Paul Bretl | 10/31/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Packers defense will face its most difficult test of the season up to this point, having to contain a very explosive Detroit Lions offense. While truly stopping that unit may not be feasible, containing the Lions will have to begin with the defensive front having its best performance of the season.

“They’re one of the most explosive offenses in the league,” said Matt LaFleur of the Lions. “I think Ben Johnson does an unbelievable job of putting his guys in position, and when you have really good coaches, they’ve got one of the best offensive lines in all of football.

“I think Jared Goff is playing as good as anybody. And they’ve got weapons all around him…They’ve just got a lot of playmakers on their offense. Good scheme plus players usually equals some pretty good results.”

As LaFleur highlights, behind a Lions’ offense that will enter Week 9 ranked first in points per game at 33.4 and sixth in explosive plays is an offensive line unit that is arguably the best in football. Whether it’s the run game of the pass game, pick a metric, and you’ll see the Lions’ front at the top, or close to the top of the list.

That line play is, of course, the foundation for a potent rushing offense. Led by Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, Detroit’s 5.1 yards per rush is the fifth-best rate in the NFL. Individually, Gibbs ranks second in yards per rush this season with 6.4, and as you can imagine, both backs have been extremely difficult to bring down, but for different reasons.

Gibbs has totaled the fifth-most missed tackles force, resulting in the fifth-most rushes of at least 15 yards, while Montgomery is among the leaders at running back in average yards after contact, bringing an added physical presence to the position.

“I think they’re both really dynamic in what they do. Obviously Gibbs is a guy that can — I mean, he’s a home-run hitter. I also think Montgomery does the same stuff and he’s just a really physical runner and probably one of the most physical backs in the league. You better have a tackling plan when you go approach this guy ’cause he’s gonna try to run you over and in many cases he does that and he makes multiple people miss, but he also is really good out the backfield. He’s got really good hands, so I think they’re a really tough 1-2 punch.”

Overall, the Packers’ run defense has improved this season, allowing just 4.3 yards per carry, the eighth-lowest mark this season, and a key part of that equation is the added emphasis on everyone flying to the football. That swarming to the ball carrier play style will have to be a focal point throughout the week for Green Bay, so they carry that mentality into Sunday’s game.

“I think our run defense is definitely going in the right direction, and it’s going to have to this week,” said Jeff Hafley. “That’s going to be the key to this game.

“So, we’ve got to be on it in the run game, but I think it’s a credit to the guys up front, the backers and then from the safeties and the corner, just the physicality, the tackling, and I think our staff’s done a nice job there, too.”

When the Lions aren’t running the ball, quarterback Jared Goff can often be found picking apart opposing defenses. Pressure or no pressure, Goff has been extremely efficient this season. In fact, over the last four games, Goff has completed a ridiculous 84 percent of his throws.

With steady pressure, a defense can at least give itself somewhat of a fighting chance against this offense. But without it, well, good luck. Goff will enter Sunday’s game ranked top-five in completion rate, yards per attempt, and touchdowns from a clean pocket.

“He’s playing the position as well as anybody in the game right now,” said LaFleur of Goff. “That’s, just look at the numbers. They tell you everything. And then you watch the tape and it backs it up. So, I think he’s doing a great job, he’s a guy that if you give him time, he’s going to make you pay.

“He’s going to find the right guys. If you give him a sliver of light to make the pass, he’s going to take advantage of that. So just always been a big fan of his; just won’t be a big fan of his on Sunday.”

That combination of a potent running game and a lights-out passing game will put opposing defenses in a real bind. Detroit is very good at putting themselves in short down-and-distance situations where the entire playbook is open to them and defenses now have to defend the entire field, preparing for both the run and the pass.

Living ahead of the sticks and marrying the run and passing games together as Detroit does creates play-action opportunities, which this offense is excellent at exploiting. No team has run more play-action passes than the Lions, and when it comes to yardage off of play-action, the second-place team is nearly 200 yards behind Detroit–meaning that they are not only efficient, with Goff completing 80 percent of his throws, but that they are hitting on big plays as well.

The Packers’ four-man rush has struggled to get after the quarterback consistently this season. Where Green Bay has found success is in their designed pressures that defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley has drawn up. However, it’s not as if the Packers are a blitz-heavy team, currently ranking 28th in blitz rate.

The Packers are effective with pressures but very calculated on when they send them. And as more weeks go by, opponents will have seen more of these pressures on tape and have built in counters for them. This past Sunday against Jacksonville we may have seen that on display. The Packers still tried to manufacture pressures, but Trevor Lawrence was only under duress on 25 percent of his dropbacks, according to PFF. Or in short, the Jaguars had some answers.

Manufactured pressures won’t guarantee success by any means either against a stout offensive line and a quarterback in Goff who is as prepared as anyone to handle those pressures. What they can help do is cause some confusion, but ultimately, part of making that initial chaos truly effective is Green Bay’s pass rush getting home against the efficient and turnover-averse Goff.

“It’s very important to get pressure on Goff,” added Hafley. “I mean, but I think we’ve got to be calculated with that. We can’t just try to go after him every single play and every single third down. I think in anything, pressure always isn’t just about overwhelming them with numbers, it’s about making them see different things.

“It’s all of a sudden you think six are coming but three are coming, or four are coming. And maybe we speed him up and we force him into a bad throw. Or maybe we drop a guy underneath where he didn’t think the guy was going to drop and now he throws a bad ball. I mean, I think the key for us is to constantly change up the looks and make those guys think.”

To put a bow on all of this, me sitting here saying that the Packers need to win up front isn’t ground-breaking information. While football has changed a lot over the years, if a team can control the line of scrimmage, they have a good chance of controlling the game. But with that said, while the Packers have been able to overcome a so-so run defense and pass rush unit up to this point, that might not be good enough against this Lions offense on Sunday.

Paul Bretl | 10/30/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — As the Packers begin their on-field preparation for a pivotal Week 9 divisional matchup with Detroit, they were without several key players on both sides of the football during Wednesday’s practice.

Not seen going through warmups at the start of practice were Jordan Love (groin), Josh Jacobs (ankle), Josh Myers (wrist), Rasheed Walker (knee), Elgton Jenkins (glute), Evan Williams (hamstring), and Jaire Alexander (knee). All were off to the side riding an exercise bike or working with a trainer in Williams’ case.

Love would exit Sunday’s game in Jacksonville with a groin injury that he sustained early on. According to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, the MRI Love underwent earlier in the week showed “no significant damage.” As Matt LaFleur often says in these situations, the team will give Love up until kickoff to see where he’s at before making a final decision on his status.

“I’m going to take it one day at a time, do the best I can to be in here, do rehab, get with the trainers and try and get back as fast as possible,” said Love at this locker.

Love added that he is making progress, feeling better, and that every day, there are some improvements. Practicing at some point this week before the game would be ideal, but it’s not an absolute necessity either. As far as playing on Sunday, Love thinks it is “realistic.”

The fact that the Packers have their bye week following this game will not impact whether or not Love plays on Sunday.

“If he can go, he’ll go,” LaFleur said on Monday. “So, we’ll see where he’s at by the end of the week. But if we feel like he can’t protect himself, then we certainly wouldn’t put him in that position.”

With Love not participating in Wednesday’s practice, Malik Willis took the first-team reps and led the offense. Willis stepped in on Sunday, and with the help of Josh Jacobs, helped guide the Packers to victory. With a big matchup on the horizon with Detroit, and uncertainty around who will be starting at quarterback, Willis is just taking things one day at a time–or even moment to moment.

“Just taking it each day at a time,” Willis said. “Whatever they want to install, try to make sure I’m locked in and handle it the best that I can, and make sure I’m going home studying and seeing what they feel like the expectation of the play should be, understanding the outcome they want.”

Jacobs would suffer an ankle injury late on Sunday and hobbled off the field. Although he didn’t practice on Wednesday, at his locker he said he would be “good” come game time. And for what it’s worth, Jenkins hasn’t practiced the last few Wednesdays.

Awaiting the Packers’ offense this week is a Lions’ defense that is allowing 19.1 points per game–the eighth-lowest mark this season. Their pass rush is without Aidan Hutchinson, who is on injured reserve, but the unit still ranks 11th in pressure rate. With the help of that pass rush and an aggressive, relentless play-style, the Lions secondary ranks second in interceptions and ranks top-10 in fewest explosive plays given up.

