The Washington Redskins were off to a 2-2 start as they
hosted the Green Bay Packers at FedEx Field on October 10, 2010. The team had
undergone a transformation following a miserable 4-12 record in ’09, bringing
in GM Bruce Allen, Head Coach Mike Shanahan, and a new veteran quarterback in
33-year-old ex-Eagle Donovan McNabb (pictured above).
The Packers had possession first, but following a short
kickoff return they turned the ball over on the second play from scrimmage.
Rodgers passed to TE Donald Lee for 17 yards, but the tight end fumbled and
safety Kareem Moore recovered and advanced 13 yards to the Green Bay 21. However, the Redskins moved
backward rather than forward and ultimately were forced to punt from their 44.
Starting at their own 10, the Packers made a big play
immediately as RB Brandon Jackson ran for a 71-yard gain to the Washington 19. Five
plays later Rodgers threw to Lee for a five-yard touchdown and the early lead.
The teams traded punts for the remainder of the opening
period, although a 35-yard pass from Rodgers to WR James Jones had the ball in Washington territory to
start the second quarter. But after reaching the one yard line, the defense
stopped two running plays and a Rodgers pass into the end zone was broken up on
fourth down.
The Redskins advanced to their own 33 before being forced to
punt and Hunter Smith’s kick was returned 52 yards by CB Tramon Williams right
back to the line of scrimmage. Mason Crosby kicked a 52-yard field goal four
plays later to make it 10-0.
After another exchange of punts, the Redskins appeared to be
trapped back in their own territory before McNabb completed a pass to WR
Santana Moss for 52 yards on third-and-18. Two carries by RB Ryan Torain gave
the Redskins another first down at the Green
Bay 25 and a McNabb shuttle pass to Moss gained nine
more yards to the 16. A throw to TE Chris Cooley moved the ball inside the 10
and, with the clock down to 13 seconds, Graham Gano kicked a 26-yard field goal
to conclude the 12-play, 78-yard drive and make the score 10-3 at halftime.
The Packers put together a 70-yard series in 9 plays in
their first possession of the third quarter that featured a Rodgers pass to WR
Donald Driver for 34 yards. Crosby was
successful with a 36-yard field goal that put Green Bay back in front by ten
points.
Following a short Washington
possession, the Packers moved to the Redskins’ 29 in eight plays but Crosby missed a 48-yard field goal. The score remained
13-3 heading into the fourth quarter.
The teams again exchanged punts until the Redskins, who had
largely been dominated by Green Bay ’s
defense, struck quickly as McNabb went deep down the middle to WR Anthony
Armstrong for a 48-yard touchdown. With the successful extra point, Washington was just
three points down with plenty of time on the clock.
After the Packers punted on their next series, McNabb went
to Armstrong (pictured at right) on the first play for a 23-yard gain. When the drive stalled at
the Green Bay
47, it was McNabb to Armstrong again for 13 yards and a first down on a
third-and-10 play. But the Redskins could gain nothing further and Gano’s field
goal attempt from 51 yards was wide to the right.
The Packers took over at their 21 with 1:07 on the clock and
in three plays made it to the Washington 35,
but Crosby ’s 53-yard attempt at a game-winning
field goal hit the upright and bounced away. There was time for one more play
from the Washington
43 and a long pass by McNabb was intercepted by Tramon Williams at the goal
line and returned 64 yards. The game went into overtime.
Characteristic of much of the game, the teams traded punts
to start the extra period and then Rodgers was intercepted by diving safety
LaRon Landry to give Washington the ball at
the Green Bay
39. The Redskins advanced to the 15 with the help of two defensive penalties
and Gano finished the contest with a 33-yard field goal to give them a 16-13
win at 6:54 into overtime.
Donovan McNabb completed 26 of 49 passes for 357 yards with
a touchdown and an interception. Santana Moss caught 7 of those passes for 118
yards while Anthony Armstrong added 84 yards on three receptions that included
the long TD. Chris Cooley also had 7 pass receptions, for 69 yards. The running
game was mediocre for the Redskins, accumulating just 51 yards, and Ryan Torain
led the way with 40 yards on 16 attempts.
For the Packers, Aaron Rodgers was successful on 27 of 46
throws for 293 yards with a TD and one intercepted; he also rushed for 30 yards
on four attempts. With the long gain in the first quarter, Brandon Jackson
rushed for 115 yards on just 10 carries and also led the team with 5 pass
receptions that gained an additional 25 yards. James Jones had 65 yards on four
catches and Donald Driver was right behind with 58 yards on his four
receptions.
It was the second overtime win of the year for Washington , and the
Redskins were now 3-2. However, after reaching 4-3 to match their win total of
2009, they lost seven of their last nine games to finish at the bottom of the
NFC East with a disappointing 6-10 record.
It proved to be an especially disappointing season for
Donovan McNabb, who ultimately clashed with Coach Shanahan, lost the starting
job, and left after one year. He passed for 3377 yards with 14 touchdowns but
also 15 interceptions.
The Packers moved in the opposite direction. Several players
had to leave the game against the Redskins due to injuries, a chronic problem
early on, and afterward it was revealed that Aaron Rodgers had suffered a
concussion. But he and the team recovered and, following a sluggish start, Green Bay went 7-3 to
close out the regular season, good for second place in the NFC North and a Wild
Card slot in the postseason. They won four straight playoff games on the road,
including the NFC Championship and the Super Bowl over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Aaron Rodgers performed ably, completing 65.7 percent of his
passes for 3922 yards with 28 TDs against just 11 interceptions. His 101.2
passer rating led the NFC, as did his 8.3 yards per attempt.
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