The Packers’ Defense Got Hung Out To Dry In Week 1

Giving up 39 points in an NFL is a lot. It’s not the number you want to see from your defense at any point in a season, and certainly not in week one, and certainly not against a backup quarterback.

But despite that being the number of points that the Green Bay Packers allowed to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, that number does not reflect the reality of how the defense actually played. No, this defense got thrown into horrendous situations, particularly throughout the second half, suffering from both awful field position and terrible penalty calls.

The latter was particularly an issue on the Vikings’ go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter, but the former was the case the entire second half. Let’s look at each of the Vikings’ scoring drives in this game to illustrate just how badly the defense was let down.

First Quarter, Drive #3: FG

The Packers scored 10 points on their first two series, with the defense doing an excellent job. They forced a turnover on the second play of the game, then allowed a single first down before forcing a punt on the second. The third drive started at the Vikings’ 30 after a kickoff, and it was on this drive that the defense got its first penalty — an unnecessary roughness call on Javon Bullard for the hit that knocked out Kyler Murray, which came on what would have been a 3rd-down stop. With a fresh set of downs at midfield and Carson Wentz in the game, the Vikings gained just two more first downs, as the Packers held Minnesota to a field goal.

Drive totals: 12 plays, 50 net yards (15 via penalty), 3 first downs (1 via penalty), 6:05 TOP

Second Quarter, Drive #6: TD

The Packers allowed just one first down on the next two series, forcing punts both times, while the offense got a field goal following Bo Melton’s big kickoff return. A Daniel Whelan punt set up the Vikings at their own 15-yard line with a bit more than 5 minutes left in the first half.

The drive began with a sack of Wentz by Keisean Nixon and Jonathan Ford, followed by Brenton Cox jumping offsides. A short gain set up a 3rd-and-8, which Wentz converted to Justin Jefferson over the middle as Evan Williams hits him hard in the back as he goes to the ground, drawing another unnecessary roughness call (that’s two, for those counting). Wentz converted another 3rd down near midfield, this time to T.J. Hockenson, before Lukas Van Ness jumped offside and he found Jefferson with a bomb on a free play for a 39-yard touchdown.

Drive totals: 7 plays, 65 yards (20 via penalty), 4 first downs, 3:23 TOP

Third Quarter, Drive #9: TD

Here’s where things start to unravel. Following a Trey Smack field goal to extend the Packers’ lead to 22-10, the kickoff coverage team loses Myles Price, who scampers 59 yards on his return and sets up the Vikings at the Packers’ 28-yard line. Aaron Jones narrowly converts a 3rd-and-1 on the ground and the defense gets a couple of nice plays to set up a 3rd-and-8. But Zaire Franklin gets lost in coverage and Wentz finds Hockenson open up the middle for a 16-yard score.

Drive totals: 6 plays, 28 yards, 2 first downs, 3:01 TOP

Fourth Quarter, Drive #10: TD

This drive is where Packers fans go off the rails, and rightfully so. The defense had three third down stops — one coming on a sack and another with an interception in the end zone — all wiped away by highly questionable penalties from Hochuli and company.

Of course, it all starts after Matt LaFleur took a field goal off the board to go for a 4th-and-1 opportunity instead, looking to give the Packers a two-possession lead. Jordan Love’s QB sneak failed and Minnesota took over at their own 17.

They picked up an early first down with a 13-yard gain to Josh Oliver, but the drive appeared to be over on the second set of downs. Edgerrin Cooper picks up a sack unblocked on second down then bursts through again for another (split with Devonte Wyatt) on third down, only to see the Vikings bailed out by a holding call on Bullard. That’s third-down save number one.

Three plays later, Wentz throws incomplete to Hockenson on 3rd-and-3 near midfield. But wait! Another flag! This time it’s on rookie Chris McClellan for his hit on Wentz as he threw the ball, with Hochuli alleging that McClellan drove the QB into the ground with his body weight. Except that isn’t what happened — McClellan did an excellent job of bracing himself against the turf rather than letting his weight land on Wentz, which was clearly identified on the broadcast and by CBS officiating analyst Gene Steratore.

The next play, well, that’s a miss by the defense. Jordan Mason goes 28 yards on a stretch to the left, setting the Vikings up in the red zone. They’d almost certainly have kept the offense on the field on 4th-and-3 near midfield, so maybe that happens regardless. But the third save comes on 3rd-and-5 from the 6, when Evan Williams picks off Wentz in the end zone, only to see a flag thrown on Xavier McKinney for an awful, ticky-tack holding penalty. Aaron Jones then runs wide to the left into the end zone, giving the Vikings a lead they would not relinquish.

Drive totals: 9 plays, 83 yards (28 via penalty), 6 first downs (3 via penalty), 6:34 TOP

Fourth Quarter, Drive #11: TD

Why didn’t they relinquish the lead? Because the Packers’ offense — particularly the line — handed the ball right back to Minnesota. A sack-fumble by Andrew Van Ginkel and his ensuing recovery gave the Vikings the football at the one-yard line. One play, one yard, one touchdown, and suddenly the Packers are down by 10.

Making matters worse, the Packers were forced to play with Carrington Valentine on the field in goal line due to Brandon Cisse leaving the game with cramps. Surely they’d have rather kept Cisse on the field in that situation, but it’s just one more negative card dealt to them in an unfortunate spot.

Drive totals: 1 play, 1 yard, 1 first down, 0:04 TOP

Fourth Quarter, Drive #12: TD

The final score came after more of the same. With Jordan Love being constantly harassed, a rushed, tipped pass landed in the hands of cornerback James Pierre and Minnesota took over at the 14-yard line. This time it was Jefferson taking the ball out wide and getting to the pylon, again beating Valentine’s tackle attempt and putting a bow on the scoring.

Drive totals: 3 plays, 14 yards, 1 first down, 0:18 TOP

Here are the totals for Minnesota’s six scoring drives in this game:

• 35 plays
• 261 net yards (198 yards by the offense, 63 yards via penalty)
• 12 first downs (4 via penalty)
• 1 field goal
• 5 touchdowns

Exactly twice in this entire game did the Vikings’ offense gain more than 35 yards when penalty yardage is excluded. Three of the four touchdown drives in the second half were on drives that started inside the Packers’ 30. And from the point when the Packers failed to convert on 4th down to the time when Minnesota finished the scoring, the Green Bay offense ran five plays for a net loss of 15 yards. In that span, Minnesota scored three touchdowns, gaining just 70 yards of offense (plus 28 yards on penalties).

If there’s a blueprint for losing to a backup quarterback, it’s what the Packers did in the second half: commit a bunch of penalties (or, rather, get flagged for a bunch of penalties, which isn’t necessarily the same thing), let your quarterback get hit constantly and turn the ball over, and keep giving the opposing team a short field.

39 points is a big, scary number. But sometimes — and in this case, it is certainly the case — big numbers can lie if they don’t have context.