Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
LaFleur designs another game-winning plan
Green Bay — Two teams, both with key players hurting on offense, one of them 3-0 and the other 0-3, met Monday night at Lambeau Field. Guess which one came out on top? The Green Bay Packers improved to 4-0 because they are a better team than the Atlanta Falcons, but the way in which they made up for the absence of starting wide receivers Davante Adams (hamstring) and Allen Lazard (core muscle surgery) was the difference in sending Atlanta out of the stadium at 0-4.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur and his offensive staff built a game plan around Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams and let it flow off the two multi-talented running backs, never missing Adams or Lazard on the way to a 30-point, 403-yard day.
LaFleur’s team became the first in Packers history to score 30 or more points in the first four games of the season and topped that off by going a fourth straight game without a turnover. They did it against a team that planned to shut down their run game and bring the heat on Rodgers.
So, LaFleur spread the Falcons out and made them decide how they could defend Jones and Williams on the field together and sometimes together with receiver / running back Tyler Ervin.
“We had three halfbacks on the field at one time, did a lot of stuff with Jamaal and Aaron on the field and moving them out to receiver positions from running plays,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said after the 30-16 victory. “There were some different things we had to do without ‘17’ (Adams) that I’m really proud of the way the guys picked up the stuff and made plays when they had opportunities.”
Rodgers, who completed 27 of 33 passes for 327 yards and four touchdowns (147.5 rating), set season highs for completion percentage (81.8) and yards per attempt (9.9) despite aiming just 14 of his throws to four receivers.
He completed every pass he threw to Williams, Jones and tight end Robert Tonyan, who combined for 19 receptions for 233 yards and all four touchdowns. His leading wide receiver was Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who caught just four passes for 45 yards.
Compare that to what the Falcons attempted to do with receivers Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley, both of whom were slowed with injuries, and it’s night and day.
Jones (hamstring) probably shouldn’t have played and was ineffective on some of the catch-and-run throws offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter set up for him. He exited at halftime with four catches for 32 yards.
Ridley (ankle) was healthier, but the game plan was strictly to get the ball to him deep. Quarterback Matt Ryan kept trying to throw to Ridley, but the Packers were not going to allow anything to get over their heads and had him covered tightly.
He did not catch a pass.
The Falcons had some long drives that kept the Packers defense on the field, but they did nothing to stretch them out, chip away at their backup inside linebackers or take advantage of slot corner Chandon Sullivan leaving the game in the first half with a concussion.
The Packers went into the week needing an alternative to Adams and Lazard and found it in Williams and Tonyan.
“It would have been a bonus to get Davante, and he wanted to play,” Rodgers said. ”But I think we wanted to go in that direction (Tonyan and the backs). Without ‘Big Dog’ (tight end Marcedes Lewis, who was out with a knee injury) to be our on-the-ball ‘Y’ does change some of the things we can do.
“So, we ran a lot of fly motions and had some really good wrinkles off that. And some other things where we’re just in ‘21’ with two halfbacks and letting Jamaal and Aaron Jones play receiver. Between them they had a bunch of catches and a bunch of yards. Between those two guys and Robert, that was a pretty complete game by those guys.”
The run game was average — Jones led the way with 71 yards on 15 carries — but that was OK because Atlanta’s obsession with making sure Jones didn’t beat them opened doors for Williams and Tonyan.
LaFleur even brought in tackle Rick Wagner as a replacement for Lewis and ran the ball when he needed to.
“We just had a feeling that they might challenge us knowing that we could potentially be missing our top two wide receivers and that they might bring a lot of pressure — which I think they did,” LaFleur said.
Putting Jones and Williams in the game together put the Falcons in a position of choosing how they were going to defend that personnel. Whatever they came out in, LaFleur was ready to either beat them using his backs or taking advantage of matchups Tonyan received.
“It makes them have a decision because the versatility of like we saw tonight, Jamaal not only ran the ball, but he caught eight passes for 95,” Rodgers said. “He played fullback. He ledblocked a few plays. He just can do so much for us.
“And obviously Aaron, we’ve seen that over the last few years, his versatility. So, it really puts them in a decision whether they want to go nickel or stay in base.”
Anytime the Falcons were in their base defense, it meant they might have to cover Tonyan man-to-man with a linebacker or safety. Both of Atlanta’s starting safeties were inactive because of injuries, so Tonyan was able to stress them down the field.
On two of his touchdown catches blown coverages left him wide open and on the other he blew past linebacker Foyesade Oluokun for a 19-yard score.
Going 4-0 and ranking No. 2 in the NFL in total yards reflects how hot the LaFleur offense has been in the opening quarter of the season. Two of those games came with Adams on the sideline and another came with him playing a little over a half.
The offense has scored 143 points with Adams catching just 17 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns. He ranks tied for 36th in receptions, 49th in receiving yards and tied for 16th in receiving touchdowns, yet the Packers are one of six teams without a loss this season.
The way LaFleur and his coaching staff constructed a game plan knowing they would be short-handed Monday night is why they are in such a lofty position. All they have to do now is figure out how they can be better when Adams returns after the bye.