Life comes at you fast. Five weeks ago, I was heading to London to watch the 3-1 Pack play its first game overseas. This Sunday, I’m heading to Lambeau to watch a dead team walking. Make that a dead team limping.
Unofficially, the 2022 Green Bay Packers season ended at Ford Field on Sunday. We’re in uncharted territory here: We’ve watched nine games where a Packers offense led by Aaron Rodgers has looked listless, out of sync, and disjointed. Rodgers looks nothing like the two-time reigning MVP these days. Yes, his first two red zone picks were a bit fluky, but they could have both been avoided if Rodgers had made better throws.
It’s not that he and Matt LaFleur aren’t on the same page. They appear to be reading books written in different languages. Snapping the ball is a chore; every first down is a struggle. The play clock hits zero every time Rodgers takes the snap. Even on the game’s final play, following a timeout, they barely got the play off, everything seemed rushed, and Rodgers and Sammy Watkins were clearly not on the same page.
Four trips to the red zone and zero points to show for it. Four trips to the red zone and three ended with interceptions by Detroit Lions rookies. The offense is broken right now, and I can’t be the only one who’s thanking his lucky stars that the Pack didn’t give up its first-round pick for Carolina Panthers WR D.J. Moore, as Fox’s Jay Glazer reported was offered last week. This offense is more than a receiver away; this team is more than one guy away from being a contender. That first-round pick may very well land in the top ten.
We probably should have known what we were in for on Sunday when Romeo Doubs got carted off after catching an 18-yard pass on the game’s first play. It was just the first in a laundry list of injured players. There were more Packers on crutches and in boots after the game than points on the scoreboard.
Doubs and Stokes were both lost to ankle injuries in the first quarter, Rashan Gary also left with an ankle injury, Christian Watson suffered another concussion (a major concern), as did Krys Barnes. And Aaron Jones hurt his ankle, though it sounds like he escaped serious injury there. Doubs, Stokes, and Gary left the locker room on crutches. Not good. On top of that, David Bakhtiari and Jon Runyan missed significant time during the game.
With three tough defenses on deck (Dallas, Tennessee, Philly), it’s hard to conjure up a scenario where a light switches on, and the offense starts to hum. At this point, it’s looking like a lost season — and a very uncertain future.
We’re a few weeks away from a drumbeat that will start reverberating throughout Packerland. When the post-season is officially off the table, would the Pack turn to Jordan Love to see where he’s at? They have to make a significant financial decision about his future this offseason, so it would make sense on many levels. It would also likely cause Rodgers to completely lose it.
Of course, after watching that performance in Detroit, you could argue that Rodgers has already lost it.
