Packers Snap Counts Versus The Patriots: Week Four

The Packers squeak out an ugly win in overtime.

 

The Packers elevated CB Kiondre Thomas to the 53-man roster because Jaire Alexander was inactive due to a groin injury.  OT Caleb Jones was listed as "Out" due to an unspecified nonfootball illness.  The Packers signed UDFA CB Corey Balentine to the last spot on the practice squad. 

The other inactive players were OG Sean Rhyan, OT Rasheed Walker, WR Samori Toure, and DT Jonathan Ford, all healthy scratches.  Jordan Love, Zach Tom, and Kiondre Thomas were active but did not play. 

 

Player Snaps % STs
Jenkins 73 100  
Runyan 73 100 5-16%
Newman 73 100 5-16%
Myers 73 95  
Bakhtiari 70 96  
Nijman 3 4 5-16%
Hanson     5-16%
       
Rodgers 73 100  
Love DNP    
       
Jones 45 62  
Dillon 42 58 1-4%
P. Taylor     11-34%
       
Tonyan 32 44  
Lewis 31 42 5-16%
Davis 21 29 26-81%
Deguara 11 15 12-38%
       
Lazard 70 96 1-4%
Doubs 70 96 1-4%
Cobb 25 34  
Watson 18 25 6-19%
Amari Rodgers     13-41%
       
19 on Offense      

 

The offensive line was able to open holes all game long.  The Packers gained 72 yards on 11 carries, good for a 6.55 average in the first half.  Aaron Jones led the way with 55 yards on 7 carries, including a long of 20.  A.J. Dillon carried the ball 4 times for 17 yards.  The Packers gained 81 yards on 14 carries in the second half, a 5.8-yard average.  Jones again led the way with 49 yards on 7 carries with a long of 17.  Dillon gained 32 yards on 7 carries with a long of 13.  In overtime, the Packers got a little more conservative but still gained 30 yards on 8 carries, a 3.8-yard average.  For the game, the Packers gained 199 yards on 35 carries, a 5.7-yard average.

The Packers ran right, left, and up the middle pretty well.  There were only a sprinkling of unsuccessful runs.  In addition, both backs made some nice cuts to help make the running game go.  Christian Watson had one carry for a 15-yard touchdown and another that is considered a pass reception for 8 yards.   

The pass protection was generally good.  Aaron Rodgers was hit just 3 times, and sacked just once.  Elgton Jenkins gave up several pressures to Matt Judon and Deatrich Wise.  Judon came into the game with 3 sacks and 10 pressures (per Pro Football Reference) and Wise entered the contest with 4 sacks and 6 pressures.  They are nice players but clearly Jenkins is still shaking off some rust or is not all the way back yet. 

Despite the good protection in the first half, Rodgers completed just 4 passes on 11 attempts for 44 yards, with one interception.  That translated to a passer rating in the first half of just 11.2.  Allen Lazard caught 3 of 5 targets for 43 yards and Doubs caught his only target for one yard, but fumbled after the catch.  The interception was on an out to Lazard that the cornerback, Jonathan Jones, undercut and returned 40 yards for a pick six with just 22 second left.  That gave the Patriots a 10-7 lead at halftime.  That was a really bad decision for such an experienced and risk averse quarterback to make.  Rodgers did not have a big-time throw and completion in the first half.

Rodgers heated up in the second half, completing 12 of 18 passes for 157 yards, including 2 touchdown passes, good for a 131 passer rating.  That included a beautiful touchdown pass to Tonyan down the middle in the end zone and a touchdown pass to Romeo Doubs on a nice back-shoulder throw.  Rodgers completed 5 of 6 attempts for 50 yards in overtime, good for a 101.4 passer rating.  

In overtime, New England's excellent cornerback, Jonathan Jones, was giving a sizable cushion to Doubs.  On first and 10 from the New England 45, Rodgers threw a quick pass to Doubs who then plowed into Jones for an eight yard gain.  On the very next play, 2nd and two, Rodgers did it again and Doubs plowed into Jones for 9 more yards, all the way down to the New England 28 yard line.  It remains to be seen, I suppose, but those were important yards, and Rodgers' willingness to throw it to Doubs on consecutive plays in crunch time may pay dividends down the line.  The Packers would then run Dillon four consecutive times towards right tackle and right guard to get to the New England 13 yard line.  Mason Crosby then calmly kicked the winning field goal through the uprights.  The big play during the winning drive was a 22 yard reception by Lazard that got the Packers out to their own 35 yard line.  Lazard would lead the Packers by catching 6 of 8 targets for 116 yards (19.2-yard average).

