Another week, another brutal performance by the Packers secondary. This time, it was a 42-24 drubbing at the hands of Kirk Cousins, ‘Fat Rob’ Kelly and Washington’s gang of receivers. Passing success against Green Bay is becoming one of the surest weekly bets in the ever-unpredictable NFL.
There isn’t a whole lot of “news” to recap from this one. Feel free to save yourself from the Monday Blues and read recaps from the last two weeks. Apparently giving up 47 points to Marcus Mariota and the Titans wasn’t enough to light a fire under this defense, because the unit looked equally flat and out of gas last night. Insanity is often defined as doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. If that’s true, I guess the Packers, Mike McCarthy and Dom Capers are all certifiably insane. And you might be too if you still think this is a good football team.
Because it’s not. It turns out that filling the cracks in the roster with undrafted rookie free agents leaves you with a pretty untalented roster. These are guys that literally nobody else in the league wanted on their team, and now they are forced to play meaty roles due to injuries. Yes, it’s unfair to blame all of the catastrophic secondary play on coordinator Dom Capers, because the absence of starting corners Sam Shields and Damarious Randall does loom large. But injuries happen every year, heck every game, and great roster management is about building depth and schemes that can account for that. The Vikings have lost more key contributors to injury than the Packers, but still sit tied for first place in the division.
Ted Thompson is notorious for “building through the draft” and then retaining those players with second contracts. But even then, he low-balls players, and he refuses to pay up for the ones that ask for a deserved pay raise. Randall Cobb and Bryan Bulaga recently took below-market deals to stay in Green Bay, and Josh Sitton serves as an example of not wanting to pony up for a big contract for a quality player. The worst part of this year’s secondary woes – and for some reason this has gone basically unmentioned – is that the Packers let cornerback Casey Hayward walk in free agency. Per Pro Football Focus, Hayward was Green Bay’s highest-graded cornerback last year, and he allowed the lowest passer rating in the league as a rookie in 2012. He signed with the Chargers to a very reasonable three-year, $15.3 million contract, and is currently having his best and healthiest season as a pro. But good thing GM Ted Thompson had the shrewd foresight to replace him with LaDarius Gunter and Demetri Goodson (on a sad note, Goodson is likely done for the season after suffering a gruesome knee injury last night – everyone at SST wishes him a speedy recovery).
Conveniently, Green Bay (4-6) is somehow only two games back from the Vikings and Detroit Lions (6-4) in the race for the NFC North title. But, tellingly, the team is also just as close to the last place Bears, who sit at a measly 2-8. Three weeks ago, Tom Oates of the Wisconsin State Journal penned an article titled “Face it – the Packers just might not be that good anymore.” AND THAT WAS BEFORE THE LAST TWO GAMES, two of the worst games in the McCarthy/Rodgers era. He’s right. This team isn’t very good.
So although the Packers technically still have a shot to win the division (especially with one game remaining against each divisional opponent), it simply won’t happen without drastic change. And this organization seems averse to change. You’ve probably heard by now that this is the most points the Packers have allowed over a four-game span.
Two straight games of 40+ points allowed, four straight of 30+, and yet nothing is changing about the defense. Mike McCarthy seems to be the only one who isn’t panicking.
But hey! At least the Packers had a “great week of preparation” and McCarthy is a “highly successful NFL coach.” Huzzah!
Look, the offense is fine. It’s not great, and it’s nowhere near peak-2014 efficiency, but it’s hardly losing the Packers games. Heading into last night, the offense ranks slightly above average (13th) per Football Outsiders all-encompassing DVOA metric, which sounds about right.
The running game is nonexistent, but Rodgers is still playing pretty well, and despite a drop last night Davante Adams looks like a professional wide receiver. Maybe Christine Michael can help the running game get going (though don’t hold your breath). Rodgers does deserve criticism, but he’s pulling the entire weight of the offense, is now missing easily his best offensive lineman in TJ Lang, and his best weapon Jordy Nelson has clearly lost a step. He’s regressed, but he isn’t the problem.
The only – and I don’t say that word lightly – positive takeaway from last night was the emergence of Jared Cook. Cook only played two full games for the Packers before missing six games with a high ankle sprain. He was just starting to get in the groove of the offense and get on the same page with Rodgers when the injury occurred. Aside from a miscommunication on a flat route that would’ve led to a touchdown, Cook was easily Rodgers favorite and most dangerous weapon last night. He finished the game with six catches for 105 yards and a touchdown on 11 targets, averaging a robust 17.5 yards per catch. This was the exact type of vertical, seam-stretching role the Packers envisioned with an athletic tight end like Cook, something this offense has missed since the days of Jermichael Finley.
Of course, he also had a game-killing fumble to flush away the last shred of hope the Packers had for a comeback. But still, this is Jared Cook we’re talking about. Even with the fumble and the miscue that should’ve been a touchdown, this was probably his best game as a pro. If this is any sign of things to come, he should help take this offense to being a top-ten unit.
But it might not matter. Whenever this team seems to be building momentum or putting together a good string of plays, someone inevitably makes a silly mistake at a crucial time. One step forward, two steps back. Last night it came in the form of penalties – like holds and false starts on the offensive line, and a big roughing the passer call on third down against Mike Daniels. Mason Crosby missed a 36-yard field goal, which should’ve been a gimme even with the wind. Kickoff returns constantly gave the Packers bad field position. Whenever the defense needed a stop most, Cousins dialed up a huge morale-killing deep ball. By this point, morale is all but dead. This simply isn’t the way we’re accustomed to seeing the Packers lose.
There’s so much more to say, but you and I both don’t have time for that. Plus it sucks to write and it’s even harder to digest as a reader. Let’s let some tweets sum up the rest of the game for us. With the season slipping away game by game, the Packers have a chance to right the ship and change the narrative on the road against the Eagles next week. Just make sure to keep your expectations in check.
Photo Courtesy of Newsday.com