Chiefs beat Packer backups

Posted by Mark Daniels on

It was clear an hour before kickoff that Packers head coach Mike McCarthy wasn't going to take any chances in the pre-season finale at Arrowhead Stadium.  A dozen players didn't even dress, inlcuding Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Grant, Chad Clifton on offense and Charles Woodson, Cullen Jenkins and Clay Matthews on defense.   This was a night for the backups to make a last ditch effort to make the roster and many did well enough to make the final deliberations difficult.  That the Packers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 17-13 is immaterial.    Matt Flynn started and played three quarters.  The first four series were three and outs, Green Bay's offense managed 18 yards in the first quarter, and wound up with 433 on the night.  Flynn finished 23 of 37 for 304 yards and led only two scoring drives, a 40 yard Mason Crosby field goal and 1 yard Kregg Lumpkin touchdown run.  Graham Harrell finished up the night and directed one more field goal drive.  The Packers went for it on 4th down 4 times and failed every time, three times in the red zone.    The defense gave up a whopping 132 yards rushing in the first half and clamped down after that as Kansas City finished with 145 on the ground.  The Chiefs built a 14-0 lead on a 2 yard touchdown pass from Matt Cassell to tight end Leonard Pope and a one yard run from Jackie Battle.  A couple of standout efforts from the Packers included a pair of wide receivers, Brett Swain caught 6 passes for 130 yards including a wide open 77 yarder and Charles Dillon had 6 receptions for 85 yards.  On defense, former Green Bay Blizzard linebacker Maurice Simpkins had a team high 7 tackles and beleagured Jarrett Bush had a strong game with three tackles, two behind the line of scrimmage and an interception.  Tim Masthay again outpunted Chris Byran and appears to have won that job but the cuts won't be easy.  Here's comments from Mike McCarthy after the game:

 

Comments