2023 Packers regular season thread

[Mack]

All 3 need to perform. However, the rules in today's game favor the offense, therefore holding the ball for 2 minutes and 18 seconds of the 4th quarter is not good enough. That's hanging your defense out to dry. Add to that the stupidity of the Packer's DC and you have losses, many of them because you can't put together any kind of clock killing drives.

Not having Aaron Jones didnt help with being able to put together some clock killing drives. That said, i expect the offense to struggle this year. This is when it would be nice to see the defense step up and take over the game. They did well the first 3 quarters but we have seen this before when for whatever reason the 4th quarter seems to be their kryptonite. I think that GB's other kryptonite is running QBs. For years they have a hard time containing them. Atlanta had over 200 yds rushing collectively. If that doesnt improve it will be another disappointing year for a team that has drafted heavily on the defensive side of the ball.

 

[Mack]

Atlanta has one of (if not THE) best rushing tandems in the NFL. I have a hard time blaming the D too hard for being unable to stop the Falcons when they were on the field almost the entire second half. Even the Packers' two 3rd quarter touchdowns were pretty quick. The offense hung the defense out to dry with quick 3 & outs every possession of the 4th quarter when they were already tired.

The Packers not having Aaron Jones available showed itself the strongest in the 4th quarter. If he's getting touches at crunch time, I think the Packers win the game.

Cant argue about the offense hanging the defense out to dry but i think that will be pretty common the whole season. That said, the defense couldnt stop Atlanta in the 4th quarter. Its a head scratcher as to how a defense can play well for 3 quarters then do a complete 180 for the last quarter. Im sure they were tired but a lot of that had to do with not being able to make a stop.

 

[LambeauLegs]

No excuses for a delay of game on any field goal. The Pack should have had a 3 point lead after the first drive of the game. Even after the 5 yard penalty they should have kicked it. You brought the young kid in with a strong leg for a reason. To move from 51 yards to 56 yards is no big deal with this kickers distance. Accuracy between the goal post is another question but to choose to punt should not have happened. If you take those 3 points and if Alexander catches that pick 6 the pack has a TD instead of the field goal. A 7 point swing on those 2 plays in a 1 point game

 

[Mack]

No excuses for a delay of game on any field goal. The Pack should have had a 3 point lead after the first drive of the game. Even after the 5 yard penalty they should have kicked it. You brought the young kid in with a strong leg for a reason. To move from 51 yards to 56 yards is no big deal with this kickers distance. Accuracy between the goal post is another question but to choose to punt should not have happened. If you take those 3 points and if Alexander catches that pick 6 the pack has a TD instead of the field goal. A 7 point swing on those 2 plays in a 1 point game

Problem is when we start playing the "woulda, shoulda, coulda" game we tend to just see it one sided. You're right. Had GB executed your points then they "woulda" won...maybe. When we play that game we dont take into account what the other team might have done had they "woulda, shoulda, coulda" in the game. Unfortunately i think we will see many of these type of scenarios throughout the season.

The offensive side of the ball is young so i expect growing pains. What concerns me the most is the defensive side of the ball. The defense has been bad for years now and for whatever reason they cant find anyone to turn it around. Personally, it seems like finding a DC is an afterthought to this organization. They brought in Barry who has a terrible track record. Why would you do that? Got him on the cheap? If so, you get what you pay for. I think the other reason the D has been bad is talent evaluation. For a team that has drafted heavily on the defensive side of the ball for years now have got it wrong more than they have got it right.

 

[Moab]

So, are the Packers playing it safe with these guys to try to keep them healthy for the long haul or are they actually not able to go?

Packers inactives: Aaron Jones, Christian Watson, David Bakhtiari, Jaire Alexander, Elgton Jenkins, Zayne Anderson and Anthony Johnson.

