Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
LaFleur fuming after defense gets burned
A quick recap of the Green Bay Packers’ 37-30 loss Sunday at the Detroit Lions:
Big picture
All week leading up to this meaningless regular-season finale, Packers coach Matt LaFleur was peppered with questions about how much playing time his key starters would receive. Rest vs. rust turned out to be a draw, with Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams playing nearly the entire first half and other starters also seeing reduced playing time. LaFleur said the decision on Rodgers was a “collaborative” effort with his quarterback. Rodgers stayed sharp, throwing two TD passes, and the Packers seemed to avoid suffering any major injuries.
Turning point
The Packers trailed 14-13 (due to a Mason Crosby missed extra point) when Rodgers was pulled, and although backup Jordan Love had his moments, it was a different Green Bay team in the second half and the Lions took advantage. LaFleur made clear his unhappiness with the defense getting fooled on a couple of explosive trick plays. One was a flea-flicker TD pass on Detroit’s first second-half possession that extended the Lions’ lead to 24-13. The Packers rallied to take a 30-27 fourthquarter lead, but the Lions answered with a six-play, 75-yard drive for a 34-30 advantage with just under two minutes left, and two Love interceptions sealed it.
Game ball
Josiah Deguara made the play of the day for the Packers. The second-year tight end helped burnish Love’s stats by taking a short screen page and rumbling 62 yards for the fourth-quarter touchdown that, combined with Love’s 2-point conversion run, put the Packers ahead 30-27.
5 Takeaways
1. Linemen back in starting lineup
Josh Myers was playing for sure and
David Bakhtiari was a good bet. The question was whether LaFleur would ease them into action or put them in the starting lineup. Myers hadn’t played since injuring his knee in Week 6 and just returned to practice. Bakhtiari hadn’t played a down all year and just returned to practice this past week after two setbacks with his surgically repaired knee. Both started, with Myers playing into the second half and Bakhtiari playing the first 27 snaps before running off the field early in the Packers’ third drive. But all seemed well as he laughed with team medical personnel on the sideline and got a hug from Rodgers. The Packers cited fatigue in his first game back from knee surgery for the sudden exit. LaFleur said they’d see how he looks this week, but Bakhtiari’s arrow is pointing up.
2. Lions dip into bag of tricks instead of relying on run game
Detroit ranked 10th in the NFL in rushing average at 4.46 yards per carry and the Lions liked to spread the carries among running backs and receivers alike. Seven players had a rush of 25 or more yards and nine had a rush of 20 or more. The strength of their run game was their offensive line.
Even with talented center Frank Ragnow on injured reserve, the addition of firstround tackle Penei Sewell, the development of ’20 third-round pick Jonah Jackson and the steadiness of left tackle Taylor Decker had turned the offensive line into a strength. But the Packers’ defense kept the Lions’ ground game in check, with former teammate Jamaal Williams leading the way with just 43 yards on 13 carries. Instead, Detroit coach Dan Campbell reached into his bag of tricks for two exotic pass plays off reverses, both of which went for back-breaking touchdowns.
3. Rookie treatment over for Stokes
When the playoffs roll around, the Packers are hoping to get cornerback Jaire Alexander back. They won’t hesitate to play him, but one thing they don’t want to do is kill the momentum rookie Eric Stokes has built this season. Early in the year, teams threw at him constantly and he took some lumps. But recently teams aren’t going his direction as much, which might explain why Rasul Douglas gets so many interception opportunities. They need Stokes to go into the playoffs with confidence and getting him to cause a turnover or break up a touchdown in a clutch situation would be ideal. Alas, it was a rough day for a Packers pass defense that allowed Lions QB Jared Goff to complete 21 of 30 passes for 238 yards, 2 TDs and no picks. Hard to say without looking at the tape just how much Stokes was to blame for the carnage, but suffice it to say the Packers’ secondary should get a big boost from Alexander’s return.
4. Love remains erratic
Whether it’s after one series or one quarter or one half, Rodgers was coming out of the game. It turned out to be just before halftime. And then it was Love’s turn. Love mopped up against Minnesota last week and looked pretty good doing it, but this was a much better test. He needed to show he can move the team up and down the field and he needed to play with a lot more authority than he did in his only start against Kansas City in midseason. And to some degree he did, guiding the Packers back from a 24-13 deficit to a 30-27 lead capped by his 2-point conversion run. His numbers were decent (10-for-17 for 134 yards and a touchdown), but rather than conjuring up any Rodgers-style two-minute-drill magic, Love had two deflected passes turned into rally-killing interceptions. The Packers don’t know what will happen with Rodgers in the offseason and it would help a lot if they had something more concrete to help them believe in Love. But while he flashes good arm strength and enough potential to tease, he remains too erratic to trust.
5. Valdes-Scantling, Sullivan injured
Going into the game, the only players on the 53-man roster who were declared out were Alexander (shoulder) and defensive end Kingsley Keke (illness). The Packers wisely held out running back Aaron Jones (knee) and inside linebacker De’Vondre Campbell (elbow) and appear to be an extremely healthy team going into the postseason. The most important thing for the team was that it come out of the game clean, but two players sustained injuries that ended their days: Marquez ValdesScantling (back) and Chandon Sullivan (knee). The severity of their injuries and status for the postseason are unknown.