Week 9 Game Recap: Green Bay Packers 10, Buffalo Bills 24

What you need to know

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers came into this game riding a two game win streak, in which Favre had not thrown any interceptions and had kept their turnovers to a minimum. Four turnovers in this game led to their defeat, in a game that was winnable for them.

Two snaps from center Scott Wells went awry and QB Brett Favre threw two interceptions. The first was his fault, and it was returned for a short touchdown. But the second went off WR Donald Driver’s hands in the end zone and was returned 76 yards by Ko Simpson.

The offense started slow but after the first quarter dominated the remainder of the game. RB Ahman Green ran for 122 yards, and WR Donald Driver caught nine passes for 96 yards and one touchdown. But turnovers spelled doom for this team. WR Greg Jennings returned from injury to play the first half, but re-injured his ankle and was not a factor in the second half.

The defense played extremely well, except for one blown coverage play that ended up being a touchdown.

Buffalo Bills

The Bills won the game 24-10 with two fourth quarter touchdowns, despite losing the time of possession by 34.21 to 25.39. The real reason they won was they were very opportunistic on defense, with four turnovers and did not turnover the ball themselves. On offense they allowed five sacks.

RB Willis McGahee went down in the first quarter with a rib injury and did not return. Anthony Thomas replaced him and ran for 95 yards on 20 carries.

QB J.P. Losman was eight for 15 for 102 yards and one TD, but was sacked five times. Until the blown coverage TD to WR Lee Evans, he was having a terrible day. Several passes were dropped, so it wasn’t his entire fault. But his offensive line didn't give him time to scan the field, as he was pressured all day.

Special teams were contributors to this victory as DB T McGee ran the opening kickoff back 61 yards to setup the 28 yard FG by Rian Lindell. Punter Brian Moorman consistently kept the Packers in bad field position throughout the game.

What you ought to know

QB Brett Favre, Pass: 28 - 47 - 287 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 2 - 0 - 0

Favre started slow in the first quarter, he was only three for six with the one interception to London Fletcher-Baker who returned it 17 yards for a TD to make the score 10-0 in favor of Buffalo. Once the second quarter began, Favre heated up, hitting ten of his next 12 passes. But he couldn’t find the end zone until the third quarter when he hit Donald Driver on a short pass to cut the score to 10-7. Favre led a long drive to get a tying FG early in the fourth quarter. Then he threw his second INT when the Packers had driven to the Buffalo one yard line - a short pass was deflected off Donald Driver to Ko Simpson who returned it 76 yards. Buffalo scored the final points of the game shortly thereafter. The Packers got the ball back one more time but could not score. Favre was involved in the two lost fumbles, both of which were assigned to center Scott Wells due to poor snaps.

RB Ahman Green, Rush: 23 - 122 - 0, Rec: 1 - 8 - 0 (2 targets)

Green started the game very slowly as the Buffalo defense seemed committed to not allowing the Packers to cut back and gain yardage. He was consistently stopped after short gains. But late in the second quarter and throughout much of the second half he started to find more running room and gained significant yardage. He ran relentlessly and with power. So far this season he has not shown his tendency to fumble the ball as in years past. He is apparently nearly back to his old self. He is rested often; in fact the Packers make sure that he does not run the ball more than 25 times per game.

RB Noah Herron, Rush: 5 - 25 - 0, Rec: 7 - 57 - 0 (9 targets)

With the injury last week to Vernand Morency, Noah Herron was the primary backup to Green. Herron ran hard and found good holes, mostly in the second half. He was a primary safety valve target of Favre with an impressive nine targets. He made good use of the passes, often converting third downs or setting up short third down plays. Herron does not have great speed; his game is one of power and determination.

RB William Henderson, Rec: 1 - 11 - 0 (3 targets)

Henderson lost his starting FB job to Brandon Miree three weeks ago, partially due to reduced performance, partially due to the fact Henderson was recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery. Henderson is in his 12th season, his long career is taking a toll on his blocking skills and speed/quickness. Henderson caught one third down pass and was targeted on several others.

WR Donald Driver, Rec: 9 - 96 - 1 (16 targets)

Driver is obviously Favre’s go-to guy, and most teams know that. Driver made several catches in traffic and one terrific catch to keep a drive going that was confirmed upon replay challenge by Buffalo. He caught one short touchdown pass but was the target in the fourth quarter on the pass that deflected off his hands for an interception. Driver is a hard working WR that runs very good routes, and has in past had excellent hands, but this year is having a problem now and again dropping passes.

WR Greg Jennings, Rec: 5 - 69 - 0 (5 targets)

Jennings recovered from an ankle injury in the Miami game (that caused him to miss last week’s game against Arizona) to play in this game. He made one remarkable catch along the sideline at the end of the first half on a ball tipped by the defender where he managed to catch and keep both feet in bounds. However, he re-aggravated his ankle injury and he left the game soon after.

WR Ruvell Martin (1 targets)

Martin did not play a lot until the second half. He is a tall WR, who is still learning to run routes. He is a possession type receiver. He is listed as WR3 on the depth chart, and may see more action as the season progresses.