 

[Moab]

Really didn't like the first 3 quarters today...but will take the W

 

[LoftonPack80]

They really need to get Love some weapons next season.
Watson = hasn't shown he can stay healthy
Doubs = he's not a #1. He might not even be a #2. For every over the shoulder catch he makes he then disappears for long stretches of games
Reed = he's a guy I'm high on but he's a rookie and going to have games like he had today
The rest of these receivers are just roster fillers. I think the rookie tight ends are going to be great especially Musgrave but we need help big time at receiver. A great win today but it doesn't mask the issues we have at that position

 

[Tainthappening]

Big win, surprising considering first 3 quarters

Good:
- 4th quarter (opposite of last week).. good win to build confidence when down late
- Defensive effort
- Gave up 10 points (1 TD special teams)
- 255 total yards
- Good pressure, 4 sacks... 3 from Gary
- Rush defense 77 yards, 3.5 avg
- Musgrave looks very good at TE already, 6 catches 49 yards on 8 targets

Bad:
- Dillon running the ball... 33 yards, 3.0 avg... Wilson and Taylor appear to be no help either
- Punting special teams... punt return for TD, 3 holding penalties
- OL penalties... couple false starts, couple holding
- Love 22 of 44 (50%) passing... have to be much more efficient than that
- Reed a few drops... 3 catches on 7 targets... but 1 big catch in 4th quarter
- 4th down execution... 1st drive Wilson pass back to Love, Taylor and Love not on same page

Ugly:
- Offense for 1st 3 quarters

 

[Tainthappening]

They really need to get Love some weapons next season.
Watson = hasn't shown he can stay healthy
Doubs = he's not a #1. He might not even be a #2. For every over the shoulder catch he makes he then disappears for long stretches of games
Reed = he's a guy I'm high on but he's a rookie and going to have games like he had today
The rest of these receivers are just roster fillers. I think the rookie tight ends are going to be great especially Musgrave but we need help big time at receiver. A great win today but it doesn't mask the issues we have at that position

Packers WRs other than Jennings have typically not started to flash until 3rd to 4th year.

• I agree... Watson a bit of a concern as he cannot stay on the field.
• For now, I still like Doubs, maybe not as #1, but think he could be very good #2. Last year he had 42 catches/425 yards/3 TDs
• Reed I like as well, but he did not look good today
• I am also intrigued by Wicks and like the pick for now... only WR today that caught more than half his targets

 

[LoftonPack80]

Packers WRs other than Jennings have typically not started to flash until 3rd to 4th year.

• I agree... Watson a bit of a concern as he cannot stay on the field.
• For now, I still like Doubs, maybe not as #1, but think he could be very good #2. Last year he had 42 catches/425 yards/3 TDs
• Reed I like as well, but he did not look good today
• I am also intrigued by Wicks and like the pick for now... only WR today that caught more than half his targets

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I get that but do you really see any of these no name guys off the street making any leap? Touvre or whatever his name is has been in this system for 3 years and is just a guy who lights up 3rd stringers in preseason then does nothing when given opportunities. I couldn't even tell you what no name #13 and no name #18 are doing on this team right now

 

[Tainthappening]

I get that but do you really see any of these no name guys off the street making any leap? Touvre or whatever his name is has been in this system for 3 years and is just a guy who lights up 3rd stringers in preseason then does nothing when given opportunities. I couldn't even tell you what no name #13 and no name #18 are doing on this team right now

No WR on Packers has been in system for 3 years, most experience is 2nd year (Watson, Doubs, Toure).

Still early... but these are my toughts on these 3 you commented:

• Toure drafted last year in 7th round and on practice squad most of last year. Right now he looks like a JAG (Just A Guy).
• #13 is Wicks... I like him, he could develop... some tough catches today, very good TD last week vs Falcons. Looked very good in preseason.
• #18 is Heath... he may be a JAG as well, he was undrafted.

