Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed (11) catches a touchdown pass in front of Denver Broncos … [+]
September 24 seems like a long, long time ago.
That’s the last time the Green Bay Packers won a football game.
Green Bay believed it was poised to end that drought Sunday when it traveled to Denver — one of the NFL’s poorest teams. Instead, the Packers had another dreadful first half, dug themselves a 16-3 third quarter hole and eventually dropped a 19-17 decision to the Broncos.
The Packers lost their third straight game and fell to 2-4 overall. Denver improved to 2-5.
Here’s the good, bad and ugly from Green Bay’s loss to the Broncos.
THE GOOD
SECOND HALF OFFENSE: The Packers entered the game No. 1 in the league in second half offense at 17.4 points per game. Green Bay’s offense continued to excel after intermission and it posted 17 second half points against the Broncos.
Green Bay had a field and two straight touchdowns on its first three possessions of the half. On the Packers’ final possession of the game, though, quarterback Jordan Love threw an interception and Denver ran out the final 1:40.
ROMEO DOUBS: The Packers’ second year wideout had a 16-yard touchdown reception late in the third quarter that pulled Green Bay within 16-10.
Doubs came free on a corner route, but quarterback Jordan Love put way too much air under the ball. That allowed cornerback Parrick Surtain to close and get both of his hands on the ball at the same time Doubs did.
The two players went to the ground simultaneously and Doubs was able to wrestle the ball away from Surtain. The officials gave Doubs credit for the catch — and a touchdown — as the Packers closed within 16-10.
RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME: Green Bay had a fourth-and-2 from Denver’s 4-yard line with 8 ½ minutes left. Love tried to hit Doubs in the endzone with a sidearm toss that had too much zip on it.
The ball bounced behind Doubs and to the right and miraculously landed in the hands of wideout Jayden Reed for a 4-yard TD. Anders Carlson’s extra point then gave the Packers a 17-16 lead, their first of the game.
A.J. DILLON: Green Bay’s backup running back has been a major disappointment to start this season and entered the day averaging just 3.0 yards per carry.
Dillon looked like a different player against Denver, though, rushing 15 times for 61 yards (4.1). Dillon also had two receptions for 34 yards, including a 29-yard reception on the Packers’ final possession.
“It’s just about being consistent, just everybody, all 11, at the same time and the same play doing it,” Dillon said. “Because that’s the thing — in this game, one guy gets free, that closing distance, they’re going to get there and what could’ve have been a 10-yard gain is going to be a 2-yard gain.”
THIS AND THAT: Rasul Douglas tackled wideout Marvin Mims Jr. for an 11-yard loss on an end around. Outside linebacker Kingsley Enagbare blew the play up and Douglas finished Mims off. … On Romeo Doubs’ 14-yard, second quarter reception, right tackle Zach Tom got 10 yards downfield and had the key block. … Wideout Dontayvion Wicks had a 14-yard completion to running back Aaron Jones. … Tight end Ben Sims had a 2-yard reception on a fourth-and-1 early in the fourth quarter. Five plays later, the Packers went ahead, 17-16, after Jayden Reed caught a deflected pass for a touchdown.
THE BAD
FALLING LIKE FLIES: The Packers had just one game between Sept. 28 and Sunday — yet Matt LaFleur’s team still can’t stay healthy.
Cornerback Jaire Alexander (back) and inside linebacker De’Vondre Campbell (ankle) were both inactive. Then in the first half, defensive end Devante Wyatt (knee), safety Darnell Savage (calf), cornerback Eric Stokes (hamstring) are wideout Jayden Reed (shin) all left with injuries. Of those players, only Reed returned.
In the second half, center Josh Myers, tight end Luke Musgrave (concussion) and wideout Christian Watson all left with injuries, although Myers did return.
MAGIC MATT? NOT QUITE: Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur began his Packers career 41-11, a .788 winning percentage. LaFleur is 10-15 in his last 25 games, though, a .400 winning percentage.
STREAK ENDS: Rookie kicker Anders Carlson entered the day 17-of-17 on all kicks after going 7-of-7 on field goals and 10-of-10 on extra points. That streak came to an end, though, when Carlson missed a 43-yard field goal late in the second quarter.
THIS AND THAT: Denver finished with 145 rushing yards and averaged 5.8 yards per carry. … Cornerback Carrington Valentine allowed a 33-yard reception to Denver wideout Courtland Sutton on the Broncos’ opening drive. … Slot corner Keisean Nixon was hit with a 21-yard pass interference penalty against wideout Brandon Johnson. Nixon also whiffed on a tackle attempt in Denver’s backfield that allowed running back Javonte Williams to rip off a 21-yard run. … Backup safety Jonathan Owens, who was forced into action when Savage left, was flagged with a defensive holding penalty in the third quarter. That allowed the Broncos to keep a drive alive and it ended with an 18-yard touchdown pass from Russell Wilson to Courtland Sutton.
THE UGLY
FIRST HALF FOIBLES: Green Bay was blanked in the first half Sunday and trailed, 9-0, at halftime.
In the Packers’ last four games, they have a laughable six total first half points. That’s right — six — an average of 1.5 points per game.
The Packers have been outscored in their last four first halves, 63-6. And Green Bay has been held to three points, or fewer, in the first half of four straight games for the first time since 1988.
“We just have to go out there and be the hammer instead of being the nail,” Packers left guard Elgton Jenkins said this week when asked about Green Bay’s slow starts. “We’ve got the guys to get it done and we’ve just got to do it.”
Green Bay didn’t get it done — not even close — in the first half against the Broncos
The Packers managed just 100 total yards and six first downs in the first half, while averaging a miniscule 4.0 yards per play. Quarterback Jordan Love threw for a pedestrian 47 yards and averaged 3.6 yards per attempt.
Amazingly, the Packers couldn’t get anything going against a Denver defense that entered the game ranked dead last in the NFL in scoring defense (33.3), total defense (440.3) and rushing defense (172.3). Denver also ranked 30th in passing yards allowed per game (268.0), 32nd in opposing passer rating (117.8) and 32nd in opponents yards per play (6.7).
Just four weeks ago, Denver allowed 70 points and more than 700 yards of total offense to Miami. On Sunday, the Broncos’ defense looked like their ‘Orange Crush’ unit from the late-1970s throughout the first half.
“When I was at Nebraska, we would start out games slow,” second-year wideout Samori Toure said. “But not to this extent being like one of the bottom teams in the league.”
Green Bay did absolutely nothing on Sunday to climb out of the bottom of the league in first half productivity.