PHILADELPHIA — Aaron Rodgers simply threw his hands in the air and pumped his fist after securing his first NFL playoff victory.
Rodgers threw three touchdown passes, seldom-used rookie tailback James Starks ran for 123 yards and the Packers beat Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles 21-16 in an NFC wild-card game Sunday.
Rodgers had to watch from the sideline while Vick nearly led the Eagles back. But cornerback Tramon Williams intercepted Vick’s pass for Riley Cooper in the end zone with 33 seconds left to seal Green Bay’s win.
This was Green Bay’s third consecutive win in an elimination game. The Packers routed the Giants on Dec. 26 to stay alive in the playoff race and beat archrival Chicago last week to secure a playoff berth.
“We fought hard today,” Rodgers said. “Big interception by Tramon, who’s had a great season for us.”
The sixth-seeded Packers (11-6) play at top-seeded Atlanta (13-3) on Saturday night in the NFC semifinals.
Clay Matthews, Charles Woodson and Co. contained Vick for the most part. Vick passed for 292 yards and ran for 33 in his first playoff start since losing the 2005 NFC championship game on the same field as a member of the Atlanta Falcons.
“I feel like I got greedy and took a shot at the end zone,” Vick said about his last pass. “I didn’t throw the ball I wanted and got picked.”
Vick has come a long way since he was one of the NFL’s biggest stars during his days in Atlanta. He missed two seasons while serving 18 months in prison for his role in a dogfighting operation, played sparingly in a backup role last year and only got his chance after Matthews knocked Kevin Kolb out in Green Bay’s 27-20 win at Philadelphia in Week 1.
Vick made the most of the opportunity. He had the best season of his career and was selected to start the Pro Bowl for the NFC all-star team.
Vick can go to Hawaii now because the Eagles (10-7) are going home.
Green Bay 7 7 7 0 — 21
Philadelphia 0 3 7 6 — 16
First quarter
GB — Crabtree 7 pass from Rodgers (Crosby kick), 0:08.
Second quarter
GB — J. Jones 9 pass from Rodgers (Crosby kick), 5:21. Phi — FG Akers 29, 1:11.
Third quarter
Phi — Avant 24 pass from Vick (Akers kick), 13:50. GB — Jackson 16 pass from Rodgers (Crosby kick), 7:33.
Fourth quarter
Phi — Vick 1 run (pass failed), 4:02. A — 69,144.
GB Phi
First downs 20 18
Total yards 309 352
Rushes-yards 32-138 21-82
Passing 171 270
Punt returns 3-18 2-15
Kickoff returns 3-44 3-55
Interceptions-return yards 1-9 0-0
Comp.-att.-int. 18-27-0 20-36-1
Sacked-yards lost 2-9 3-22
Punts 4-36.5 4-40.8
Fumbles-lost 4-2 1-0
Penalties-yards 2-15 7-50
Time of possession 32:00 28:00
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Green Bay, Starks 23-123, Jackson 3-10, Rodgers 3-4, Kuhn 3-1. Philadelphia, McCoy 12-46, Vick 8-33, Harrison 1-3. PASSING — Green Bay, Rodgers 18-27-0-180. Philadelphia, Vick 20-36-1-292.
RECEIVING — Green Bay, Driver 5-56, Kuhn 3-33, Jackson 2-27, Quarless 2-27, Starks 2-9, J. Jones 1-9, Jennings 1-8, Crabtree 1-7, Johnson 1-4. Philadelphia, Avant 7-93, McCoy 4-36, Maclin 3-73, D. Jackson 2-47, Celek 2-25, Cooper 2-18. MISSED FIELD GOALS — Philadelphia, Akers 41 (WR), 34 (WR).
