The Packers cruised to a laugher on Thursday night, reestablishing their position as an NFC North contender and ensuring that Vikings fans will be obsessing over the health of Teddy Bridgewater for the next week-plus.
CBS and the NFL Network made a big show of getting more competitive, interesting matchups on Thursday Night Football this season, but coming into Week 5, the margin of victory averaged over 28 points. You can hike that number up even higher after the Green Bay Packers destroyed the Minnesota Vikings, 42-10, in Lambeau Field on Thursday.
The story of this game is partially about the continued resurgence of the Packers offense, which has piled up 80 points and 679 yards in the two games since laying an egg in Detroit. Aaron Rodgers threw for three touchdowns -- including one each to Randall Cobb and Jordy Nelson -- and Eddie Lacy shook off his early-season slump with 105 yards and a pair of end zone visits.
But this game was also about the complete ineptitude of the Vikings offense under Christian Ponder. Minnesota had three turnovers, averaged just 4 yards per play and didn't get on the scoreboard until the fourth quarter. Credit the Packers defense for controlling the line of scrimmage and forcing Ponder into mistakes, but it's clear after this game that...
1) The Vikings need Teddy to heal up ASAP
With Teddy Bridgewater ruled out hours before kickoff with an ankle injury, Ponder got the start and did a lot of Christian Ponder things. He connected on just 22 of his 44 passes and threw a pair of second-quarter interceptions, including this 49-yard pick-six by Julius Peppers (who, after years of playing in Green Bay as a Chicago Bear, finally got his first Lambeau Leap) that put the Vikings in a 21-0 hole.
Bridgewater is not a cure-all, and it's doubtful that he would have been able to keep the Vikes on pace with the high-powered Packers, but this offense is clearly a different unit with him in. In Bridgewater's first NFL start against the Falcons, the Vikings piled up 41 points and 558 yards of offense -- under Ponder, the unit managed 299 yards.
Bridgewater was reportedly close to getting the nod on Thursday, telling the CBS crew that he believed he could have gone if given just one more day of rest. Considering the Vikings now have a long week before their next game, you have to like Bridgewater's chances of returning against the Lions.
Until then, he's stuck watching Ponder.
2) Ponder was bad, but the O-line was worse
Before we go piling this loss completely on Ponder, let's acknowledge that he had absolutely no help, especially from the offensive line. The Packers, who came into this game with just six sacks, got to the quarterback four times in the first half alone and finished with six sacks. Ponder was under pressure on seemingly every drop back, and its worth noting that the pick-six to Peppers was caused by a defensive lineman hitting his arm as the ball was released.
Ponder's struggles were compounded by the fact that the O-line couldn't open lanes for the running game. Green Bay entered the game allowing a league-worst 176 rushing yards per game, but managed to hold the Vikings to 111. Sure, Minnesota's run game isn't the same without Adrian Peterson, but they racked up 241 yards on the ground just last week, so there are still horses in the stable. On Thursday night they made Dom Capers and his rickety defensive front look like world beaters, and that's saying something.
3) Eddie Lacy lives!
Amidst murmurs of sophomore slumps, Lacy hadn't gone over 50 yards rushing in any of his first four games -- he passed that yard mark just four minutes into the first quarter. The former second-round pick was frequently granted access to the second level by an offensive line that opened gaping running lanes, and the powerful back pummeled the Vikings' overmatched secondary. Like, seriously pummeled:
This was the type of offensive balance that was billed in Green Bay coming into the season, and this is the type of offensive balance that could make them a Super Bowl contender.