Packer Tracker- Week 2

Packer Tracker- Week 2-

Those of you that know me know I am an avowed Green Bay Packers fanatic. Even though I became a fan because of Brett Favre (we all know how that one ended), his departure has only further cemented my unwavering allegiance to the Green and Gold. Last week, I brought you my thoughts on the Packers’ strong Week 1 victory against the Chicago Bears. Now, the next installment of my weekly Green Bay grades for the 2009 NFL season (I apologize for the late post; I was down at Duke for homecoming this past weekend).

Offense:

Quarterbacks: B-. Here we go again. Thrown around last week like a rag doll, Aaron Rodgers had all week to go over protection schemes with the coaches and work on getting rid of the ball quicker so he didn’t continue to sustain such big hits. Did he? Sure didn’t look like it on Sunday. Rodgers consistently failed to throw the ball away or check it down when pressured which led to five, count ’em, five sacks by Bengals defensive end Antwan Odom. Even if Antwan Odom is the next Michael Strahan (and he did have two sacks in Week 1 against Denver), he should never even sniff five sacks in a single game. Rodgers’ numbers were respectable in the end (21/39, 261 yds, 1 TD) but he was the victim of the inability of the defense to get off the field late and sacks put him in too many third and fourth and long situations towards the end of the game. Valiant effort on the last drive before the dubious Greg Jennings false start ended the game, but couldn’t have been expected to win the game in that situation.

Running Backs: C. OK, I’m willing to put some of the blame for this grade on the coaches. Only 14 carries? Really? Rodgers was getting eaten alive whenever he dropped back and the coaching staff made no attempt to assert the running game whatsoever. Halfback Ryan Grant had 39 of his 46 yards in the first half. Keep in mind that this game was tied at 21 at halftime. Grant didn’t have any runs over eight yards, but he wasn’t exactly given the opportunity for any explosive plays. Coaching aside, Grant is entirely responsible for what may have been the play that swung the game for the Bengals: on first and ten from the Cincinnati 40 early in the third quarter, Grant caught a short pass from Rodgers, turned upfield, and promptly fumbled the ball. The Bengals recovered. The Packers never did.

Wide Receivers: C+. Greg Jennings’ stat line: 0 receptions, 0 yards. That is absolutely inexcusable for one of the top receivers in football. There have been games in the past in which Jennings hasn’t found his groove and the Packers have used their depth at the position to compensate, but even Donald Driver’s 99 yards couldn’t help the Pack in this one. Last I checked, the Bengals secondary isn’t exactly made up of world beaters (especially Roy Williams, one of the worst cover safeties in football) and even with the significant pass rush, the receivers should have found ways to get open on quick slants, bubble screens and the like as the game progressed.

Tight Ends: B-. Welcome to the team, Jermichael Finley. You finally managed to disengage from blocking duties long enough to catch a few passes (although the alternative may have been better). You and Donald Lee tied for second on the team with four receptions each and even Spencer Havner had a 21-yard catch. However, the pendulum swung too much towards receiving this week as there should have been more max protects and double tight sets to provide more help for Rodgers or at least disguise the blocking schemes. Next week, let’s try to find a happy medium.

Offensive Line: F-. A couple more performances like this and I’m gonna need a whole new rating system. Did I mention Antwan Odom had five sacks? I did? Good. Well let me mention it again. FIVE SACKS. Last week it was the right side of the line, this week it was the left. Even before tackle Chad Clifton went out with an injury he didn’t look like he could contend with the footwork of the powerful Odom and when guard Darren Colledge shifted over the real bloodbath began. When GM Ted Thompson made the choice to keep high priced veteran Scott Wells as a backup he thought the decision would mitigate the impact of an injury to any starting offensive lineman. So far, he thought wrong. Rodgers was sacked six times in all and hit 10 more, and four of those sacks came after Clifton’s injury (all by Odom). Through two weeks the O-line is easily the biggest weakness on the team.

Defense:

Defensive Line: B-. Well Cedric Benson certainly didn’t look like this when he was in Chicago. After a terrific game by the D-line last week in limiting super soph Matt Forte to 55 yards Benson came in and pounded the ball all day long. Is this the same Bengals offensive line that was declared dead when it lost presumptive starter at left tackle Andre Smith for the year in the preseason? Benson rushed for 141 yards on the day, nearly double his output of the previous week. Cedric Benson. Yeesh. At least Cullen Jenkins had another sack. I sure hope rookie DT B.J. Raji plays well in his first game action next week (if they finally activate him…).