  

 

 

PLAYER SNAPS % STs
Stokes 58 100 10-31%
Savage 58 100 7-22%
Douglas 58 100 16-50%
Ford 44 76 9-28%
Nixon 31 53 21-66%
Amos 14 24 2-6%
Jean-Charles 1 2 16-50%
Leavitt     24-75%
Carpenter     6-19%
       
Campbell 58 100 6-19%
Q Walker 50 86 10-31%
Smith 49 84 6-19%
Gary 43 74 6-19%
Garvin 13 22 11-34%
Enagbare 11 19 5-16%
McDuffie     21-66%
Gileai     21-66%
       
Clark 50 86 5-16% 
Reed 41 71 5-16%
Lowry 40 69 11-34%
Slaton 14 24 9-28%
Wyatt 5 9  
       
22 on Defense      
       
Crosby     10-31%
Coco     10-31%
O'Donnell     10-31%
       

 

New England ran the ball very well for almost the entirety of the game.  They finished with 167 yards on 33 carries, a 5.1-yard average.  That included 74 yards on 17 attempts in the first half (4.4-yard average), 88 rushing yards on 17 carries (6.3-yard average) in the second half and 5 yards on 2 carries in overtime.  

Bill Belicheck loves tight ends.  In 2021, he signed TE Jonnu Smith for 4 years, $50 million with $31 million guaranteed.  Not content, just a day later Belicheck also signed TE Hunter Henry for 3 years at $37 million with $25 million guaranteed.  That allows New England play double tight end sets a lot.  Both of those tight ends block pretty well.  When Jonnu Smith left the game early in the second quarter, the Patriots inserted OT Marcus Canon 17 times by my count as a tackle eligible.  That gave the Patriots a lot of beef on the offensive line on a day when their starting quarterback, Mac Jones, was out with an ankle injury and Brian Hoyer left the game after a sack by Rashan Gary with just over five minutes left in the first quarter.  The Patriots played 5.26 true offensive linemen per play on average.  TE Hunter Henry played 48 of a possible 58 snaps, with TE Smith getting just 17 snaps due to his injury.  The Patriots played 1.14 TEs on average.

Eventually, the Packers did shut down the Patriots' offense.  With six minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Packers forced a three and out with the Patriots gaining a net of just one yard.  Jarran Reed and Dean Lowry combined for a 9-yard sack.  The Packers forced another three and out as the Patriots could only gain 9 yards on three rushes.  In overtime, the Patriots rushed twice for 5 yards and then threw an incomplete pass, forcing another punt.  The Packers marched down the field for the winning field goal.  Those last three possessions yielded no first downs and gained just 15 yards.  It appears that the Packers added some beef to the front seven later in the second half.

Rashan Gary was a force all game.  He had two sacks in the first half to go with 7 tackles (3 solo) and a forced fumble which he recovered.  Gary would not add more to his stats after the first half, but he provided pressure and generally provided containment during the rest of the game.  Devondre Campbell added 5 tackles in the first half.  Jarran Reed and Kenny Clark had 4 tackles in the second half and Reed and Lowry each had a solo tackle in overtime to force a punt. Reed finished with 8 tackles (4 solo), with Quay Walker, Gary and Rudy Ford adding 7 tackles for the game.  Reed had an important sack, and Preston Smith and Dean Lowry got credit for a half sack each.  

The Packers finished with 7 quarterback hits and 4 sacks.  The pressure on third-string quarterback Bailey Zappe was good, though not ferocious.  Despite playing his first snaps in the NFL, Zappe did not toss a turnover-worthy pass, content to take only high percentage opportunities.  Zappe completed 10 of 15 passes for 99 yards and a touchdown (107.4 passer rating).  He did fumble once.  

The Packers officially allowed 24 points, but 7 came on an interception.  17 points is not a bad result, but against a quarterback taking his first and unexpected snaps, one might have expected the Packers to bring more pressure.  In the first half, the Patriots completed 11 of 16 passes for 68 yards (Brian Hoyer completed 5 of 6 for 37 yards), and the Patriots only managed 3 points on offense, so it may be that what the Packers were doing was working reasonably well.  Zappe did complete 4 of 4 passes for 68 yards and a touchdown in the second half for a perfect passer rating of 158.3, but the Patriots stepped up the success of their running game during the second half to score 14 points during the second half.  

Special Teams:  

There were some cracks in special teams.  O'Donnell barely got one punt away, and the Packers allowed a 29 and a 20 yard punt return to go with a 37-yard kickoff return.  The Packers did down a punt deep in New England territory and Amari Rodgers had a 34-yard kickoff return.  

 

WR: 2.51 

RB:  1.19   

TE: 1.30

DL: 2.59

LB: 3.86 (ILB/1.86; OLB/2.0)

DB: 4.55 

 

 

 

 

PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHEESEHEAD NATION WEEKLY NEWSLETTER HERE.

__________________________

2 points
 

Comments (28)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
croatpackfan's picture

October 03, 2022 at 05:16 am

TGR, I have to say that Ford, who replaced Adrian Amos, was very visible in the game. He made lot of tackles (solo or combined) and was the player who prevent completition on Cheatriots OT possesion, producing the punt that bring back ball to Packers for winning drive. I was pleasently surprised how he played in the game...

3 points
3
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 06:14 am

From a pure snap count story perspective, Ford is probably the story of the game. They didn't use Leavitt or Carpenter, opting for Rudy Ford. Perhaps they elevate Abernathy next week.

3 points
3
0
Coldworld's picture

October 03, 2022 at 12:43 pm

PFF loved him. Allowing for PFFs troubles this season, take that with caution, but I thought he did a good job live too.

2 points
2
0
rstain99's picture

October 03, 2022 at 06:52 am

ST came back to earth below average, and Joe Barry's defense run defense didn't show up. Pats makeshift offense ran at will, d line looked below average. Young receivers showed that in time may be pretty good. Lucky win

-1 points
0
1
Lphill's picture

October 03, 2022 at 05:16 am

Amari Rodgers and Deguara not much involved with the offense .

1 points
2
1
murf7777's picture

October 03, 2022 at 07:28 am

Aren’t they 3rd round draft picks//??`

-1 points
1
2
croatpackfan's picture

October 03, 2022 at 03:54 pm

Sorry, who are they?

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 05:37 am

I used a photo that included Rashan Gary and Allen Lazard because they were perhaps two of the most important contributors. There were others to be sure, including Aaron Jones, and Randall Cobb.

I think GB has to get Doubs and Watson up to speed even if it means living with drops, fumbles, routes that aren't run quite right, and the like. Maybe when Watkins returns he can provide that veteran presence and some speed at the X position, but no one knows if or when he might return and whether he can do it in GB this year.

I was too much on the edge of my seat to watch the last quarter plus overtime with any analytical thoughts going through my mind. I don't know what GB did during NE's last few possessions to shut them down three times in a row. Some people asserted that GB used 4 DL for a while late, but I don't know without re-watching the game.

I do know that Gary had all of his sacks and tackles plus the forced fumble in the first half, and had no stats in the remainder of the game. That isn't to say he did not continue to make his presence felt. Jarran Reed had a number of tackles and a sack in the last half of the game. Zappe only passed 5 times in the second half/overtime.

[Oops, not Baltimore] Edit: NE had true offensive linemen on the field for 305 snaps over their 58 plays, so that would be 15 snaps with a sixth lineman. They played Henry for 49 snaps and Smith 17 more before he was injured, so that is 66 snaps from TEs. That might mean 8 plays with two TEs, and some might have had the extra lineman. There are various permutations possible, but they had a lot of blocking prowess on the field.

3 points
3
0
croatpackfan's picture

October 03, 2022 at 06:10 am

Baltimore?

0 points
0
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 07:00 am

Baltimore/Boston/Foxborough - all the same to me. One of those strange places on the east coast.

2 points
2
0
HawkPacker's picture

October 03, 2022 at 09:33 am

I agree on getting Doubs and especially Watson more involved. I could not believe how fast Watson was on his touchdown run. We need to take our lumps with getting them involved now so they are veterans later on this year!