 

[Moab]

Packers' lines got worked in this game...and I am really tired of the stupid hero crap guys are trying on D. That early int made them even dumber and more confident to do stupid shit than usual

 

[Mack]

Meh, I’m not surprised they lost. I expect the offense to go thru growing pains and as far as the defense goes, it’s like the ground hog day movie. Nothing has changed. It’s the same defense that GB has been putting out on the field for years. They play good in spots but then disappear when it counts. One game they stop the run but give up tons of yards through the air. Then the next game flip flop. It’s a rarity to see a solid game in all aspects of the defense. We can never see a game where they stop/slow down the pass and run. Or the other side we see is the offense and defense doing their job but the special teams ends up losing it for them.

All that said, what it comes down to is consistency. The up and down play of this organization is completely frustrating.

To me, the biggest egg on face disappointment has to be the defense. With most of the recent drafts spent on defense, you’d expect a better product on the field but…

 

[Tainthappening]

Well.. on paper think Lions have the better team so not surprised Packers lost. But that was extremely ugly 1st half, right now... cannot recall a recent half that ugly on both sides of the ball. Remember @ Seahawks in 2012 and offense gave up 7 sacks in first half. But Packers defense was still pretty good and kept it close at half so only 7-0 Seahawks.

MLF was chippy at his press conference after the game... "BS question" came out after Pete asked what happened in 1st half.

Good:
- Packers competed in 2nd half, almost got to within 1 score (failed 2 pt left it as 2 score game)
- A. Jones, Watson and Zach Tom active for game... so hopefully better for next game (you can tell I am reaching for positives)
- Carlson 2 for 2 on FGs.. including 50 yarder
- Whelan punting... averaged over 50 yards

Bad:
- Nixon continuing to run out of the end zone on kickoffs and Packers continue to start at 20 yard line or worse
- Reed trying to field punt after hit the ground with traffic
- Q. Walker continuing his bonehead plays... playing faster this year, but he does not appear to be the smartest individual. Even I know for several years cannot do that. That was costly penalty and made it 3 possession game with a lot less time on clock
- 2 interceptions for Love.. 1st one his fault, apparently misread defense he said... 2nd was just bad luck on timing of Doubs breaking off play

Ugly:
- Offense entire first half.. 2 first downs (1st thanks to a DET penalty), 32 yards offense
- Both OL and DL got manhandled
- Deja vu rush defense... again over 200 yards given up, Lions average 4.9 yards/carry
- Packers running the ball... 27 yards and 2.3 yards per carry... Dillon continues to be so frustrating for me personally
- Does not appear coaches had Packers ready to start this game... 2 weeks in a row 1st half big dud on offense... apparently from the press conference MLF is a bit unsure why as well

Very young inexperienced team... going to have to learn to start faster.

 

[Mack]

Well.. on paper think Lions have the better team so not surprised Packers lost. But that was extremely ugly 1st half, right now... cannot recall a recent half that ugly on both sides of the ball. Remember @ Seahawks in 2012 and offense gave up 7 sacks in first half. But Packers defense was still pretty good and kept it close at half so only 7-0 Seahawks.

MLF was chippy at his press conference after the game... "BS question" came out after Pete asked what happened in 1st half.

Good:
- Packers competed in 2nd half, almost got to within 1 score (failed 2 pt left it as 2 score game)
- A. Jones, Watson and Zach Tom active for game... so hopefully better for next game (you can tell I am reaching for positives)
- Carlson 2 for 2 on FGs.. including 50 yarder
- Whelan punting... averaged over 50 yards

Bad:
- Nixon continuing to run out of the end zone on kickoffs and Packers continue to start at 20 yard line or worse
- Reed trying to field punt after hit the ground with traffic
- Q. Walker continuing his bonehead plays... playing faster this year, but he does not appear to be the smartest individual. Even I know for several years cannot do that. That was costly penalty and made it 3 possession game with a lot less time on clock
- 2 interceptions for Love.. 1st one his fault, apparently misread defense he said... 2nd was just bad luck on timing of Doubs breaking off play

Ugly:
- Offense entire first half.. 2 first downs (1st thanks to a DET penalty), 32 yards offense
- Both OL and DL got manhandled
- Deja vu rush defense... again over 200 yards given up, Lions average 4.9 yards/carry
- Packers running the ball... 27 yards and 2.3 yards per carry... Dillon continues to be so frustrating for me personally
- Does not appear coaches had Packers ready to start this game... 2 weeks in a row 1st half big dud on offense... apparently from the press conference MLF is a bit unsure why as well

Very young inexperienced team... going to have to learn to start faster.

