After re-watching Monday night’s game against the Rams, here are five six things worth knowing:
1) Christian Watson’s recent exploits made it easy to forget just how well Romeo Doubs was playing before suffering a high ankle sprain against Detroit in Week 9. The fourth-round pick returned on Monday and quickly reminded everybody why he was third among all rookies in catches through eight games. Doubs ran precise routes and easily beat a pretty good veteran corner (Troy Hill) for three of his five receptions. It’s fun watching the former Nevada star pluck the ball out of the air with his hands. The only negative was not doing a better job with YAC. Doubs slipped a few times on the cold and slick grass.
2) Maybe Yosh Nijman just needs more time to adjust, but his four starts at left tackle were much better than his eight starts at right tackle. The former Virginia Tech star allowed only five pressures and didn’t give up a sack replacing All-Pro David Bakhtiari. Since switching sides in Week 7, he’s allowed 15 pressures and three sacks, including a pair last night to talented edge rusher Leonard Floyd. That’s a difficult matchup for anybody, and to his credit, Nijman never stopped battling and did manage to hold his own on the majority of dropbacks – sometimes with a little help from a running back or tight end. The 26-year-old was up and down in the run game and committed his team-high ninth penalty.
3) Marcedes Lewis is still an effective pass blocker, but age has negatively affected his work in the run game. Monday night was a good example. The 38-year-old struggled to sustain blocks after initial contact and let his man work to the ball. This led to Aaron Jones being dropped at or behind the line of scrimmage a number of times. Lewis loses a little athleticism and flexibility with each passing season. If coach Matt LaFleur wants to truly emulate the 49ers’ offense in 2023 or post-Aaron Rodgers, the front office will need to find tight ends and fullbacks who block more effectively and consistently for the run. However flawed, Lewis is still markedly better than Robert Tonyan, Josiah Deguara, and Tyler Davis.
4) Allen Lazard lacks the quickness into and out of cuts to be a No. 1 or even a No. 2 wide receiver, but he’s going to get paid pretty well in free agency next March. That’s because he’s an unselfish player who does the little things to help a team win. The former Iowa State star was targeted just twice on Monday night and caught one pass for seven yards. A lot of receivers, especially those in a contract year, could have sulked and simply gone through the motions in the run game. But that’s not Lazard. He kept blocking much larger defenders and creating space for Jones and AJ Dillon. The player LaFleur often affectionately refers to as a “goon” lived up to that monicker for three-plus hours against the Rams.
On this 3rd-and-1 play, Lazard (#13) does just enough against 280-pound linebacker Keir Thomas to allow Aaron Jones to pick up the first down.
5) A trio of defensive linemen took advantage of the Rams’ injury-depleted offensive line. Kenny Clark, who’d been quiet in recent weeks, was pretty much unblockable for four quarters, Jarran Reed was very disruptive at times, and rookie Devonte Wyatt made the most of his nine snaps. On back-to-back plays in the fourth quarter, the No. 1 pick from Georgia stuffed running back Cam Akers for no gain and then pressured quarterback Baker Mayfield into the waiting arms of Justin Hollins for a sack. If the Packers are to upset Tua Tagovailoa and the explosive Dolphins on Sunday in Miami, they’ll need a similar performance from these three players against a healthier and much better offensive line.
6) Along with contributing over 130 yards on returns on Monday night, Keisean Nixon did a pretty good job on defense. He’s probably been a slight upgrade over Rasul Douglas since taking over as the starting nickel corner in Week 12. To be fair, two of the opponents (Chicago and Los Angeles) had pretty anemic passing attacks. It’ll be very interesting to see how the former Raider fares for the rest of the season. He’ll be tested by a plethora of outstanding receivers, including Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and Amon-Ra St. Brown. If Nixon holds up OK, he might be able to convince GM Brian Gutekunst and the coaches that he can be more than just a special teams standout in the future.
OVERALL: The Packers once again proved they could beat a bad team, but they’ll need to beat three good teams in a row to have any chance of making the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season. They’ll need to play a heck of a lot better than they did against the Rams to upset the Dolphins, who’ll be every bit as desperate as Green Bay after three straight losses.
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the defense looked very good v. the depleted Rams. i am truly curious how they will fare v. the Dolphins.. the range of outcomes seems very wide.
Great insights as always Michael. Certainly appreciate your efforts and wish you and yours a safe, warm and joyous holiday season.
I’ve been a Packers fan since I was 11 years old. I’m now 60 and dealing with Metastatic Cancer. So I don’t know what time I have left. I suppose that is true for all of us. Nevertheless, the Packers will continue on with or without my fandom. I remember the horrible days of David Whitehurst, Randy Wright and Rich Campbell. Things were not too bad during Lynn Dickey’s days. Regardless, eight win seasons were destroyed by Forest Gregg. Why do I bring this up? Simply because I understand the importance of having a great quarterback. I’ve watched Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers great play but I have also witnessed both becoming bigger than the team. Rodgers made it easier to move on from Favre but apparently we don’t have the same to move on from Rodgers. His act has worn thin and I can’t believe that he’s walking away from 59 million dollars. So I believe he’s going to come back. Yet, he thinks he can dictate that his friends stay on the team. Not only does he want the team to accept a 39 year old quarterback. He wants a 39 year old tightend, 33 year old receiver, a left tackle who can’t stay on the field and a 39 year old kicker. That’s unrealistic and shouldn’t happen. Keeping Rodgers is one thing, but the rest need to be replaced by younger and less expensive players. Because, if winning a super bowl is really the desired ending. Then the team has to try and get better. Nonetheless, Rodgers and his run as general manager dictates that he can show his ass and act like a spoiled two year old. It ain’t going to happen.
Rodgers cares more about his self than the team. Listen to his ex-girlfriends. Oliva Munn, Danica Patrick and others. Rodgers is inherently selfish. I mean the dude wouldn’t even allow Danica to turn one of his bedrooms into a yoga studio. But made her workout in a shed in the backyard. That, to me, says all I need to know about Rodgers selfish nature. He’s a jack-ass, and I have lost all respect for his act.
Do the Packers care? Of course not. Murphy, Gutey and Lafleur are going to run the team into the ground because none have the stones to tell Rodgers to shut up and move on from acting like an ass. Then actually do what’s best for the team. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen. It’s certainly a sad commentary.
Oh well, I will continue to love the team win or lose. But I sure wish we had another Bob Harlen who cared more about the team than the gifts of money. Turning the football control over to a true football leader. We’ve got Larry, Curly and Moe’s running things now. So we just have to pray that something changes once Murphy moves on. Fun times await…
I’m glad to see Wyatt playing better of late. It’s surprising he’s not getting more snaps. He’s a No. 1 pick, and it’s not like Dean Lowry and Jarran Reed are Randy White and Bob Lilly.