Packers 'choice' blew the doors off the Bears in Week 1
Last year, the Green Bay Packers were the NFL's fifth-worst team when it came to converting fourth downs. This year, they're basically batting 1.000 after a 1-for-1 showing during the Week 1 win over the Chicago Bears. Sure, the final stat line reads 1-for-2, but the second attempt was in garbage time when the Packers […]
Last year, the Green Bay Packers were the NFL's fifth-worst team when it came to converting fourth downs.
This year, they're basically batting 1.000 after a 1-for-1 showing during the Week 1 win over the Chicago Bears. Sure, the final stat line reads 1-for-2, but the second attempt was in garbage time when the Packers went for it on a 4th and 6 from the Bears 30 in an effort to simply run out the clock. So, it doesn't hold as much weight as it seems on the surface.
Regardless, the one attempt that did matter, the Packers converted. And boy, did it completely change the trajectory of the game.
The Packers were up, 17-6, about midway through the fourth quarter when the offense found itself faced with a 4th and 3 from the Bears 35. Instead of attempting a field goal with rookie Anders Carlson, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur opted to go for it and the end result was a perfectly thrown ball to Aaron Jones on a choice route.
Jones did his thing and scampered all the way to the house for six points. Carlson made the ensuing PAT and the Packers led, 24-6, with 6:26 left in the third quarter.
"It was a choice route by him [Jones] and that's my first read, right there," Packers quarterback Jordan Love told reporters after the game. "I saw man coverage and the linebacker was plugging him in and then actually [Bears linebacker] [It mTremaine] Edmunds, you know, was the plug player and he worked opposite of that.
"And when he did that, I knew it was going to be open for Jonesy. I knew he was going to kill him on the choice route, which he did. Now I just had to get him the ball and he made the rest happen, man. It was an awesome finish by him."
It was a great decision by LaFleur and he was rewarded with great execution, which was then rewarded with six points. The Packers never looked back after that play and went on to route the rival Bears. They eventually built the lead to 38-14 before the Bears scored a late-game touchdown to cement the final score.
It made all the sense in the world for Jones, who is the heart and soul of the Packers offense, to be the guy responsible for the game's biggest play. The offense really needed to put pressure on the Bears and a field goal wouldn't have delivered the necessary emphasis in order to create tension. A touchdown, and one in the explosive fashion Jones provided, is what turned things around and ultimately led the Packers to their first win of the 2023 season.
"Like I said earlier, he's a guy who tilts the field in your favor. He's so dynamic [and] so explosive," Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said after the game. "And take all his ability as a football player out of it – he means so much to that locker room. By his actions, by what he says and what he does on a daily basis. He's a real leader in that locker room [and] he's a real leader for our football team. He inspires everybody and he comes to work each and every day with a great attitude.
"I can't say enough great things about him. I've said it a million times, about the kind of person he is. You cannot have enough Aaron Jones on your football team."
Featured image via Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports
