Paul Bretl | 9/13/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Can the Packers run defense find a way to contain Anthony Richardson, Jonathan Taylor, and the Indianapolis Colts rushing attack?

It wasn’t a perfect performance against the Philadelphia Eagles run game in Week 1–but it’s not going to be when facing Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley–but the Packers held their own in this phase of the game for the most part.

“When you look at the run defense as a whole,” said defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, “I thought on the first down and those early downs I thought they were a lot of zero yard gains and there were TFL’s. And I thought the guys for the most part did a really good job there and then we had some unfortunate misfits and some mis-alignments and balls that got out on us and those yards count just as much as if they have a good play. So I’m not taking that away at all or making any excuses, but there’s some really good stuff in the run defense and there’s some stuff we’ve got to clean up.

On the surface, Barkley’s 109 rushing-yard performance against the Packers, while averaging 4.5 yards per attempt, doesn’t tell the whole story in regards to how the game unfolded. For much of the contest, the Packers were able to bottle him up. Outside of a 34-yard run by Barkley, he averaged 3.2 yards per carry on his other 23 attempts. This, of course, does not discount that long gain–I mean, it happened after all–but the point being is that the Packers run defense largely did its job.

“I thought our run defense was pretty solid,” said Matt LaFleur. “We just got gashed on a couple runs where we weren’t in the right gaps. We had a misalignment that really hurt us on Saquon, I think it was on his first touchdown. And there was some details there that we absolutely have to clean up and get that fixed moving forward because we have another great back coming in here and another really good offense and great offensive line.”

To limit Hurts as a ball carrier, the Packers took a more controlled, power-rushing approach in an effort to keep him in the pocket and limit his ability to extend plays. Once again, the Green Bay defense largely accomplished this. Hurts longest run was for eight yards and he totaled just 33 yards on 13 carries.

Collectively, the Eagles rushing offense averaged only 3.8 yards per attempt–the 10th best rate among all defenses coming out of the first game of the season.

“I thought last week for three and a half quarters we did a really good job of bottling up Jalen in the pocket,” LaFleur said. “Then in the last drive he was able to use his legs a couple of times to move the sticks when we got a little bit more up the field and it opened up some holes inside.

“One time they were in empty, we stunted and we shouldn’t have been stunting in that situation and it opened up a huge rush lane inside that he was able to scramble out. So I think it’s a balance in terms of what are you asking to do and you’ve got to play that game in terms of what you think they are going to do and how they’re going to attack you as well.”

The Colts are coming off a game against the Texans where Taylor totaled just 48 yards on his 16 rush attempts. The Packers, however, certainly are not expecting that trend for Taylor to continue. Behind the same starting five on the offensive line, the Colts ranked top-10 in yards per rush last season and have a healthy Taylor.

Taylor has unfortunately dealt with injuries the previous two seasons, appearing in just 21 total games during that span. But regardless, when on the field, he’s remained impactful, averaging 4.5 yards per carry over the last two years. Then, of course, in 2021, he was the NFL’s rushing leader and unlike last year, he’s had a fully healthy offseason to prepare for the regular season.

“Really good player,” said Hafley of Taylor. “He’s strong, he’s fast. He’s very patient. He stays square and you gotta bottle him up. We’ve got to wrap up. We’ve got to get multiple people to the ball, we better be where we’re supposed to be and we better be in the gaps we’re supposed to be in, because he’ll jump out and make you look silly if you don’t.”

The added stressor that the Colts can put on opposing defenses in the run game is the combination of Taylor and Richardson in the backfield. For one, undisciplined rushing lanes can create avenues for Richardson to exploit with his legs. Last week against Houston, Richardson rushed for 56 yards on only six carries.

The Colts are also very willing to use Richardson on designed quarterback runs, not to mention that their heavy usage of RPOs can stress defenses horizontally, which as a result, will up open running lanes for either Richardson or Taylor to exploit as well as opportunities in the passing game with second level defenders over committing to help in the run game.

“I think it’s going to be a great challenge,” said LaFleur of the Colts’ run game. “I think you look at Jonathan Taylor, and certainly their ability to run the quarterback is very similar in a lot of ways in terms of to what Philly was able to do. They’re an explosive offense. You saw it last week. Richardson threw the ball 60 some odd yards in the air, 66, so I think that this is a very explosive offense.”

