Final
Rodgers, Packers bury Lions with late surge
Sep 14, 2008 - 10:22 PM DETROIT (Ticker) -- Brett Favre may be gone from Green Bay, but some things have not changed. Jon Kitna is still throwing interceptions for the Detroit Lions.Kitna threw three in the fourth quarter Sunday - two of which were returned for touchdowns - as the Packers buried the Lions, 48-25, with a late surge.
Detroit (0-2) rallied from a 21-0 deficit to take a 25-24 lead on Kitna's 47-yard TD pass to Calvin Johnson with 7:51 remaining, but Green Bay responded with 24 points in the final 5 1/2 minutes. All but three of those points came after Kitna's interceptions.
"We usually don't get complacent," Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. "You have to give Detroit credit. Their defense locked us down in the third quarter."
After Green Bay regained the lead for good, 27-25, on Mason Crosby's 39-yard field goal with 5:21 remaining, cornerback Charles Woodson's interception set up Brandon Jackson's 19-yard TD run with 3 1/2 minutes left.
On the Lions' next possession, Woodson came up with another pick, returning it 41 yards for a score. Safety Nick Collins then got into the act, taking back Kitna's final interception 42 yards to complete the scoring.
"(Woodson) didn't even practice all week and to go out and play says a lot about him," Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy said. "Individually, he turned that game around in the fourth quarter."
In each of the last two seasons, Kitna has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns. Last season, the veteran was picked off 20 times, tied with Cincinnati's Carson Palmer and Eli Manning of the New York Giants for the league high.
"There's no words, really," Kitna said of the Lions' collapse. "It's all on me. As a quarterback, you have to be smarter."
Green Bay (2-0) has won eight of its last nine meetings with Detroit, including 5-0 under McCarthy.
Rodgers is helping the Packers' fans get over the departure of the beloved Favre. Last week, he completed 18-of-22 passes in a 24-19 win over the Minnesota Vikings, the second-highest percentage in NFL history (81.8) for a quarterback making his first career start.
Rodgers was equally impressive in the first half Sunday, throwing three touchdowns to help the Packers build their 21-0 lead. His touchdown strikes went to James Jones, Donald Driver and Jordy Nelson.
"Winning on the road is very difficult," McCarthy added. "I thought he managed (the game) very well."
Rodgers finished 24-of-38 passes for 328 yards, but there were some anxious moments in the second half when Green Bay's offense was not nearly as effective.
After three field goals by Jason Hanson, the Lions closed within 24-16 on Kitna's 38-yard TD pass to Johnson with 13 minutes left. Detroit then made it 24-18 when Green Bay punter Derrick Frost let the ball slip through his hands in the end zone for a safety.
After Mike Furrey returned the ensuing free kick 20 yards, Kitna, who finished 21-of-41 for 276 yards, needed only one play to give the Lions the lead with his second TD pass to Johnson.
"Until the last six minutes, we were right there, even ahead, against the cream of the crop in our division," Kitna said. "We've just got to learn how to finish."
While Kitna imploded, Rodgers responded, setting up Crosby's go-ahead field goal with a 60-yard completion to Greg Jennings.
When he took the field with the Packers trailing, 25-24, Rodgers, a California native, thought of his boyhood idol, Joe Montana, who was known for his fourth-quarter comebacks.
"We were going to find out what we were made of," Rodgers said. "When I was growing up, Joe Montana was a guy who could always bring his team back in the fourth quarter. You don't want to have a lot of comebacks. You always want to be in the lead."
- NFL
FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
GREEN BAY 7 14 3 24 48
DETROIT 0 3 6 16 25 FINAL
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: GNB - TD, JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON
RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK), 12:54.
Drive: 15 plays, 86 yards in 8:10.
