Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
Clark, Gary had fine line play against Rams
Green Bay — For all the film study and analytics that go into game-planning and play-calling in today’s NFL, it can still be a simple game. For instance, if you win at the line of scrimmage, you’ll probably win the game.
That proved true in Week 12 in the Green Bay Packers’ 36-28 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
As big a reason as any for the Packers’ win was their front four consistently besting the Rams’ offensive line over the course of 60 minutes.
Defensive coordinator Joe Barry played mostly his nickel and dime defenses, so in this case the Packers’ front consisted of two defensive linemen and two outside linebackers. Many players were involved in the rotation — among them Preston Smith on the outside and Kingsley Keke inside — but the two who stood out most were Kenny Clark and Rashan Gary.
Clark was the most dominant player on the field, even more of a factor than the Rams’ great defensive tackle, Aaron Donald. Clark certainly put up good numbers: six tackles, including one for a loss, plus a sack and two quarterback hits. But that hardly measures the impact he had on this game.
Clark regularly played on the Rams’ side of the line of scrimmage and created disruptive push more often than not. Most of those good plays didn’t show up on his stat sheet, but it allowed other players to make plays that showed up on theirs.
No sequence illustrated that more than the Packers’ big back-to-back stops on third and fourth down late in the first quarter that helped turn the game their way.
On the first, a third-and-2 from the Rams’ 28, Clark blew through center Brian Allen and got a full 5 yards into the Rams’ backfield on what was designed to be an inside zone run to the left. Clark’s penetration forced running back Darrell Henderson to run around him, so by the time Henderson turned up field, safety Adrian Amos and inside linebacker De’Vondre Campbell had time
and space to get to him before he made the line to gain. They tackled Henderson about a half-yard short.
Then on the next play, fourth-andless-than-1, the Rams tried to run left again. This time they double teamed Clark with Allen and left guard David Edwards. But Clark had a good initial surge, then held his ground for a beat or two while using up two blockers. At the same time Keke squeezed toward him by fighting a double team by right guard Austin Corbett and right tackle Rob Havenstein.
Because of Clark and Keke, there was a gap in the middle of the line that Amos shot through, and the safety took out Henderson’s legs behind the line of scrimmage and stopped him just short of the first down. Amos made the tackle, and it was a good one. But Clark and Keke made it possible.
In the meantime, Gary is blossoming as a power player on the outside. After missing last week’s game at Minnesota because of a hyperextended elbow, he returned to play a little more than half the game (33 snaps, 53%) and caused all sorts of problems for Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth, an old (40) and declining player who nevertheless uses his hands well and still moves his feet OK.
Gary set the tone early and had one of the biggest plays of the game with his first-quarter strip sack of Matthew Stafford deep in Rams territory. Gary beat Whitworth with a strong rip move to the outside and even while Whitworth was tackling him took down Stafford. Smith recovered the fumble, which set up the Packers’ first touchdown.
After that Rams coach Sean McVay regularly gave Whitworth help when Gary was in the game by chipping a tight end or running back, or sending Edwards over for a late double team. That’s what happens when a defense controls the line of scrimmage; it forces the offense to spend extra resources protecting the quarterback.
The Packers held Henderson to a long gain of only 7 yards, and Henderson and Sony Michel to a combined 69 yards on 16 carries (3.6-yard average). That’s a good day’s work and another sign Clark, Gary, Keke and the rest of the Packers’ defensive front won the day.
Third man up
Yosh Nijman is developing into a viable NFL offensive lineman right before our eyes.
The former undrafted rookie spent his first year (2019) on the Packers’ practice squad and last year on their roster, though he received only garbage-time snaps. Now in his third season he has been pressed into the lineup at the offensive line’s toughest position, left tackle, and held his own.
As the Packers’ No. 3 left tackle, Nijman started Sunday in place of David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins, who were out with injuries. And in his fourth start of the season — he had three starts earlier in the year — had his best game.
Nijman was most often matched against Von Miller, the Rams’ latest bigname acquisition and a three-time firstteam All-Pro. The 32-year-old Miller played most of the game (61 snaps, 74%) but didn’t make a big impact: five tackles, including one for a loss, and a lone quarterback hit.
The Packers did some things to help Nijman. They used their quick-passing game more than they had most of the season, so Nijman and the rest of the line didn’t have to protect for extended times very often. But they didn’t help Nijman with chips and double teams as much as they had in his first three starts.
Miller got good push on Nijman a couple of times and beat him badly to drop Aaron Jones for a 4-yard loss in the third quarter. But down-in, down-out, Nijman held steady.