GREEN BAY, Wis. — Nobody is wishing bad health on Jordan Love, but what a story it would be if Malik Willis faced the Tennessee Titans in their building Sunday. Love’s knee and Willis’ possible redemption will be the two main storylines for the Green Bay Packers this week, but plenty more emerged from Sunday’s 16-10 win over the Indianapolis Colts aside from Willis’ play and the run-game dominance.
After rewatching the game, here are 13 thoughts I had.
1. I wouldn’t be surprised if Keisean Nixon doesn’t return a single kick until the weather turns and the ball firms up later this season. The last one against the Philadelphia Eagles doesn’t really count because Nixon went buck wild out of desperation with the Packers needing a spark down five with 27 seconds left, bringing one out from 8 yards deep to only the 16-yard line. The other seven kicks he’s been back for have gone for touchbacks. The Eagles and Colts, and probably the Titans and whoever else the Packers play for at least the first half of the season, are fine with giving Green Bay the extra 5 yards that come with the new touchback rules instead of risking the back-to-back first-team All-Pro kick returner breaking one.
LIVE: Head Coach Matt LaFleur meets with the media🎙️ https://t.co/vMBnxgweb8
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 16, 2024
2. I’m not ready to say the Packers still have a kicking problem, but Brayden Narveson isn’t off to the best start. He missed a 43-yarder off the right upright in Week 1 and another 43-yarder wide right in Week 2. The snaps and holds on both seemed fine. Narveson also had an extra point blocked Sunday, but it still went in. Only three kickers in the NFL have missed multiple field goals this season: Narveson, the Baltimore Ravens’ Justin Tucker, and Cade York, whom the Washington Commanders released after Week 1. Tucker’s misses have come from 53 and 56.
How patient will coach Matt LaFleur be with an undrafted rookie kicker after the Packers recently pulled the plug on a guy they drafted last year?
“That’s a better question for (general manager Brian Gutekunst), but from my perspective, I’d say pretty patient,” LaFleur said. “I like his mentality. I like his talent. And there’s gonna be some ups and downs, and hopefully there’s more ups than downs. So I do think he’s done a pretty nice job. He’s gotta make that field goal. He knows it. We all know it, but I’m confident that if he’s in that situation again, he’ll hit it.”
3. The Tucker Kraft–Luke Musgrave snap discrepancy is notable. In Week 1, Kraft played 64 offensive snaps to Musgrave’s 17. Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said Thursday: “We definitely don’t want that. We’d like to have it a little more even.” Then Kraft played 56 offensive snaps against the Colts and Musgrave played 31. The Packers seem to like Kraft’s all-around game better right now. Sunday, he caught the attention of Greg Olsen in the booth. After wide receiver Jayden Reed’s outside run for a first down late in the first quarter, on which Kraft set the edge, Olsen said, “I know I’m biased, but Tucker Kraft … he is really at the core of every one of these concepts.”
“Luke did get more snaps, but I think it is a credit to Tuck,” LaFleur said. “I think he’s done a really nice job in every phase, and a lot of that is predicated on how much 12 personnel we’re gonna be in versus 11, but there’s some things that Luke did a really nice job in the game with, as well, so it’s a luxury, I would say, to have two tight ends that we feel really good about.”
Packers snap counts vs. Colts.
Week 1: Tucker Kraft 64, Luke Musgrave 17
Adam Stenavich on Thursday: “We definitely don’t want that. We’d like to have it a little more even.”
Week 2: Kraft 56, Musgrave 31
Greg Olsen lauded Kraft yesterday for his role in the run game. pic.twitter.com/aWSYieSVRO
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) September 16, 2024
4. The massive investment in safety Xavier McKinney is paying off. Sunday’s interception wasn’t as difficult as his first against the Eagles, but you have to catch the cans of corn, too. Wide receiver Alec Pierce ran a deep over route with cornerback Jaire Alexander guarding him, and Anthony Richardson sailed the pass right into McKinney’s grasp. McKinney is tied for first in the NFL with two picks through two weeks, and the Packers already have five after having only seven all last season.
“Having X is really cool,” Alexander said. “He’s a vet. He’s a leader already. Come in making big plays — what more can you ask for?”
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5. Green Bay’s run defense is still a work in progress. As of Monday morning, the Packers rank 19th in the NFL in rush defense EPA per snap, according to TruMedia. A small sample, of course, but Saquon Barkley and Jonathan Taylor have had their way. Barkley ran 24 times for 109 yards in the opener (4.5 YPC), and Taylor ran 12 times for 103 yards (8.6 YPC) on Sunday. The run defense was better in 2023, ranking 13th in run defense EPA per snap, but still ranked 31st in that category from 2019 to 2023 combined.
6. The Packers have opted for a more disciplined pass-rush strategy for the first two weeks given the quarterbacks they’ve faced. Defensive tackle Kenny Clark said after the game in Brazil that the Packers relied on power rushes and staying vertical to keep Jalen Hurts in the pocket. After Sunday’s game against the Colts, LaFleur lauded his guys for sacrificing sacks to keep Richardson home. Hurts and Richardson have done some damage with their legs late — Hurts did a better job beating the Packers with his arm than Richardson — but the Packers’ plan has been executed well. They have only three sacks in two games and rank 30th in sack percentage, according to TruMedia, but they still rank 10th in pressure percentage, and more sacks are sure to come.