In general, when an offense can find success on the ground, there’s a positive trickle-down effect to the rest of the unit. This creates short down-and-distance situations, opening up the entire playbook for the offense and forcing the defense to defend the whole field.

On the flip side, struggles in the run game puts the offense in predictable passing situations where the defense has the advantage. Without a run game to lean on against the Texans, the Colts offense was very boom-or-bust, either generating big plays or not being able to put together long drives.

Every week the Packers defense–or any defense–is trying to keep points off the board, but with Malik Willis likely under center for Green Bay, the need for a strong defensive performance becomes paramount. Finding a way to contain what can be a very explosive Colts’ offense likely begins in the trenches.

“For us, we’re going to line up every down and do everything we can to stop them and force them to punt,” Hafley said. “No matter who lines up at quarterback for us, I hope the mindset never changes. You got into every game with the mindset you’re playing the best team in the NFL and the players in the NFL.

“We’ve got to give everything we’ve got and not worry about anything else. We’ve got to take the ball away and give it back to our offense. That’s who we have to be. Over and over and over. We’ve got to get off the field on third down and we’ve got to play better than we did last week, and I can’t wait to get back out there.”

Paul Bretl | 9/12/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Keep the quarterback in the pocket or emphasize creating pressure? Oftentimes, teams can’t have both and need to pick and choose.

“That’s always a great question,” said Matt LaFleur on Wednesday. “I thought last week for 3 1/2 quarters we did a really good job of bottling up Jalen in the pocket…I think it’s a balance in terms of what are you asking to do and you’ve got to play that game in terms of what you think they are going to do and how they’re going to attack you as well.”

In the Packers’ Week 1 matchup against Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles, Kenny Clark mentioned post-game that it was their plan to keep Hurts in the pocket, which as LaFleur mentioned, the defense did well for much of the game. Hurst finished the game rushing for 33 yards on 13 carries with long of just eight yards.

However, in order to accomplish that, the Packers somewhat sacrificed the ability to create consistent pressure. By PFF’s metrics, the Eagles’ offensive line surrendered only nine pressures, with Hurts being under duress only 23 percent of his dropbacks. For some context, a pressure rate by an offensive line under 30 percent is a good day.

“A lot of our rushes were power rushes trying to contain him,” said Clark after Week 1. “Not try to get too crazy with our rushes and get too much up field. We limited probably until the fourth quarter. We still gotta get pressure on him in some kind of way.”

The Packers’ defense will face another test this week, taking on Anthony Richardson and the Indianapolis Colts. At 6-4, nearly 250 pounds, and able to run a 4.4-second 40-yard dash, Richardson brings a rare combination of size, athleticism, and arm talent to the quarterback position.

In Week 1 against the Houston Texans, Richardson rushed for 56 yards on just six carries and completed three passes of 50-plus yards as well–two of which went for touchdowns.

“I think he’s a big, strong, athletic quarterback that can beat you with his arm and his legs,” said LaFleur of Richardson.

If the Packers are going to take a similar approach as last week, where the focus is on keeping Richardson in the pocket, the defensive front better be able to collapse that pocket much more quickly than what they did against Philadelphia.

Although Green Bay was largely able to keep Hurts in the pocket, he had an average time to throw of 3.0 seconds, which when happening consistently, puts the secondary in a bind when having to routinely defend for that long.

Around Richardson is an offensive line unit that is returning all five starters from a 2023 unit that ranked top-10 in yards per rush and pressure rate surrendered. At receiver are the always-reliable Michael Pittman and Alec Pierce, who provide a vertical presence.

The team also added AD Mitchell in the draft, an explosive pass-catcher with a refined released package who can win at all levels of the field. Returning to practice on Wednesday for the Colts was Josh Downs, one of the more productive slot receivers last season–and, of course, we can’t forget about Jonathan Taylor either.

“I think they’ve got good wide receivers. They’ve got the back, they’ve got a tight end, I think up front they did a really nice job against, I think a pretty good Houston defense. So like I said it’s going to be a great challenge.”

An added wrinkle that the Packers will also have to contend with is how Colts’ head coach and play-caller Shane Steichen marries the run and passing games together through RPOs. This element, especially when paired with Richardson and Taylor, can really stress defenses horizontally–helping to create running lanes and opportunities in the passing game–and takeaway some of the bite from an aggressive pass rush.

