GREEN BAY – It's time for another round of Peak Performances, packers.com's look back at the most notable individual efforts of the past season.
The series is being presented in chronological order, so our second segment covers the second quarter of the season.
The top vote-getter from each collection will be in the running for Performance of the Year in the final poll.
Games 5-8
QB Aaron Rodgers at Dallas
A tremendous performance but unfortunately the last time anyone would see Rodgers at his best in 2017. He was an efficient 19-of-29 for 221 yards and three TDs for a 122.9 passer rating, bringing the Packers back from a 21-6 deficit for a thrilling 35-31 victory. He needed just 62 seconds to take the offense 75 yards for the game-winning score, a 12-yard TD pass to Davante Adams with 11 ticks left. The drive that included his own 18-yard scramble on third-and-8 during which he eluded two potential sacks, and two plays later he had the Packers in the end zone.
RB Aaron Jones at Dallas
The rookie fifth-round draft pick out of UTEP came up big in his first NFL start, a follow-up to a strong second half the previous game in place of the injured Ty Montgomery and Jamaal Williams. Jones rushed 19 times for 125 yards and a TD, becoming the first Green Bay rookie with a 100-yard rushing game in his first start since 2005. He had a diving 9-yard catch for a first down before running up the middle for a 7-yard TD on the next play. He also added runs of 22 and 15 yards, the latter coming on the game-winning drive.
CB Damarious Randall at Dallas
The third-year cornerback had a lot of eyes on him for the wrong reason heading into this game, as a sideline episode in Green Bay's previous game against Chicago led to him being sent to the locker room by Head Coach Mike McCarthy. The incident seemed to turn Randall's entire season around, starting with the Cowboys game, when he snagged a pass that deflected off the hands of receiver Terrance Williams and returned it 21 yards for his second career pick-six. This one gave the Packers a 28-24 lead early in the fourth quarter.
LB Blake Martinez at Minnesota
This game is most remembered, of course, for Rodgers' broken collarbone, but it was also one that signaled the arrival of the second-year inside linebacker. Martinez was all over the place, racking up 14 tackles, including 12 solo. He made an impressive open-field tackle on Vikings running back Jerick McKinnon on a third-down swing pass to force a punt, a he brought down fellow running back Latavius Murray twice in the backfield. Among three deflected passes, one went into the hands of Randall for an interception to set up a field goal.
RB Aaron Jones vs. New Orleans
In quarterback Brett Hundley's first start, Jones showed that Green Bay's running game could provide ample support, as he topped his Dallas performance with 17 carries for 131 yards and a score. On the first snap of the game, Jones ran for 15 yards, and four plays later he burst up the middle for a 46-yard touchdown. It was the Packers' longest rushing TD since Week 6 of 2015.
