It’s taken till this 12 months for the Packers to lastly develop into the final of the NFL’s 32 groups to make the journey to the United Kingdom for a global contest. But on Sunday morning Green Bay will lastly make its London debut when it faces the New York Giants, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers desires to placed on a present.
Rodgers stated he is thought of airing it out on some passes in the course of the recreation to get the gang invested, making large passing performs to give the worldwide followers one thing to keep in mind. He additionally joked that the efficiency facet of the sport is not one thing he is talked along with his coach about, saying he’d wait till Matt LaFleur was much less pressured concerning the game-day preparations.
“Matt’s kind of in a grumpy mood right now,” Rodgers stated, via the Associated Press. “When he gets a little bit of rest, he’ll be in a better mood. We’ll talk about airing it out a bit more.”
Rodgers additionally debated whether or not he’d convey the basic Lambeau Leap throughout the Atlantic with him, leaping into the gang at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, however stated he may need to designate a teammate to carry out the celebration in his stead.
“I might have to tag somebody in for me. I’m getting a little old for that,” Rodgers stated. “But I’ve got to see the wall, I don’t know how high the wall is. If it’s above maybe five feet, I’ll probably let one of the linemen go.”
While it is enjoyable to joke about large performs and landing celebrations in a special matchup, the Packers nonetheless understand that Sunday’s contest might be a grind-it-out kind of recreation, with each Green Bay and New York anticipated to make the most of their run video games early and infrequently. New York leads the league in speeding offense to date this season, and Green Bay is not far behind with the No. 7 speeding offense.
The Giants have relied on operating again Saquon Barkley, and the fifth-year veteran has rewarded them with a league-leading 463 speeding yards. The Packers additionally name on their RB duo of Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon for a good quantity of offensive manufacturing, with the pair combining for 688 whole yards as they break up duties.
“Our backs are two of our best players, so we’ve got to get those guys involved,” LaFleur stated. “If you look at New York’s defense situationally, they’re one of the best in ball. Both in the red zone and on third down. So the running game can alleviate just some of the stress that gets put on you in those situations if you’re not running the ball effectively.”
With this matchup being the primary NFL worldwide recreation the place each groups are available in with profitable data, we will hope for an entertaining recreation from each side, irrespective of how the performs get distributed.
Nevertheless, Rodgers emphasised that this recreation will be special for not simply the worldwide followers in entrance of whom the groups are taking part in, but additionally for the gamers concerned, who can really feel the impression of the second.
“We’re excited to be here. And this is not just a normal road trip even though the coaches speak is always, ‘Hey, we’re here to win a game, yada yada yada,'” Rodgers stated. “This is definitely more special. … This is one of those games I think at the end of your career when you think back on, it’s going to be a special moment to be able to play in front of the fans here.”
