Even with quarterback Jordan Love sidelined by a knee injury, the Packers used a dominant ground attack to defeat the Colts 16-10 on Sunday afternoon.
Green Bay doubled Indianapolis’ time of possession, rushing for 261 yards — staying on the field by converting 10-of-17 third downs. Quarterback Malik Willis, making his first start for the Packers after the club acquired him at the end of August, was an efficient 12-of-14 passing for 122 yards with a touchdown, adding 41 yards on six carries.
“I don’t think you guys can appreciate, or even comprehend, the task that Malik Willis [had] — I mean, this guy got here three weeks ago,” head coach Matt LaFleur said in his postgame press conference. “For him to be able to go out there and command our offense — we still had a lot of long calls. We had shifts, motions, a ton of different run schemes.
“There was a lot put on his plate, and for him to be able to go out there and do what he did today, I think that speaks volumes of who he is as a person and the work that he’s put in. Just super proud of him. I think our coaches did a great job preparing him. Yeah, just really happy and proud of our football team.”
LaFleur noted that when dealing with a new player, there’s an element of the unknown that you have to deal with once the lights come on. But Willis showed up ready for the challenge.
“It’s one thing to do it in practice when the pressure isn’t quite as high,” LaFleur said. “It’s another thing to go out there in front of 80,000 fans and be able to articulate the play calls. I think there was one time we had to burn a timeout because of a play call, and I think that’s pretty remarkable. Especially considering all the movement we were doing throughout the course of the game.
“Again, I’m so proud of our staff, our players, and everybody sticking together,” LaFleur added. “Adversity is coming every week in this league, and you face it in game, and you face it obviously going it into the game when you don’t have your star quarterback. You’ve just got to find a way to win because, at the end of the day, nobody cares. This game is about winning, and you’ve got to do it however you can find a way. Our guys found a way today.”