The Green Bay Packers avoided a preseason shutout in a lopsided 27-2 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday thanks to one of the lone highlights of the night: a safety off a sack from defensive end Zach Morton in the third quarter.
Morton, who signed with the Packers 11 days ago, won on a stunt inside by beating the left guard and sacked quarterback Zach Wilson in the end zone for two points. The safety cut the Broncos’ lead to 20-2.
The Packers wouldn’t score again. Greg Joseph missed a 47-yard field goal, and Green Bay finished the game without a trip into the red zone.
Here’s the sack and safety from Morton:
Zach Morton gets to Zach Wilson for the safety!@Packers get 2️⃣ points.
📺: #GBvsDEN on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/EpTN09tT6V— NFL (@NFL) August 19, 2024
This was a game lacking highlights for Matt LaFleur’s team. The team’s longest play from scrimmage was a 15-yard run by Emanuel Wilson, but the passing game’s longest gain was only 11 yards. On defense, the Packers backups were shredded by rookie Bo Nix early, but Brenton Cox Jr. had a sack and Kristian Welch grabbed an interception in the second half. Daniel Whelan put two punts inside the 20-yard line and averaged over 50 yards per punt.
The Packers finished with 168 total yards on 54 plays. The offense turned the ball over twice and finished 3-for-16 on third or fourth down. The Broncos led 17-0 at halftime and were never threatened despite committing 13 penalties for 120 yards.
