Green Bay Packers v. Chiefs: Key Takeaways

And just like that the preseason for the Green Bay Packers has come and gone with the completion of last night’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

As expected, this was a game where none of the Packers’ starting players saw the field but there was still plenty to keep our eyes on. Whether it was a battle for more playing time or just to make the roster, a number of players were trying to leave their mark on this Packers team.

Final roster cuts will take place this Saturday and then all of our attention will shift to the week one matchup against the Chicago Bears. But before we get to that point, let’s take a look back at some of the key takeaways from the Packers’ final preseason game.

• More turnovers! Creating turnovers for this Packers’ defense has been an issue in recent seasons, but they have been very opportunistic this preseason. Green Bay would add two more turnovers against the Chiefs, giving them a total of eight in their four games. Hopefully, we see this carry over to the regular season.
• I don’t know how likely it is that the Packers will keep five EDGE rushers, but Markus Jones left his mark on this game. He would hit the quarterback which led to the Ty Summers pick-six and then came up with a fumble recovery. Jones would also add a tackle and a pass deflection.
• DeShone Kizer would put together a fantastic two-minute drill that led to a touchdown that was easily the best drive by either Packers’ quarterback that night. Kizer would finish 8/15 for 77 yards with a touchdown and an interception (which wasn’t his fault). While his performance wasn’t anything special, he is making the Packers think long and hard about this decision.
• With that said, whether they choose Kizer or Tim Boyle, I don’t think it matters very much. Just don’t keep three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.
• The interception that Kizer threw was J’Mon Moore’s fault. It was a crossing route that Moore stopped short on which led to Kizer’s errant throw.
• On the Packers’ final scoring drive we saw the Dexter Williams that we had been expecting to see all preseason. However, I don’t know that he did enough to jump Tra Carson on the depth chart.
• Kingsley Keke looks like an absolute steal in this draft and over the four preseason games, he may have been the best defensive player on the field. Last night, he would finish with another sack and a batted ball.
• James Crawford just can’t seem to put it together defensively. He appears slow at diagnosing the play and when he does find himself in position, he struggles to finish.
• Ty Summers was caught out of position what felt like quite a few times during the game.
• As it stands, the Packers only have one inside linebacker that they can trust and that of course, is Blake Martinez. Expect to see plenty of Raven Greene in that role moving forward until Oren Burks is healthy.
• Darrius Shepherd had some nice returns but fumbled one of them. However, that one play shouldn’t be enough to leave him off of the roster…right?
• Speaking of receivers, Allen Lazard who is battling for that final spot on the depth chart had to miss the game due to an injury. What a difficult spot to be in for the young man who has put together a fantastic preseason.
• Mason Crosby would miss and extra point while Sam Ficken would make both of his attempts. But this should still be Crosby’s job.
• Ka’dar Hollman continues to impress, he was tested quite a bit on Kansas City’s first drive but didn’t allow any completions and was sticky in coverage. Even if he did allow a completion he was still all over the receiver for the most part.
• We saw some flashes of the player that Yosh Nijman could be in the future. While his skill set is still a bit raw, he is an ideal candidate for the Packers’ practice squad.
• It was a rough debut for rookie tight end Jace Sternberger. While he did haul in a touchdown that was more so due to play design than him getting open and he would drop two passes in addition to that play.
• 2018 was a disappointing season for J.K. Scott but it appears that he is back on track and has put together a phenomenal Training Camp and preseason.
• The Packers survive the preseason and will begin the year relatively healthy. The two biggest injuries came to Equanimeous St. Brown and Oren Burks, but in both cases, the time table for their returns appears to be much shorter than originally expected.

If there were any takeaways from this game that you noticed that weren’t on this list, be sure to comment below!