“I mean obviously losing him, that’s a big loss for anybody,” said LaFleur of Hutchinson, “but I think they got a lot of guys that they all kind of embody that playstyle. When you watch them, I think Aaron Glenn does a great job. They all play really hard. They’ve done a really nice job of, I think they got like 10 interceptions on the year, five fumble recoveries. They’re all punching at the ball. They got a couple out last week vs. Tennessee, so I think they’ve got enough players that they can weather the storm.”

Once Williams exited the Jacksonville game, it felt like there was a domino effect to the rest of the Packers’ secondary. More pass-catchers were running open, there were breakdowns in communication, and missed tackles, resulting in chunk plays for the Jaguars’ passing game.

Williams leaving the game set off a chain reaction–forcing players to move to positions that they haven’t been getting game reps in. Javon Bullard to move back to free safety, a big jump mid-game for any rookie to make, especially without what I’m guessing are practice reps during the week in that role.

Keisean Nixon then went from playing the boundary to the nickel, which then put Eric Stokes on the boundary. Stokes’ playing time has diminished in recent weeks with up-and-down play, while Carrington Valentine has been a primary special teams player.

To make matters worse for the Packers, on the Jaguars’ final offensive play of the game, the touchdown pass to Evan Engram, Jaire Alexander came up limping. Demovsky would again have a scoop earlier in the week, reporting that there were “no significant concerns” following tests on Alexander’s knee. Demovsky then added that the team will monitor his soreness throughout the week.

“It is what it is, said LaFleur about game-planning with uncertainty in the secondary. “No different than what happened the other day. When you have installed a game plan, you’ve got to be ready to adjust. Bottom line is you’ve got to put in whatever plays or schemes or whatever is you’re trying to attack somebody with, whether it’s on offense or defense, to give you the best chance to win. You’ve got to use your best judgment in terms of the execution and how you’re going to go about that and have successful plays.”

Behind what is currently the top-scoring offense in football is one of the NFL’s best offensive line units in both the run and passing game. On the ground, the Lions have generated the fifth-most explosive runs this season and rank fifth as a team in yards per carry at 5.1. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs’ 6.4 yards per rush is currently the second-best mark in football.

Through the air, quarterback Jared Goff has been under pressure on the eighth-fewest snaps this season. When throwing from a clean pocket, he has been nearly unstoppable, completing 76.2 percent of his throws at 8.9 yards per attempt with 11 touchdowns to two interceptions and ranks top-10 in fewest explosive plays given up.

“They’re one of the most explosive offenses in the league,” said LaFleur of the Lions. “I think Ben Johnson does an unbelievable job of putting his guys in position, and when you have really good coaches, they’ve got one of the best offensive lines in all of football. I think Jared Goff is playing as good as anybody. And they’ve got weapons all around him…They’ve just got a lot of playmakers on their offense. Good scheme plus players usually equals some pretty good results.”

Against a team as formidable as Detroit, it’s going to take sound football from the Packers in all phases. But finding a way to at least contain the Detroit offense will begin up front. Green Bay cannot allow them to lean heavily on the run game, which will result in short down-and-distance situations and open up opportunities in the passing game off play-action, where Goff has again been quite good.

And whether it be winning their one-on-one matchups or through manufactured pressures drawn up by Jeff Hafley, the Packers being able to disrupt Goff’s timing and rhythm will be crucial–a task that’s easier said than done. Everything just described is a recipe for a long day for just about any secondary, especially a potentially short-handed one.

“They’re really, really good,” said LaFleur of the Lions. “And we knew that. We knew that going into the year, and it’s not shocking to me. It’s a team we’re obviously very familiar with and we’re going to have to play at our best. And it all starts with the preparation. We’re going to have to have a great week of practice.”

Paul Bretl | 10/27/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — With Jordan Love exiting the game, the Packers had to call on Malik Willis to step in and as he had done in the previous two games, he delivered.

Early on in the game, following a scramble to his right and then a throw, Love appeared to come down awkwardly and came up limping. Love would finish out the first half but early in the third quarter, he would leave the game with what the team called a groin injury.

“No idea,” said Matt LaFleur on the severity of Love’s injury. “But obviously high level of concern any time a guy’s in there, and he did it early in that first drive and I think you guys, I think everybody could see him struggling to move around. And it got to a point where we didn’t feel like, and he didn’t feel like he could protect himself.”