3 points
3
0
NitschkeFromTheGrave's picture

October 03, 2022 at 07:32 am

Sub title, "The Packers squeak out an ugly win in overtime." - I could not disagree more.
This was NOT "winning ugly". We simply played down to a weaker opponent,,, A G A I N....!
This team is like a Gremlin motor in a shinny red Ferrari

2 points
4
2
murf7777's picture

October 03, 2022 at 07:40 am

Enagbare looked lost. We are in a big need of better rotational player for that position.

Doubs and Lazard will share the #1 WR position. Each week one will out duel the other. I think when Watkins comes back he will be situational like Cobb. Doubs needs to make that catch, but based on his overal work, he gets a pass. Looking forward to see how Watson grows in this offense. Packers need him to grow up in a hurry. He will make some big exciting plays this year. AJ is a STUD, period.

The Packers are 2nd in the NFL for explosive plays and it doesn’t look like it right now. They are great at YAC. All this is happening andI think they are not close to where they can be in the 2nd half of the year. Future looks bright. 3-1 feels pretty good right now…..GPG

3 points
3
0
Coldworld's picture

October 03, 2022 at 10:26 am

Sadly, Watkins history is of not coming off hamstrings and being effective. Perhaps this year will be different, but I’d not bank on it.

The fact that we are great after the catch is in part a function if our negligible depth of target. Cobb has had a few catch and runs but the stats are impacted by the use of the rookies. Doubs has been good on very short passes, but they’ve also had a number of technically forward pass plays from behind the line, like one if Watson’s yesterday. It’s great that they have that ball in hand ability. It’s not great that they can’t get that helping 10 yards down the field.

0 points
1
1
LLCHESTY's picture

October 03, 2022 at 01:34 pm

I think if they're still having problems connecting on deep shots in three games it's time to bring someone like Fuller in if Watkins isn't back. He wouldn't help against Buffalo but then they'd have 3 more games until they play the Eagles.

-2 points
0
2
dobber's picture

October 03, 2022 at 07:46 am

Fairly conservative game plan run out of mostly routine personnel groupings...as if the Packers decided they didn't want to show any more than they had to. I like the two-back sets. Couple that to the WR snaps and it's clear that Jones was the featured part of the game plan all along. This offense looks more and more like the one LaF ran in TN as we go along.

Wouldn't have known Nijman played offensive snaps if they weren't listed here.

The WR pecking order is clearly laid out here. Cobb did damage in his limited snaps.

Yeah, Barry's unwillingness to uncork additional pressure against Zappe or to run-blitz when they knew it was coming was a little surprising. Like Chicago, NE was able to get to the edge a little too easily, too, but extra blockers help with that.

Thanks for turning this around quickly on our behalf, TGR!

3 points
3
0
T7Steve's picture

October 03, 2022 at 08:45 am

TGR, a little typo above for you to clear up for me please. Douglas: 58-100% or 56-97%? I believe the 100%.

On CBS they also said Caleb Jones-illness. Was he just inactive?

2 points
2
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 09:41 am

I will correct the article. Douglas played 100% of the 58 snaps and 16 ST snaps (50%).

The NFL did not list Caleb Jones as inactive. Per Ken Ingalls, he was listed as nonfootball illness. That works the same as IR, so he has to miss four weeks and will count as one of the team's 8 designated to return slots. I am not sure if this means he has covid, but the rules for covid last season do not apply. The team can pay Jones less, anything between $1 and $705K. Probably will pay him the minimum split salary of $430K. We shall see.

https://twitter.com/KenIngalls/status/1576412066549596160

1 points
1
0
T7Steve's picture

October 03, 2022 at 10:51 am

Thanks. CBS had also listed Nijm as questionable / sickness so I was worried before the game and also didn't notice he got 3 plays. Is something going around the locker room? Saw allot of sickness on reports for practice this week. Don't remember seeing that listed much before there was covid.

1 points
1
0
dobber's picture

October 03, 2022 at 11:55 am

He's also protected from being poached without counting against the active roster.

3 points
3
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 04:58 pm

I didn't think of that aspect of the situation. Yeah, that has utility. Big men who can move are more rare than the 3rd or 4th RB that a fair number of teams seem to have buried deep in the recesses of their cupboards.

0 points
0
0
jhtobias's picture

October 03, 2022 at 09:47 am

Thanks for the breakdown down.

