With rumours of friction at the Packers, this season could end in turmoil. Coach LaFleur and star quarterback Aaron Rodgers have reportedly fallen out which could derail Green Bay’s season before it starts.
Many fans believe this to untrue as not only did Rodgers not run roughshod over LaFleur, but he happily took a back seat to another Aaron, running back Aaron Jones. With Jones leading the NFL in rushing touchdowns and total touchdowns, and with high-priced additions Za’Darius Smith, Preston Smith and Adrian Amos changing the face of the defence, Green Bay went from 6-9-1 to 13-3 and reached the NFC Championship Game.
Repeating that level of regular-season success will be difficult. The Packers went 8-1 in games decided by one score, they stayed remarkably healthy and they dominated the turnover table. Amazingly, they were outgained on the season. Instead of drafting the potential missing piece to the equation, general manager Brian Gutekunst used the team’s first-round pick on a quarterback, Jordan Love, who likely won’t play this year. In fact, none of the first three picks addressed immediate needs.
Where there’s room for improvement is with Rodgers. While general manager Brian Gutekunst failed to deliver any upgrades at receiver, this is Year 2 for Rodgers in LaFleur’s scheme. LaFleur wants to run the football with Jones, Jamaal Williams and rookie A.J. Dillon, then unleash Rodgers with a bunch of passes that look like runs. On the other side of the ball, the Packers hope new linebacker Christian Kirksey and a new attitude on the defensive line will be the cure to a run defence that was demolished by the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.
Many of the fans think LaFleur’s ability to help the defence last year was crucial but worry how much longer Rodgers has in him. The expectations are the title and a good run in the playoffs but faltering in the playoffs is very much a possibility.
Offense
For more than a decade, the offense revolved around the singular talents of Rodgers, who owns the best passer rating in NFL history. While the naysayers see a player on decline – he’s been a middle-of-the-pack performer in terms of completion percentage and passer rating the past two seasons – he’s also coming off the only two seasons in NFL history of 4,000-plus passing yards, 25-plus touchdowns and four-or-fewer interceptions.
There’s probably not much wrong with Rodgers that better receivers couldn’t help. Since drafting Davante Adams in the second round in 2014, the Packers have drafted only one receiver in the first three rounds of the past six drafts. That was Ty Montgomery in the third round in 2015; a year later, he was playing running back. Not only did Green Bay not draft a receiver in the early rounds this year, it didn’t draft one at all. Adams, aside from dropping a few too many passes, is a superb player. Allen Lazard, a former undrafted free agent, emerged late last season as a reliable number two.
The lack of receiving power is probably OK, because LaFleur wants to run the football. The backfield is loaded. Jones stayed healthy last year and emerged as an elite three-down player. Williams is the ultimate jack of all trades. And Dillon, the second-round pick, is a 247-pounder with bad intentions, breakaway speed and better-than-advertised hands.
The left side of the offensive line is fantastic with four-time All-Pro David Bakhtiari at tackle and all-rookie selection Elgton Jenkins at guard. Corey Linsley is a standout centre. There are questions galore on the right side. It’s Billy Turner vs. Lane Taylor at right guard and Turner vs. Rick Wagner at right tackle. There are questions at tight end, too, with 15-year veteran Marcedes Lewis doing the dirty work and unproven Jace Sternberger, Robert Tonyan and rookie third-round pick Josiah Deguara competing for snaps.
San Francisco got to the Super Bowl and Tennessee reached the AFC Championship Game with run-first attacks and efficient quarterbacks. That will be LaFleur’s formula, as well.
Defence
The Packers have a defence tailor made for today’s NFL. With the so-called Smith Bros., who combined for 25.5 sacks last season, they have premier pass rushers. With Jaire Alexander and Kevin King, they have an excellent cornerback tandem. Last year’s additions of Amos and first-round pick Darnell Savage solved their long-time problems at safety.
Green Bay’s problem was stopping the run. San Francisco’s Raheem Mostert humiliated the Packers in the championship game. Thus, run defence figured to be the offseason focus for Gutekunst. Instead, Gutekunst signed only one free agent of note and didn’t address the defensive line.
At linebacker, Blake Martinez, the NFL’s leading tackler the past three seasons, was allowed to sign with the Giants. He was replaced by free-agent Christian Kirksey, a standout for the Browns in 2016 and 2017 who played merely nine games the past two seasons. He’s off to a terrific start to training camp, with the athleticism Martinez lacked to make plays in the backfield vs. the run and deep in coverage vs. the pass.
For all the consternation of the first-round selection of Love rather than a receiver, Gutekunst also took Love instead of LSU linebacker Patrick Queen. Instead, Green Bay settled on Minnesota’s Kamal Martin in the fifth round.
As is the case at receiver, Green Bay will count on mostly the same cast of characters on the defensive line to simply play better. The group is led by Pro Bowler Kenny Clark. Clark had six sacks and 28 quarterback hits; all the other defensive linemen combined for 1.5 sacks and 12 quarterback hits. If the defensive line plays with more attitude and Kirksey can stay healthy and return to form, a defence that finished eighth in points allowed last season could rise to new heights.
Predicted Record: 9-7
The Packers could be better this season even while finishing with a worse record. The second quarter of the season, at Tampa Bay and Houston, home against Minnesota and at San Francisco, will be pivotal. The brilliance of Jones, the efficiency of Rodgers and a big-play defence should get them to the title but with the relationship between Rodgers and LaFleur apparently deteriorating, getting to 10 wins could be a real struggle.
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