The Green Bay Packers couldn’t have asked for a better season opener than the one they had in Chicago.
After months of the two hated rivals’ fanbases trash-talking on Twitter, we (unsurprisingly) saw the Packers emerge as the better team.
It’s only been one game, and the Chicago Bears weren’t exactly looking like a top-tier team, so we can’t read into the performance too much. But one thing was clear from Sunday’s outing: The Packers set Jordan Love up for success by investing in the trenches.
All the clichés (football is won in the trenches, there are only so many good big men in the league, etc.) proved true during Sunday’s 38-20 victory. Love was well protected by his offensive line, while Green Bay’s defensive front made life hard for Justin Fields. This young team will face growing pains, some of which we saw in Sunday’s game. But this foundation sets the team up for early success.
One of the best ways to make life easy for a first-time starting quarterback is to protect him up front and disrupt the opposing quarterback’s line. That’s certainly what happened Sunday. Love had plenty of time to throw to his cast of misfit receivers while Green Bay’s suddenly speedy and effective defensive attack constantly got after Fields.
The Packers figured out their preferred alignment on the offensive line, with Zach Tom taking over as starting right tackle. The other four linemen were last year’s preferred starters, giving the Pack a valuable sense of cohesion and chemistry. Compared to Chicago’s line, which featured shuffled and new players, Green Bay had a massive advantage.
The official scorers credited Green Bay’s offensive line with only two pressures, one from Jon Runyan Jr. and Elgton Jenkins. Love operated from a clean pocket and had plenty of time to throw thanks to the big men’s efforts.
Of particular note, David Bakhtiari had a perfect game despite missing practice. Bakhtiari allowed zero pressures, hits, hurries, or sacks. The old man of the team proved he is still one of the league’s best tackles, even while managing his long-standing injury. Tom also allowed no harm to Love, nor did Josh Myers, though Myers did have a botched snap and looks to be the weak link of the group in run blocking.
Tom and Bakhtiari were two of PFF’s and Andy Herman’s highest-graded offensive players (84.8/+1.70 and 78.3/+1.10, respectively). The group will need to improve with run blocking, especially in the interior, but it was phenomenal in pass protection.
Fields can’t say the same about his protection.
Fields was under pressure on 53% of his dropbacks thanks to the speed and aggression from Green Bay’s front seven. Maybe putting Joe Barry in the booth was the secret to unlocking the defense, because this group looked nothing like the one from last year.
The speed and athleticism of the Packers’ defense was on full display. Green Bay’s first sack of the season came from rookie Lukas Van Ness, who showed Fields what a defensive player who can match his speed looked like.
On the night, Fields was sacked four times and pressured a whopping 36 times. Pressures came from 12 different players, including rookies like Karl Brooks and Colby Wooden making splash plays.
Between Fields’ tendency to hold the ball too long, a lackluster offensive line and the Packers finally playing with urgency, they had one of the most dominant pass-rush units in Week 1.
The run defense did its job too, limiting Fields’ game-changing legs to 59 yards and the team one the whole to 122 rush yards. That’s pretty good for the traditionally leaky Packers. Devonte Wyatt is emerging as a threatening option next to Kenny Clark, something this team has needed for the 36 years Clark has been in the league.
Matt LaFleur has a good history of scheming his offense when his best weapons are missing, and that and the offensive line’s strong performance should keep Love afloat while he and his young weapons get into a groove. Meanwhile, the defensive line showed what it can look like against a good rushing team, and the pass-rush group might be the deepest it’s been in a while.
The Falcons will be a good test for Week 2, with a strong rushing attack and a good offensive line. We also don’t know if Christian Watson will return this Sunday, and Aaron Jones isn’t guaranteed this week after a hamstring strain. Love may need to rely on his protection once again.
We don’t want to read too much into one game, but the win over the Bears confirmed what we’ve believed this offseason. The Packers set Jordan Love up for early success by investing in both trenches. If Love can stay well-protected and the defensive line can stay stout and attack other quarterbacks, the Packers can wrack up some early wins with their young team.
