Green Bay's recent dominance on defense has Packers believing they can make a deep playoff run

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Even though their long-shot hopes of winning the NFC North have vanished, the playoff-bound Green Bay Packers believe they can make a legitimate run at their first Super Bowl appearance since their 2010 championship season.

A rapidly improving defense gives them ample reason for confidence.

The Packers (11-4) followed up a seven-sack performance in a 30-13 victory at Seattle by producing the first shutout of the NFL season, a 34-0 playoff-clinching blowout of the New Orleans Saints on Monday night.

Green Bay delivered its first shutout since a 17-0 triumph over Seattle in 2021 and its most lopsided victory since a 55-14 rout of the Chicago Bears in 2014.

“We’ve noticed all along that the defense is a lot different this year, and they’ve been making some big-time plays all along,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “But any time you can hold anybody to zero points in the National Football League is pretty awesome.”

The Packers were seeking to produce a championship-caliber defense to go along with their dynamic offense when they fired Joe Barry as coordinator in the offseason and replaced him with former Boston College coach Jeff Hafley. Green Bay switched from a 3-4 scheme to a 4-3, with Hafley emphasizing the need to produce more big plays.

Green Bay has done just that by collecting 28 takeaways — 10 more than it had all of last year — to match the NFL’s third-highest total. The Packers haven’t forced this many turnovers since 2011, when they had 38 takeaways.

That’s not the only area in which the defense has made strides.

Green Bay is allowing just 19.1 points per game to rank sixth in the league in scoring defense. The Packers haven’t finished a season among the top six teams in scoring defense since their 2010 title run, when they yielded just 15 points per game to rank second.

The Packers are giving up 312.1 yards per game for the league’s seventh-best total. That also puts them on pace for their highest season-ending rank since 2010, when they finished fifth in total defense.

“We’re all working together, and we’ve just got some nice playmakers,” linebacker and rookie second-round pick Edgerrin Cooper said.

The Packers have given up as many as 20 points just once in their last six games, a 34-31 defeat at Detroit on Dec. 5. That is the only time Green Bay has lost during that stretch.

Whether this kind of success can carry over to the playoffs remains uncertain.

The Packers’ shutout performance came against a New Orleans offense that was starting rookie fifth-round draft pick Spencer Rattler at quarterback in place of the injured Derek Carr and was missing five-time Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara.

Green Bay’s defense faces a much tougher task Sunday night against the Minnesota Vikings (13-2), who beat the Packers 31-29 at Lambeau Field on Sept. 29. This will mark the first time in the series' 64-year history that both teams had at least 11 wins when they face off.

The Packers are eager to see what they can do against another team headed for the playoffs as their defense gears up for another postseason.

“We can do whatever we want to do,” defensive lineman Kenny Clark said. “We write our own story at the end of the day. We’ve just got to keep on building.”

Green Bay outrushed New Orleans 188-67 and improved its season total to 2,209 yards rushing. The Packers haven't rushed for that many yards in a season since 2003, when they had 2,558. … The pass rush has produced 16 sacks over Green Bay’s last four games. … Green Bay is outscoring teams 102-34 in the first quarter. ... The Packers didn't give up a sack Monday and have allowed just five over their last eight games. That represents the fewest sacks the Packers have given up over an eight-game stretch within a single season since 2004.

Penalties remain a bit of an issue. The Packers were penalized six times for 60 yards.

Love has thrown eight touchdown passes without an interception over his last five games. … RB Josh Jacobs has run for a touchdown in six straight games. His 13 TD runs this season are a career high. … K Brandon McManus made field goals from 55 and 46 yards to improve to 16 of 17 this season. His 55-yarder was a season long. … S Zayne Anderson had his first career interception in his first career start. … DL Brenton Cox Jr. has three sacks over his last four games.

There really aren't any candidates for this category, considering the Packers produced their biggest victory margin in a decade.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur offered an encouraging update on WR Christian Watson, who hurt a knee against the Saints. “We got good news on him, so more just a bruise. ... So we'll see how he practices this week and see where we're at," LaFleur said Tuesday. … CB Jaire Alexander (knee) missed a fifth straight game. S Javon Bullard (ankle), S Evan Williams (quadriceps) and LB Quay Walker (ankle) also didn’t play.

30 – The Packers have scored at least 30 points in each of their last five games. That represents the second-longest string of games with 30-plus points in franchise history. Green Bay had seven such straight games in 1963.

The Packers close the regular season with two divisional games, visiting Minnesota on Sunday before hosting the Bears (4-11). Green Bay is 1-3 against NFC North opponents this season.

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Green Bay Packers defensive end Rashan Gary (52) celebrates a fumble recovery during the first half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis.(AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Green Bay Packers defensive end Kingsley Enagbare (55) and defensive tackle Colby Wooden (96) celebrate a fumble recovery during the first half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

New Orleans Saints running back Kendre Miller (25) is stopped by Green Bay Packers linebacker Eric Wilson and safety Zayne Anderson, right, during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler (18) is sacked by Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (95) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (95) celebrates his sack with defensive end Rashan Gary (52) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Green Bay Packers safety Zayne Anderson (39) celebrates his interception during the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

Green Bay Packers safety Zayne Anderson (39) celebrates his interception during the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

WASHINGTON (AP) — American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide Tuesday because of a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive.

Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne about an hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop for the airline. The order, which prevented planes from taking off, was issued at the airline's request.

The airline said in an email that the problem was caused by trouble with vendor technology that maintains its flight operating system.

Dennis Tajer, a spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, a union representing American Airlines pilots, said the airline told pilots at 7 a.m. Eastern that there was an outage affecting the system known as FOS. It handles different types of airline operations, including dispatch, flight planning, passenger boarding, as well as an airplane's weight and balance data, he said.

Some components of FOS have gone down in the past, but a systemwide outage is rare, Tajer said.

Hours after the ground stop was lifted, Tajer said the union had not heard about any “chaos out there beyond just the normal heavy travel day.” He said officials were watching for any cascading effects, such as staffing problems.

Flights were delayed across American's major hubs, with only 37% leaving on time, according to Cirium, an aviation analytics company. Out of the 3,901 domestic and international American Airlines flights scheduled for Tuesday, 19 were canceled.

Cirium noted that the vast majority of flights were departing within two hours of their scheduled departure time. A similar percentage — 36% — were arriving at their destinations as scheduled.

Meanwhile, the flight-tracking site FlightAware reported that 3,712 flights entering or leaving the U.S., or serving domestic destinations, were delayed Tuesday, with 55 flights canceled. It did not show any flights from American Airlines.

Cirium said Dallas-Fort Worth, New York’s Kennedy Airport and Charlotte, North Carolina, saw the greatest number of delays. Washington, Chicago and Miami experienced considerably fewer delays.

Amid the travel problems, significant rain and snow were expected in the Pacific Northwest at least into Christmas Day. Showers and thunderstorms were developing in the South. Freezing rain was reported in the Mid-Atlantic region near Baltimore and Washington, and snow fell in New York.

Because the holiday travel period lasts weeks, airports and airlines typically have smaller peak days than they do during the rush around Thanksgiving, but the grind of one hectic day followed by another takes a toll on flight crews. And any hiccups — a winter storm or a computer outage — can snowball into massive disruptions.

That is how Southwest Airlines stranded 2 million travelers in December 2022, and Delta Air Lines suffered a smaller but significant meltdown after a worldwide technology outage in July caused by a faulty software update from cybersecurity company CrowdStrike.

Many flights during the holidays are sold out, which makes cancellations even more disruptive than during slower periods. That is especially true for smaller budget airlines that have fewer flights and fewer options for rebooking passengers. Only the largest airlines, including American, Delta and United, have “interline agreements” that let them put stranded customers on another carrier’s flights.

This will be the first holiday season since a Transportation Department rule took effect that requires airlines to give customers an automatic cash refund for a canceled or significantly delayed flight. Most air travelers were already eligible for refunds, but they often had to request them.

Passengers still can ask to get rebooked, which is often a better option than a refund during peak travel periods. That’s because finding a last-minute flight on another airline tends to be expensive.

An American spokesperson said Tuesday was not a peak travel day for the airline — with about 2,000 fewer flights than the busiest days — so the airline had somewhat of a buffer to manage the delays.

The groundings happened as millions of travelers were expected to fly over the next 10 days. The Transportation Security Administration expects to screen 40 million passengers through Jan. 2.

Airlines expect to have their busiest days on Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

Many flights during the holidays are sold out, which makes cancellations more disruptive than during slower periods. Even with just a brief outage, the cancellations have a cascading effect that can take days to clear up.

About 90% of Americans traveling far from home over the holidays will be in cars, according to AAA.

“Airline travel is just really high right now, but most people do drive to their destinations, and that is true for every holiday,” AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz said.

Gasoline prices are similar to last year. The nationwide average Thursday was $3.04 a gallon, down from $3.13 a year ago, according to AAA. Charging an electric vehicle averages just under 35 cents per per kilowatt hour, but varies by state.

Transportation-data firm INRIX says travel times on the nation’s highways could be up to 30% longer than normal over the holidays, with Sunday expected to see the heaviest traffic. Boston, New York City, Seattle and Washington are the metropolitan areas primed for the greatest delays, according to the company.

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Associated Press writers David Koenig, Mae Anderson and Mike Pesoli contributed to this report.

An employee wearing a Santa Claus hat walks past boards showing flight delays, in the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

An employee wearing a Santa Claus hat walks past boards showing flight delays, in the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Cesar Davila, who works for the American Airlines partner providing wheelchair assistance, wears a Christmas tree hat and festive glasses as he waits for a traveler to help inside the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Cesar Davila, who works for the American Airlines partner providing wheelchair assistance, wears a Christmas tree hat and festive glasses as he pushes a traveler through the American Airlines terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Two travelers nap near the Alaska Airlines ticketing area at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Travelers wait in line for security checks at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Marie Digna, traveling to Grand Rapids, Mich., enters security with her two sons, Lucian, right, and Samson, at Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Travelers wait in line for security checks at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

American Airlines employees, some wearing Santa Claus hats, check in travelers in the American terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

An American Airlines employee wearing a Santa Claus hat walks through the American terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

An American Airlines employee wearing a Santa Claus hat looks toward quiet check-in counters in the American terminal at Miami International Airport, on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

FILE - American Airlines planes wait at gates at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Friday, July 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)