In Week 1, the Green Bay Packers suffered an embarrassing 38-3 loss to the New Orleans Saints, against a quarterback in Jameis Winston who happened to be 14 games below the .500 mark for his career. Winston threw for five touchdowns and zero interceptions, while reigning MVP Aaron Rodgers threw for a pair of picks and zero scores. Did the two quarterbacks switch bodies before the game? Nobody saw those stats coming. Fast forward to Week 8, and the Packers are in the driver's seat, owners of the NFC's top seed. It's hard to believe that this team, which was dominated in every phase of the game back in early September, hasn't lost in 55 days.
Green Bay's most recent win -- a Thursday night thriller against the previously undefeated Arizona Cardinals -- was the most impressive win by an NFL team this season. It was capped off by an incredible end zone interception from cornerback Rasul Douglas, who's been on the team for less than a month. Douglas upstaged Cardinals receiver and seven-time Pro Bowler A.J. Green, on what should've been a corner fade for a game-winning touchdown.
This wasn't the only head-scratching moment from last Thursday's contest. The Packers also overcame the absence of stud receiver Davante Adams, who was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list earlier in the week. Adams isn't just Rodgers' top target -- he makes up half of the best quarterback-receiver duo in the league. Entering Week 8, Adams ranked second in the league in catches and third in receiving yards, and last season, he ranked first in receiving touchdowns. Green Bay was also without two other top receivers in Allen Lazard and Marquez Valdes-Scantling -- there were 11 total starters out.
Rodgers needed a special performance to outlast Arizona, and he certainly did his part. He averaged 2.25 seconds from snap to release per pass, his fastest time recorded in over five years. Speaking of five years, look at what's happening with veteran receiver Randall Cobb, who earned his second multi-touchdown game of the season on Thursday. Before his return to Green Bay this year, Cobb hadn't scored twice in a game in more than five years. At that time, Patrick Mahomes was a sophomore at Texas Tech. So, Cobb can thank Rodgers for this resurgence.
After the game, Rodgers spoke highly of his teammates. His attention went to Douglas and he said the following on NFL Network: "I'm so proud of Rasul. What a great story. What's more amazing is how Douglas persevered to still be in the league playing for his sixth team in two years." When Rodgers is talking about his teammates and winning, quarterbacks don't get any more special than No. 12. And no, I'm not talking about the No. 12 who plays for the Bucs. The way this season is going, a lot of fans want to be Mr. Rodgers' neighbor.