It’s the most wonderful time of the year- winter at Lambeau Field. The Green Bay Packers (12-3, 4-1 NFC North) had a monster 40-14 statement win over the Tennessee Titans (10-5, 4-1 AFC South) in a snowy Sunday night football matchup in week sixteen.

Green Bay was the first team to get a shot at six Sunday and, just as they have numerous times this season, cruised down the field on their opening drive. The Packers went 60 yards in 8 plays and shaved 5:05 off the clock before quarterback Aaron Rodgers connected with wide receiver Davante Adams for a 5-yard touchdown. According to ESPN stats, Rodgers was 5/5 for 40 yards on the drive. Kicker Mason Crosby missed the extra point, giving Green Bay a 6-0 lead.

The Packers’ d-train came up huge on their opening drive, slowing down the Titans and keeping star running back Derrick Henry contained. Safety Darnell Savage Jr. had a key pass break up on second down and Tennessee was later forced to punt and put the ball back in Rodgers’ hands.

Sooner or later, they’d have to pay for that result too. Rodgers continued to stay in rhythm and led the way on another touchdown drive for Green Bay. After an illegal hands to the face penalty kept the drive going, Rodgers connected with wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown for his first career touchdown off a 21-yard pass play. The Packers attempted to go for two but failed to convert, extending their lead to 12-0.

Then, Savage came up huge for Green Bay’s defense (yet again) and picked off Titans’ quarterback Ryan Tannehill and returned it nine yards. The offense, with an assist from several strong runs from rookie running back AJ Dillon, took advantage. Rodgers connected with Adams, again, this time for a 7-yard score to make it 19-0 Green Bay.  

The Titans finally got on the board at the end of the first half, thanks to a couple catches from wide receiver AJ Brown, after Tannehill connected with tight end Jonnu Smith on a 12-yard touchdown pass to cut the Packers lead to 19-7.

Tennessee wasn’t going down without a fight either. They came out strong to open the second half and used Henry to distract the entire Packers’ defense as Tannehill rushed 45-yards up the middle untouched for a touchdown to cut Green Bay’s lead to just 19-14.

From there though, the Packers responded and took complete control. Running back Aaron Jones rushed for 58 yards on the Packers next drive and put them in the red (aka gold) zone in just seconds. Then, Rodgers connected with Adams for his third touchdown of the night and a 26-14 Packers lead.

Savage once again came up huge on defense and helped force a three and out for the Packers on the Titans next drive. Then, Green Bay went 74 yards in 9 plays on their most impressive drive of the night. With first downs from Adams and Dillon, help from an offsides penalty and another first down from Adams, Dillon rushed for 30 yards on fourth and one for his first career touchdown to extend Green Bay’s lead even more to 33-14.

Then, after back-to-back interceptions plays from the Packers (linebacker Christian Kirksey) and the Titans (corner Malcom Butler), the Tennessee had a real chance to try and make this one interesting. However, Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander came through for Green Bay on fourth down and forced a Tennessee turnover on downs.

To close the game, Dillon and Adams continued to dominate for the Packers and, after an insane 32-yard catch from Adams, Dillon rushed for 7 yards and his second touchdown of the night to give us our final score of 40-14.  

What we learned: It all comes down to next week

Since the Seattle Seahawks defeated the Los Angeles Rams 20-9 earlier on Sunday, the impact of the Packers’ win over the Titans won’t be determined until the end of next week. If they want to control their own destiny, Green Bay will need to beat Chicago to guarantee the number one seed in the NFC.

Thanks to their win tonight though, Green Bay can still claim the number one seed in the NFC regardless of next week’s outcome with a Seahawks loss to the San Francisco 49ers next week.  

What went right: Containing Derrick Henry and Unleashing AJ Dillon

Heading into this game, a lot of people were concerned (and rightfully so) with how the Packers’ run defense would match up against Titans’ running back Derrick Henry. Luckily for Green Bay, their defense got the job done. They held Henry to just 98 yards on 23 carries and no touchdowns on Sunday (ESPN stats). According to ESPN stats, Henry’s longest run on the night was just 10 yards.

And, to makes things even sweeter, Green Bay finally unleashed running back AJ Dillon and he absolutely shined. The rookie rushed for 124 yards on 21 carries and bagged his first two career touchdowns on Sunday (ESPN stats).

What went wrong:  Special Teams

This itself is a stretch, but I needed to pick something, and special teams was Green Bay’s weakest link Sunday evening. I know the snow played a part but there were still some questionable moments. Crosby, after being perfect all year, missed the extra point on the first touchdown of the game and had a brief scare after one of his field goal attempts was blocked in the first half. Luckily, the refs called a close offsides call on the Titans, but the call itself was questionable. Like I said, this was very picky criticism from me but if the Packers end up with home field advantage during the playoffs the snow is something they will have to work through on special teams.

Offensive MVP: Davante Adams

Have a day, Davante Adams. The Packers superstar had a hat trick on Sunday night and put up the numbers to go with it. According to ESPN stats, Adams had 11 receptions for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns on Sunday. He continues to shine and has 17 receiving touchdowns in just 13 games- one shy from tying Sterling Sharpe’s single-season Packers franchise record of 18- according to the NBC broadcast.

Defensive MVPs: Darnell Savage Jr. & Rashan Gary

Darnell Savage and Rashan Gary continued to show their worth in week sixteen. Both continued to make play after play, and it was a joy to watch. According to ESPN stats, Savage had a total of 5 tackles on the night, 2 of which were solo, 3 pass deflections and an interception. Gary also had 5 total tackles, 3 of which were solo (ESPN stats).

A look at some of your takeaways!

• “Snowy conditions or not,, the defense looked borderline possessed. Played like they want to be equal partners to the offense for a superbowl run. Special teams doe.....” - @fritzafied
• “Patrick Mahomes is an amazing Quarterback, will win a to. Of awards and championships by the time he retires. This years MVP is (and should be) Aaron Rodgers and will frustrate me to no end if he isn’t.” - @CFKvatekPhoto
• “An absolute statement of a win.” - @KarryTheG
• “Most complete game of LaFleur era” - @Bill__Robinson
• “Best & most complete game of the season against great competition. Young guys stepping up huge everywhere: EQ, Jenkins, Dillon on offense; Jaire is a lock-down all pro CB, Gary was everywhere, Savage looks like a ballhawk on defense. Looked dominant and poised to make a run.” - @WolfgangDood

Up next, the Green Bay Packers hit the road to face off with the Chicago Bears for their final regular season game. Kickoff is set for Sunday, January 3 at 4:25 p.m. EST.