Possible Trap Game?

Posted on by nzurich9
Carolina (4-4) heads to Lambeau in Week 9 to face Green Bay (5-1-1).

The Packers Were Able to Finish

After garnering just 7 points in the 1st half, Green Bay exploded for 28 following half time. Green Bay’s first half drives left a lot to be desired:

  1. 3 & out – PUNT
  2. TOUCHDOWN
  3. Missed FG
  4. 3 & out – PUNT
  5. 3 & out – PUNT
  6. Missed FG

Coming out of half time, Pittsburgh started with the ball and the Packers’ D held them to a 3 & out…enter Tucker Kraft. The Packers put together their best half of football since the Thanksgiving game last year.

2nd Half Drives:

  1. TOUCHDOWN: 9 plays; 90 yards; 5:13
  2. TOUCHDOWN: 10 plays; 78 yards; 5:39
  3. TOUCHDOWN: 4 plays; 45 yards; 2:01
  4. FIELD GOAL: 8 plays; 47 yards; 3:28
  5. FIELD GOAL: 5 plays; 19 yards; 1:08
  6. END OF GAME: 4 plays; 10 yards; 2:07

Totaling: 40 plays; 289 yards; 19:36 and scoring 28 points. That comes to 4.67 points/drive, or 5.6 points/drive on drives they were attempting to score considering the last drive’s goal was to get a 1st down to ice the game.

It was Green Bay’s most complete game – and they still screwed around in the 1st half aside from 1 drive. The game would’ve felt much different heading into half had they made their 2 field goal attempts, as it would’ve been a 16-13 deficit, but it was moot in the end.

Now Enter Carolina

The Panthers enter Week 9 having won 3 of their last 4, however, they are coming off a crushing defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Bills – another Super Bowl contender. It’s easy to think the Packers could/should do the same, but we’ve seen this team and followed them for too long to know they don’t win the game from the start-to-finish. They doesn’t mean Green Bay can’t put this game away and get backup QB Malik Willis some snaps in the 4th quarter.

Matchup Matrix

The major matchup to watch – or at least what one would think be the key to the game – is Carolina’s 5th-ranked rushing attack vs. Green Bay’s 3rd-ranked rush defense. Carolina had a stretch where they ran rampant over their opponents and it was the catalyst for their 3-game win streak. The Packers have been able to hold their opponents under 100 yards rushing in each game outside of their Week 4 tie in Dallas. The Panthers are averaging close to 140 rush yards and is their primary avenue to victory. If the Packers are able to stifle Carolina’s rush attack, it sets up a scenario where Green Bay could completely dominate this game, much like the Bills did last week.

The Panthers are a middle-of-the-road defense, as you can see ranking between 10th and 20th in each category. We know that LaFleur wants to get the Packers’ ground game going and that’s been improving (slowly) since the consistency of the offensive line has improved. This would be a great game to get an early lead and have Josh Jacobs and the ground attack rack up 150+ rush yards, chewing up the clock and icing this game early in the 2nd half. It’s doable, but should Green Bay hold on to the football and not give away possessions, it’s tough to see how Carolina stays in this game.

That being said, special teams reared their ugly head last week, again (at least 1 holding penalty and 2 missed field goals). Special teams were the primary reason for both of the Packers’ non-wins this season (blocked field goal in Cleveland and a blocked extra point in Dallas).

Other than getting the ground game going, the Packers haven’t created turnovers this season, only generating 4 (ranking in a tie for 30th)…much of the reason is to the opposing offense not throwing into danger because they’re under duress, quickly, from the pass rush and rather taking sacks or throwing the ball away instead of into danger. Carolina’s QB, Bryce Young, could give Green Bay some opportunities to intercept some passes and improve that statistic as well.

This is a game where one team is far superior than the other, however, if we have learned anything by watching the NFL – never take winning for granted is it’s never guaranteed.

Prediction Time

On the season, I’m 4-2-1 and guessing wins and losses, and 111-71-1 since I began this blog…I’m fairly confident in this game…we shall see if LaFleur can get these guys to play a complete game and improve the running game while generating turnovers.

Leave a comment