Packers and Cardinals go head-to-head in Thursday night showdown

9:20 PM ET

  • Tory BarronESPN Editor

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    Tory Barron is a Bristol-based writer and editor for ESPN.com. After retiring from playing lacrosse at UConn, the DC native decided to try her hand at writing about people playing sports.

NFL Week 8 is making its presence known from the jump with a powerhouse of a Thursday night showdown between Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers (6-1) and Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals (7-0).

The Packers have won six straight since opening the season with a 38-3 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Jacksonville, Florida. Meanwhile, the Cards own the prestigious distinction of being the only undefeated team in the NFL.

Historically, Green Bay has dominated the series but Arizona has won the past three meetings between the franchises. If you’re into excitement, you should know that two of the past three games (including postseason) between the teams have gone into overtime.

Will Rodgers — despite playing without his favorite target WR Davante Adams (COVID-19/reserve list) — be able to outperform one of the NFL’s best defenses this season? Or will Murray and the Red Sea continue to rise up and encroach on the 1972 Miami Dolphins‘ perfect season?

We have ourselves a game. The Packers didn’t wait long into the second quarter (12:54 to be exact) to even the score behind an elite effort from running back Aaron Jones, who rushed for 2-yards up the middle for the touchdown.

Arizona goes to the Wildcat for the first score of the night, which also happens to be Chase Edmonds‘ first touchdown of the season.

The touchdown comes on the heels of a huge DeAndre Hopkins play — his 61-yard touchdown was nullified by a face mask penalty (15 yards), but the way he played the defensive back and got wide open was masterful nonetheless.

To state the obvious, DHop is different.

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