National Football League

Green Bay Packers winning unimpressively, Cowherd says

Updated Oct. 3, 2022 7:46 p.m. ET

There aren't many situations in sports in which winning leaves a sour taste in an athlete's mouth, but that's exactly how Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers felt Sunday after Green Bay's 27-24 overtime win over New England.

Green Bay won thanks to a well-orchestrated 12-play, 77-yard drive by Rodgers & Co., which kicker Mason Crosby sealed with a 31-yard field goal in overtime, but the close victory came at home against a team playing behind its third-string quarterback in Bailey Zappe. So Rodgers wasn't entirely satisfied.

"This way of winning, I don't think, is sustainable because it puts too much pressure on our defense," Rodgers said after the game. "And obviously, I've got to play better and will play better.

"I settled in [late] and usually don't have two terrible halves. So I kind of returned to the form I expect from myself, and we started moving the football. You can't be 2-2 losing to a third-string quarterback and not playing great in all three phases, so we had to have this one. That doesn't take anything away from the joy of winning, but this was one we had to have."

"The Herd" host Colin Cowherd wasn't surprised by Rodgers' comments.

Are Packers legit contenders with 3-1 start after OT win vs. Patriots?

Colin Cowherd and breaks down why he 'does not see Green Bay' as a Top 10 team.

"Self awareness is very, very important, and I think Aaron Rodgers sees the problem," Cowherd said Monday.

"I think Green Bay for years and years looked at those [one-dimensional teams] and thought, ‘Haha, we can beat you in a lot of different ways.’ They've become one of them. The box score looks beautiful: 24 first downs, 450 yards, dominate time of possession, very few penalties. We think they're smart. But with Aaron, Matt LaFleur, the best running back in the division, they're like 22nd in scoring in the league."

Cowherd said their struggles were keeping them out of his weekly top 10 rankings.

"This is why I don't put them in the top 10," he said. "They've beaten a bad Chicago team, Tampa with none of its receivers and a third-string quarterback — who, by the way, took them to overtime.

" … If Mac Jones would've played, that game doesn't go to overtime."