LAMBEAU SWEEP: John Kuhn celebrates one of his two TDs as the Packers advanced with a 24-10 wild-card win over the Vikings and backup QB Joe Webb (inset, getting planted by Clay Matthews). (AP; Getty Images)
GREEN BAY, Wis. — It’s no exaggeration to say this one was over before it even started.
The Packers could tell they were headed to San Francisco for the NFC divisional playoffs next week 90 minutes before kickoff Saturday night when the Vikings revealed that Joe Webb — who hadn’t thrown a pass all season — would start in place of the injured Christian Ponder.
It didn’t take more than one or two subsequent ground balls thrown by the overmatched Webb to make this Green Bay win a forgone conclusion, and the Packers followed through with a 24-10 decision at Lambeau Field that lacked any drama whatsoever after the first quarter.
Not even the superhuman Adrian Peterson could be expected to beat Green Bay by himself, but that became Peterson’s impossible task when the Vikings could see in pregame warmups that Ponder’s severely bruised elbow wouldn’t enable him to play.
Like the Vikings, Peterson had no chance. With Webb barely a threat to complete a pass until garbage time (he finished 11-for-30 for 180 yards), Peterson was held to a harmless 99 yards on 22 carries a week after torching Green Bay for 199 yards in a Week 17 home win.
“There’s a reason he’s not starting,” Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji said of Webb. “Adrian Peterson is the man, and if you stop him, I don’t care who is at quarterback — you have a chance of winning.”
While Peterson was getting hounded, Aaron Rodgers was doing one of the many things he does so well — picking apart the Vikings’ defense.
The Packers’ MVP quarterback didn’t post huge numbers, but that wasn’t necessary with Webb serving as a constant punchline on the other side. Rodgers completed 23 of his 33 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions, barely breaking a sweat in the process.
That was to be expected against Minnesota from Rodgers, who now has thrown 25 TDs against just four interceptions in 11 career starts versus the Packers’ NFC North rivals.
Despite Peterson’s struggles, the game did have one productive back — Green Bay fullback John Kuhn.
Touching the ball just five times, Kuhn became the first player in the Packers’ illustrious history with a rushing and receiving TD in two playoff games after notching scores on a three-yard run and a nine-yard catch last night.
Kuhn was certainly more dangerous than the Vikings could hope to be with Webb under center. Ponder might have been one of the NFL’s most inconsistent and unreliable quarterbacks during the regular season, but he was Joe Montana compared with his backup.
Webb gave the Vikings trouble on the game’s opening possession, expertly running a run-dominated read option offense balanced by Peterson that the Packers hadn’t prepared for to a 3-0 lead.
But Minnesota, puzzlingly, went away from that scheme soon thereafter, and Webb — the first player in NFL history to start a playoff game after not throwing a single pass during the regular season — was so inept that he had Vikings fans longing for the days of Tarvaris Jackson.
Webb expressed surprise the Vikings abandoned the option so quickly, and coach Leslie Frazier agreed. But Frazier wasn’t going to let his young sub off the hook so easily.
“At some point, you’d like to be able to complete some passes,” Frazier said. “Early on, we did have them a little bit off-balance. But we had some opportunities in the passing game and didn’t connect.”
As a result, Rodgers and the Packers were able to make good on their quarterback’s postgame vow last week that this week “will be a different-type game.”
That certainly was the case, especially for a Green Bay defense that had been embarrassed by Peterson in their two regular-season matchups. Peterson had rushed for a whopping 409 yards in those games, but the Packers kept him under control when it mattered.
“[Packers defensive coordinator] Dom Capers and his staff wanted to make a statement tonight,” Rodgers said. “Peterson still had almost 100 yards, but it wasn’t the same kind of impact.”