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Cal in NFL: Aaron Rodgers Not Great, but Packers Beat Cardinals

Rasul Douglas' interception in end zone helps Green Bay hand Arizona its first loss.
Jake Curtis|
Cal in NFL: Aaron Rodgers Not Great, but Packers Beat Cardinals
Cal in NFL: Aaron Rodgers Not Great, but Packers Beat Cardinals

Former Cal star Aaron Rodgers did not have his best game, but thanks to an interception by Rasul Douglas in the end zone in the closing seconds, the Packers held on the beat the Cardinals 24-21 Thursday night, handing Arizona its first loss.

Rodgers finished 22-for-37 for 184 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, and he was particularly effective in the second half, when he was 12-for-16 for 120 yards and a touchdown. He was named the player of the game by FOX, which televised the game. It was not his best performance, but he led his team to victory with limited weapons at his disposal.

The Packers (7-1) survived after a wild last few minutes in which the Packers nearly clinched the victory before the Cardinal nearly stole it.

Ultimately, Rodgers did enough despite the absence of his top two wide receivers, All-Pro wideout Davante Adams and Allen Lazard, neither of whom played at all. The Packers' top tight end Robert Tonyan left with an injury in the third quarter.

Rodgers directed the kind of ball-control offense the Packers needed to limit Arizona's offense. Green Bay had the ball for 37:35 and Arizona had it for 22:25.

Aaron Rodgers' first touchdown pass to Randall Cobb:

Rodgers took a dirty hit after throwing that first scoring pass.

Aaron Rodgers' second TD pass, again to Cobb:

The last few minutes had several dramatic turns.

It appeared Rodgers had engineered a game-winning drive with less than five minutes left in the game. With the Packers leading 24-21, Rodgers was 5-for-5 for 42 yards to start a 74-yard drive that was nearly a 75-yard touchdown drive. On first-and-goal from the 1-yard line, Aaron Jones gained about a yard, and a touchdown was signaled. But the call was overruled on replay, and the ball was placed at the half-yard line.

Mike Pereira, the FOX expert on officiating, said he was surprised the call was overturned. It turned out to be critical as Green Bay was unable to score. On fourth down from the 1, Rodgers' pass was knocked down by Devon Kennard, giving the Cardinals to ball inside their own 1-yard line with 3:26 left.

Arizona drove all the way to the the Packers' 5-yard line, but on second down from there Kyler Murray threw a pass into the end zone. Intended receiver A.J. Green did not turn around, and Green Bay defensive back Douglas made a juggling interception with 15 seconds left to assure the win for Green Bay.

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Rodgers postgame press conference:

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Cover photo of Aaron Rodgers by Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports

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Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

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Jake Curtis
JAKE CURTIS

Jake Curtis worked in the San Francisco Chronicle sports department for 27 years, covering virtually every sport, including numerous Final Fours, several college football national championship games, an NBA Finals, world championship boxing matches and a World Cup. He was a Cal beat writer for many of those years, and won awards for his feature stories.

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