It was a well-rounded performance by the Green Bay Packers in all three phases in their win against the Los Angeles Rams as they keep their playoff hopes alive for another week.
The offense kept it simple and took what the Rams’ defense gave them. The Packers’ defense, meanwhile, controlled the line of scrimmage, and Keisean Nixon provided some big plays on special teams.
Now have had the chance to look back at Monday’s game, along with diving into some of the numbers, here is an up-close look at the stats and figures you need to know from the Packers’ performance.
3.6
Has the Green Bay Packers defense all of a sudden figured it out? I wouldn’t bet on it, but credit to them for getting the job done against a not-so-good Rams offense. While the hope was that they would have a performance like this, considering how this season has gone, it wasn’t exactly a given either.
Behind a beaten-up offensive line that has struggled in the run game, along with a receiver position dealing with injuries, the Rams posted only 156 total yards at 3.9 yards per play. For reference, the Rams rank 32nd in the NFL currently in yards per play this season with 4.6. The Packers’ front seven controlled the game, holding the Rams to 3.9 yards per rush while pressuring Baker Mayfield 41% of the time. We saw more blitzing and tighter coverages from Joe Barry, and overall, the secondary held up well.
1
Aaron Rodgers currently ranks third in the NFL in pass attempts of 20-plus yards, per PFF, but of his 32 passes against the Rams, only one traveled that far. We saw Los Angeles play mostly two-high and quite soft in an effort to limit the big play. The Packers, meanwhile, didn’t force anything and took what the defense gave them, which was a lot of easy completions underneath via the quick passing game, along with a heavy dose of the run game. It was refreshing to see things come easy for this offense and nothing really being forced.
32 vs. 30
Christian Watson’s emergence over the last month has, of course, contributed to the Packers success on offense. But so has the run game. In Green Bay’s three games against Dallas, Philadelphia, and Chicago, where they averaged over 30 points, AJ Dillon and Aaron Jones combined for 400-plus rushing yards at more than five yards per attempt. In the two games against Tennessee and Detroit, where the Packers combined to score 26 points, Jones and Dillon didn’t break 70 total yards in either outing and barely averaged three yards per run.
On the flip side, when the passing game has had to carry the offense, things, for the most part, haven’t ended well, with the Tennessee and Detroit games again being prime examples. So this week, against a very good Rams run defense and a secondary that has taken its lumps, I wasn’t sure if the Packers were going to become pass-happy and one-dimensional, which could have very well hampered their offense. But instead, this was one of the more balanced games they’ve had, with 32 carries for the running backs compared to 30 pass attempts for Aaron Rodgers.
7 and 4.5
As already mentioned, the Rams entered the game with one of the best run defenses in football, led by Aaron Donald. However, Donald was again held out with an ankle injury, and no surprise, his presence was very much missed. The Green Bay running backs had wide running lanes, and Rodgers had plenty of time in the pocket. Overall, the Packers’ ball carriers averaged 4.4 yards per rush, with Jones averaging 5.3, and the offensive line was credited with only seven pressures.
31.7 and 18
Keisean Nixon has provided quite the spark for these Green Bay Packers return teams – which again begs the question, what took the coaching staff so long to make this change? Nixon would average 31.7 yards per kick return with a long of 52 against the Rams and had two returns for 36 yards on punts. Despite not taking over these return duties until as of late, Nixon ranks second in total kick return yards and second in yards per punt return. In addition to his return man responsibilities, Nixon also played 100% of the defensive snaps, holding the Rams’ pass catchers to less than seven yards per reception. As Matt LaFleur said after the game, Nixon is a “difference maker.”
37:19
With the performances of the offensive and defensive units, the Packers controlled the clock, holding the ball for 37:19, nearly 15 minutes longer than the Rams. This resulted in the Packers running 25 more plays on offense. You’re going to win a lot of games doing that.
46
Christian Watson didn’t stuff the stat sheet like he has over the last month, totaling just 46 yards and no touchdowns, but his presence was absolutely felt. For one, the Rams heavy usage of cover-2 and playing off was in part because of Watson’s big play ability. A month ago, defenses weren’t giving the Packers receivers this much respect. This, along with the attention that he drew from defenders, created opportunities for others in the passing game, with the pass to a wide-open Allen Lazard that was intercepted being a prime example of this. We also saw Watson draw a pair of penalties to move the chains, and he threw a key block on Jones’ second-half touchdown. LaFleur would say after the game that Watson has an impact with or without the ball because of his ability to dictate coverages just
3
The Packers, as we know, need to win their final three games if they’re going to have any hope of making the playoffs. In addition to that, they need either New York to finish 0-3 or Washington to end the year 1-2 or worse. On top of of that, one more loss from Seattle is required, and because of tiebreakers, it would hurt to root for one more Detroit loss in addition to the Packers needing to beat them.
