GREEN BAY – The world was introduced to a new side of Josh Myers on Sunday, as the Packers center went viral for his pre-snap emesis on an unseasonably hot day at Lambeau Field.
But lost in the deluge of memes and jokes the highly visible incident elicited on social media was the fact Myers and Green Bay's offensive line were in the midst of a run-blocking seminar, pressing the pedal on the ground more than any other Packers O-line has in a game the last 45 years.
Head Coach Matt LaFleur called a run-heavy gameplan that produced 261 rushing yards on 53 carries en route to a 16-10 win over the Indianapolis Colts, a performance Myers proudly labeled as "some grimy football" in the postgame locker room.
"As an offensive line coming in, we knew we were going to run the ball 50-plus times," Myers said. "Matt challenged us very early on in the week. He challenged our group and said it was going to go through us and I feel like we answered that challenge."
Myers and the O-line are among the countless examples of units and phases that factored into the Packers overcoming the absence of franchise quarterback Jordan Love this past Sunday.
To extend its winning streak in home openers to 12, Green Bay tasked recently acquired Malik Willis with becoming the first Packers backup QB to start a home opener since Anthony Dilweg stepped in for Don Majkowski in 1990.
While Willis did yeoman's work on his 19th official day as a member of the team, Green Bay pulled together in all three phases to stitch together a quintessential team victory.
Josh Jacobs carried the ball more than any other Packers running back in the last 16 years. That investment in the ground game resulted in Green Bay throwing the ball just 14 times. Yet, the Packers' talented receiving corps still got after it as blockers.
"It was all about winning," said second-year wideout Dontayvion Wicks, who had three catches for 29 yards and Green Bay's lone TD.
"Just doing what we gotta do, making some plays in the run game. Getting our blocks so we can have explosive plays in the run game. Malik just getting (here), that played a big part in it. Just having fun blocking in the run game. We knew what we were getting into when we came into the game."
An economical gameplan wouldn't have worked without the defense keeping Indianapolis off the scoreboard, though. Prioritizing containment, the defensive front had to be pragmatic in its pursuit of Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson after an explosive Week 1 outing against the Houston Texans.
Green Bay finished with just three QB hits and one sack but maintained its rush lanes to neutralize Richardson's dual threat. The strong-armed QB completed 50% of his passes, threw three interceptions and scrambled for just 37 yards.
"It gets tempting but that's the main thing of keeping the main thing, and that's staying to part of the game plan," said defensive end Rashan Gary when asked about the approach to rushing a mobile QB like Richardson. "It don't matter if it gets frustrating. You execute the game plan and do it the right way, we come out with the win, and that's what we did today."
The game brought many of the Packers' offensive players back to their high school roots. The run/pass ratio was the most drastic split Myers can recall since his days running the wing-T at Miamisburg (Ohio) High School, but it served a purpose.
A week after catching four passes for a career-high 138 yards and a touchdown, Jayden Reed lined up with Jacobs several times in the backfield to throw the Colts off-balance. It may have been the most "running back" the second-year receiver had played since youth football.
Reed finished with a modest four touches for 46 yards but his utilization was integral in the offense's sustainable success.
"It takes what it takes to win at the end of the day," Reed said. "This is the ultimate team sport. Whatever it takes to win, that's what we're going to do. That's gonna help Malik with the offense and be more confident and comfortable and everything, yeah, whatever it takes."
It remains to be seen whether Love will be available for Sunday's road game in Tennessee or Willis will have to start against his former team. Either way, the Packers will be ready to take on the league's top-ranked defense through two games.
The plan will inevitably change from the Colts game, but Green Bay learned a thing or two about the makeup of its team Sunday. Over the course of a 17-game regular season, that could carry the Packers far once No. 10 is back on the field.
"We talked about just the complementary football. We always hype each other up," linebacker Eric Wilson said. "Whenever we see the offense make a big play, we hype them up. Whenever they see us make a big play or big stop, we're a team and it's awesome to feel us be and play together."