Im in agreement with everything except not having players ready. IMO, i can accept this statement if it was pop warner, middle school, maybe even semi pro. But as a professional team thats just an excuse. Unless the coaches dont care about their job, there is no reason that they wouldnt have their players ready, zero. As professionals being paid unworthy wages, they can never use that as an excuse, never.

 

[Tainthappening]

- Q. Walker continuing his bonehead plays... playing faster this year, but he does not appear to be the smartest individual. Even I know for several years cannot do that. That was costly penalty and made it 3 possession game with a lot less time on clock

 

[RP-29]

View attachment 342113

This is what we get for drafting from the SEC. Yes, they can run and hit, but they can't spell the words "run" and "hit".

 

[Mack]

This is what we get for drafting from the SEC. Yes, they can run and hit, but they can't spell the words "run" and "hit".

lol. Good one RP. So i ask these questions- Where do we place the blame? Is it years of success and having to draft late or the lack of experience/knowledge drafting quality players? Or both?

 

[RP-29]

lol. Good one RP. So i ask these questions- Where do we place the blame? Is it years of success and having to draft late or the lack of experience/knowledge drafting quality players? Or both?

Honestly, I believe the Packers have drafted pretty well over the past decade.

Pertaining to the DET loss... As I was sitting in the stands for that game, I was mostly frustrated with the play-calling. We knew we were down two starting OL and one playing hurt. We also knew DET's DL was gonna be amped.

Key ways to neutralize an energized DL when your OL is banged up includes...
- quick hitting passing plays such as screens and slants
- spreading the field in 3 & 4 wideout sets and running halfback draws

What LaFleur did was try to run a bunch of deep route combinations on all passing plays in the first several series - despite having Aaron Jones available. Jones should've gotten touches on every other play in that first quarter and all he was was a failed decoy. Love lost confidence when GB's OL couldn't hold up and he ended up making bad decisions - which is something every QB endures.

I don't think this was a terminal problem with LaFleur or Love or the OL or the defense, but it was certainly a bad game by all of them all at the same time. No one expected the Packers to win all 17 games this season and I expect they'll bounce back adequately against the Raiders.

 

[Mack]

Honestly, I believe the Packers have drafted pretty well over the past decade.

Pertaining to the DET loss... As I was sitting in the stands for that game, I was mostly frustrated with the play-calling. We knew we were down two starting OL and one playing hurt. We also knew DET's DL was gonna be amped.

Key ways to neutralize an energized DL when your OL is banged up includes...
- quick hitting passing plays such as screens and slants
- spreading the field in 3 & 4 wideout sets and running halfback draws

What LaFleur did was try to run a bunch of deep route combinations on all passing plays in the first several series - despite having Aaron Jones available. Jones should've gotten touches on every other play in that first quarter and all he was was a failed decoy. Love lost confidence when GB's OL couldn't hold up and he ended up making bad decisions - which is something every QB endures.

I don't think this was a terminal problem with LaFleur or Love or the OL or the defense, but it was certainly a bad game by all of them all at the same time. No one expected the Packers to win all 17 games this season and I expect they'll bounce back adequately against the Raiders.

Well enough to stay competitive during the season but not in the playoffs. For having a future hall of fame QB and not getting back to the SB in the last decade is a travesty. I think mgt decisions played a big role in that.

You would think, by drafting defense heavy in that time period we would see a better product on the field but IMO, nothing really has changed. I dont believe GB has enough quality players to compete against the better teams in this league.

The jury is still out on LaFleur for me. From your assessment, he didnt adjust to what the team needed for the detroit game. Not the sign of a good coach.