Ultimately, when it comes to defending the Colts’ offense, the Packers may find themselves in a bit of a pick-your-poison type of situation. If their objective is to keep Richardson in the pocket, when they’re unable to get home, that could leave the secondary exposed. On the flip side, if the emphasis is pressure, that can create the opportunity for Richardson to get outside of the pocket to extend plays either with his legs or via a scramble drill.

There’s no perfect answer–and there never is in the NFL–but the Packers have to decide what the most important element is to take away and prioritize doing that. Then at that point, it comes down to execution.

“It’s a great challenge when you are playing a quarterback as athletic as Richardson is,” LaFleur said. “He’s going to stress you in a lot of different ways. He’s got the ability to pull it down and certainly, he had a, I want to say that was a touchdown run he had on the goal line.

“A couple of other runs he was able to get loose. Obviously they had some designed quarterback runs last week and they do a great job with him. I think Shane (Steichen) and his crew there do a great job of scheming and attacking defenses.”

Paul Bretl | 9/10/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — It was tough sledding early on for Josh Jacobs and the Packers’ run game against the Philadelphia Eagles. However, in the second half, better execution upfront, and depending on who you ask, a bit of a changeup yielded better results.

This is something that will have to carry forward, particularly with Malik Willis under center.

By halftime of this Week 1 matchup, Jacobs had carried the ball seven times, excluding the two-point conversion attempt, and had totaled only four yards on the ground. In regards to the run game, it was Emanuel Wilson who was keeping the Packers’ head above water, totaling 37 yards on just three attempts.

“I can’t tell you how many times they had linebacker run-throughs that we didn’t block the backer,” said Matt LaFleur on Monday. “It’s hard to get going. Early on in the game, they were doing some line movement and credit to them.

“I didn’t think we adjusted quick enough but I think once we did get our runners going, we blocked their front much better. Give credit to Philly. That’s a really good front. All those guys.”

In the second half, however, like the flip of a switch, things began to turn around on the ground for Jacobs and the Packers. Between the third and fourth quarters, Jacobs had rushes of nine yards, 22 yards, and 32 yards, to give him a grand total of 84 yards with an average of 5.3 yards per rush.

“Yeah just switched up the style of plays in the run game a little bit more and kind of adjusted to some of the things that they were doing that we hadn’t seen on film and we were able to start moving the ball,” said Josh Myers after the game.

But if you ask LaFleur, there wasn’t much of a change at all to what was being asked of the offense in the run game. Instead, it was better execution, particularly in the gap running scheme, which helped slow the Eagles’ defense down.

“Sure we may have tried some different running schemes but that’s almost every game,” LaFleur said. “I think we got the gap-scheme going a little bit and that helped maybe slow down some of their movement. But we run our run schemes. I wouldn’t say it was a massive changeup.”

Regardless of whether it was execution, a changeup to the play calls, or both, the Packers have to make sure they carry that second half momentum in the run game into their Week 2 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts, which will likely feature Malik Willis under center.

A strong running game can be Willis’ best friend as there is a massive positive trickle-down effect to the passing game when things are going right in the ground game.

When an offense has a strong run game to lean–even an offense with an explosive passing game–those two elements together can really put opposing defenses in a bind. It sets up short down-and-distance situations, opening up the playbook for LaFleur, and it forces the defense to either defend the entire field or commit to stopping the run, both of which can open up opportunities in the passing game to be exploited.

Conversely, struggling to pick up yards in the run game puts the offense behind the sticks and in predictable passing situations where the defensive front can pin its ears back the secondary has the advantage in coverage. This will not be a recipe for success for Willis, who has only been in Green Bay for two weeks and has just 67 career regular season pass attempts in two seasons, particularly against a Colts’ defensive front that has the ability to be extremely disruptive when it comes to getting after the quarterback.

The Colts are coming off a game where the Houston Texans dissected them in the run game. Joe Mixon rushed for 159 yards and the Texans offense as a whole rushed for 213 yards. With CJ Stroud at quarterback along with Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell at receiver, the Colts opted to play with lighter boxes, which the Texans took advantage of.

With Willis at quarterback, the Packers may not have that same light box luxury, even with the talent they have at receiver, with the Colts attempting to force Willis to have to be the one to beat them.

