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	Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images
	Packers receiver Donald Driver made a one-handed grab to set up a touchdown against the Rams.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- A few hours before kickoff Sunday, Green Bay’s young quarterback pulled a veteran move on one of the Packers’ oldest players. Aaron Rodgers was flipping through the Rams’ official game program when he came across a seemingly innocuous “What to Watch” feature.

“Aaron Rodgers comes up to me before the game and asks me if I’ve read the program,” Packers receiver Donald Driver said. “I said no, I didn’t read it. He said, ‘You might want to check out page 59.’”

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Hmmm. At 34, Driver has probably heard every motivational tool imaginable. He embraced this one, however, and even convinced a few of us locker room lingerers to look it up for ourselves. So I did. And here’s what it says:

Driver is nothing if not steady and has posted at least 1,000 receiving yards in five straight seasons. While Driver has lost a little bit of juice, he’s still more than capable of making plays and keeping the chains moving.

Hardly bulletin-board stuff, right? And based on the first two games of the season, it wasn’t far from the truth. Call it Rodgers’ first completion of the day.

The passage put Driver into a pregame rage that, he said, prompted a spectacular one-handed reception in the second quarter of the Packers’ 36-17 victory over the Rams. The play boosted the Packers’ offense from some early doldrums and, more importantly, reminded everyone that after an offseason of talk about defense and special teams, the core of this team is its downfield passing game.

“My mind was a little more focused today to go out and prove that just because I’m 34, that doesn’t mean I’m old,” Driver said. “Maybe that’s old in dog years. But that’s not old in human years. … My thing is people talk about me all the time, that I’m getting old and this and that. But I tell people I have God on my side.”

The Packers were holding a tenuous 9-0 lead Sunday when Rodgers spotted Driver streaking down the left sideline. Cornerback Bradley Fletcher had Driver’s right arm pinned to his side, resulting in a pass interference call. Driver, however, still managed to grab the ball with his left hand and pinned it to his helmet as he fell to the ground. The play was the first of three deep completions for Rodgers, which not surprisingly set up the Packers’ first three touchdowns. Receiver Greg Jennings caught a 50-yard pass on the next drive and later pulled in a 53-yarder in the fourth quarter as the Packers pulled away.

Unofficially, I had the Packers with six deep shots in the game.

“If they want to press coverage with receivers like Donald and Greg Jennings, we’re going to take shots,” said Rogers. (It should be noted Rodgers got adequate time to throw after a shaky two-sack first quarter.)

The connections represented significant progress from the Packers’ first two games this season, when Driver and Jennings combined for only one reception longer than 26 yards. That might work fine for some teams, and coach Mike McCarthy seemed mostly pleased about balanced playcalling that left the Packers with 23 pass plays and 26 rushes from tailback Ryan Grant. But I’ve always thought the Packers are built to capitalize on the chemistry between Rodgers, Jennings and Driver.

I wouldn't call the Packers a sharp team Sunday, and cornerback Charles Woodson took it one step further by saying; "You’ve got to be realistic about it. St. Louis, in my opinion, is not a very good team. We didn’t seem to be much better than they were." But the Packers covered for it Sunday because they still have the capacity for the great equalizer.

“Big plays equal points in this league,” McCarthy said in a nice bottom line. “And I think that was very evident today.”

What surprised me was that Driver faced single, press coverage on his long reception -- as did Jennings on his first. Jennings said he couldn’t remember more than a handful of similar situations during the game, but why the Rams thought their cornerbacks could stay with either player for even two or three plays is beyond me.

“When you get 1-on-1 coverage, it’s almost disrespectful,” Jennings said. “That means you should make a play. The ones that we got, we took advantage of.”

Disrespecting the Packers’ receivers? You almost never see that. Except maybe here. Oh, and on page 59.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- Ultimately, Green Bay did what it had to do Sunday at St. Louis: Defeat an inferior opponent without making things too interesting.

The Rams were within a touchdown early in the fourth quarter before the Packers took control of this game. I can’t classify it as an overwhelming performance by any stretch, but after losing at home last week to Cincinnati, the Packers probably weren’t interested in style points.

In the big picture, Green Bay emerges from Week 3 with a 2-1 record and an extra day to prepare for its "Monday Night Football" showdown with Minnesota. I think it’s pretty clear the Packers have some significant work ahead of them, but as I’ll explore in more detail after the game, they have a great equalizer: The big downfield play. Until then…

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- Green Bay probably has gotten more than it bargained for Sunday at the Edwards Jones Dome, but the Packers just scored on Aaron Rodgers’ 4-yard draw to put some distance between themselves and the Rams. The score was set up by -- you guessed it -- a long pass to receiver Greg Jennings. (This one was 53 yards.)

All three of the Packers’ touchdowns Sunday have been set up by spectacular downfield throws from Rodgers. The plays have made up for some otherwise middling play from the offense.

