They say that lightning does not strike twice. For Patrick Peterson and the Arizona Cardinals’ defense on Saturday night, however, it did.
The Packers were down six in the final quarter with just under a minute left to play in an NFC Divisional Playoff game. The Cardinals were up 20-13, after being held to a field goal on their previous drive. The Packers were all but out of the game, but had one final shot. They made the most of it.
Back in December, Green Bay pulled off one of the craziest finishes in an NFL game this season. The Packers faced one last play against the Detroit Lions, needing a touchdown to send the game into overtime. Aaron Rodgers was in the shotgun formation where he took the snap and proceeded to buy as much time as he could for his receivers to get down field and ultimately into the end zone. Rodgers was about to see how far he could throw.
Most Hail Mary attempts end up getting batted down or intercepted, but for Aaron Rodgers it was just an answered prayer. Rodgers let go of the pass and could only watch as the ball traveled over 60 yards in the air, seeming to take forever to come down. When the ball finally did come down, Packers tight end Richard Rodgers secured the pass and brought it in for a touchdown, winning the Packers the football game by a score of 27-23.
Surely the Packers could not do it twice in one season. With no time on the clock, Rodgers was attacked by a strong blitz and Arizona got to Rodgers and it looked like he would not be able to even get the pass off — but somehow he did. Rodgers released the ball and stumbled forward and could only pray that something good would happen and the Packers’ season would not end on that play.
Unbelievably, Jeff Janis went up for the pass and out-muscled Cardinals defensive backs Patrick Peterson and Rashad Johnson to catch the 41-yard missile and send the game into overtime.
The Packers had been in a similar situation in Glendale, Arizona before. In the 2009 NFC Wild Card matchup between the two teams, Arizona had taken one away from the Packers in overtime. After such a miracle, nothing seemed to be able to stop the Packers and their chances at advancing to the NFC Championship Game. Except for the craziest coin flip in NFL history.
To start overtime, the referee flipped the coin to see who would have possession of the football first, but on the coin flip the coin somehow did not flip. The Packers won the first toss, but the referee decided to re-flip the coin because it had not rotated in the air at all. The Cardinals then won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kick-off of overtime.
The NFL overtime rules state that each team will have a chance to possess the football unless the team that receives the opening kick-off scores a touchdown first.
The Cardinals put together an incredible drive, all because of one of the greatest wide receivers in NFL history. Larry Fitzgerald has played his entire Hall of Fame worthy career in Arizona and made a spectacular catch to start overtime. Fitzgerald found a ton of real estate after securing the football and took it all the way down to the goal line for a 75-yard gain on the very first play. Fitzgerald would score one play later on a shovel pass where he scampered into pay dirt untouched.
The game was one of the craziest NFL playoff games in a long time and it is one that will be talked about for a long time. The 26-20 victory for the Arizona Cardinals was one filled with grit and true determination, but it did not come without a little bit of controversy. The coin flip gaffe will be talked about to great lengths for a long time to come. The NFL may have to adopt a new rule in the event that a problem with flipping a coin would happen again.
The Arizona Cardinals fought hard, however, and nothing should be taken away from them and the miraculous victory they earned over Green Bay. The Cardinals will get a chance next week to advance to Super Bowl XL if they can defeat the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. The game will be in Charlotte and is slated for a 6:40 p.m. kickoff. The game will be broadcast on FOX.
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