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Packers 27, Bengals 13
Next game: Thursday, August 30 vs. Kansas City
Packers Gameday at 4:00 p.m. on Newsradio 620 WTMJ and 5:30 p.m. on TODAY'S TMJ4 with live online coverage here
Postgame
9:23 p.m.
McCarthy to Larry McCarren on starters:
"I thought the first half, there were a lot of positive plays and production from both the offense and the defense...I thought the offense did a very good job of moving the ball, frankly, against a very good football team."
On Cedric Benson's 38-yard, six carry night.
"It was nice to get Cedric out there...I thought Cedric looked comfortable...he's an instinctive, powerful football player."
On Tramon Williams:
"Tramon is back, no doubt."
On Graham Harrell:
"I thought Graham got better today. He had some tough spots. Good protection adjustments didn't work out the way they were supposed to. I thought he improved today."
4th Quarter
9:06 p.m. Packers' 4th Drive 2:11
Drive start: Cincinnati 20
Tyler run. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Cooper run. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Tyler run. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Tyler run. Tick. Tock. First down. Out of bounds. But it's victory formation next.
9:04 p.m. Bengals' 4th Drive 2:57
Drive start: Cincinnati 20
Brooks fumble! 2nd turnover in less than a minute! Richardson, a safety, scoops up the goodies. That helps your turnover ratio.
9:01 p.m. Bengals' 3rd Drive 3:21
Green Bay 27, Cincinnati 13
Lattimore 27 yd TD INT return
Drive start: Cincinnati 19
Turner with a great tackle on special teams. That's a possible roster-gainer. At least keeps him, perhaps, for another week.
PICK SIX! LATTIMORE! Could have walked it in.
8:56 p.m. Packers' 3rd Drive 5:55
Drive start: Green Bay 9
B.J. Coleman time. Tyler bowling ball for five yards. Cooper bowling ball for seven yards. The equivalent of a spare.
TIck tock. Tick tock.
3rd-1 at GB 30: Coleman downfield...overshot his receiver as if he was shooting in a basketball game and the ball went over the backboard. No chance there.
8:51 p.m. Bengals' 2nd Drive 8:11
Drive start: Cincinnati 20
Hansen deep...Sam Shields beaten by Hilton. That was pathetic. Paris Hilton could have been open there.
3rd-14 at CIN 46: Hanson...nothin' doin. Let's end this thing quickly.
8:36 p.m. Packers' 2nd Drive 13:00
Green Bay 20, Cincinnati 13
Crosby 36 yd FG
Drive start: 50 yard line
Borel that time with a solid catch of a high throw. Leaped a bit to get it. Gotta master those to stay on the squad. No more droppsies if you want a roster spot.
3rd-1 at CIN 41: The poor third cousin of the Tyler bowling ball gets a first down. (For those who don't know the reference, former Oilers star Earl Campbell was from Tyler, Texas.)
And....Marc Tyler is shaken up. Down on one knee. Not good. Anyone want to try out for running back?
Cooper goes in and he gets bowling balled. Ugh. Thankfully, Tyler only missed one play.
3rd-1 at CIN 27: Harrell missed Borel on a back-shoulder throw that wasn't back shoulder. Gurley was a more possible target.
4th-1 at CIN 27: Coooooooooooop! 1st down yardage, barely.
Harrell. Tyler. Screen. Shake. Bake. Tasty first down screen pass.
Sack time. Flag time. Allard held Moke, and it didn't matter.
3rd-14 at CIN 18: Harrell...inaccurate while running to his left and throwing for Moss. He played basketball in college. He would have had to have had Jordan hang time to catch that Harrell overthrow.
8:33 p.m. Bengals' 1st Drive 13:07
Drive start: Cincinnati 41
Shields! Diving interception! Granted, it's against a 3rd-stringer, but that's how you get respect back.
8:30 p.m. Packers' 1st Drive continued from 3rd quarter
Harrell on a key pass...make it a key scramble and he head-first slides. That's "asking for it" in the NFL. Better and safer to slide foot-first.
Harrell Houdinis out of a sack and wins with an incompletion instead of a sack. Reggie Wells is not a professional left tackle. At least not tonight.
3rd-5 at GB 32: This time, Harrell cannot Houdini out of a sack by Muckelroy. Bad offensive blocking assignment.
3rd Quarter
8:27 p.m. Packers' 5th Drive 1:12
Drive start: Green Bay 7
Harrell may have his last chance for a sustained drive.
Kuuuuuuuuuuuuuhn! Five yard body slam. Off the turnbuckle. (No, not really. Though that would be fun.)
8:21 p.m. Bengals' 5th Drive 3:21
Sam Shields beaten on a back shoulder-like throw to Hazelton. Worse: missing the tackle which would have prevented a first down.
