A lot went into Packers’ game-clinching first down

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The first down was the second in a row for the offense after taking over possession with 3:14 to play and protecting a 21-16 lead. The first came a 13-yard gain by running back Aaron Jones on a well-blocked zone run to the right on which Jones found a huge cut-back lane to his left.


Jones then picked up four yards on first down before LaFleur decided to change it up with the play-action, saying the bold call was about “trusting your players.” He showed he had faith in his unit despite it producing just four first downs in the second half before that drive and going three-and-out on its previous two series.


The Packers had run a second-down pass in similar circumstances in Week 1 at Chicago, trying to run out the clock, but it was incomplete. It allowed the Bears to still have one timeout left when they got the ball back one last time.


But LaFleur was undeterred.


“I know everything hasn’t been … we haven’t done as well as we’d like to on the offensive side of the ball, but I still have a lot of confidence in the players we have out there,” he said. “Anytime you have confidence in those guys you’re going to tend to be more aggressive.”


That said, there’s certainly plenty of work to do on offense after the Packers were shut out over the final 44 minutes of Sunday’s game. LaFleur still has high expectations for the group while being “realistic” about the early-season growing pains.


Multiple failed short-yardage situations were frustrating, where one missed block stalled a drive. LaFleur referred to those as under the team’s control to get better.


He also noted there were a few throws that were close to jump-starting things, but the Vikings just made good plays on the ball. Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling both had passes batted out of their hands at the last second by defensive backs, and Valdes-Scantling also made an airborne grab near the sideline but got shoved out of bounds before he could land.


“When you look at it, there are a lot of plays that we were close on,” he said. “I know it doesn’t count for much, but it does give our guys a little more confidence. It’s never as bad as it feels.


“You make those plays and you might feel a little different today.”