As we saw in his first two appearances this season, the always calm and cool Willis was seemingly unfazed by the moment–even with the game tied with under two-minutes to go and the Packers with the football.

After a first down run by Josh Jacobs for four yards and the clock nearing the 1:00 mark, it looked like the Packers were willing to head to overtime. However, on the very next play, Willis would connect with Jayden Reed for a 51-yard catch-and-run that immediately put the Packers in the Jacksonville red zone.

That specific play was not one that was put in the gameplan during the week. The coaching staff discussed it, but it didn’t make the final cut and so it was not practiced at all. However, earlier in the game, following a quarterback keeper, passing game coordinator Jason Vrable made the suggestion to run with it anyways because of a look that the Jacksonville defense was giving them.

“We talked about it on Tuesday,” said LaFleur of the play-call on the throw from Willis to Reed. “We thought that there might be something there, decided against it, and then we ran the keeper earlier in the gamer and Vrabel suggested it. He’s like, ‘Hey, it looks like the play is there.” And so we put it in on the sideline. So, no reps in practice.”

In order to have the opportunity to connect with Reed on that throw, the Packers needed the Jaguars’ defense to be in a specific coverage. On two occasions prior to Willis’ 51-yard completion, the Packers came out in an alignment that they thought might get Jacksonville to bite, but it didn’t happen.

Then on the big pass to Reed, Willis went under center with two plays called and once the secondary rotated to that look the Packers were waiting for, Willis canned to the play, and as LaFleur said, the rest is history.

“I was just looking for the rotation,” LaFleur said. “The rotation came down, we ran the, it was the exact same play essentially two plays in a row where we didn’t get the look. They brought a nickel pressure on the first play, didn’t get the look for it. And then on the second play they showed strong rotation, got the look and the rest is history.”

Willis finished the game 4-of-5 passing for 56 yards and one passing touchdown at an impressive 11.2 yards per catch. He also had 23 rushing yards as well, including a scramble for 20 yards. Adding to this performance was that Willis didn’t take any snaps with the starting offense during the week in practices.

“It’s none,” said Willis. “The starter, he needs all the reps. You get your reps on scout, you get your reps in indy, and you just do as you can to use those mental reps and do whatever you can to be ready if called upon.”

While Willis was, of course, instrumental in the outcome of this game, he had help along the way. On his first full possession in the game, the Packers were trailing 13-17 following a Jaguars’ touchdown. On that possession, the Packers leaned heavily on Jacobs and the run game, with the scoring drive capped off by a 38-yard run from Jacobs.

When it was all said and done, Jacobs finished the game carrying the ball 25 times for 127 yards at 5.1 yards per attempt with two rushing touchdowns.

“My goal coming into this game was to inspire the playcaller, inspire the team,” said Jacobs after the game. “Whatever that looks like, I just wanted to come in and run hard. Have the guys trust in me. It just played out that way. Unfortunately, Jordan got hurt. I just wanted to come in and make a statement that we could still win games running the ball. We can still win games however we want if we lock into the details and things like that.”

On the ensuing defensive possession for the Packers, with Jacksonville backed up in their own territory, linebacker Edgerrin Cooper came through on a blitz and forced a fumble while bringing down Trevor Lawrence for a sack. Devonte Wyatt would then jump on the ball, setting up the Packers’ offense with first and goal from the five yard line.

“My main focus was just staying in that gap, keep pushing through,” said Cooper of the fumble. “I just kept pushing through and came out and clamped on the quarterback and it came out.”

In a game where the Packers were dealing with injuries and weren’t at their best on either side of the ball, it took a team effort to come away with the victory.

But with that said, in an eight-game season up to this point, the Packers have had to rely on Willis in 2.5 of those games, and he has helped usher Green Bay to victories in all three contests. In a game where finding a capable starting quarterback can be a tall task, off the bench Willis has provided a steady presence for the Packers.

“I mean we’ve been blessed with having a backup that can come in and really be the guy in there, really be able to create things like that,” said Jacobs of Willis. “It makes it a lot easier for us on offense because the moment it happened, we all said in the huddle – Tuck was like, ‘Man, we’ve been here before,’ and we all know what it felt like. We just had the confidence in him and he came out there and did what he always do. He balled.”