Green Bay, WI. -
Christmas came early for the
Green Bay Packers.
Santa Claus delivered the
Packers a gift-wrapped present in the form of the Tennessee Titans.
The 11-4 Packers have been
very, very good this year. If the 55-7 beat-down is any indication, the Titans
can expect nothing but lumps of coal in their stockings.
Trying to operate behind a
patchwork offensive line, Titans quarterback Jake Locker suffered the worst
defeat of his short career.
It truly ranks as one of the
all-time stinkers in Titans history and did nothing to secure second-year coach
Mike Munchak's future.
"Obviously, it wasn't very
competitive at times,'' said Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, in what might
have been the understatement of the season.
The first five offensive
series saw the Titans go three-and-out, while the playoff-bound Packers scored
on four of their first six possessions. The Titans first seven series consisted
of four punts, two interceptions and turning the ball over on downs.
It was 20-0 at halftime and
the Packers still had more punches to throw in the final 30 minutes. They
opened the third quarter with a touchdown drive and with almost six minutes
left in the third quarter, it was 34-0.
It was more one-sided than a
dictator's re-election.
Locker should have been given
a blindfold and a cigarette before facing the Packers firing squad.
He missed six of his first
seven passes. At halftime, Locker had Animal House character John "Bluto'' Blutarsy's
grade point average for his passer rating – zero point zero.
On the day, Locker was sacked
seven times, threw two interceptions, and never had time to get close to being
in sync. A lot of his passes were uncatchable, accelerating the widely held
criticism of Locker's lack of accuracy in the passing game. In this league, you
dearly pay if you can't hit your target.
Rodgers proved why he is one
of the NFL's top quarterbacks and the league's reigning MVP. He was 27 of 38
for 342 yards and three touchdowns. He ran for another touchdown. The Titans
were outgained, 460 yards to only 180 yards. Titans running back Chris Johnson
was also no factor, held to 28 yards on 11 carries (2.5 yard average).
The Titans defense wasn't any
better. The game clearly showed the difference between an elite NFL team and a 5-10
Titans team that is not only crippled by injuries, but also dysfunctional.
"That's too easy…. Too
easy,'' said CBS Sports analyst Dan Dierdorf as he watched the Packers methodically
run and pass their way through the Titans Swiss cheese defense for one of
countless touchdowns.
"There is nothing good to say
about the Tennessee Titans defense on that drive,'' Dierdorf added after yet
another Packers touchdown.
Former Packers great Bart
Starr could have riddled this Titans defense, which was once again guilty of
missed tackles, missed assignments and being caught out of position too many
occasions. I shudder to think what Brett Favre could have done against the
Titans. Playing in his Wrangler jeans, the most retired quarterback in NFL
history could have thrown for at least 200 yards and a couple of touchdowns.
It was 55-0 with less than
two minutes left when Locker finally put the Titans on the scoreboard with a
two-yard bullet to Kenny Britt. Big whoop.
It was way too little, way
too late. Even die-hard Packers fans had lost interest by then.
Contact wkrn.com Sports Columnist Joe Biddle at joebiddle11@gmail.com.
