(Reuters) - Aaron Rodgers had to stay patient as Green Bay struggled to get going against Atlanta in the NFL on Sunday but the quarterback finally broke free of the Falcons' pass rush to lead the Packers to a 25-14 victory that maintained their perfect start to the season.
Rodgers finished with 396 yards through the air and a pair of second-half touchdowns as Super Bowl champions Green Bay moved to 5-0 on the season and stretched their winning streak to 11 games dating back to last December.
"We just stayed patient. We knew the big plays were going to come," Rodgers told reporters. "It was a tough game, I took a lot of shots and had to move around a little bit.
"I'm really proud of our guys."
Green Bay's streak had looked in danger during the first half where Atlanta took the wind out of their high-octane offense with two time-consuming drives that gave the Falcons a 14-0 lead.
Despite losing starting offensive tackle Chad Clifton to a hamstring injury in the second quarter that allowed the Atlanta defense to pressure Rodgers, the Packers reduced the deficit to 14-9 with 5:33 left in the third thanks to three Mason Crosby field goals.
Rodgers then found his touch with a 70-yard touchdown pass to James Jones about two minutes later, putting the Packers up 15-14, and then a 29-yard scoring pass to Greg Jennings at the start of the fourth.
Green Bay iced the game with Crosby's fourth field goal of the night with just over a minute left
Rodgers spread the ball around during the win and finished the game having completed passes to 12 different receivers
Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan threw interceptions on his team's final two possessions as he tried to lead the Falcons back and the home team sputtered after a promising start to fall to 2-3 on the season.
Roddy White caught a first-quarter touchdown and Michael Turner ran for a score and finished with 56 yards on the ground to help Atlanta dominate early.
"Atlanta played extremely well to start the game," said Packers coach Mike McCarthy. "You have to give them credit."
The Falcons ended with 251 yards of total offense while their defense sacked Rodgers four times.
(Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter Rutherford/John O'Brien)
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