On a chilly day at Lambeau Field, no one will leave warmed by the feeling of winning, as the Packers and Vikings came out even after 75 minutes of football 26-26.
The tie is the first this year in the NFL and the fourth of this millennium, with the last stalemate coming Nov. 18 of last year when San Francisco and St. Louis tied 24-24.
After looking good the first 46 minutes of the game, Minnesota held a 23-7 lead, all but assuring themselves of a win in Green Bay.
But the removal of Scott Tolzien and entrance of Matt Flynn at quarterback in the third quarter sparked a stagnant Packers’ offense, leading to 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to tie the game and send it to overtime.
Once there, Green Bay drove down the field and get as close as the three yard-line before settling for a field goal, giving Minnesota a chance to answer under the new NFL overtime rules.
Had Green Bay scored a touchdown, the game would’ve been over, but Minnesota made the most of the overtime system and answered with a field goal of their own.
The rest of the extra session would go scoreless, assuring the NFC North of zero wins on the day with Detroit and Chicago taking surprise defeats.
Christian Ponder had a solid game under center, completing 21 of his 30 passes for 233 yards and a touchdown.
His favorite target on this day proved to be Cordarrelle Patterson, who led the Vikings in receptions as his offensive role continues to increase, pulling in eight balls for 54 yards.
Adrian Peterson was a workhorse, carrying the ball 32 times for 146 yards and a score, while Toby Gerhart gave an explosive contribution off the bench, running for 91 yards on just eight carries.
Flynn threw for 218 yards in relief of Tolzien who had completed just 7 of 17 passes, while Eddie Lacy gained 110 yards on the ground.
Believe it or not, this isn’t the only tie in the Vikings-Packers series, as they also battled to a draw 35 years ago Tuesday, a 10-10 final.
The Packers are now 5-5-1, while Minnesota is 2-8-1. The Purple will head home to face the Bears one week from today.