3rd-6 at CIN 46: Gradkowski's pass altered by the blitz of Manning. Defense very solid tonight. 1-11 on 3rd down.
8:19 p.m. Packers' 4th Drive 4:51
Drive start: Green Bay 20
3rd-3 at GB 27: Through Borel's hands. Not Harrell's fault there. Drive ender. Maybe Packers career ender?
8:16 p.m. Bengals' 4th Drive 4:55
Green Bay 17, Cincinnati 13
Gradkowski-Jones 15 yd TD pass
Drive start: Green Bay 15
Back. Shoulder. Fade. Easy. Money.
8:14 p.m. Packers' 3rd Drive 5:01
Drive start: Green Bay 17
Kuhn! You don't deserve any more added vowels after fumbling. 10th turnover in 3 games.
8:12 p.m. Bengals' 3rd Drive 7:17
Drive start: Cincinnati 23
BALL! BALL! Desmond Moses tipped the Gradkowski pass like Hakeem Olajuwon did back in the day his name was spelled Akeem.
3rd-3 at CIN 44: McMillan blanketed his Bengal assignment, and Gradkowski delivered the ball to the nearest Skyline Chili.
8:00 p.m. Packers' 2nd Drive 9:50
Drive start: Green Bay 28
Kuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhn! Pow! Bang! Smash! Nine yards. (Yeah, that last phrase isn't used normally in Batman TV shows.)
3rd-2 at GB 36: Tyler off left side and despite three orange-and-black-helmeted Bengals attempting the other side, a first down.
The offensive line 2nd team is committing bad fails right now. Harrell forced to flush again.
3rd-5 at GB 43: A Harrell thread-the-needle throw inaccurate. Problems continue to plague Harrell.
Larry McCarren: "That was kind of an underwhelming offensive series for the Green Bay Packers and Graham Harrell."
7:57 p.m. Bengals' 2nd Drive 11:23
Drive start: Cincinnati 26
Bruce Gradkowski in for Cincinnati, as Andy Dalton can go on the opposite bench to Aaron Rodgers.
3rd-3 at CIN 33: Bombage for Marvin Jones, and Hayward's coverage tied him up. Ball overthrown, too.
7:52 p.m. Packers' 1st Drive 13:26
Drive start: Green Bay 22
Harrell now in the game, and good escapability shown on 2nd down to turn what might have been a 13-yard loss on a sack into a 1-yard gain.
3rd-6 at GB 26: Well, forget that no-sack thing. Cincy D-backs not letting Packers receivers get opened, along with unblocked blitzers. Ugh.
7:47 p.m. Bengals' 1st Drive 15:00
Drive start: Cincinnati 34
Brown goes from eight yards deep to the 34 yard line. Larry McCarren: "Never a good thing when your kicker makes the tackle. Better, though, than if he didn't and Brown would be running to Indiana.
Packers' backups are mainly in. Battle of the starters won by the Packers 17-6. Goal one accomplished.
Dalton survives a Jennings blasting, but incomplete. Francois also accidentally knocked into Dalton's head. No penalty malfeasance. But he feels a little dinged up and limping.
2nd Quarter
7:30 p.m. Bengals' 3rd Drive 1:00
Drive start: Cincinnati 45
Good test of a two-minute defense, the first for the Packers' 1st-team unit.
Great pass defense this drive, too. Dalton had forever to scramble. Finally did.
:01 left at the half...time to practice that Hail Mary defense you botched against the Giants in the playoffs.
"KNOCK IT DOWN!" They did.
7:21 p.m. Packers' 3rd Drive 3:27
Drive start: Green Bay 26
Benson for eight yards. Six carries, 38 yards. I'll take 6.3 yards per carry anyday.
3rd-2 at GB 34: Rodgers. Nelson. Sideline. Stealing. 14 yards.
We get word Ryan Pickett is out for the rest of the game with a calf injury. That will hurt if it's worst than just this week and a precautionary issue.
Thomas Howard beats Jeff Saturday, continuing after initially being blocked. He got underneath Saturday's right shoulder.
3rd-19 at GB 39: Rodgers-Driver quick delivery. Not enough for a first down, but good practice for a play they can use.
Preseason game. Doesn't matter. Nothing to lose. Go for it. Heck, kick a 63 yard FG!
4th-3 at CIN 45: Rodgers deep for Jennings? Myles with fantastic coverage. Good but imperfect throw by Rodgers. Better coverage.
7:17 p.m. Bengals' 2nd Drive 4:59
Drive start: Cincinnati 19
The first time Green was open, and Dalton missed him. Shields slipped, and Burnett was trying to scramble and make up for Shields' missed footwork, but that was a missed opportunity.
No Clay Matthews on the field this drive so far.
3rd-4 at CIN 26: Green gets decked by Moses short of the first down marker. Usually, Green will get some YAC there. Not that time. Sure tackling. More-than-solid D so far.
