The Green Bay Packers will be 3-4 entering next week’s showdown with the Buffalo Bills after blowing an 11-point lead and losing 23-21 on Sunday to the Washington Commanders.
At one point, the Commanders scored 20 straight points to take a two-score lead in the second half. The Packers’ comeback attempt ended on a frantic final play as time expired.
Here’s what went right, what went wrong and what it all means for the Packers;
What went right
– The Packers used complementary football to score the game’s first touchdown. A good punt pinned the Commanders inside the 5-yard line. A quick stop from the defense got the ball back. And the special teams provided excellent field position. From there, the offense marched 42 yards to score.
– Finally, the Packers defense got a big takeaway. De’Vondre Campbell picked off Taylor’s Heinicke’s errant pass under pressure and returned it for a score. It was the defense’s first takeaway since Week 4 and the first time all season that the Packers have scored off a turnover.
– The red-zone defense held the Commanders to just one touchdown on four trips inside the 20-yard line. Washington had to settle for three field goals from inside 35 yards.
– Running back Aaron Jones caught nine passes and scored both touchdowns on passing plays. While he ran the ball only eight times, the Packers found more ways to get him involved in the passing game.
– The defense was disruptive at times, especially early. The Packers finished with six passes defended, six tackles for loss and nine quarterback hits.
– The Commanders managed only one quarterback hit, and Aaron Rodgers wasn’t sacked.
What went wrong
– The Packers dropped at least a half-dozen passes, including four on third or fourth down. The offense was 0-for-7 on third or fourth down.
– The Commanders rushed for 166 yards, including three runs of at least 15 yards. Brian Robinson and Antonio Gibson combined for 132 rushing yards on 30 carries, and Curtis Samuel had a 16-yard run.
– The Packers, meanwhile, rushed only 12 times despite Matt LaFleur and Aaron Rodgers saying the Commanders played primarily “two-shell” coverages.
– Nine penalties plagued the Packers. One negated a defensive touchdown. Several others crippled offensive drives.
– Rodgers averaged 5.5 yards per attempt. The passing game was as condensed on Sunday as its been all season, likely a result of the reconfigured offensive line.
– Taylor Heinicke completed 20 passes for 201 yards and two scores. Terry McLaurin beat Jaire Alexander at least three times in the second half for big plays, including a 37-yard touchdown and a crucial 12-yard catch on 3rd-and-9 late in the fourth.
– Amari Rodgers fumbled away a punt return. It was his third fumble of the season and fifth of his career as a returner. Because of the lost fumble, the Packers failed to win the turnover battle (tied, 1-1) for the seventh consecutive game to start 2022.
– The Packers’ two biggest gains of the contest came on the final desperation drive: a 28-yard completion to Sammy Watkins and a 22-yard catch from Robert Tonyan.
– Rookie Romeo Doubs didn’t catch any of his four targets and had at least three drops.
– After the Packers failed on a replay challenge of a fumble, everything went off the rails, and the Commanders scored 20 straight points. The offense had six scoreless possessions in a row after going up 7-0. The defense gave up three straight scoring drives to open the second half.
– The Commanders had a 15-minute time of possession advantage and a 25-play advantage in number of plays run.
What it means
The Packers won’t panic internally, and the state of the NFC through seven weeks should keep the door open for Matt LaFleur’s struggling team, but Green Bay’s 2022 season is teetering on the edge of full-blown failure. The Packers went 1-3 through a relatively soft part of the schedule, and some tough tests await, especially over the next five weeks. There’s no bye week coming up to get stuff figured out; the off week doesn’t arrive until mid-December. Collectively, the offense is playing putrid football, and blame can’t be placed on any one thing. It’s the quarterback, blocking, playing on time and executing. The defense is dominant one drive and terrible the next. This Packers team doesn’t do anything one thing consistently enough to consider it a true identity. A rudderless team better find a stabilizing force soon or we’ll be talking about draft position in December and January instead of playoff seeding.
What's next
What’s the reward for a three-game losing streak? A trip to Buffalo to play the Bills, arguably the NFL’s best team. The showdown will be in primetime on Sunday, and the Bills will be coming off a bye week. The Packers lost to Daniel Jones, Zach Wilson and Taylor Heinicke the last three weeks, and now Josh Allen – an early MVP favorite – is up next. This will be the biggest challenge of the Packers’ season.
