It’s not so much that the Green Bay Packers weren’t expected to win their past two games, but not many people expected them to look as good as they have with Jordan Love missing time. Having traveled to face the Tennessee Titans, the Packers easily took care of business in their Week 3 win.
Malik Willis earned his second-consecutive start in relief of Love, and the game plan this week didn’t rely as much on the rushing attack as it did last week. The offense looked like a well-oiled machine again, spreading the ball out and consistently moving the ball down the field.
Offense
Willis was tasked with leading the offense again, coming off an efficient, game-manager performance against the Colts. Matt LaFleur helped unlock Willis more this game, as Willis threw for 202 yards and a touchdown.
But the biggest contribution from Willis was on the ground, as he led the team in rushing with 76 yards and a score on six carries. Josh Jacobs (14) and Emmanuel Wilson (12) combined for 93 yards on 26 carries, with Wilson taking a screen pass 30 yards for a score.
Jayden Reed led the way in targets (6) and receptions (4), while Christian Watson led the team in receiving yards (67). It was overall a clean game for the offense as a whole, with no turnovers or no plays to really circle as bad decisions.
Defense
The Green Bay defense, which has been called upon with Love missing time, stepped up in a big way again in Sunday’s win. Eight sacks, a forced fumble, twelve QB hits, and two interceptions (including a pick-six) encapsulated an efficient approach from Jeff Hafley and his group.
Preston Smith and Devonte Wyatt each led the way from the defense with two sacks, with Kingsley Enagbare earning another 1.5 sacks, including the forced fumble of Will Levis (that Lukas Van Ness recovered). Seven different players recorded at least a half-sack in the win, tying their franchise record for most sacks in one game.
Another game, another interception for Xavier McKinney, who tracked down a deep ball from Levis and corralled it for his third pick of the season. McKinney has excelled in the center field role in Hafley’s defense, adding the kind of value that this defense has not really seen since Nick Collins was patrolling from his safety spot.
Jaire Alexander helped the defense get in on the scoring, taking a Levis interception to the house to help round out the first quarter. The secondary held Levis to 260 passing yards and less than eight yards per completion, strong numbers for a defense that faced 34 passing attempts and 42 dropbacks.
It was an impressive showing overall for Green Bay, who have more than weathered the storm during Love’s absence. With a potential Week 4 return against the Minnesota Vikings for Love, everything that could have gone right has gone right over the course of the past two games.
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Mike Johrendt has been an avid fan of the Packers ever since he can remember. He is now a writer at PackersTalk and you can follow him on Twitter at @MJohrendt23
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