7:05 p.m. Packers' 2nd Drive 10:08
Green Bay 17, Cincinnati 6
Crosby 46 yd FG
Drive start: Green Bay 21
The Packers say Tom Crabtree is questionable with a shoulder injury after the smashing hit by Mays.
3rd-4 at GB 25: With great protection against a blitz, Rodgers takes forever before another sprint out to get the ball past where it has to go, the first down marker. Credit Jordy Nelson for a great block. (Yes, those pass-catchers can block.)
Benson - two cut backs for a first down. He blew up a tackler and pulverized him for two extra yards, looked at him and smiled.
Now, Benson with a swing pass and he rumbles for more first down yardage. Nice.
This underneath short stuff passing works, too. The first down pass was, as Larry McCarren explained, another key pass variation, with a receiver catching instead of a back or tight end.
Cincinnati's deep pass coverage has been pretty good this drive. Rodgers bounced around, broke a sack attempt, scrambled for enough time to read my old college history textbook while he looked for a receiver, then gained four yards.
3rd-4 at CIN 29: Rodgers-Driver end zone? Missed him. Wide.
6:56 p.m. Bengals' 1st Drive 13:48
Green Bay 14, Cincinnati 6
Nugent 30 yd FG
Burnett and Williams! Great job on double-teaming A.J. Green at the point of the pass from Dalton arriving by the end zone.
Wayne Larrivee: "As Dom Capers said, 'The old Tramon Williams is back.' "
3rd-7 at Green Bay 22: Tate on a dump off pass to the 12. Little pass coverage inside. Went to the open spot.
Tramon Williams again! All over Green on an end zone pop-fly pass.
1st-goal at GB 1: Dalton play action...all the time in the world and nobody there. He threw that thing to Covington, KY, and he was in the tackle box. No flag? Uh, replacement refs...hello?
2nd-goal at GB 1: Seven white shirts and gold helmets blast Pierman. Gang tackling. Gang tackling.
3rd-goal at GB 3: Walden unblocked! Sack time! This is a big win, just giving up three points. The defense, so far, has been more than solid.
6:52 p.m. Packers' 1st Drive continued from 1st Quarter
For the first time today, a real misfire from Aaron Rodgers. A low-and-outside pass to Ryan Taylor leads to an incompletion.
3rd-7 at GB 23: Cobb! When a slant pattern is run, and run to perfection, it's uncoverable. 1st down.
Second misfire of the day. Newman interception. Bad decision by Rodgers to go down the sideline. Bad underthrow, too. 2nd pick of the preseason by Rodgers. Rodgers is human, folks.
1st Quarter
6:49 p.m. Packers' 4th Drive :16
Drive start: Green Bay 20
Green back in at running back and this seems to be the achilles heel so far, the outside run game.
6:41 p.m. Bengals' 3rd Drive 3:26
Green Bay 14, Cincinnati 3
Nugent 42 yd FG
Drive start: Cincinnati 20
Matthews is a monster so far. His 1st down pass rush turned into a pass deflection, blocking the throw within two yards of Dalton's pass.
Dalton is off to the races. A white and yellow sea parting for the TCU'er who made the Badgers' life miserable on Jan. 1, 2011. 27 yards.
Still, this whole first quarter, no downfield passes completed yet by Dalton. Credit the secondary.
Leonard has the yellow and white sea part for him twice. 12 yards up the middle. Soft underbelly. Seven yards off right tackle. The run defense leaves much to be desired. Maybe missing the Packers' most fearsome tackler besides Matthews: Desmond Bishop.
The first downfield completion comes for nine yards as Williams blanketed Tate, but the comeback pattern still left him open at the 25.
Bush jostled with a Bengals receiver on a pop-fly to the end zone, and he only had one arm available to catch. Still, no flag.
3rd-11 at GB 25: Leonard had droppsies syndrome with Clay Matthews about to pounce on him.
6:31 p.m. Packers' 3rd Drive 6:40
Green Bay 14, Cincinnati 0
Rodgers 5 yd TD run
Each time Aaron Rodgers has extended his arm to Cedric Benson, he hasn't touched the ball. I know it's the Packers' regular modus operandi (and boy does it work), but Benson is begging for a chance, I'm sure.
He gets it on a cutback run off the left side for seven yards. He can rumble.
3rd-2 at GB 40: Tom Crabtree for a leaping 18 yard catch, and it hurts. Mays just demolished Crabtree on what looks like a shoulder-to-helmet hit. This is concussion territory. It's also a 15-yard penalty. Seemed like a Ronnie Lott-style vicious but perfectly clean, within the rules, hit.
More play action, more Rodgers running, more sliding at the three yard line. Larry: "Thank you, Aaron. Thank you, Aaron."
2nd-goal at Cincinnati 5: Rodgers runs again...scores again. He seems to like run-to-the pylon sprints.
