You can say one thing about the Green Bay Packers: They don’t appear to be in danger of peaking too early.
I mean, when a third-string QB has the ball at midfield with a chance to win the game in overtime, you know you haven’t played your best football.
But ultimately, when you can beat Bill Belichick after witnessing the worst half of football we’ve ever seen from Aaron Rodgers, you take the win and move on. The Packers only have a few more weeks of feasting on overmatched opponents before the schedule takes an ominous turn, beginning with a primetime game in Buffalo on Halloween weekend. They’re going to need to figure out a whole lot before that brutal test.
Let’s start with the offense. The running game continues to shine, and Aaron Jones remains the best player on that side of the ball. Against a stout defense (admittedly missing key run stopper Lawrence Guy), the Pack rumbled for nearly 200 yards and averaged nearly six yards a pop. That is sustainable. I’d still like to see the backs get more looks as receivers, but Jones has been great, and Dillon is the perfect complement.
As for the passing game, well, we’ve never seen a shakier first half from Rodgers. He had several throws that were wildly off target, and the pick-six in the closing seconds of the first half had me channeling the David Whitehurst era. An 11.2 passer rating in the first half? Are you kidding me?
To his credit, Rodgers redeemed himself in the second half, with some critical third-down conversions, like the long sideline route to Allen Lazard on third and ten on the first possession of the second half and a couple of key connections with Randall Cobb. It’s nice to see and hear about his growing affection and confidence in Romeo Doubs, whose potential and talent are obvious, despite a pattern of not finishing catches — something we’ve seen in multiple games. Doubs was on the receiving end of Rodgers’ 500th TD pass, and that play reminded us that he has all the tools to be special.
Also of concern? Elgton Jenkins‘ play at right tackle. Okay, he’s working his way back from ACL surgery and probably needs a little more time to feel like himself. Matthew Judon made him his personal plaything on Sunday. Either Jenkins is still shaking off the rust, or he’s better suited to kick back inside at right guard, perhaps allowing the Pack to try Yosh Nijman or rookie Zach Tom there. It’s something to keep an eye on.
It’s hard to know what to make of Joe Barry’s defense. In the last three weeks, they’ve faced Justin Fields, a WR-less Tom Brady, and something called Bailey Zappe. After holding the Pats to just three points in the first half, they allowed two long drives in the second half, when everybody in the stadium knew they would run the ball. Yet they kept giving up yardage in chunks. The one shining star continues to be Rashan Gary, who is ascending to superstar status before our eyes.
To the defense’s credit, they forced three and outs on the last three series. I’m probably not the only one who thought that when the Pack punted in overtime and New England had the ball at the 49, that we were about to witness one of the unlikeliest and ugliest home losses of the Rodgers era. But the defense did its job once again and gave the offense one last chance to win the game from deep in its own territory. Rodgers wasn’t about to let his second chance get away, leading a drive that featured key completions to Lazard and Cobb, with Dillon doing his thing on the ground.
In the end, a win is a win. You never apologize for a win in the NFL, no matter how ugly or unsatisfying. We know that racking up wins and securing the top seed guarantees nothing. The key is to get better each week and stay as healthy as possible.
They’re 3-1 and have yet to win the turnover battle in a game this season. If the offense can continue to find its groove and if the defense can begin to play like the top-ten unit we expect it to be (getting Jaire Alexander and Adrian Amos back healthy will help), they have a chance to be precisely where we expect them to be come January.
With the New York Giants, New York Jets, and Washington Commanders on deck, they have a chance to stack some wins against overmatched, mediocre opponents. But they’ll need to be a lot sharper than they were on Sunday.
