Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
Douglas, Rodgers are stars of the show
The Green Bay Packers are 9-3 and flying into the bye week after beating the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday at Lambeau Field. Matt LaFleur’s team held leads of 10 points twice in the first half and eventually went up 19 points in the second half before holding on for the 36-28 victory.
Here are the stars, studs and duds from the Packers’ big win over the Rams in Week 12:
STARS
CB Rasul Douglas: He gave up the 54-yard touchdown pass to Odell Beckham Jr. after biting on a double move, but his performance overall was exemplary. Matthew Stafford challenged him time and time again but he was up to the task. Twice, he made a terrific play on the ball in the air while in the hip pocket of the receiver covering deep in-breaking routes. The interception return for a score highlighted his instincts and physical ability at the catch point. He’s terrific when he can break on the ball in front of him. The dropped interception was a gift from Stafford, and it ended up being a seven-point mistake, but it happens for defensive backs. Douglas got his hands on the football four times and forced seven incompletions into his coverage overall.
QB Aaron Rodgers: His passer rating finished at 97.1, but don’t let that number fool you. This was one of his best games of the 2021 season, especially considering the circumstances. Playing behind a makeshift offensive line, Rodgers completed 28 passes for 307 yards, tossed two touchdown passes and ran for a third. One could easily argue that his receivers let him down on a few excellent throws. He threw pinpoint passes to create big plays to Davante Adams (43 yards), Randall Cobb (54) and Marquez Valdes-Scantling (28). Most impressively, he took just one sack – resulting in zero yards lost – and was consistently good under pressure. The Packers enjoyed a significant advantage at the quarterback position on Sunday.
STUDS
WR Randall Cobb: His first half was ridiculously productive. He caught four passes for 95 yards, including a 54-yard catch-and-run and a 7-yard touchdown. Rodgers trusts him completely, making him more willing to throw passes into tight windows. On both the 54-yarder and the touchdown, Cobb created just enough separation for Rodgers to make the throw. He also made a 27-yard play out of nothing on a throw to the flat. He did muff a punt return, and later left the game with a groin injury suffered on the touchdown catch.
WR Davante Adams: Only Adams could quietly catch eight passes for 104 yards. Three of his catches converted on third down, including a 43-yarder on a slot fade that set up a touchdown. When covered by Jalen Ramsey, Adams caught all five passes and created three first downs.
LB Krys Barnes: He made four tackles within three yards of the line of scrimmage, broke up a pass in coverage and recovered the fumble on a punt return. His best play came on a screen early in the first quarter. He worked
through a block attempt and dumped the running back with an impressive tackle after a short gain, saving a huge play. His work covering the middle of the field was arguably his best of the 2021 season.
RB AJ Dillon: His biggest gain as a runner and receiver was just eight yards, but he earned every inch of his 90 total yards on Sunday. He rushed for four first downs, including a pair of short-yardage conversions, and he caught all five targets in the passing game. On a few touches, he dragged a defender for two or three extra yards. Troy Reeder had no chance of tackling him on his 5-yard touchdown catch. Later, he made an impressive jump cut and then trucked over Taylor Rapp in the fourth quarter.
OLB Rashan Gary: His 23 pass-rushing snaps produced a strip-sack, two QB hits and two penalties on left tackle Andrew Whitworth. On the sack, Gary won his speed to Whitworth’s outside shoulder, dipped around the corner and smacked the ball away from Stafford. Later, Whitworth had to get two arms around him and hold to prevent another sack. The elbow injury and brace didn’t prevent him from being a physical player at the point of attack.
WR Equanimeous St. Brown: His one catch created a big third-down conversion in the second half. On special teams, he was a menace. He had three tackles (including one negated by penalty on a 0-yard punt return), and he also downed Corey Bojorquez’s 61-yard punt at the 1-yard line.
DL Kenny Clark: He made two incredible plays. On the first, he beat a double team at the point of attack and closed down the ball-carrier in a flash, creating a tackle for no gain. Later, he ended a drive by winning his one-onone pass-rushing opportunity and sacking Stafford in the pocket for an 8-yard loss, forcing a punt. He also stuffed Darrell Henderson for no gain on the final defensive play, forcing a field goal.
CB Eric Stokes: He might have landed in the “stars” category had he completed a likely pick-six in the fourth quarter. Still, Stafford threw nine passes into his coverage and found only three completions for 20 yards. None of the three catches created first downs. He also tackled well.
DUDS
WR Allen Lazard: His inability to make contested catches is becoming a worrying trend. He had a chance to create a big play down the field on 3rdand-11 but couldn’t finish against single coverage. Later, Aaron Rodgers threw him a good ball into traffic in the end zone, but he couldn’t make the play. His six targets resulted in just 13 yards. The drops need to get cleaned up.
CB Chandon Sullivan: His coverage was decent on Van Jefferson’s 79-yard touchdown, but he was late to find the ball in the air and then tripped as the ball arrived, allowing Jefferson to make the catch and stroll into the end zone. Later, Cooper Kupp beat him from the slot for a 19-yard catch.
C Lucas Patrick: The interior of the offensive line had issues. Patrick got pushed around in the run game, and he was at least partially responsible for three or four pressures. He also committed two penalties.