Gary Seymour, sports@wolfrivermedia.com
When you’re in a hole and trying to get out, the first rule is to stop digging.
Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy might have kept some variation of that theme in mind last week as his team took a giant stride toward securing an NFC North title when it drummed the Dallas Cowboys 28-7.
The last time the Packers played in a deluge, they stuck with a pass-heavy offensive game plan, throwing 43 times and calling just 24 running plays. The result was a disjointed attack, an offensive output of 13 points and an upset loss at home to Chicago.
This time around, with another cloudburst pelting Lambeau Field, it was McCarthy calling the plays. He relieved Tom Clements of those duties before the Cowboys game and, with the memory of the futile, waterlogged aerial attack still fresh in his mind, turned the Packers’ fate over to the ground game.
Responding in a manner they could have only hoped, the Packers ran for 230 yards, their most productive day of rushing in 11 years.
The biggest benefactor in the game plan may have been Eddie Lacy, who was benched in last week’s win over Detroit for missing a curfew but celebrated his return to the field with 124 yards on 24 carries, including the touchdown that sewed up the win.
He ran with a newfound resolve, breaking tackles and pile-driving for the extra yards and first downs. His 25-yard run in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter set up his only score of the game, which came on the next play. The 1-yard plunge closed out the scoring and left lower lips in Dallas protruding far enough to land a small aircraft.
Lacy’s primary competition at running back, James Starks, shared the limelight with Lacy, rolling up 71 yards in 11 attempts. Starks’ 30-yard TD jaunt on a second-and-25 play with less than five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter gave the Packers a 21-7 lead and some breathing room against a stubborn Dallas defense.
Even wide receive Randall Cobb got into the act, lining up in the backfield several times and taking three handoffs from Aaron Rodgers, gaining nine yards.
Equally encouraging as their running game was the defense, which set the tone early in the game when it turned back Dallas on a first-and-goal from the 2-yard line.
Sam Shields intercepted Matt Cassel’s pass intended for Dez Bryant, snuffing the drive and keeping the Packers out of an early hole that could have altered the complexion of the game.
Shields suffered a concussion later and sat for the rest of the game, but for the second game in a row the Packers’ defensive backfield shut down one of the league’s best wide receivers.
In the win over Detroit, Lions wideout Calvin Johnson was held to 44 yard on three catches. Last week was an even more impressive effort, with Bryant getting bottled up to the tune of one grab for 9 yards.
Jeff Janis may still be seeking his footing as a wide receiver, but his contributions on special teams continue to impress. He made three tackles on punts to Dallas speedball Lucky Whitehead, with those returns totaling minus-6 yards and preventing the Cowboys from gaining any sort of field-position edge.
McCarthy, naturally, downplayed any significance in his resumed role as play-caller. Nobody in the Packers’ camp was complaining about the results.