Behind the Numbers: Packers crumble in second half vs. Giants
Matt LaFleur said it best following the Green Bay Packers Week 5 loss to the New York Giants – that’s as disappointing as it gets.
The Packers held a two-score lead for much of the first half, but that quickly disappeared as the defense couldn’t get a stop, and the offense all of a sudden struggled to move the football.
As always, let’s go Behind the Numbers, taking a closer look at the stats and figures you need to know from Sunday’s game.
2.09
In the first half, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers’ offense leaned heavily on the quick passing game. Of Rodgers’ 20 pass attempts, 16 came in under 2.5-seconds. He would complete 13 of them for 64 yards with two touchdowns. According to NextGen Stats, Rodgers’ average time to throw of 2.09 seconds was the lowest by a quarterback in a half since 2020.
18.7
Of course, we all really wish that Keisean Nixon could have jumped on that fumble – who knows how the game ends if he does – but overall, this was a solid performance by the Packers’ special teams unit. The field goal and extra point unit looks extremely clean, while Jason Pinnock of the Giants didn’t have any punt return opportunities, and Gary Brightwell averaged just 18.7 yards per return on kicks. Pat O’Donnell also had another punt pinned inside the 20-yard line.
4.8 and 5.7
The Giants entered Sunday’s game allowing 5.1 yards per carry, and were also without run-stuffer Leonard Williams in the middle of their defense. Utilizing the wide zone running scheme, which ran the Packers’ backs away from Dexter Lawrence and towards the boundary where New York has had issues defending the run, Aaron Jones averaged 4.8 yards per carry and AJ Dillon 5.7.
4
TJ Slaton may have had his best game as a professional on Sunday. Against the typical run-heavy Giants, Slaton saw his snap count go up, playing 41% of the Packers’ defensive snaps. He was generating consistent push into the backfield, eating up space, and taking on double teams in the middle, which helped bottle things up in the run game. He finished with 4 tackles.
99
After Aaron Rodgers said that Randall Cobb needed more opportunities last week, he got those chances in the first half. Cobb had eight targets in the first half and 13 altogether. He finished with seven receptions for 99 yards, including a long of 35, and he once again came up big on third down.
30
Saquon Barkley did manage a 40-yard run sparked by some missed tackles, but overall, the Packers’ defense did a good job of making sure that he didn’t dominate and control this game. For starters, he only had 13 total carries, and on the other 12, he totaled just 30 yards after fewer than three yards per rush. To assist the defensive front, we saw Joe Barry utilizing heavier boxes.
8.0
The Packers secondary was picked apart by Daniel Jones and a bunch of crossing routes. Eric Stokes had a rough performance, and Darnell Savage missed some key tackles. Rasul Douglas was also penalized three times, and miscommunication once again appeared to be an issue. New York did a good job of moving the pocket and using bootlegs to get Jones on the move, along with utilizing play-action. He finished the game 21/27 for 217 yards at an impressive 8.0 yards per attempt.
0
As I wrote following the game, the Packers put up 20 points in the first half behind their run game and the quick passing game. However, with the Giants playing more Cover-1 and with more defenders in the box, they were daring the Packers to pass, and Green Bay did just that. Rodgers, who hasn’t been that effective on the deep ball this season, started taking shots and didn’t complete any of his six downfield attempts. Jones and Dillon finished with just 19 total carries to Rodgers’ 39 pass attempts despite averaging 5.1 yards per rush. Green Bay’s offense scored zero second half points.
6-10
The Green Bay Packers defense entered Sunday’s game as the best in the NFL on third downs. However, you wouldn’t have known that by watching their performance against the Giants. New York was 6-10 on third down attempts that didn’t include them taking a knee, and several conversions came on third and long situations.
7
As I briefly mentioned, penalties were an issue for the Packers. Two defensive holding penalties wiped out sacks by the defensive front and Rasul Douglas’ unsportsmanlike conduct penalty took the Giants from third and goal from the four, to first and goal from the two. Overall, the Packers were penalized seven times.
0
The good news is the Packers didn’t give the ball away this week, after already turning the ball over seven times through the first four games. However, they didn’t force a turnover either. Through five games this season, the Packers are yet to win the turnover battle.
0-6
Rodgers entered Sunday’s game ranked 19th in downfield completion percentage and 17th in downfield passing yards per PFF. Whether it be accuracy issues, not being on the same page with the receiver, or likely both, the Packers’ downfield passing attack hasn’t been much of a threat this season. They rank so well in big passing plays in large part because of their YAC ability. Against the Giants, Rodgers was 0-6 on passes of 20-plus yards, the most such passing attempts he’s had in a game without a completion since 2015. Unlike in years past, these shot plays just seem forced.
4
Aided by the quick passing game, especially early on, the Packers offensive line allowed just one sack and four total pressures on 41 drop backs per PFF’s game recap. They handled the blitz-heavy Giants defense well, and as already discussed, Jones and Dillon each found success on the ground.
25
The Packers continued with their rotation at left tackle, with David Bakhtiari and Yosh Nijman swapping series. Bakhtiari ended up with just 25 snaps compared to the 70 he played last week. Nijman had 13 more snaps than Bakhtiari but that is in part due to Bakhtiari being on the field for a three-and-out in the second half. At least on the surface, there doesn’t seem to be anything unusual behind this snap count figure, other than that’s just how things played out.
