All the Green Bay Packers needed was solid play from Aaron Rodgers to defeat the NFL’s worst team record-wise on Sunday. However, three interceptions against a historically bad Detroit Lions defense may have been the nail in the coffin for a team on a five-game losing streak and falling deeper and deeper out of playoff contention.
“Yeah, had some (expletive) throws, for sure,” Rodgers said of his first three-pick performance since 2017.
The first two interceptions were among the worst of Rodgers’ career. The Packers were threatening to score on both opening drives until a pair of poorly placed balls from the quarterback resulted in zero points for the offense.
The first one was arguably the most egregious. During the first series, the offense manifested one of the best drives all season to reach Detroit’s 5-yard line. But instead of handing the ball off to AJ Dillon on first and goal, Rodgers looked for his top target Allen Lazard running a slant in the endzone. Lazard may have had a step on his man, but Rodgers’ throw was so bad it wouldn’t have mattered. The trajectory of the ball was behind the receiver and low, and ended up bouncing off the helmet of linebacker Derrick Barnes and into the air for safety Kerby Joseph to corral.
“Probably should’ve checked out of that play, handed the ball off, or adjusted the route,” said Rodgers.
Green Bay’s second drive was also productive. A quick three and out from defense put the ball right back in Rodgers’ hands. Everything looked promising when Rodgers connected with Lazard on a 47-yard catch and run that nearly reached the endzone if not for Lazard’s knee touching the ground a bit too soon.
The Packers had four plays to pick up one yard. Reminiscent of Week 5 against the New York Giants, they failed to do so despite flipping the script and handing the ball off to their 247-pound running back, not once but twice. Dillon was unable to pick up one yard on two attempts, while the second down attempt featured a miscommunication between Rodgers and Sammy Watkins. Watkins ran a slant while Rodgers expected a fade while the ball traveled to no man’s land in the corner of the end zone.
That set up fourth down and another turning point. Green Bay decided to pull out all the stops with left tackle David Bakhtiari reporting as an eligible receiver. Once the ball was snapped, Rodgers faked a handoff to Dillon while Bakhtiari leaked from his blocking assignment into a vacated spot in the endzone. However, when a Detroit defender immediately broke through the line, Rodgers was forced to throw off his back foot. Still, the pass only needed to travel 10 yards. It went five and into the hands of Aidan Hutchinson.
“There were only two options on the play, but I probably should have given him a chance. I’ll definitely have to live with that throw for the rest of my life with our friendship,” said Rodgers.
As if things couldn’t get any worse, Rodgers cost his best friend Bakhtiari a rare left tackle touchdown by compounding the mistake with another teasing pick.
After going scoreless in the first half against a defense allowing the most points in the NFL, Green Bay saw a glimmer of hope when Jaire Alexander intercepted a pass from Jared Goff. The takeaway set up the offense with a short field of 35 yards to finally secure their first points in the third quarter. Unfortunately, it took only two plays for Rodgers to give the ball right back. Again it was Joseph, this time jumping in front of Robert Tonyan to intercept his second pass of the game.
A three-interception game is uncharacteristic of Rodgers but emblematic of the Packers’ season. This team has struggled to play complementary football all year, and Sunday was another perfect example. When the defense puts together a solid performance, the reigning back-to-back MVP squanders it. But even after a third giveaway won’t keep you out of a game against a team as impotent as Detroit.
Somehow Green Bay still had a chance to win with one final drive and two minutes on the clock. Rodgers did just enough to make it interesting with an improbable 32-yard completion on fourth down to Samori Toure, who fumbled the ball out bounds at the Lions’ 17. That was as close the Packers would get to scoring as the game ended after four straight incompletions from Rodgers.
The last series epitomized the one-step forward two steps back approach Green Bay has shown throughout 2022. Anytime something good happens, something awful is soon to follow.
Very quickly, it has turned into a cursed season for the Packers, but the disappointment following a 15-9 loss to the Lions still isn’t enough for Rodgers to wish he retired during the offseason.
“When I decided to come back, it was all-in. I don’t make decisions and then, hindsight 20-20, have regrets about big decisions like that. So, it was all-in, and this is a lot of life lessons for sure this year, but luckily, it’s not over. There are still a lot of games left. We’ll be counted out probably by many, and we’ll see how we respond.”
Sure, there are eight games left, but likely not enough to save the Packers’ season. There is almost no room for error moving forward, and it may take a Rodgers run-the-table-like stretch to remain in the conversation for the postseason. But anyone who has watched this team knows a turnaround is not imminent. In fact, it’s only a pipe dream, especially with the 6-2 Dallas Cowboys preparing to travel to Green Bay in what will be Mike McCarthy’s first game back since being fired in 2018. In many ways, starting with Rodgers’ poor play, it feels like he never left.
