Game recap: 5 takeaways from Packers' 37-10 win over Vikings
2. This chilly game was a mismatch pretty much from the start.
With the kickoff temperature of 11 degrees and dropping (wind chill minus-1) and the defense clamping down on Vikings running back Dalvin Cook (nine carries, 13 yards), backup quarterback Sean Mannion was overmatched. Mannion was filling in for starter Kirk Cousins (COVID-19 list), didn't have star receiver Adam Thielen (injured reserve), and never really got anything going.
The Vikings managed just 11 first downs, 206 yards of offense, and 21 minutes, 27 seconds of possession, losing that battle by over 17 minutes. They converted only 2-of-12 on third down and didn't cross the Green Bay 30-yard line until late in the third quarter, when the score was 30-3.
"We did what we said we wanted to do," said edge rusher Rashan Gary, who had one of the two sacks of Mannion, with Preston Smith getting the other. "We wanted to get off the field on third down and give back the offense the ball as many times as we can."
3. That offense picked it up after a slow start and really got rolling.
Green Bay let some red-zone opportunities get away early, but a 6-0 lead midway through the second quarter turned into 20-0 after two more possessions. Then two TDs and a field goal to start the second half made it 34 points in a span of six possessions overall.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers removed any doubts (if there were any) about his worthiness for a fourth NFL MVP award in going 28-of-39 for 288 yards with two TDs for a 114.8 passer rating. Receiver Davante Adams had 11 catches for 136 yards and a score, breaking his own single-season franchise record for receptions by reaching 117. At a career-best 1,498 yards, he's also just 22 yards away from Jordy Nelson's single-season mark in that category (1,519).
"It was a really cold day out there," Adams said. "and we still went out there and handled business."
Meanwhile, Dillon and Aaron Jones combined for 139 yards rushing and 50 more receiving, with Jones busting two explosive runs of 27 and 28 yards in the first half. Both running backs are now over 1,000 yards from scrimmage on the season, the first Green Bay RB duo to accomplish that since 1980.