6:26 p.m. Bengals' 2nd Drive 7:55
Drive start: Cincinnati 20
Can the defense get into mid-season form...meaning mid-season form that is better than their regular form last year, the worst pass defense (by yards) in NFL history?
Tramon Williams is, according to Larry McCarren, shadowing A.J. Green.
Credit a good pass rush and, for the entire game so far, fabulous pass coverage for a Dalton throw-out-of-bounds.
3rd-8 at Cincinnati 22: Dalton has to run again. Well, not really a run. More of a "mama, help!" fall down as B.J. Raji came in and flattened him. Eight yard sack.
6:19 p.m. Packers' 2nd Drive 10:02
Green Bay 7, Cincinnati 0
Rodgers 12 yd TD run
Drive start: Green Bay 43
We'll now see what Cedric Benson can do against his former teammates.
ARod fakes...deep...Nelson...WHAT? A Bengal just FLATTENED Nelson at the five yard line, and no yellow hankies. Slightly underthrown, but catchable if he doesn't get plastered.
Benson doesn't touch the football yet, because Aaron Rodgers and Greg Jennings are back in 2010-11 form on two completions for 37 yards.
So far, this drive is the clockwork we saw all those years.
Name of the day: Roddrick Muckelroy of the Bengals.
ARod! 12-yard scamper and he outran a cornerback to the corner. Wow. Larry: "Cedric Benson, a very talented decoy so far."
6:14 p.m. Bengals' 1st Drive 12:11
Drive start: Cincinnati 9
Play action to start...Dalton forced to run to the sidelines after some darn good pass coverage by Green Bay defenders.
Cool to see former Badger and Wisconsin Lutheran's own Kevin Zeitler starting for the Bengals.
3rd-6.5 or so at Bengals 13: How do the Packers do in dime? On this play, fantastic. Leonard made a catch in the flat, but the Packers owned him. Clay Matthews flowed to the football. They had to go underneath, because pass coverage deep was awesome.
6:06 p.m. Packers' 1st Drive 15:00 left in 1st Quarter
Drive start: Green Bay 20
Now starts the game that really matters: what happens when the first teams do battle. This mini-game will probably last a half.
Alex Green starts instead of Cedric Benson. Nothin' special on this first-play run, thanks to a lack of a block from Tom Crabtree.
First pass play is a simple square-out comeback to Nelson, who owned his guy. 12 yards. Clockwork. If it's this way all night, no problems.
Rodgers then goes 15 yards on the ground after the red sea parted. Larry McCarren points out that Rodgers saw man coverage and had all the running room in the world.
PHEW! Alex Green nearly allowed another outbreak of fumblitis on a screen pass. That ball seemed at first glance to pop out to me, but the refs said no.
NEWHOUSE! False starts on 3rd down situations reaaaaalllly limit your coaches' playbook. It's now 3rd-9 instead of 3rd-4.
ARod had zero time to throw after a heck of a blitz, and Newhouse even committed a holding penalty that was eventually refused.
Pregame
6:04 p.m.
Coin toss time: Packers as road team will call it...they call heads. Tails wins, but Cincinnati defers. Green Bay will take the ball and give it to Aaron Rodgers.
5:58 p.m.
Wayne Larrivee on zubaz pants, a design similar to the Bengals' helmets: "I have to confess, I wear a pair of those to bed every night."
5:54 p.m.
That positive Mike McCarthy referred to: Jermichael Finley is a new dad. He went back to Green Bay to be with his wife and their new child. Congrats!
5:27 p.m.
Coach Mike McCarthy w/Wayne Larrivee on Newsradio 620 WTMJ:
On the goals for the night:
"You always play to win, but we like to play our first group, most of them, for the first half, and let the competition begin in the second half to make sure we're getting all those guys the opportunity."
On getting the first-team offense on track:
"Six possessions is not a lot of football. Hopefully, we'll get six possessions in the first half. This will be the biggest indication of where we are."
On why Jermichael Finley is not playing tonight:
"Jermichael Finley had to go back to Green Bay for a personal matter, a positive situation."
5:10 p.m.
Victories in preseason games don't count in standings. But they count in the context of the portent of things to come these games bring.
So, against a 2011 playoff team that's seemingly on the rise, this game can bring some areas which we can see as victory.
Which are the most important?
1) What is the final score when the period of the game between the first teams ends? That most resembles what a regular season game is like.
If the Packers win that battle, it's probably the most important victory.
2a) Is the Packers' first-team defense beginning to click, and will they click against a solid passing offense including Andy Dalton and A.J. Green?
2b) Is Cedric Benson and the running game doing enough to take the pressure off the focal point of the offense, Aaron Rodgers and the aerial game?
4) Are enough guys competing for final roster spots making positive impressions on the coaching staff to make the cut decision hard?
Pay attention. We'll try to do the same for you.
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