Notes: Dom Capers is turning to prevent defense late in games to help strained secondary.
Capers relies on prevent defense late
Green Bay — In the past two weeks, the Green Bay Packers have allowed 29 points in the fourth quarter.
They entered the final 15 minutes against the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings leading by 17 and 15 points, respectively. Both games were victories. Regardless, the fourth quarter left bad last impressions.
“Obviously, we’d like to finish,” Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers said. If the Packers punch their ticket to the playoffs this weekend, fourthquarter defense will be key to how long they extend their postseason run. But it’s a dangerous line to straddle.
The Packers’ secondary has been prone to allowing big pass plays. Vikings quarterback Sam
Bradford completed four passes of at least 20 yards in the first half Saturday, including a 71-yard touchdown to Adam Thielen in the second quarter. Safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix took a bad angle on the play, colliding with cornerback Quinten Rollins on the right sideline. The Packers led, 21-6, at the time. They were in complete control, until one play pulled the Vikings within one possession on the scoreboard.
A 71-yard touchdown in the second quarter is bad enough. In the fourth quarter, the Packers can’t afford to allow quickstrike touchdowns while sitting on a big lead. Which is why Capers dials back the blitz and demands his defensive backs not get beat deep.
“They’d hit us on some pressure calls,” Capers said. “They had thrown the ball up, the 71-yarder was a pressure call. They hit us on a fade on a pressure call.
“You get to that point in the game, you don’t want them to go one play and then they’ve got plenty more time. They ended up scoring on both of them (final two drives), and one of them was a blitz down in the red zone that they hit us on.”
After allowing four 20yard pass plays in the first half, the Packers gave up just one on their final two defensive series. Both Vikings drives ended with fourth-quarter touchdowns, which isn’t the plan. The best prevent defense prevents points.
But the Vikings were forced to use 13 plays on their first touchdown drive of the fourth quarter, then 10 on the next despite getting possession at the Packers’ 34-yard line. Combined, the two drives ate up seven minutes, 49 seconds. The Vikings needed to convert three fourth downs on their two touchdown drives, including a fourth and 12.
When asked about his pass defense Monday, Capers said the biggest problem is the amount of big plays the Packers allow.
“The big plays is what we have to eliminate,” Capers said. “Their only touchdown in the first half came on a big play. They had three or four pass plays. I think 32 (yards), 71 (yards) and we had a couple 20-yarders. That’s where people score points on you.” Cobb targets Lions:
It’s uncertain whether Packers receiver Randall
Cobb’s sprained ankle can heal by Sunday, but giving it more time to recover was a big reason he was inactive against the Vikings.
Cobb tried to play through the injury Dec. 18 at Chicago but acknowledged he “obviously” was limited. He had no catches and was targeted only once against the Bears despite playing 51 snaps (84%).
“It was just really the fact of just having to tell him no,” Packers coach
Mike McCarthy said. “… I think we took a leap there in Chicago, because Randall’s not going to come out of the game. Let’s be honest, you’re going to have to chain him down to keep him off the 46. But hopefully we can get him ready for Detroit.”
Cobb wouldn’t discuss how his ankle feels, saying only that each day he’s trying to figure out what he can and can’t do on it.
He wanted to play Saturday against the Vikings. After playing each game the past two years, it was the second game he missed this season. Ultimately, he said, the chance to be healthy for the Packers’ winner-take-all NFC North title game Sunday in Detroit was a key selling point.
“That’s what we’re hoping for,” Cobb said. “That was one of the reasons that I was inactive
this past week. We’re hoping for progress through the week and be able to go on Sunday.” Return-game twist:
When Packers running back Christine Michael trotted onto the field to receive the opening kickoff Saturday, it had been a while since football coaches at any level asked him to perform such a task. A long while. Michael, whom general manager Ted Thompson claimed on waivers earlier this season, returned three kickoffs for 64 yards against the Vikings. They were the first kickoff returns of his professional career spanning four years and three teams.
“I liked it,” special teams coordinator Ron
Zook said Monday. “Coach (McCarthy) and I talked a little bit last week and you love his energy, he’s sudden; there’s a lot of things you miss that you do in camp . ... He’s excited.”
One year after making significant strides in the return game — remember the emergence of Jeff
Janis? — the Packers are in desperate need of invigoration. Through 15 games, they rank 26th in the league in yards per return (19.7) and their long of 40 yards ranks 24th.
The Packers tabbed Michael and wide receiver Janis as their two primary returners against the Vikings, though Michael did the bulk of the work. He fielded the opening kickoff a yard deep in the end zone and bolted up the middle some 30 yards. His other returns measured 22 yards and 18 yards, respectively.
A second-round pick by the Seattle Seahawks in 2013, Michael never had returned a kick or punt in the NFL prior to Saturday. His last attempt came on Oct. 30, 2010, as a sophomore at Texas A&M, and picked up 16 yards.
That runback was one of 10 kicks Michael returned during his fouryear career with the Aggies. However, nine of them took place during his freshman season when Michael averaged 22.3 yards per return. That was seven years ago.
“To me, the biggest thing for a returner is they want to do it,” Zook said. “He’s a sudden-change guy. We talked about a few things that we were trying to get accomplished, and he knew exactly where I was coming from. I liked that.”