In High-Stakes Game, High-Priced Stars Were Money
GREEN BAY, Wis. – In the Green Bay Packers’ latest biggest game of the season, their highest-paid players were, well, money.
Green Bay has six players on the roster with average salaries of at least $10 million per season. They all delivered strong performances to lead a 28-23 victory over Seattle that sent the team to next week’s NFC Championship Game at San Francisco.
Aaron Rodgers ($33.5 million): With 243 passing yards, Rodgers’ outing doesn’t stack up to legendary playoff performances against the likes of Dallas in 2016, Atlanta in 2011 or Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl. Rodgers, however, was brilliant. He went 16-of-27 passing but five of those incompletions were throwaways and two were drops. Quarterbacks have to deliver on third down, and that’s where Rodgers was superb. He completed 7-of-9 for 121 yards and one touchdown. His passer rating was a near-perfect 155.8 – 40 points better than any other quarterback in the divisional round. Two of those conversions, of course, came on the game-clinching drive.
“As opposed to our last game we played in Detroit, where I felt pretty good about most of the throws and statistically I was way off, I felt good about all the throws tonight,” Rodgers said. “I felt good about the ball coming off of my hand. It’s one of those feelings that start to creep up during warm-ups where you really feel like you’re locked in. It’s fun when it translates to the field.”
Za’Darius Smith ($16.5 million): Once again, Smith continued to raise the bar. After leading the NFL in quarterback pressures during the regular season, he spent most of Sunday evening in Seattle’s backfield. After recording 13.5 sacks in the regular season, he added two more to his ledger. Pro Football Focus credited Smith with 11 total pressures. That’s the most of any player in the playoffs – even compared to defenders who played in two games. If not for Russell Wilson being short and elusive, Smith might have had five sacks. It was total dominance.
Davante Adams ($14.5 million): Adams destroyed the Seahawks, catching eight passes for a Packers playoff-record 160 yards and two touchdowns. All eight receptions were for first downs, and he earned a ninth first down with an 18-yard penalty for pass interference on Green Bay’s second touchdown drive. Seattle cornerback Tre Flowers will be having nightmares about Adams all offseason, especially on the 40-yard touchdown in which Adams beat him badly with his route and again after the catch.
“We put the world on our shoulders. It’s something that we came into this game knowing that it was going to have to be a 12- and 17-type game, one of those ones that we’ve done in the past,” Adams said. “My last time I came off of a bye in the first round, I was able to have a really good game. So, it was something that I kind of reminded him about, and it was something that he threw right back at me – he was already thinking about it. When we get on the same page and we’re able to find each other and get on the right wavelength early, I think that it’s really tough to beat this team.”
Preston Smith ($13 million): Smith had 12 sacks during the regular season but slumped down the stretch with just one-half sack during the team’s five-game winning streak. Smith was back at it against the Seahawks, though, with two sacks and seven total pressures. His third-down sack with about three minutes to go might have saved the season. Smith, who likened sacking Wilson to “chasing a chicken in the field with no fingers,” called the sack “electrifying.” He added, “I got to him and got him down. It was a big play for our defense in that moment in the game. It helped us get off the field and get us in a winning situation.”
David Bakhtiari ($12 million): According to Pro Football Focus, Bakhtiari allowed just one pressure in 34 pass-protecting snaps. In the Week 12 loss at San Francisco, he gave up six pressures. During the team’s six-game winning streak since that game, Bakhtiari has allowed a total of five pressures and never more than one in a game, according to PFF.
Jimmy Graham ($10 million): Given the big numbers on Graham’s contract and disappointing production, this might have been his last appearance at Lambeau Field. His contributions were three catches for 49 yards. But they were big ones, with all three being third-down conversions. On the opening series, he beat safety Bradley McDougald on a crossing route for 13 on third-and-8 to help set up a touchdown. In the third quarter, with Seattle having pulled within 21-10, Graham made an excellent over-the-shoulder catch over linebacker K.J. Wright for a gain of 27 on third-and-6. And on the final drive, he converted a third-and-9 by squeezing every bit of speed out of his body.
“I’ve been battling through some stuff but, really I’ve been here before and I know Aaron reached out to me and told me he needed me, so I just made sure I was ready and made sure I brought the juice and brought the energy,” Graham said. “The guys did awesome. It was a true team effort out there. Our fans were amazing, playing at home. It’s just a special win. It really is. And now we have an opportunity to be one win away from going back home to Miami.”