On the flip side, what the Packers have in their favor is the unpredictability of having Willis at quarterback, specifically how they potentially pair his ability as a ball carrier with Jacobs, which can stress a defense horizontally, helping to open up running lanes or even opportunities in the passing game.

“Well I just think every game’s a little bit different and certainly you gotta play to your players’ strengths,” LaFleur said of getting Willis ready. “So it’s our job to try to come up with whatever we come up with in order to put him in a position to be successful and whether that’s moving launch points or straight dropback, whatever it may be, we always carry play actions every week, so we’ll come up whatever we feel like is gonna give us the best possible opportunity to move the football.”

As I detailed recently, even with Love, I believe the ceiling for this Packers team will be determined by Jacobs and how potent the run game can be. Now, in Love’s absence, that sentiment goes from being true to an absolute necessity if this offense is going to find success in the coming weeks.

Paul Bretl | 9/7/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — The honeymoon phase with Jeff Hafley as the Packers new defensive coordinator has come to an end. The regular season is here and ultimately all that matters are the results.

In the team’s Week 1 opener against the Philadelphia Eagles, against an admittedly very difficult opponent that can hurt opposing defenses in a variety of ways, the results weren’t there for the Packers’ defense. Those overall struggles started with an inability to apply consistent pressure.

“It felt like Jalen had a lot of time to throw the football,” said Matt LaFleur post-game, “and I think anytime that you don’t get a pass rush–and again, that is a really good offensive line, I just expected more from our pass rush tonight. And then you know when we did bring pressure there were a lot of times when it looked like guys were uncovered. We had some mistakes.”

As a unit, the Eagles offensive line was credited with surrendering only nine pressures the entire game, per PFF. That’s a pressure rate on Hurts of just over 23 percent–which for an offensive line, anything under 30 percent is a good day. Even when the Packers sent some blitzes, which they did from both the linebacker and nickel positions, those pressures didn’t get home quick enough, and as LaFleur mentioned, coverages were blown on the back end in several of those instances.

A lack of consistent pressure against this Eagles’ offense is certainly not a recipe for success. Not that the Packers’ secondary didn’t have it’s own miscues, but asking the cornerbacks and safeties to have to routinely defend AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith for three-plus seconds is a tall task for really any unit–and the results reflected that.

The duo of Brown and Smith combined for 12 receptions on 18 targets for 213 yards, including a few explosive pass plays, and one touchdown.

The Packers understandable concern with keeping Hurts in the pocket contributed to their pass rush approach. For the most part, they were able to limit Hurts’ opportunities outside the pocket, but the potential cost was a lackluster pass rush. And that’s the challenge that this Eagles’ offense brings to the table–you try to take away one avenue, and they can beat you another way.

“I mean our plan was to keep him in the pocket and let him beat us with his arm,” said Kenny Clark. “A lot of our rushes were power rushes trying to contain him, not try to get too crazy with our rushes and get too much up field. We limited probably until the fourth quarter. We still gotta get pressure on him in some kind of way.”

Contributing to the Packers’ issues on defense was their play against the run, which again, was no easy task against a backfield featuring Hurts and Saquon Barkley. Early on, the Packers were able to bottle up Barkley, but the Eagles featured him heavily, and as the game went on, he found more success. Barkley finished the contest carrying the ball 24 times, totaling 109 yards at 4.5 yards per attempt.

The trickle-down effect of not being able to slow the run game is that the offense is often able to stay ahead of the sticks, putting them in short down-and-distance situations, where the defense now has to essentially defend the entire field and be prepared for either a run or a passing play. In short, the offense has a distinct advantage in these situations.

“I gotta go back and watch the tape,” Rashan Gary said. “I gotta see how much they rushed for. He’s always been a good back. Been hitting the holes and Saquon is Saquon.”

Throughout training camp, we heard a lot about this new attack style defensive front under Hafley, where the objective is to get off the ball and into the backfield, an approach that suited so many of these Packers’ defenders well, and played to one of the strengths of the collective unit which is its depth. And it’s not as if it was only talk, in practices, particularly the joint practice with Baltimore, that disruption was on full display.

However, the Packers’ defensive front was up against a dynamic offense that featured one of the better offensive lines in football–a unit that ended up doing just about all of the dictating. One good performance or one bad performance in the first game isn’t an indicator of what the season will be, but the Packers will have to be more disruptive moving forward.