GREEN BAY, WI (WSAU) — It went down to the wire in the NFC Championship Game at Lambeau Field, and the game was every bit the matchup of two legendary QB’s that it was expected to be.
Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers squared off in what could be one of their only postseason battles, and it was Brady coming out on top with a 31-26 victory.
The win will make the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the first team to ever play a Super Bowl in their home stadium on February 6th. The game will also mark Tom Brady’s 10th Super Bowl appearance, with those games spread across three decades (the 2000s, 2010s, and now 2020s).
Brady put his team on top early in the first with a 15-yard touchdown strike to Mike Evans. The extra point made it 7-0.
Green Bay answered with a 7-play, 90-yard drive that ended with a Rodgers touchdown toss to Marquez Valdes-Scantling to level the game at 7. The only other scoring Green Bay would do in the first half was a Mason Crosby Field goal which made the game 14-10 Tampa Bay.
Brady found Scott Miller as time expired in the first half to put his team on top by 11 going into the break. That 39-yard score made him the league’s all-time leader in postseason touchdown passes.
Tampa would go up 28-10 early in the second half on another Brady touchdown pass, this one to Cameron Brate from 8 yards out.
But Green Bay would find their way back into it with two scoring drives before the end of the 3rd. Both were capped off by Rodgers touchdown passes, one to Robert Tonyan and another to Davante Adams. That sent the game to the 4th at 28-23 Bucs.
That lead stretched to 31-23 after a Ryan Succop field goal of 46-yards with just over 4 minutes remaining in the game. Green Bay would get the ball back at its own 30 on the ensuing kickoff.
Rodgers hit Valdes-Scantling for 29 yards to drive the Packers down to the Tampa Bay 28. The drive would cap off with a 26-yard Mason Crosby field goal to pull the Packers within five at 31-26 with two minutes remaining.
Green Bay kicked off deep, giving the Buccaneers the ball back inside their own 20. From there they would drive to midfield, forcing Green Bay to burn their timeouts and finally running out the clock.
Rodgers finished the game with 346 passing yards and three touchdowns to one interception. Brady also tossed three touchdowns but also had three picks including two in the second half. One of those led to a touchdown drive, but the second led to a punt.
Valdes-Scantling ended the game with 116 receiving yards and one touchdown on four receptions (six targets).
Vegas oddsmakers had the Packers as a slight favorite in the game, with most having Green Bay at between -3 and -4. Tampa Bay’s money line was around +160. The over/under was set at 53 points, with the over hitting.
Green Bay ends the season with a 14-4 record including the playoffs.