Key plays: Rodgers 13-yard pass to
Jennings to Green Bay 25; Rodgers
13-yard
Sep 14 4:19 PM
TD GNB NICK COLLINS 42 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 48, Lions 25 4th - 2:07Sep 14 4:12 PM
TD GNB NICK COLLINS 42 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 48, Lions 25 4th - 2:07Sep 14 4:12 PM- NFL
TD GNB
NICK COLLINS 42 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN
(MASON CROSBY KICK)
GREEN BAY 48
DETROIT 25 2:07 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 48, Lions 25 4th - 2:07Sep 14 4:12 PM
TD GNB CHARLES WOODSON 41 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 41, Lions 25 4th - 3:09Sep 14 4:08 PM
TD GNB CHARLES WOODSON 41 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 41, Lions 25 4th - 3:09Sep 14 4:08 PM- NFL
TD GNB
CHARLES WOODSON 41 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN
(MASON CROSBY KICK)
GREEN BAY 41
DETROIT 25 3:09 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 41, Lions 25 4th - 3:09Sep 14 4:08 PM - NFL
TD GNB
BRANDON JACKSON 19 YD RUN
(MASON CROSBY KICK)
GREEN BAY 34
DETROIT 25 3:31 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 34, Lions 25 4th - 3:31Sep 14 4:04 PM - NFL
FG GNB
MASON CROSBY 39 YD
GREEN BAY 27
DETROIT 25 5:17 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 27, Lions 25 4th - 5:17Sep 14 3:59 PM
TD DET CALVIN JOHNSON 47 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA (JASON HANSON KICK)
Packers 24, Lions 25 4th - 7:41Sep 14 3:51 PM
TD DET CALVIN JOHNSON 47 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA (JASON HANSON KICK)
Packers 24, Lions 25 4th - 7:41Sep 14 3:51 PM
TD DET CALVIN JOHNSON 47 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA (JASON HANSON KICK)
Packers 24, Lions 25 4th - 7:41Sep 14 3:51 PM- NFL
TD DET
CALVIN JOHNSON 47 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA
(JASON HANSON KICK)
GREEN BAY 24
DETROIT 25 7:41 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 24, Lions 25 4th - 7:41Sep 14 3:51 PM - NFL
SAFETY DET
BALL THROUGH END ZONE
GREEN BAY 24
DETROIT 18 11:41 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 24, Lions 18 4th - 11:41Sep 14 3:37 PM
TD DET CALVIN JOHNSON 38 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA (JASON HANSON KICK)
Packers 24, Lions 16 4th - 13:17Sep 14 3:29 PM
TD DET CALVIN JOHNSON 38 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA (JASON HANSON KICK)
Packers 24, Lions 16 4th - 13:17Sep 14 3:29 PM
TD DET CALVIN JOHNSON 38 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA (JASON HANSON KICK)
Packers 24, Lions 16 4th - 13:17Sep 14 3:29 PM- NFL
TD DET
CALVIN JOHNSON 38 YD PASS FROM JON KITNA
(JASON HANSON KICK)
GREEN BAY 24
DETROIT 16 13:17 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Packers 24, Lions 16 4th - 13:17Sep 14 3:29 PM - NFL
GREEN BAY 24
DETROIT 9 0:00 LEFT, 3RD QTR
DET BALL ON DET 20 YD LINE
1ST AND 10
Sep 14 3:23 PM - NFL
FG GNB
MASON CROSBY 25 YD
GREEN BAY 24
DETROIT 9 2:28 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Packers 24, Lions 9 3rd - 2:28Sep 14 3:14 PM - NFL
FG DET
JASON HANSON 53 YD
GREEN BAY 21
DETROIT 9 8:15 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Packers 21, Lions 9 3rd - 8:15Sep 14 3:03 PM - NFL
FG DET
JASON HANSON 49 YD
GREEN BAY 21
DETROIT 6 11:27 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Packers 21, Lions 6 3rd - 11:27Sep 14 2:46 PM - NFL
HALFTIME 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
GREEN BAY 7 14 21
DETROIT 0 3 3 HALFTIME
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: GNB - TD, JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON
RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK), 12:54.
Drive: 15 plays, 86 yards in 8:10.
Key plays: Rodgers 13-yard pass to
Jennings to Green Bay 25; Rodgers
13-y
Sep 14 2:26 PM - NFL
FG DET
JASON HANSON 38 YD
GREEN BAY 21
DETROIT 3 0:14 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Packers 21, Lions 3 2nd - 0:14Sep 14 2:20 PM - NFL
TD GNB
JORDY NELSON 29 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS
(MASON CROSBY KICK)
GREEN BAY 21
DETROIT 0 6:47 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Packers 21, Lions 0 2nd - 6:47Sep 14 1:54 PM
TD GNB DONALD DRIVER 2 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 7, Lions 0 2nd - 14:02Sep 14 1:43 PM
TD GNB DONALD DRIVER 2 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 7, Lions 0 2nd - 14:02Sep 14 1:43 PM
TD GNB DONALD DRIVER 2 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 7, Lions 0 2nd - 14:02Sep 14 1:43 PM- NFL
TD GNB
DONALD DRIVER 2 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS
(MASON CROSBY KICK)
GREEN BAY 14
DETROIT 0 11:07 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Packers 14, Lions 0 2nd - 11:07Sep 14 1:43 PM - NFL
END, 1ST QTR 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
GREEN BAY 7 7
DETROIT 0 0 END, 1ST QTR
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: GNB - TD, JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON
RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK), 12:54.
Drive: 15 plays, 86 yards in 8:10.
Key plays: Rodgers 13-yard pass to
Jennings to Green Bay 25; Rodgers
Sep 14 1:31 PM
TD GNB JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 7, Lions 0 1st - 2:06Sep 14 1:24 PM
TD GNB JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 7, Lions 0 1st - 2:06Sep 14 1:24 PM
TD GNB JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS (MASON CROSBY KICK)
Packers 7, Lions 0 1st - 2:06Sep 14 1:24 PM- NFL
TD GNB
JAMES JONES 9 YD PASS FROM AARON RODGERS
(MASON CROSBY KICK)
GREEN BAY 7
DETROIT 0 2:06 LEFT, 1ST QTR
Packers 7, Lions 0 1st - 2:06Sep 14 1:24 PM
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