I guess stranger things have happened, but I’ll be awfully impressed with quarterback Kyle Boller if he brings the Rams back from a 12-point deficit. It’s 29-17 here early in the third quarter. Barring a surprising turn of events, I’m going to hunker down and will hit you back shortly after the game.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- A few halftime observations from the Edwards Jones Dome, where Green Bay leads St. Louis 23-14 in what became an offensive explosion during the second quarter:

• If you read the first two posts of this game, you might wonder if the Packers’ offense had suddenly seceded from the NFL. But almost immediately after that post, Green Bay caught fire. It started with Donald Driver’s sensational 46-yard reception down the left sideline; Driver pulled in the ball with his left hand while holding off the defense with his right. That play set up one touchdown, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ 50-yard strike to Greg Jennings set up his 21-yard scoring pass to Driver. Add it all up, and the Packers finished the half with 189 offensive yards.
• Not coincidentally, Green Bay’s pass protection improved at about the same time Rodgers started drilling passes all over the place. Rams pass-rusher Leonard Little has two sacks against right tackle Allen Barbre, but I would attribute one of them to Rodgers. I haven’t noticed left tackle Daryn Colledge, which for an offensive lineman is a good thing.
• After all of last week’s controversy over the safety position, the Packers spent part of the first half with only one safety -- Nick Collins -- on the field. Rather than use a second safety, Green Bay utilized Brandon Chillar as a fifth linebacker. You’ve heard of a the 3-4? Call this a 3-5. But in nickel and other passing situations, Derrick Martin replaced Chillar and served as a traditional second safety.
• I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the Rams were a different offensive team with Kyle Boller on the field. Once he got warmed up, Boller played with spunk and was surprisingly accurate on his passes. Interestingly, he and tight end Daniel Fells targeted Chillar on touchdown passes of 16 and 19 yards. As a result, the Rams actually finished the half with more offensive yards (194) and first downs (15) than the Packers. Remember, this is an offense that managed one touchdown in the first two games of the season.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- This isn’t the offense I’m used to seeing from Green Bay. Without question, the Packers are out of synch here even though they lead 9-0 at the end of the first quarter.

They’ve had great field position but have only managed three field goals from Mason Crosby. In case you’re not keeping track, here’s where the Packers started their first three drives Sunday:

1. Their 43-yard line
2. The Rams’ 15-yard line
3. The Rams’ 12-yard line.

Rams defensive end Leonard Little has sacked quarterback Aaron Rodgers twice, and very early it looks like Rodgers has a little bit of happy feet. He missed a wide-open Donald Driver in the end zone and is bailing on plays pretty quickly.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- Oh boy. We’ve had our share of discussions this week about Green Bay’s struggling offensive line, and already St. Louis pass rusher Leonard Little has exploited it.

Little blew past right tackle Allen Barbre for a second-down sack of quarterback Aaron Rodgers here in the first quarter. The resulting loss left the Packers in a third-and-18 situation, and it took a 48-yard field goal from Mason Crosby to salvage the possession.

If there was tight end or running back help on Little, I didn’t see it.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- Notable NFC North roster maneuverings from Sunday morning:

• As we noted earlier, Green Bay rookie B.J. Raji (ankle) will make his NFL debut at St. Louis.
• Minnesota receiver Percy Harvin (migraines) will be in uniform against San Francisco.
• Vikings linebacker E.J. Henderson (shoulder) is also active.
• Neither of the ex-Packers on St. Louis’ roster -- safety Anthony Smith and receiver Ruvell Martin -- will play against their former team.
• Detroit will be without defensive end Cliff Avril (hamstring), linebacker Ernie Sims (shoulder) and cornerback Eric King (shoulder).

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

ST. LOUIS -- Green Bay rookie B.J. Raji will make his NFL debut here Sunday, having recovered sufficiently enough from a sprained ankle to be active for the Packers’ game against St. Louis.

Raji’s return comes none to soon for the Packers, who gave up 151 rushing yards last week against Cincinnati. Raji could rotate at two positions Sunday, behind left end Johnny Jolly and nose tackle Ryan Pickett.

I’ll get you a division-wide look at notable pregame roster questions shortly.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

Surprising move coming out of Green Bay this morning: The Packers released safety Aaron Rouse to make room for free-agent safety Matt Giordano, who worked out and signed with the team Tuesday.

Rouse

Rouse started last Sunday’s game against Cincinnati and was expected to continue replacing injured starter Atari Bigby. Tom Pelissero of the Green Bay Press-Gazette notes Rouse struggled in last week's game, but given the injuries to Bigby and fellow starter Nick Collins (sprained clavicle), it’s surprising to see the Packers shedding any depth at the position.

Giordano spent the past four seasons with Indianapolis. I’ll circle back on this move, and take a closer look at the Packers’ safety situation, once we hear from coach Mike McCarthy later Wednesday.