Who Won Wild Card Weekend? Randall Cobb, Who Was Resurrected Thanks To Hail Mary Magic

All anyone can seem to talk about after the Green Bay Packers dismantled the New York Giants in the final game of Wild Card weekend is Aaron Rodgers’ Hail Mary at the end of the first half. It rendered a stout defensive performance by New York moot and set the stage for a second half beatdown. But as you can see in this helpful video below, it’s not exactly new:

It even gave some previous Rodgers victims some PTSD:

We don’t want to take Rodgers’ inch-perfect throw for granted, but only one person got on the end of that throw, in perfect position between the Giants defensive backs and the back of the end zone, and it was Randall Cobb. It was his first touchdown of three on the day (tying the NFL postseason single-game record), almost matching his regular season total of four. The fact that Cobb stepped up after multiple seasons of relative anonymity for five catches, 116 yards and those three TDs was an unexpected gift to the Packers, considering Jordy Nelson left early in the first half with a serious rib injury.

Nelson missed all of 2015 with a torn ACL, and Cobb was expected to step up in his place. Unable to replicate Nelson’s physical advantages on the outside, Cobb struggled and the Packers offense didn’t resemble what it was in years past. Early in this year, it took Jordy working himself back into shape for the offense to really get going again, only this time it was Davante Adams as the secondary option, with Cobb in and out of the lineup with injuries. If Nelson misses the next game in Dallas, Cobb will have another chance to step up and remind everyone what made him a Pro Bowler in 2014.

If the Hail Mary play was the memorable one in Cobb’s night, it was his second touchdown that should provide the most encouragement that he’s ready to dominate against the Cowboys. This is the Cobb of old, beating his man badly in the slot before taking it to the house:

As far as competitiveness, Wild Card weekend was a dud. Giants-Packers was easily the game of the weekend (since it involved two legitimate quarterbacks, not backups or injured Matthew Stafford), and it was over early in the fourth quarter. Next week should really be something, with Chiefs-Steelers, Seahawks-Falcons and especially Packers-Cowboys all with intriguing matchups. Nothing should be more fun from that slate of games than watching the Packers and Cowboys try to outscore each other, and Cobb will be desperately needed for that if Nelson can’t play.