Linebackers: B-. Did I mention that Cedric Benson had 141 yards? Remember, in the 3-4, the line is supposed to be there to block so the linebackers can fly around and make plays. There was one play in particular that really got to me on the tackling front. On a third and two with 7:10 left in the game, Benson broke three tackles on his way to a crucial first down. The ’backers brought some good pressure at times (especially OLB Clay Matthews), but didn’t force Palmer into enough bad throws, especially towards the end of the game. Where is Aaron Kampman through two games?

Cornerbacks: B. OK, I’ll admit that a lot of this grade goes to Charles Woodson, who continues to make his case for the best corner in the league. His two interceptions (one of which he returned for a touchdown) helped the Packers defense start the regular season with six interceptions through six quarters. The problem is, after halftime, the defense couldn’t get off the field. This secondary looked like feast or famine in this game and just turnovers are not going to be enough to beat the top offenses, much less the mediocre ones with quarterbacks coming off injury in Lambeau.

Safeties: D+. Awful. Awful, awful, awful. When Nick Collins got hurt in the second quarter, the wheels fell off. Collins is the team’s second best cover man and he provides much needed centerfield help in DC Dom Capers’ system that just isn’t there with Jarrett Bush, especially when he has to play opposite coverage liability Aaron Rouse. Collins is physical enough to help in the box when necessary, which is where Benson picked apart a front seven that could have used some veteran support. It’s no coincidence that Cincinnati scored 17 points after Collins went out, with two touchdowns coming through the air in the middle of the field where Collins should have been.

Special Teams:

Kicking: B. I hate this grade. I’ll admit it: I’m waiting to give Crosby a lower one. He made an ultimately inconsequential 45-yard field goal right before the Packers recovered the onside kick and tried frantically to tie the game, and even that one nearly gave me a coronary. Aside from that, I had one big problem with McCarthy that directly impacts Crosby. Three seconds left before halftime, ball on the Bengals’ 38 yard line, and McCarthy sends Crosby out to try a 55-yard field goal. Great call, no other choice, Coaching 101, right? In this situation, I would beg to differ. Crosby always seems on the edge of losing it completely and any blow to his confidence that might come from missing such a long kick (although he has the leg strength to make it) may outweigh the decision to trot him out there at this point in his career. I want to see Crosby succeed, but I’m just sayin’…

Punting: B-. Punter Jeremy Kapinos wasn’t terrible in six opportunities. No touchbacks, one kick inside the 20, and his only real mistake coming from a lack of hangtime on a late fourth quarter punt returned 32 yards that set up a crucial field goal. Quite frankly, I’d like to see better hangtime from Kapinos in general, but, if I’m given an iguana, I won’t expect milk. Is that an expression?

Return & Coverage Units: D. We didn’t return a single punt, and corner Will Blackmon’s kickoff returns were just serviceable. In fact, Jordy Nelson was better last week in spot duty against better special teams. One play in particular really brought this grade down: 9:41 left in the game, Packers down seven, Cincinnati punting from its own 18. Booming punt downed at the Packers’ 26. On the kick, John Kuhn is whistled for holding. Green Bay gets one first down (out to the 28, where they would’ve been without the penalty) then has to punt. Drives me crazy.

Coaching:

Offense: B. The offensive play calling in this game was uncreative, but to be fair the Bengals defense looked a whole lot better than anybody expected. I’m starting to believe the offensive struggles are less a product of OC Joe Philbin and McCarthys’ plays and more a result of the offensive line’s inability to create room to run and Rodgers’ absurd propensity for holding the ball. That being said, without the defensive touchdown and late field goal, this game isn’t even close.

Defense: C. I repeat: Cedric Benson? Through two games, Capers defense has looked alternately spectacular and nauseating. Some consistency next week would be nice. This defense is starting to remind me of the bend-but-don’t-break defense of Ed Donatell, which led the league with 45 takeaways in 2002 but finished 12^th in yards and points allowed and 24^th in sacks. Yes, it’s still a very young system, but with a big time contest against the Vikings in the Metrodome looming, Capers had better figure out better ways to plug gaps if he wants to contain Adrian Peterson.

Special Teams: D. I still don’t like that Crosby decision. Oh, and five special teams penalties? Really? That’s atrocious. Field position will be important for this team throughout the year as the defense continues to grow and the offense works out its early kinks, so those kinds of stupid mistakes are unacceptable.

Overall Grade: C

Bad loss. This Bengals team took everyone at 1265 Lombardi drive by surprise and stole one in Week 2. The Packers will need to bounce back to keep pace with a red-hot Minnesota team going forward, and a dominant performance in St. Louis next week would go a long way towards getting this team’s swagger back.

Hope you enjoyed my thoughts on a not-so-enjoyable contest for the Packers. Be sure to watch next week’s game at 1 P.M. Eastern Time as Green Bay travels to St. Louis to take on the Rams. As usual, I’ll be there afterwards to break it all down for you.