Packers Lose to Giants: Three Reasons for Concern
GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers led the New York Giants 17-3 on Sunday in London. Leading by two touchdowns, with the fans giving it the vibe of a home game and with the Giants listing seven starters on their inactives list, it should have been a massacre.
And it was. Just the other direction. For the next two-and-a-half quarters, the Packers were outscored 20-0 and lost 27-22. From MVP quarterback to wunderkind coach to overrated defense, it was an embarrassing performance from a team that’s supposed to contend for a championship.
Here are three reasons for concern.
Offensive Identity
The transition into the post-Davante Adams era has been painful.
Four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers is one of the greatest to ever do it. The Packers have won a lot of games over the years because Rodgers is just so much better than the opposing quarterback. That’s not the case now. That’s not a knock on Rodgers so much as it’s the state of a passing game that everyone has acknowledged would be a work in progress.
Here’s the thing. It’s as if Rodgers and coach Matt LaFleur are straddling two realities. In 2020 and 2021, they destroyed one defense after another through a superior passing attack. Adams rolled out of bed being wide open. His presence created easy completions through either his greatness or because he attracted so many eyeballs in the secondary.
The Packers are operating like it’s 2021, but trading Adams changed the landscape and required a new offensive approach in 2022. Running back Aaron Jones is the No. 1 playmaker. Fellow running back AJ Dillon might be the second-best playmaker. And yet against the Giants, the Packers attempted 41 passes compared to 20 running plays. This was a game in which they led or were tied for 54 minutes, so it wasn’t as if they were in must-pass mode.
Sure, the Giants stacked the box. Jones, who leads all NFL running backs by a significant margin in yards per carry, averaged 4.8 yards vs. the Giants. Dillon averaged 5.7. Of their 19 carries, their worst run was for 2 yards. Running the football, then creating passing windows through the play-action game, is what this offense does best.
Is it LaFleur’s fault for calling too many passes? Is it Rodgers’ fault for changing too many runs to passes? Frankly, it’s irrelevant. Whatever the reason, it’s past time for LaFleur and Rodgers to stop saying Jones and Dillon are among the offense’s “best 11” and to start operating as such.
Disappearance of Deep Passing Game
To be sure, more Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon are needed. At some point, though, the Packers are going to need to show they can hit on some deep shots in the passing game. Otherwise, it’s going to be really hard to function on offense with nothing but handoffs and receiver screens.
Aaron Rodgers went 0-for-5 on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. He underthrew Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb. He was nowhere close to Romeo Doubs. He just didn’t throw it to Doubs on the opening series.
“We’re just not quite on the same page at times,” Rodgers said. He paused, contemplating his next words before choosing to kick the can down the road a few days. “I don’t know. We’ve got to go back and look at it. I don’t want to make a blanket statement right now — definitely not an emotional blanket statement – so I’ll just withhold that and maybe talk about it Wednesday.”
For the season, Rodgers is 6-of-22 on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. That’s 27.3 percent. Of 30 quarterbacks with at least 10 deep attempts, that ranks 26th, according to Pro Football Focus. Even Marcus Mariota, Joe Flacco, Justin Fields and Mitchell Trubisky have been better from a percentage standpoint.
With Christian Watson out with a hamstring injury (again), it will be up to Rodgers to be better to prevent defenses from suffocating this offense like a boa constrictor.
Joe Barry’s Defensive Plan
From a personnel perspective, Green Bay’s defense doesn’t have a weak link. Powered by Kenny Clark, the defensive line is deep and strong. Rashan Gary is a stud at outside linebacker and Preston Smith plays a strong second fiddle. At inside linebacker, De’Vondre Campbell is coming off an All-Pro season and Quay Walker is the potential-packed first-round pick. At cornerback, Jaire Alexander was an All-Pro in 2020, Rasul Douglas had five interceptions in 2021 and has been compared to Charles Woodson, and Eric Stokes had a strong rookie season. Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage are in their fourth season together at safety.
And yet, the Giants scored 27 points in a span of five possessions to win the game. The Giants are no offensive juggernaut. Running back Saquon Barkley is a stud but quarterback Daniel Jones, the No. 6 pick of the 2019 draft, has been deemed a bust and was playing hurt, and arguably his top three receivers were out due to injuries.
Darius Slayton, who had one catch the first four weeks, caught 6-of-7 targets for 79 yards and drew a couple defensive holding penalties. Green Bay’s third-down defense, which entered the game ranked No. 1 in the league, gave up 6-of-11. With Barkley out with a shoulder injury, the Giants drove 91 yards for the tying touchdown.
How much of this is on defensive coordinator Joe Barry’s plan vs. how much of it is on the execution of the plan? That’s impossible to say without having a seat in the film room. That being said, not having Jaire Alexander take on the No. 1 receiver – the rocket-fast Slayton in this case – reflects poorly on Barry’s plan. The constant inability defend crossing routes reflects poorly on Barry’s adjustments. Having Alexander aligned 10 yards off practice-squad receiver Collin Johnson on second-and-19 to essentially hand the Giants a field goal reflects poorly on Barry’s approach.
All that being said, at some point, somebody has to step up and make a play. In the big moments, it’s past time for somebody from this hyped unit to make a third-down stop, key sack or field-flipping turnover.
Time is running out. To put it in college terms, the nonconference slate is almost over and the SEC schedule is coming up. If Jones can hang 27 on Barry’s unit, what on earth is Josh Allen and Buffalo going to do in a few weeks?
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