I see 2 issues please let me explain. We were all fooled by the dline it really is a 3 man rotation not 5. Slaton really had disappeared and wyatt is I guess not ready to play. I would really look at adding a vet on the dline maybe the dline is getting worn out hence the bad run d.

As many have said a third pass rusher edge is really needed . Someone who is just competent. Gary and Smith will be worn out by the end of the yr if not sooner

0 points
1
1
LLCHESTY's picture

October 03, 2022 at 01:19 pm

They shouldn't get worn down only playing 40-45 snaps. I think they're getting enough snaps off, the problem is the backups aren't doing much with their opportunities. I said before the season Enagbare was known for missing run fits in college and Barry needed to have a plan on who was playing according to down and distance. He had the worst run D grade from PFF yesterday and worst grade on the defense overall. The problem is that Garvin isn't cutting it against the run either. Although Garvin did have a QB hit yesterday, neither of them has done much against the pass though Enagbare has shown flashes of getting close to getting pressure at times.

I think they should still play Garvin more when the odds of a run are higher and Enagbare more when the odds of a pass are higher. Garvin played the run well in the 2nd half of last season so maybe he snaps out of it. Another option would be to give Galeai some 2nd down and long snaps but right now the defense really isn't on the field that many plays, it just seems like it because they can't stop the run. Playing 58-60 snaps a game is quite a bit different than playing 70 over the course of the season.

1 points
1
0
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 05:13 pm

My own view is that depth and overwork are not the issues with the defensive line. Reed just isn't that much of an upgrade over Lowry. But they now have Lowry and Reed, which is much better depth than last year. Reed > Lancaster/Keke. Slaton hasn't taken a jump and usually is a downgrade when is in the lineup.

I agree with you on the OLB situation. Preston and Gary have to play a lot. And if one of them misses some time, I fear the wheels would come off. IDK, might have to move Walker to OLB? Not sure that would work or even be something that GB could make do with.

I can see reasons to advocate for bringing in a 3rd OLB, a 4th CB, a 3rd safety (though Rudy Ford looked much better than I had anticipated, I need to see him against a team that can pass), a WR, and a TE. The thing is, GB can only spend money (and not that much money) on upgrading one position. To be inelegant, once spent, GB is out of powder (yeah, I had a more inelegant phrase in mind).

1 points
1
0
BAMABADGER's picture

October 03, 2022 at 09:54 am

1) Doubs play is way ahead of DA as a rookie. Keep it up Romeo! 2) Watson needs to be in more involved than 18 plays. MLF, get him on the field. 3) Amari Rodgers was not on the field for one offensive play??? Why is he on the team. He is average to below-average on ST. Let's see what Amari can contribute on offense as a pass catcher. If he is a no show, cut bait now. Give Toure an opportunity to display is speed on ST and as a WR.

3 points
4
1
LLCHESTY's picture

October 03, 2022 at 01:30 pm

They had 7 explosive plays yesterday and Lazard also caught a 19 yarder so basically 8 and Doubs should've had 2 more. There will be games when they won't be able to turn short passes into long gainers but it's working for now. Toure hasn't been active for a reason. My guess is he's too green to help out on offense right now.

-2 points
0
2
Thegreatreynoldo's picture

October 03, 2022 at 05:37 pm

PFF grades as reported by Zach Kruse:

Best:
Lazard (75), AR (74), Jenkins (74), Aaron Jones (72), Watson 71.
Gary 93, Rudy Ford 79, Amos 77, Reed 69.5, Savage 67.5

Worst:
Deguara 41, Doubs 52, Bakh 55, Lewis 56, Davis 58
Enagbare 29, Quay Walker 38.5, Campbell 42, Garvin 43, Lowry 47.

Well, I think PFF is mostly full of it. Don't worry about Quay Walker's grade. PFF hates ILBs like him. PFF graded Devin White at 36 for the 2021 season, 43 for 2020, and 52 for 2019. That is absurd. TB exercised his 5th year option and the guy is going to get a huge contract in a year or two. I don't know what PFF's metrics are, but they are alone in their opinion. They just don't like off the ball ILBs.

1 points
1
0
PatrickGB's picture

October 04, 2022 at 01:35 pm

I agree about PFF. Folks who do stats try and shoehorn players into their stats machine. The world doesn’t work that way.

0 points
0
0