The Green Bay Packers enjoyed a late-night Thanksgiving feast Thursday, complete with cold weather, big reaches and some awkwardness in the later parts of the meal.
By the end of the first half, the Packers had a 24-3 lead over the Miami Dolphins. By the final whistle, it was a 30-17 win at Lambeau Field. They had little trouble moving the ball on offense, while their defense took advantage of a Miami team struggling to string together drives in cold weather, with mistakes including a muffed punt. It was a familiar story for the Dolphins in cold weather.
The temperature was 27 degrees at kickoff and only got colder from there. The Dolphins’ biggest error came on a straight muffed punt that set up the Packers’ first touchdown, and there was no redemption to be had until after halftime.
The second half at least introduced some drama when the Dolphins scored a touchdown and converted the two-point attempt to cut the deficit to 16. They soon reached the red zone again and were at the 1-yard line on second-and-goal.
The next three plays: rush for no gain, incomplete pass, sack.
Jordan Love finished the game with 21-of-27 passing for 274 yards and two touchdowns, while the Green Bay run game posted 114 yards. The Dolphins’ offense wasn’t totally frozen — Tua Tagovailoa finished with 364 yards passing — but they just couldn’t run the ball when it mattered.
The loss is costly for the Dolphins, who are now well outside of the playoff picture at 5-7. They have a favorable final five games of the season (Jets, Texans, 49ers, Browns, Jets), but they’ll likely need help even if they win out.
Meanwhile, the Packers move to 9-3, which is still only good enough for third in a stacked NFC North. The 11-1 Detroit Lions also won Thursday to stay two games ahead, while the 9-2 Minnesota Vikings face the 6-5 Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
Here’s how it all went down on Yahoo Sports:
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