Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
STUDS AND DUDS
Cornerback Jaire Alexander has mostly solid performance
The Green Bay Packers are 2-0 after taking down the Minnesota Vikings at Lambeau Field on Sunday, using a fast start on offense and a strong finish by the defense to produce the Week 2 victory.
Here are the studs and duds from the Packers’ 21-16 win:
STUDS
CB Jaire Alexander: He lost the deep ball touchdown to Stefon Diggs in the sun and also lost out at the catch point on an impressive third-down catch by Adam Thielen, but Alexander was otherwise fantastic. He broke up or disrupted at least five different passing plays and was close to perfect in man coverage. On one play in the first half, he jumped the slant inside, broke off coverage into the flat in a flash and knocked the ball out on a pass attempt underneath. Later, he smothered Thielen in man coverage on back-to-back passes, forcing a punt in the fourth quarter. With a little better luck (or hands), he would have had at least two interceptions. Another alpha performance.
RB Aaron Jones: He slashed and dashed through the Vikings’ rock-solid front seven on his way to 116 rushing yards and a score. His run efficiency – measured by the number of runs gaining four or more yards, a first down or a touchdown – was 65 percent, a fantastic number. He also caught four passes for 34 yards and likely would have created a huge play (and maybe even a long touchdown) in the second half had Aaron Rodgers delivered a better ball on a wheel route down the sideline. He was behind the coverage. On the final drive, he carried four times for 21 yards, which melted most of the remaining clock. His 27 total touches were a career-high.
DL Kenny Clark: Poor Garrett Bradbury. The Vikings rookie center is experiencing a baptism of fire. First Grady Jarrett, now Clark. Both manhandled him. Clark tallied seven pressures on Sunday, per Pro Football Focus. He makes it look really easy sometimes. In the first half, he shed the reach block attempt of Bradbury and stuffed Dalvin Cook for no gain. His biggest play was a strip-sack that saw him leave Bradbury and a few other interior offensive linemen on the ground behind him as he closed down Kirk Cousins in the pocket and took away the football. In the second half, he drew a pair of holding penalties on Bradbury, killing two drives.
OLB Preston Smith: His interception was a right-place, right-time situation, but Smith’s versatility as an edge defender for Mike Pettine jumped off the tape Sunday. He’s so comfortable dropping and playing in space, and he’s a smart player who understands how offenses want to manipulate the edge. Several times, Smith recognized the play-action boot and either closed down Cousins or took away the first read in the flat. He helped collapse pockets as a rusher, too. On one noteworthy thirddown play in the second half, Smith beat a block and hustled to the ball to stop Dalvin Cook along the sideline before he got to the sticks, forcing a punt. He’s been impressive through two games.
DL Dean Lowry: The fourth-year defensive lineman quietly had a nice afternoon. He recovered an early fumble, stopped Cook for a loss on the first play of the second half and both pressured Cousins on a bootleg and broke up the pass. He was also right in Cousins’ face when he tossed the end-zone interception to Kevin King in the fourth quarter.
RT Bryan Bulaga: It’s amazing how consistently good Bulaga is when he’s healthy. Left tackle David Bakhtiari has an aching back and struggled at times anchoring against Everson Griffen, but Bulaga was terrific on the other side against Danielle Hunter. He’s opened the 2019 season with two great performances against top pass-rushers.
WR Davante Adams: He got the Packers on the move with a beautifully crafted route on the first play of the game. The catch gained 39. Four of his catches picked up first downs on third down, including a 21-yarder against the coverage of Jayron Kearse, and he drew a 25-yard pass interference penalty on Xavier Rhodes on a play that otherwise might’ve resulted in a touchdown. His 7yard catch following the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter all but sealed the victory. For much of the game, Rhodes couldn’t handle him in one-on-one coverage. His day would have been spectacular had he held onto a deep ball along the sideline, but Harrison Smith knocked it out at the last second.
DUDS
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling: He ran a nice slant against Trae Waynes to convert an early third down but failed to capitalize on opportunities down the stretch. Twice, he failed to come down with contested-catch chances down the field, including a big one on the first play of the fourth quarter. Admittedly, they were tough catches. He also missed a block in front of Geronimo Allison on a third-and-short, got stopped short of the sticks on another third down and got roped down by Harrison Smith for a 3yard loss after attempting to reverse field on a quick throw. His six targets netted 19 total yards.
TE Jimmy Graham: The veteran tight end played 54 snaps but wasn’t targeted in the passing game and had another rocky game in the blocking department. He got beat clean by Danielle Hunter for a sack in the second half, but that’s not a matchup he’s ever going to win.
PR Trevor Davis: He allowed himself to get clobbered on a punt return by not calling a fair catch and later danced around indecisively on a short return. He was almost called for punt interference penalty as a gunner but got bailed out when officials determined he was blocked into the play. It could have been called.
LB B.J. Goodson: He did come crashing down and help Kenny Clark produce a strip-sack of Kirk Cousins in the first half, but the Packers new inside linebacker didn’t hold up well against the run. He’s new in the defense, and teammates were motioning him all around during the pre-snap phase of some plays, so maybe it’d be fair to cut him some slack. The Packers need him more consistent against the run.