GREEN BAY vs MINNESOTA
PACKERS WIN 23 – 6
- Story of the Game – The Packers Get Back On Track as McCarthy Continues to Struggle
With the Packers recent struggles it was refreshing to see them not play down to their opponent and have to scratch out a victory. Not only did they not have to scratch out a victory they actually were able to dominate in this game through a strong defensive performance at all three levels and some key plays on special teams which allowed their offense to play a safe and conservative brand of football but this time for good reason. The Vikings on the hand were once again held back by poor QB play which has been the theme all season with this group. JJ McCarthy looked rudderless once again as he passed up a number of opportunities in the passing game as he continues to big game hunt for shots down field and the majority of the time fails to operate within the structure of the offense. While it wasn’t a lights out performance from the Vikings defense they played well enough to keep them in this game had the offense been able to do really anything. There’s a lot to work on for McCarthy and until he does so this team will go nowhere with this level of QB play.
- Key Notes for the Packers
The Packers OL while not perfect today was much improved from previous weeks as they played rookie Anthony Belton at RG the majority of the snaps this game over 2nd year player Jordan Morgan who played two drives in this game. Along with the change to Belton LG Aaron Banks also played a much better game as he’s been getting healthier in recent weeks. There were a few miscommunications that let a few quick pressures come through the middle of the OL but that’s to be expected playing a knew combination of guys out that, especially when facing a Brian Flores defense that will throw just about everything at you from a stunt and blitz perspective. So while there were a few mistakes and there’s still improvement to be had the improvement in just one week has to have you feeling hopeful for what’s to come for this group.
They also used Darian Kinnard as a 6th OL 20 snaps this game which was a season high for this team and could be a wrinkle to watch moving forward as they found more success running the ball when doing so.
While the play calling on offense may be a bit disappointing or frustrating for some fans I believe it was the right choice in this game. The Packers have a short week as they play the Lions on Thanksgiving this Thursday and when you add that onto the fact this team has had a number of injuries to guys that are just about to come back or were out there playing through them I believe bleeding clock and playing conservative on offense was by far the correct move in this one. There was no threat from the Vikings offense at any point in this game so leaning on the run game (which was having success) and inching your way down the field allowed you to run less plays and take more time off the clock so that you could get out of this game and save some of your guys down the stretch as best as possible. It may not have been a flashy 20-30 point victory that it could have been had they pushed the ball down the field and been aggressive on offense but you won by 3 scores and got out of there with a low number of snaps with a physical in division game coming up on a short week.
The defense once again shined for this team as all three levels of this defense were phenomenal despite missing a handful of key starters, including their starting outside CB Keisean Nixon who left the game with a stinger early on. The pass rush was relentless all game long and allowed this secondary to play physical and aggressive knowing they didn’t have to worry about long developing plays. The LBs and S (McKinney, Williams, Bullard, Cooper, and McDuffie) for this team were all over the field and really shined as they delivered big hits, came away with INTs, and were tied together in coverage which allowed them to throw some confusing looks at the young QB. Kamal Hadden and Carrington Valentine at CB were also unbelievable as they largely shut down the Vikings outside WRs and Hadden was ultra aggressive in the run game as well as he played with a noticeable energy from the second he got on the field. Just a dominate performance and that’s without mentioning Micah Parsons, Rashan Gary, Devonte Wyatt, and the rest of the Packers DL who were unbelievable today as they pit hit after hit on McCarthy and forced a number of errant throws.
The run defense for this group was a bit spotty early on but the loss of Quay Walker going into this week clearly played a role as they were missing a second level player to clean up the mess the DL created up front for the Vikings to finish plays. It was atrocious or something to worry about but you’d like to clean that up as it wasn’t up the standard they’ve set against better rushing attacks in previous weeks.
The special teams for the Packers finally had a consistent good showing all game as they didn’t miss any field goals or extra points along with holding strong on punt and kickoff coverage. They also managed to create a turnover as Daniel Whelan hit one of his many greats punts in this game as Zayne Anderson knocked the Vikings returner Myles Price into the ball and recovered the fumble after as well. Hopefully this is a sign of what’s to come for this side of the ball for Green Bay as it’s not just been a struggle this season but for many in row now.
- Key Notes for the Vikings
As I talked about at the top JJ McCarthy was once again very disappointing in this game as he has been really all season. It wasn’t perfect around him and I certainly don’t place all of the blame at his feet but the majority of it has to do with his inability to operate within the structure of the offense. He holds onto the ball as he needs to see his target open rather than anticipating the route and throwing the guy open which gets him into sacks/rushed throws as he feels pressure coming. Along with that his eyes look lost as he seemingly bounces around from read to read and doesn’t trust anything which comes back to holding onto the ball. It’s not just one thing with him and it’s not just inconsistency out on the field it’s flat out bad right now and he looks in over his head with what’s being put in front of him. He shows flashes and clearly has the physical talent to play but as of right now there no reason to believe the Vikings can or won’t will win any games with the way he’s operating their offense which was one of the most efficient and deadly offenses in all of football last season with a large majority of the same group.
- PER Tru Media
JJ McCarthy ranks 851 out of 852 QBs in EPA per drop back among qualified passers since 2000 – The only player below him is Jamarcus Russell, one of the biggest busts in all of sports drafts history.
While the running game and defense were solid in this game I just don’t know what else to say other than they need better QB play. For all the great things Brian Flores does with this defense they still lack a true difference maker on the back end which wouldn’t be a big deal considering how well they play still but they’ve been unable to create turnovers with any consistently and with how their QB and in turn offense as a whole is playing they need to give their offense short fields to say the least. It’s not on the defense or anything else but unless they get a huge turnaround at QB they’ll need to find ways to win games without a stable offense which is near impossible but at this point I don’t know what else you do.
- Standout Performers
GB
Emmanuel Wilson – 28/107 2 TDs – 2/18 rec
- Ran behind his pads every down which led to him picking up tough yardage (including a truck for a TD) and was a consistent driving force for the offense
Christian Watson – 5/49
- Most consistent target for Love all game
Micah Parsons – 2 Tackles 2 Sacks 2 TFLs
- Wrecked MIN pass protection and run game all game long
Evan Williams – 4 Tackles 1 TFL 1 INT
Rashan Gary – 3 Tackles 1 PD
- Pressured the QB all game long and even forced an INT to McDuffie as he knocked the ball out on a throw and created a sack for Wyatt – Continues to be their most consistent run defender
Carrington Valentine – Shut his side of the field down for the large majority of the game and continues his hot streak of recent play
MIN
Jordan Mason – 8/42
- Had a couple nice runs including a 22yd gain that moved MIN into scoring position despite the drive ending in a turnover on downs
Justin Jefferson – 4/48
- Despite the poor QB play and up and down OL play all year Jefferson continues to find ways to positively effect games even when the box score doesn’t show it
Jalen Redmond – 6 Tackles (4 Solo) 1 TFL 1 PD
Joshua Metellus – 12 Tackles (3 Solo)
- Played at a high level all day as he was constantly around the ball despite playing through injuries all day
