By CHRIS HAVEL
After a hot, humid afternoon spent dodging Dolphins beneath the glare of Miami’s mid-day sun, Aaron Rodgers did what all great quarterbacks do. He rose to the occasion.
Rodgers led the Packers to 10 points on their final two drives to erase a 24-17 fourth-quarter deficit. His 4-yard touchdown dart to tight end Andrew Quarless with three seconds sealed Green Bay’s 27-24 victory in front of 70,875 fans at Sun Life Stadium. Rodgers late heroics and a gritty defensive effort were enough to stave off Miami and extend the Packers’ winning streak to three.
“One of those games where we were worn out, they were worn out, it comes down to the last drive,” Rodgers said. “And we made enough plays.”
The Packers’ Mason Crosby nailed his second field goal of the afternoon from 30 yards with 4:09 to play. That made it 24-20 Dolphins. The Packers’ defense then forced a punt and Rodgers was in business at the Green Bay 40 with 2:04 to play and no timeouts. No big deal.
After several scary moments, including a Rodgers fumble (which was recovered by right guard T.J. Lang) and a pair of clutch completions to Jordy Nelson (for 18 on fourth-and-10) and James Starks (for 10 yards on third-and-10). Following another completion, and with the clock running, Rodgers faked a spike before throwing a 12-yard pass to Davante Adams, who went out-of-bounds with six seconds to play.
“That was some free-styling right there,” Rodgers said.
After Miami (2-3) took a timeout to catch its breath, Rodgers completed the game-winning pass to Quarless.
“You want an opportunity to make a play there at the end,” Rodgers said.
The Packers mustered drives of 68 and 60 yards to overcome a 24-17 deficit and the 85-degree temperatures and tropical humidity. McCarthy wasn’t surprised the victory was so difficult to attain.
“We knew this was going to be a tough game coming down here in the heat,” McCarthy said. “We said we weren’t worried about it all week, and we weren’t worried. But the fact of the matter is, we are from Wisconsin. So we fought through it.”
The Packers (4-2) showed a spine on defense. Green Bay held Miami’s Knowshon Moreno to just 10 yards on six carries. The Dolphins finished with just 112 yards on 23 carries. Green Bay also forced three turnovers, including interceptions by Casey Hayward and Sam Shields, and a fumble recovery by Julius Peppers.
Meantime, the Packers’ running attack was serviceable. They ran 34 times for 121 yards. They were led by Eddie Lacy who had 40 yards in 14 tough carries.
Rodgers hit on 24 of 42 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns. He was sacked three times and harassed way too often. Nelson caught nine passes for 107 yards on 16 targets. Adams, the second-round draft pick, caught six passes for 77 yards, including one for 12 yards on the head’s up fake spike.
Rodgers has 15 touchdowns to just one interception this season. His splendid play has left McCarthy grasping for the proper superlatives.
“I need to work on my vocabulary,” McCarthy told reporters. “The guy is a remarkable player.”
The Packers’ defense saw a strong performance by Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, the first-round draft pick from Alabama. Clinton-Dix had a team-high seven tackles, followed by fellow safety Micah Hyde with six. Peppers had four tackles, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit. Even veteran safety Morgan Burnett played well with three tackles and a pass breakup. They limited Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill to a pedestrian 83.3 quarterback rating compared with Rodgers’ 99.7.
Green Bay currently sits atop the NFC North tied with Detroit. The Packers are now 15-2 under McCarthy in games played after a bye or a Thursday game. Next up is Carolina, who fought to a 37-37 tie at Cincinnati in overtime. It sets up what should be a tough, physical battle Sunday at Lambeau Field.
Look for the Packers to keep streaking after a gritty victory.
Chris Havel is a national best-selling author and his latest book is Lombardi: An Illustrated Life. Havel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4-6 p.m. CDT on WDUZ FM 107.5 The Fan, or on AM-1400, as well as Fan Internet Radio (www.thefan1075.com). Havel also hosts Event USA’ MVP Parties the evening before home games.
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"Kudos to Amy for making sure that the tickets to the tailgate party were waiting for me at the reception desk! Your personal phone call and text messages went above and beyond customer satisfaction! I can't wait for the 2024 season, rest assured that my go-to Packer's game supplier will be Event USA for a long time.
-Jean-Pierre Mallette, Montréal, Canada
"Thank you so much Cathy, greatly appreciate your help.
As always, EventUSA has been awesome to deal with in booking the Lodge Kohler package for the Tampa Bay Game,
particularly for me traveling from Sydney, Australia, it takes the stress out of the booking process. "
-Kayle
"Good Morning, Nicole - Everything you did turned out great. The seats were great. Access to the air conditioned club lounge was great. Lots of Packers fans in the club lounge and overall at the stadium. The tailgate party at the fancy restaurant in the hotel was fabulous. The servers just kept on bringing out different sliders and desserts. Good thing that I got in a 30-minute run along the river in the morning. So, thank you! You may be speaking with me in November if I can work out getting up to Green Bay for a game. It's been too long since my last time.