TE David Martin, Rec: 4 - 51 - 0 (6 targets)

TE David Martin seems to have supplanted Bubba Franks as the pass catching TE in this offense. He is a big target with good speed, often working between the seams on the field. Favre targets him quite often.

TE Donald Lee, Rec: 1 - -5 - 0 (1 targets)

Lee is the fastest of the TEs but he is not utilized as much by head coach Mike McCarthy as he was by the previous regime. Lee plays on special teams and probably won’t see the field much unless Martin or Franks are injured.

TE Bubba Franks (3 targets)

Franks dropped two passes thrown to him. He is not playing like his old dependable self this season. He is still a very reliable blocker, but his hands seem to have deteriorated. He never was known as a speed demon and his red zone efficiency has dropped precipitously.

PK Dave Rayner 1 - 1 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 4 points

Rayner made a 49 yard field goal and one extra point attempt.

GB Rush Defense

Willis McGahee ran for good yardage before he was injured. Anthony Thomas replaced him, and had a very good day, gaining 95 yards on 20 carries. The Packers did a decent job stopping the run, until the fourth quarter.

GB Pass Defense

For most of the game, the Packers got relentless pressure on QB JP Losman, sacking him five times. DT Corey Williams was responsible for three of those sacks. The turning point in the game came in the fourth quarter, one play after safety Marquand Manuel had to leave due to injury. Blown coverage by DB Al Harris let WR Lee Evans get behind him for a 43 yard touchdown. That gave the Bills the lead and they never relinquished it.

QB J.P. Losman, Pass: 8 - 15 - 102 - 1 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 3 - 2 - 0

With the exception of one play in the fourth quarter, a 43 yard touchdown bomb to WR Lee Evans on blown coverage, J.P. Losman had a forgettable day. He was pressured all day, succumbing to five sacks. Several of his passes were dropped by his own receivers. His timing was off slightly on a couple of other passes. This pass offense just did not look dangerous-until that play which put the Bills ahead in the fourth quarter for good.

RB Anthony Thomas, Rush: 20 - 95 - 1, Rec: 1 - 6 - 0 (1 targets)

Thomas replaced McGahee and ran extremely well, just like he did his first few years in the league when he was a thousand yard rusher in 2001 and 2003. He ran surprisingly well, with both power and speed. Most of his rushes were to the left side of the offensive line or up the middle, rarely did he run to the right side. He was not a factor in the pass game.

RB Willis McGahee, Rush: 4 - 15 - 0

McGahee started the game running with power and speed, he looked very dangerous. He was gang tackled on the play before the Bills kicked their FG in the first quarter. He left the game with what the announcers said was rib injury and did not return.

RB Daimon Shelton, Rec: 2 - 17 - 0 (2 targets)

Shelton is a very good blocking fullback, often leading Anthony Thomas into the line on running plays. Twice he was a safety valve for Losman, picking up very good yardage on both plays.

WR Lee Evans, Rec: 2 - 58 - 1 (3 targets)

Evans was responsible for the go ahead touchdown, putting a double move on Al Harris, out and up, and was wide open easily 15 yards behind Harris for the TD. Other than that play, Evan was not a factor.

WR Peerless Price, Rush: 1 - 8 - 0, Rec: 1 - 6 - 0 (2 targets)

Price was not a factor in this game, with one exception, he ran an end around once that kept a drive alive and nearly gained a first down.

WR Josh Reed, Rec: 1 - 6 - 0 (1 targets)

Reed was not a factor either, although he did play a lot on third down or when Bills went to three wide receivers. First and foremost the Bills were a rushing offense today, downplaying their WR.

WR Andre Davis (1 targets)

Davis is a big target, but mostly played special teams. The one pass directed his way was not catchable.

WR Roscoe Parrish (1 targets)

WR Roscoe Parrish was the primary punt returner, but was only on the field for a handful of offensive plays. He is short in stature, but exceedingly fast, so he may find a place in this offense more often as the season continues.

TE Robert Royal, Rec: 1 - 9 - 0 (4 targets)

Royal is a very big TE, a good receiver and a very good blocker so he is on the field for all three downs. He made one catch but dropped at least one other catchable pass.

PK Rian Lindell 1 - 1 FG, 3 - 3 XP, 6 points

Lindell made one FG of 28 yards and three extra point attempts.

BUF Rush Defense

The Bills started quickly, denying the cut back lanes to the Packers in the first quarter, but as the game wore on, the Packers found more lanes available and began to run for more yardage. That was especially true in the second half. Two fumbled snaps stopped drives and contributed to this win.

BUF Pass Defense

The Bills' pass defense intercepted two passes, one by London Fletcher-Baker was returned 17 yards for a TD. The second, by Safety Ko Simpson, was corralled in the end zone off a deflection when the Packers were at the one yard line, returned 76 yards, setting up the clinching TD minutes later. The Bills swarmed on defense, allowing no big plays. DE Aaron Schobel sacked Favre twice and ended up with four hurries. This was a typical bend-but-don’t-break defense that won the game by amassing four turnovers.