With Aaron Jones sidelined once again on Monday night, the Green Bay Packers struggled to find consistent offensive output when they turned to the rest of the supporting cast. A.J. Dillon and Christian Watson got their fair share of looks on Monday night, but neither were able to generate the offensive output needed, as the Packers fell to the Las Vegas Raiders 17-13 on the road.
Upon receiving the opening kickoff, the Matt LaFleur-led offense dialed up three-straight run plays for Dillon to gain 11 total yards and pick up a first down. The Packers appeared determined to get the rushing attack going to open up the pass game. Jordan Love connected on two short passes, six-yard completions to Watson and Luke Musgrave, before just a one-yard run by Dillon on second-and-four caused what was a promising drive to stall out.
Dillon finished with 20 carries for 76 yards, averaging 3.8 yards per carry on the evening. That figure helped raise Dillon’s season average to 3.0 yards per carry, which isn’t ideal for the player who you’re crafting your offensive game plan around. He had two carries, one for eight yards and another for 11, that would even flirt with being considered a “big gain.” While he powered his way into the end zone from five yards out, it wasn’t a performance that struck any sort of fear into the opposing defense.
When Love was able to look deep, he was targeting Watson often. Watson got free on a rollout by Love on a seemingly broken play, racing for 77 yards after being yanked down from behind on a horse-collar tackle that Raiders coach Josh McDaniels called “a really smart play.” Of course, the Packers were unable to convert the long play into a touchdown, settling for a field goal after two Dillon runs combined for minus-one yards with goal to go.
Outside of the long catch-and-run, Watson caught an eight-yard pass, a six-yard pass, and lost five yards on an end-around run. Las Vegas intercepted two balls that were intended for him, including the game-ending pick by Amik Robertson with less than a minute to play. Watson had seven targets and came up with three catches, which isn’t the efficiency you’re hoping for out of a dynamic pass-catching threat.
Of the 58 plays Green Bay’s offense ran, 28 were intended for Dillon or Watson. Newly elevated running back Patrick Taylor got two carries and five targets, while Musgrave posted a modest 34 yards on his six targets. After all that, Jayden Reed, Romeo Doubs, and Dontayvion Wicks combined for seven total targets from Love.
Sometimes, that imbalance happens. Game flow dictates that offenses will key in on one player or another, but usually that happens when the production justifies that attention. That wasn’t the case on Monday night. Outside of the fluke play to Watson in which he absolutely should have scored, there was no such thing as a hot hand in the Packers offense. After 13 targets against the Detroit Lions and 12 against the New Orleans Saints the previous two weeks, Doubs was largely invisible on Friday night. Reed could have found his way into the mix much more than he did with only one catch, especially considering his consistent production over the first four weeks.
Monday night made evident that the next man up clichĂ© won’t cut it with Aaron Jones out, because the next men up for the Packers aren’t capable of the same level of production. If Green Bay is going to be successful offensively, it will need to lean on all of its weapons. Jones can help mitigate that need for balance to an extent. But with him on the bench, the dearth of targets for Doubs and Reed in particular is somewhere between unacceptable and unfathomable.
What’s also clear is that Dillon and Watson aren’t leading men in their respective roles. Dillon’s best utility is as a punishing change-of-pace back or a bully at the goal line, not a 20-carry-a-game bell cow. With all of his physical gifts, Watson is an incredible weapon in the slot or as a No. 2 receiver stretching the field, but he isn’t going to fight and win balls in traffic as often as someone like Doubs.
It was an extremely winnable game for Green Bay that turned into a truly disappointing loss. With a week off and then games against a very-not-good Denver Broncos team and a Justin Jefferson-less Minnesota Vikings squad, the Packers still have an opportunity to get right. Continuing to deploy an imbalanced offensive attack makes those games more difficult, and may end up leaving Green Bay in a hole that’s too difficult to dig out of.
