could not remember ever completing a Hail Mary pass during a game but he will never forget the one he threw on Thursday, a play that might have saved the Green Bay Packers’ season. A game behind Minnesota in the NFC North, a loss at Detroit would slot them in playoff bubble territory, with very little to indicate they’d be digging themselves out of the hole anytime soon.
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Call it a Hail Mary, a Motown Miracle…the 61-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to Richard Rodgers that led to a 27-23 win Thursday night will not just forever go down in Packers lore.
Replays showed that the defender barely grazed the face mask. I mean sure, that was a good play, but c’mon, the Lions should have used the Prevent defense. Led by a nine tackle night from rookie linebacker Jake Ryan, four sacks as a group, and a strip by Julius Peppers that led to the Packers second touchdown of the night. “I knew we were around the 40, (so) I knew I was going to have to buy some time to allow (the receivers) to get in the end zone”. As in 1982, Rogers’ father Richard Rodgers Sr. was a key part of the Univerisity of California-Berkeley’s 25-20 win over Stanford on a five-lateral kickoff return for a touchdown on the game’s final play. Rodgers, with no place to go (and no one behind him to lateral the ball to) was doomed and with no time on the clock, the game was over. (Aaron Rodgers) ran around there so long, moved up, gave himself a chance to get in the end zone.
Green Bay (8-4) were upset a couple of plays earlier when they felt Detroit safety Isa Abdul-Quddus should have been whistled for pass interference on a downfield throw.
“All I saw was the dude catching the ball”, Lions cornerback Darius Slay said of the final play. He added, “I got a nice run up and crow-hopped into it. I didn’t see Richard until the last second, but when he caught it, I blacked out, I didn’t know what happened”.
Matt Prater of the Detroit Lions kicks a field goal during the third quarter against the Green Bay P …
“It’s a close play, but even looking at the replay, the hand is up near the mask, the finger looks like it gets caught in the mask and the head gets turned”.
Biggie threw it back to Aaron Rodgers, who had his facemask grazed and was tackled. They were without the entire right side of the offensive line.
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The Packers have some time to figure out their ground game as they have an extra few days of rest. Rodgers throws it to Rodgers, not Aaron to Richard but Richard to Aaron that started the whole thing. First there was a fumble by Packers running back James Starks, which Randall Cobb fell on in the end zone.
