Match Report: New England Patriots V Green Bay Packers

Flynn shines but Patriots remain the stars of the show

By

CIAN FAHEY,

IrishCentral.com Staff Writer

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Patriots Kyle Arrington returned an interception for a touchdown in front of Green Bay Packers wide

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The Patriots should have taken notice of the Packers blitz packages as their own pressure package was the only thing that was flustering Flynn. The Patriots got pressure on Flynn every time they blitzed him but the young quarterback showed off his best Aaron Rodgers' impression when he dropped back and zipped the ball down the right sideline to James Jones for a 66 yard touchdown in the second quarter. Flynn fit the ball between Devin McCourty and Brandon Merriweather to allow Jones to stroll into the end-zone.

The Patriots offensive line struggles continued on the next series as a quick three and out ensued. The Packers took over once more and Flynn continued to spread the ball around while also benefiting from the Patriots own lack of discipline. Three crucial penalties by Vince Wilfork, James Sanders and Devin McCourty led to an eventual 1 yard touchdown from Flynn to Greg Jennings. Jennings ran a great route to gain position on Kyle Arrington before using his body to shield the ball into his chest. That gave the Packers a 17-7 lead approaching the end of the second quarter.

In what was a weekend of kickoff returns the Patriots benefitted from an unlikely hero just before the half. Right Guard Dan Connolly returned the kickoff after the Jennings' touchdown for 71 yards, a record for an offensive lineman, to the Packers 4 that led to a Patriots' touchdown. The Packers' defense stood firm on the first two plays before Brady found Aaron Hernandez over the middle of the end-zone. It was Brady's 255th career touchdown that tied him for 11th on the all time list with Sonny Jurgenson.

Cracks began to form in the Packers' offense when the Patriots blitzed Flynn repeatedly in the second half. Flynn threw an interception on the first drive of the third quarter that was returned for a touchdown by Kyle Arrington. While Flynn wasn't to blame for the interception, James Jones did not finish his route, he would not have thrown the ball had it not bee for the pressure applied by Tully Banta Cain. It was the first interception of Arrington's career and the 4th interception returned for a touchdown by the Patriots this season. The Patriots have 8 non offensive touchdowns this season, one off their all time record of 9.

The Patriots were better against the run in the second half when Vince Wilfork was lined up over center. They forced the Packers' to put the ball in Flynn's hands who continued to have success with short and intermediate passes. The drive culminated in a great play by John Kuhn who turned a swing pass to the flat into a 6 yard touchdown when Rob Ninkovich slipped. Vince Wilfork's facemask penalty was a further indication of the Patriots' hurting themselves on defense that had led to the Kuhn touchdown.

The Patriots' offense took over again after being on the sidelines for a long time. The offense was lacking momentum and received no pity from the Packers who turned up the heat by blitzing on repeated downs. The Packers forced another quick three and out before Flynn drove his team down the field to score another field goal.

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