After a win I didn’t anticipate, over New England Sunday, the Packers now share the NFC’s best record.

Green Bay Packer Nation explains one reason with a fascinating breakdown of the play that essentially clinched the game (though it didn’t seem that way at the time) just before halftime:

The Patriots defensive set showed a lot of pressure with the safety playing up and over the front side of the initial set. Aaron didn’t like this set and called a timeout. Note the position of the Patriots safety and that James Starks is in for the run or pass pro:

After the timeout, a couple things happen. First of all, check out the new position of the safety:

This is a peculiar position for the safety on a third and two. Obviously the Patriots respect the Packers receiving corps and want a center fielder but this is quite deep. But the Patriots are still showing pressure so Rodgers sends Starks out in motion to force a linebacker out of blitz position.

This creates a trips left formation which gives the safety a lot to think about. At the same time, Rodgers now knows that the linebackers left at the line of scrimmage no longer have to worry about a run play. In this motion, Aaron Rodgers slides his chips to the middle of the table, trusting his line and his legs to buy him the time he needs. Now, singled up with the safety fifteen yards deep, it is time for Jordy Nelson to do his magic.

Nelson knows exactly where the weak spot on the field is, and he also knows that a veteran like Revis will likely be playing outside leverage to avoid a reception and clock stoppage, this is even more true as Revis knows he has a safety playing center field to crash on anything across the middle. It is interesting to me that right before this play, the safety drops even a bit deeper and also gets caught way outside, allowing Jordy not just a play, but a touchdown. This happens in part because the Patriots have seen so much tape of Jordy burning safeties from the sideline in, but Jordy forces the issue.

Jordy’s first step is a chop step that establishes Revis’ outside technique, then there is a subtle, almost double move straight up and then across the middle. The safety is so focused on Jordy that he too ends up way out of position and after Cobb took Revis completely out of the play with a downfield block, it was Jordy off to the races…and we all know who won.

This game is a game of inches and while there were still 14 seconds on the clock as Jordy was taken out of bounds, Had Jordy not had the athleticism to finish this play and touch the pylon just before his knee went down out of bounds, there is no guarantee that the Packers would have gotten in the endzone against the stingy Patriots red zone defense. Because of Jordy Nelson’s elite athleticism…this is what we saw:

Meanwhile, former Milwaukee Journal Sentinel sportswriter Greg Bedard introduces Sports Illustrated Monday Morning Quarterback readers to Packers coach Mike McCarthy:

As far as the customary post-game handshake between coaches, New England’s Bill Belichick usually goes with the less-is-more approach, especially after close losses like Sunday’s 26-21 defeat at the hands of the Packers.

That’s why it was so significant that at Lambeau Field on Sunday night, Belichick and McCarthy embraced and then Belichick spent several seconds talking to McCarthy, with a few headshakes mixed in for emphasis. Translation: “That’s a damn fine football team you have that was hell to prepare and play against. You guys do a great job.”

“I’ll just say this: he was very gracious, and that’s about as far as I’ll go,” said McCarthy, who aced the first rule of Belichick Club—you don’t talk about Belichick Club. “He has set the standard for an NFL head coach, definitely in my time in the league. It’s awesome to go up and compete against his team and no one does it better than what he’s done.”

It certainly helps that the two teams are in different conferences and only meet once every four years (if McCarthy was in the AFC East, it wouldn’t happen regularly if at all), but that should not diminish the symbolism of the moment. It certainly wasn’t lost on me, someone who has covered both men up close in my career.

Here was Belichick, certainly the best coach in the NFL today if not ever, clueing us all on this fact: Michael John McCarthy is one of the great coaches in the NFL. And it’s time for everyone to regard him as such.

There is a certain segment of the Packers’ fan base that compares all who follow to Vince Lombardi and think world championships are a birthright. They will not give McCarthy his due until he adds another Super Bowl ring to his résumé, and even that might not be good enough.

There are plenty of fans around the country who hear McCarthy’s name and say, “Yeah, well I coach pretty well with Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers too.” (More on that below.)