The Packers’ lone sack Sunday came when defensive end Lukas Van Ness and defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt ran a stunt. Wyatt moved onto left tackle Bernhard Raimann after the snap, beat him around the outside and sacked Richardson from behind by his feet.
7. The first individual shoutout in LaFleur’s postgame news conference went to punter Daniel Whelan. The second-year pro had three opportunities. The first was a 42-yard punt that bounced out of bounds at the Colts’ 8-yard line. The second was a 59-yard bomb that drew a fair catch at the Colts’ 16. The third was a 38-yarder that drew a fair catch at the Colts’ 5 with 43 seconds left, ensuring the Colts had to go 95 yards to tie the score with no timeouts. Whelan followed up his strong camp with a solid Week 1 and an even better Week 2. At least the Packers seem to have gotten something right on special teams.
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8. LaFleur passionately defended his decision not to go for a score at the end of the first half. They got the ball back with 1:42 remaining on their 20-yard line with all three timeouts. Leading 10-0, they ran three times for 11 yards, content to let the clock expire.
“Some may call that conservative; I call that being smart,” LaFleur said. “They had three timeouts. Like I said, Malik has been here for three weeks. To put him in a two-minute situation at the end of the half when you’re up 10-0, I would call that reckless.”
9. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more efficient day than Eric Wilson’s. The veteran linebacker played eight defensive snaps against the Colts. In those eight snaps, he forced a fumble chasing down Taylor on a screen. He sniffed out a third-down speed option that Richardson tossed to running back Trey Sermon, with whom Wilson made first contact before McKinney finished it off for a loss of 3 yards. That led to a 50-yard field goal attempt that Matt Gay missed. And to top off his afternoon, Wilson stuck to wideout Michael Pittman Jr. on a deep in-breaker and intercepted Richardson over the middle. We were surprised when Wilson started on defense this summer, but it’s clear why the Packers want the core special-teamer on the field for more than just teams.
“Eric Wilson, he was him today,” Alexander said. “Just plain and simple, he was him. He even got a forced fumble out there. I mean, he was flying around. That’s what meditation do for people.”
Wilson goes and gets it!#INDvsGB pic.twitter.com/ipVcX0nRoE
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 15, 2024
10. It appears there’s a rotation not only at right guard but also at cornerback. While Alexander played every defensive snap, Carrington Valentine played 32 and Eric Stokes played 24. In Week 1, Stokes played 67 defensive snaps and Valentine played nine. Sunday, Valentine had great coverage on Pittman on a deep ball early in the fourth quarter to prevent a touchdown. He played well enough as a seventh-round rookie last season to earn more time. Stokes said after the game that he’s healthy. LaFleur said Monday that Valentine is simply playing well but it would continue to be a competition.
“I’m fine with it,” Stokes said. “I’m good. It is what it is. I’ve just got to go out and do my job.”
11. Defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said Thursday that he wanted to get rookie safety and camp standout Evan Williams more playing time after the fourth-rounder didn’t play a single snap on defense in Week 1. Against the Colts, he played 20 defensive snaps, coming down with the game-sealing interception on Richardson’s Hail Mary and also recovering the Colts’ onside kick earlier in the quarter.
“Evan reminds me of, like, a Micah Hyde type of player,” Alexander said. “A guy that’s always around the ball and … the ball just finds him.”
12. There’s a reason I think Romeo Doubs is the Packers’ best receiver in got-to-have-it situations. Take Willis’ 39-yard completion to him early in the fourth quarter to set up a field goal. Willis seemed to underthrow the ball down the right sideline, but Doubs made an impressive midplay adjustment to come back on the ball and haul it in over cornerback Jaylon Jones. That third-and-5 was the only time Willis really aired it out, and to little surprise, Doubs helped the decision pay off.
“Obviously, the corner had the advantage, so I just played the play to the best of my ability and came down with it,” Doubs said.
13. Right guard Jordan Morgan played 20 offensive snaps Sunday while rotating with Sean Rhyan until he suffered a shoulder injury. Morgan dealt with a shoulder injury during camp, and when asked whether Morgan’s injury was to the same shoulder and how severe it was, LaFleur said he’d have an update Wednesday. In other injury news, rookie running back MarShawn Lloyd said he sprained his ankle during his NFL debut and called himself day to day. He added that he’s “walking pretty good.” The third-round pick has dealt with hip, hamstring (kept him out Week 1) and ankle injuries in his brief NFL career.
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“Every time I get frustrated, I have a guy like Josh Jacobs,” said Lloyd, who ran six times for 15 yards Sunday. “He knows. He’s been through it. Every time I say something about it, or I’ll come up to him and I’ll say, like, ‘Can’t catch a break,’ and Josh will stop me right in the nick of it and be like, ‘It happens.’ Like he said yesterday, who cares? Who cares? That’s something that I really like that he said to me. ‘Who cares? Just do what you can do. Accept the adversity and just get better.’ At the end of the day, there’s going to be something good that comes out.”
(Photo of Eric Wilson celebrating a turnover: Stacy Revere / Getty Images)