One of the best aspects of this weekend was interacting with so many people from Wisconsin and learning their personal stories of things Packers. And we even met a couple from St. Petersburg, Florida (my home county) and were able to tell them about the Varsity Club tavern and Packers bar in Clearwater where Mark Murphy's mother is in attendance -- very nice lady whose retirement home is in Clearwater, which borders my little city of Dunedin. Pre-COVID, I always went to the Varsity when the Packers games weren't televised locally -- lots of Wisconsin natives there, too + they serve brats and sauerkraut during Packers games. I'm glad that you are working for Event USA.
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-- Martin Lawyer, Dunedin, Florida
"Dennis - I was blessed to join Amy and some of your customers at the Morton's tailgate as well as after the game. She does an amazing job for you. Every single customer I met praised Event USA for being able to arrange the hotel and tickets and fabulous tailgate party in such a quick time. Having been to some great tour tailgate parties in Jacksonville and Kansas City and old San Francisco, a lot can be said of the long-term benefit of having really great tailgate parties. Morton's was probably one of the best - amazing food, patio sitting on the riverfront, walk to stadium, open bar!!! It was first class fun!!!"
-Matt
"Hi Amy-
Just wanted to say thank you for making Jacksonville happen! We had a wonderful time and looking forward to more Packers games with Event USA in the future!
Even though the game was not what we expected- we are packers fans for life-lol!
Go pack go!!"
-Julie Mastrianni
"I want to thank Event USA and in particular Amy Flores for the Jacksonville trip. We have used you before and always were very pleased with the packages you have set up and your service.
My son who lives in Charleston, SC and myself who lives in Minnesota, decided we needed to do a guys trip and decided to go through your company to see the opener in New Orleans. I initially called and talked with Amy about some questions I had and booked our trip. After itinerary and info was emailed to us, it soon became apparent that the trip to New Orleans wouldn’t happen. In steps Amy, wondering if we would be interested in Dallas if the game was moved there and a package was set up. Then finally the move to Jacksonville and continued communication from Amy on our interest. It was getting late at that point and I was wondering if she would be able to pull off setting up a package in Jacksonville. She did it.
We went to Jacksonville and had a great time. The accommodations and the tail gate were fabulous. If only the Packer team we were hoping for had made the trip.
Thank you Event USA and in particular Amy Flores."
-Tom Sohrweide, White Bear Lake, MN
"Thank you for all your help. I had a great time at the Packer-Raider game opening day. I have already begun telling interested Packer fans in Sacramento about your service. The next time I come to Green Bay for a game, I’ll be sure to ask for your help. God bless you and God bless the Green Bay Packers."
-Frank Chavez, Sacramento
"I just wanted to say that I had such a great time. The whole weekend was so much fun. I enjoyed the Player Autograph Party and the tailgate party was just the best. After coming from a country that loves soccer, it was nice to mix with people who have the same interests as me. Thank you once again, Green Bay is one very special place."
-Beverley Moore, Lancaster
"My accommodations at the Best Western Midway were excellent. I was picked up at the airport and returned promptly. No problems at all. Your representative at the hotel on game day was very pleasant and helpful. The tailgate party was super, great food, great drinks and lots of fun. Obviously, Lambeau Field and the game itself was great. I will continue to use Event USA in the future, and I will definitely tell anyone who I come across to give you a call. One last thing, the hospitality I experienced in Green Bay was incredible. I have traveled to many places, and I don’t think there are more friendly people than the people of Green Bay. Thank you again and see you next year!"
-David Anastas, Worchester
"My wife and I booked the tour to Tampa. The trip was so well organized from start to finish. It started with the people in the office with their friendly help over the phone, to receiving the tickets in the mail, and meeting the tour guides with their upbeat personalities. Signs guided us in the airport and information was posted in our motel lobbies to keep us posted. Your people had everything in order. Talk about organization, you had it. Event USA made this a most memorable trip. Thanks for all involved."
-Dick Koerner, Neenah
"I wish to convey my sincere thanks and gratitude for providing my husband and I with, what he refers to as the greatest experience of my life, apart from my wedding day."
-Lara and Matt Appleton, Thornhill, Ontario
"Thanks for all your help, the great tickets and service, and the chance to help me make one of my son’s dreams come true, seeing the Packers playing at home in Lambeau Field."
-Sam Jones, Sedalia
"I just want to thank you for the wonderful job your staff did last weekend for the Packers vs. Lions game. This was our first time utilizing your program and we were not disappointed at all. In fact, we can’t wait to schedule and event for next season’s games. From my first experience with your staff placing my order until the very end at checkout of the hotel, everything was perfect. You truly out-do yourselves to please everyone. Thanks again for making our stay in Green Bay one of the best."
-Kim Ewing and Bruce DeMaine, Ann Arbor
"Thanks so much for the best weekend ever! You not only got us in all the Magazines, TV, WWW pages and even the big screen at Lambeau Field, but Disney World on the side? Nice job – You and your family are top notch – we were on the best tour for the Super Bowl! Seeing the Green Bay Packers win back the Lombardi Trophy was a life long dream of this Packer fan, and you all were so dedicated to the job of taking care of us that, like the Packers, we were a winning team! Keep me on your list."
-William D Lorge, Representative to the Wisconsin State Assembly