I’ve certainly had my criticisms of McCarthy, who I think a lot of personally. On the rare occasions when his game plans are wrong he’s slow to adapt, if he adapts at all. He can get way too pass-happy. Calling the plays causes him to miss some game-management situations. McCarthy can coach emotional, whether it’s challenging plays or being too aggressive with play calling. He can be loyal to a fault when it comes to accurately assessing the talents of his players and coaching staff.

But the McCarthy I saw against the Patriots, and two weeks prior during the 53-20 victory over the NFC East-leading Eagles, was a more mature and evolved McCarthy. Mike 2.0? Maybe, considering that McCarthy said before this season, his ninth at the helm of the Packers, that he felt like he was at halftime of his career. He just seems much more in control of the game and his team.

McCarthy and quarterback Aaron Rodgers methodically took the Patriots apart throughout Sunday’s contest with 6.8 yards per play, converted 59 percent of third downs and had only one possession end in their own territory (prior to the game-ending kneel down). This was the first time since cornerback Brandon Browner returned from suspension that a Patriots opponent wasn’t flustered by how New England played them defensively. The Packers seemed to expect the Patriots would largely eliminate Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, and they were prepared for that. When the Patriots changed matchups on third downs and in the red zone, or because of ineffectiveness, the Packers didn’t flinch. Usually that rattles an opponent (ahem, Peyton Manning).

McCarthy’s game-planning was superb. He hit the Patriots’ weaknesses on defense like he was spinning a dial (and even found a few new ones). The Packers hit them with the power run game. They put Nelson in motion and ran crossing routes against Browner because he doesn’t move well horizontally. They threw a touchdown on safety Patrick Chung.

McCarthy saw something in Darrelle Revis’ play that told him that in Cover-1, the skinny post was going to be there (and the Packers were really the first team to challenge free safety Devin McCourty). The result was Nelson’s huge touchdown before halftime. McCarthy used a variety of formations and personnel groupings to target matchups, especially with Cobb out of the backfield. He deftly straddled the line of not running the ball enough. It was as brilliant an offensive strategy against this version of the Patriots’ defense that you’re ever going to see. That’s part of what had Belichick so chatty after the game.

Of course, the Packers’ execution of the game plan, led by the spectacular (after the first two erratic drives) Rodgers, was top notch. If anyone had any doubts going intothis season or this game that Rodgers is the best quarterback—if not outright offensive weapon—in the league, then this game should have settled it for you. Rodgers is the best. Period. Has been for a while. That’s also why Belichick sought him out for a few words after the game by walking back across the field; another gesture that’s rare and only reserved for the best.

Here’s the thing about that, and about Favre’s 2007 season when he would have been MVP if it wasn’t for Brady’s records and 16-0 regular season: Neither Rodgers’ ascension or the final act of Favre’s career happens without McCarthy. Favre was reckless in ’05 and ’06 (McCarthy’s first season), with 38 touchdowns against 47 interceptions. He looked like his career was slipping away. The ’06 season was certainly rocky for Favre and McCarthy, who was brought in to bring stability to the team and discipline to Favre. The team was undermanned and Favre wasn’t a happy camper as McCarthy’s refused to let him do whatever he wanted.

It all paid off in ’07, as Favre was in command and executing at a high level as he took the Packers to the NFC Championship Game. That probably doesn’t happen without McCarthy.

Then there’s Rodgers. For all his current greatness, people tend to forget that Rodgers was a completely different style of quarterback when he entered the league in 2005. Rodgers carried the ball high and operated like an athletic robot under Jeff Tedford at Cal (Tedford’s quarterbacks consistently failed in the NFL). But thanks to McCarthy’s legendary offseason quarterbacks school, Rodgers was completely reprogrammed into the perfect weapon you see annihilating opponents today. Many think Rodgers walked into the NFL like this. Even though Rodgers deserves all the accolades that have and will come his way, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

The Packers have established themselves as the Super Bowl favorite. McCarthy, with a career winning percentage of .655 (91-48-1), is now second among active coaches who have coached more than four years and 15th all-time, just behind Belichick (.658, 208-108-0). McCarthy has a Super Bowl ring.