I’m starting to think the Green Bay Packers may have a problem. After facing off against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football and losing a 10-7 snoozefest, the Packers are now 5-3-1 and 3rd place in the NFC North behind the Detroit Lions and, wait for it: the Chicago Bears. With injuries abound in the pass-catching room, the Packers offense already had a tall task ahead of them. With some questionable play calling thrown into the mix, this was one awful offensive performance for Green Bay,
as they went on to lose their second straight home game for the first time since 2018. Let’s dive into the horrors (and the good stuff! There was good stuff!)
Winner: Edgerrin Cooper
The Packers standout LB continues to impress this season, and last night was no exception. He forced a rare Eagles turnover (only their 4th of the season) when he punched the ball out of QB Jalen Hurts’ arms, just as it looked like their offense was about to make their way into the endzone. With the Packers offense not able to do…anything, strong defensive play from guys like Cooper kept them in it until the game’s final moments. The LB finished the game with 6 total tackles.
Winner: Quay Walker
It warms my heart to say that Quay Walker has been having a phenomenal season so far. After a few emotional outbursts in his first couple of years with the team, and some pretty egregious mental mistakes and maturity issues, Walker has taken a huge step forward and become an absolutely integral part of the Packers defense. His run defense last night played a huge part in keeping the Packers alive, and the Eagles had just 111 total rushing yards. This is exactly what the Packers envisioned when they drafted Walker in 2022, and it should be no surprise to anyone when it’s announced that the Packers have inked him to a new deal. Walker finished the night with 6 total tackles (5 solo), including 2 for a loss.
Winner: Dontayvion Wicks
The Packers lost TE Tucker Kraft last week to a torn ACL, and were also missing rookie WR Matthew Golden last night due to a shoulder injury. Jayden Reed still isn’t back from his broken collarbone, and Savion Williams has been dealing with a foot injury. The pass-catching room is so depleted that Bo Melton went back to WR last night. I wasn’t optimistic that Dontayvion Wicks, who’s been battling a nasty calf injury for several weeks, would contribute much to the offense. How glad I am to be proven wrong!
Wicks felt like the most reliable receiver on the field last night, despite a stat line of 4/8 for 38 yards. Of the four no-catches, just one of them seemed like a “you’ve gotta grab that one” play, and I think even that pass was a bit questionable. Wicks’ route running was outstanding last night, and we saw flashes of what he can do if given more of an opportunity. When the Packers needed critical yardage, Wicks was there to get it for them. The Packers missed Wicks greatly, and last night was a great “welcome back” moment for him.
Loser: Matt LaFleur
I’ve had some time to think about last night’s game, and all I can say at this point is ARHGAKSWEUGFHLKSJELF;SEHWKGIUJK. Last night was full of inconsistent play-calling from the Packers’ HC, and it fully contributed to their loss. There were punts on 4th down when I felt the team could’ve gone for it, and then there was the decision to go for it on 4th and 9 when a 59-yard FG attempt was on the table. I’m not even mad at the play which was called at this moment, because the throw from Love was good; Bo Melton just wasn’t able to execute.
My frustration also comes from the fact that there is a fully-healthy kicker on the active roster who may not have been able to make a 59-yarder, but who absolutely would’ve given the Packers a better shot than Brandon McManus, who everyone has publicly admitted is playing with an injured leg. We’ve heard for weeks now that McManus is “getting there”, so my question is: if he’s “not there yet”, why is he playing? This may start with ST coordinator Rich Bisaccia, but a Rich Bisaccia problem is ultimately a Matt LaFleur problem. If you are making decisions like going for it on 4th and 9 and throwing to a WR-turned-DB instead of attempting a difficult-but-doable FG, maybe you should be playing the kicker who’s essentially wasting a roster spot at this point.
I’ve also had it with LaFleur calling plays that make it seem like he doesn’t trust his QB. Jordan Love is good! We’ve seen him at his best! Depleted receiving room be damned, Love is able to make it happen. We’ll talk in just a moment about why things may not be as aggressive as we want on offense, but Matt LaFleur needs to be a bit more inspiring with calling plays for his $55 million a year QB, or the offense is going to continue on their downhill path.
Loser: Offensive Line
Monday night’s game was just the fifth game all season where the Packers had all 5 preferred offensive linemen, and they still blew it. Jordan Love was running for his life at points in the game, and was sacked three times when he wasn’t throwing the ball away. C Elgton Jenkins was lost to a broken leg last night, so some more shuffling may be in the OL’s cards. Matt LaFleur, Adam Stenavich, and Luke Butkus absolutely need to figure out a solution here, because what they’re doing right now isn’t working.
There were runs that went nowhere, or even backwards. The pocket collapsed quickly, causing Love to attempt some risky moves on his feet. Overall, just absolutely detrimental play from the Packers’ very expensive yet underwhelming offensive line.
On Sunday at noon CST, the Packers are paying a visit to the 2-8 New York Giants, who just fired their HC Brian Daboll, and who may be down their starting QB Jaxson Dart due to a concussion sustained this weekend. In other words, get ready for another fight to the death.
