Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, joined as always by my trusted colleague Weston Hodkoitz. We're coming to you hear from our studios at lambeau Field, and unfortunately, Wes, we have to talk about a difficult defeat Sunday in Atlanta. The Packers fall to the Falcons twenty five to twenty four, getting outscored thirteen to nil in the fourth quarter. Packers let this one get away. There's no two ways about it.
They played pretty darn good football for three quarters, but it all kind of unraveled on both sides of the ball in the fourth quarter, and they came back from Atlanta with a lot of regrets.
Yeah, and I think the tough thing about this and I know I notice it with our fans the Insider Inbox column. These losses are always difficult because you don't get blown out, you don't you know, there isn't one thing that you can point to. It's just fifteen minutes of regrettable football at the end of that game. And Yep, Matt Lafleura, it's not a big thing. I know, it's not gonna draw the most headlines, but he hit it on the head afterwards, and he reiterated on Monday, complimentary
football in this league is so important. And when you look at the Atlanta Falcons and what they did in the fourth quarter and the people that stepped up, Yeah, Bjhon Robinson's pretty darn good. Yeah, Desmond Ritter made some good plays, some good checks. But it was across the board with players stepping up. For the green Bay Packers, they just didn't have that one guy that kind of
put it on their shoulders. So not that you need it to be one guy, but sometimes that's where you look at the game against Chicago and you're like, well, Aaron Jones, that offensive line that gave them the spark. Green Bay needed a spark in the fourth quarter, and they just couldn't find one.
Yeah, that was the thing, is it? As that fourth quarter was unfolding, the Packers began it with a twenty four to twelve lead. The Early in the fourth quarter, the Falcons hit a forty five yard deep shot down the field that put them into scoring range. And so even though the Packers were up by twelve point, once they hit that big shot, they were down in the
red zone. It was like, okay, you know, you know, this is game on for an entire fourth quarter and the Packers just never, whether it was on offense or defense, were never able to make a play that even started to shift the momentum. If if the defense got a third down stop, they gave up a fourth down conversion, or the Falcons were kicking a field goal, the offense was unable to get a first down. The last three possessions a three and out, a three and out, and
a four and out. Both sides of the ball had opportunities to turn the tie to get things going back in the right direction. And it's really too bad because if the Packers had been able to either hang on or find a way with that final possession with fifty seven seconds left to get the points that would have been needed to win this game, it would have been such an uplifting victory. Because you went into this game without Christian Watson, without Aaron Jones. You find out ninety
minutes before kickoff, David Baktiari can't play. Those are three of your most important, most valuable players on the entire offense. Yet everything was going just fine until the end of the game, and give the Falcons credit when the play when the Chips were down, as you said in Insider Inbox, when the chips were down and the plays had to be made, the Falcons were the ones that made them. The Packers didn't.
Yep, And unfortunately not every quarter is created equal. In the fourth quarter, if you win that one as decisively as the Falcons did one hundred and sixty six total yards to eleven, obviously the points swing that you just touched on, it's going to be something that catapults you
to a victory. To quickly pull a great line from the wonderful Dom Capers, I will start with the positives for a second, and the positive that my takeaway was is that this game showed you again how much of a gamer Jordan Love is a lot of things working against this offense. You don't have Christian wattson in week two. Well, now you know you're not gonna have Aaron Jones. You don't have your all pro left tackle, you lose Elton Jenkins.
All the depth that I spent training camp talking about of oh you got the veterans where you need them, Well it got young real quick, and Jordan Love still rallied the guys. He still made the most of it. And I love the play call. I probably have beaten it to death more than anybody else on the beat, but being aggressive early on with the flea flicker giving them something to sort of set the tone, to give you that feather in your cap. Matt Lafleur and the offense.
I like the way they started this thing off with the first fifteen scripted plays. It was just a matter of execution and the green bit Packers, for better or worse, it kind of turned into this game where you either were on a scoring drive you kind of were going three and out, and unfortunately the three and oults came at the wrong time in the fourth quarter.
Yeah, and I want to get to the young players for the Packers that stepped up on offense and gave them a chance to win this game. But I think the other thing, and we don't need to go through chapter and verse on everything that went wrong in the fourth quarter. There was you know, the fourth and four with the read option play, the zone read play by the Falcons. You regret that when there's the third and
one on offense with aj Dillon at that one. But Matt Lafleur also made a point on Monday to say, hey, you know, it's not as though the first three quarters of this game film were you know, pristine, totally clean football.
The Packers had a ton of missed opportunities, whether you're talking about, you know, taking a delay of game on a field goal which then pushes you know, the Packers five yards further back, and Lafleur decides not to try from fifty six yards and play the field position game there off off of the first possession, so the flea flicker which drew the defensive pass interference ends up going
to waste there. Rasull Douglass gets an interception early in the ballgame, but then on a third down you have a miscommunication on pass protection. Jordan Love gets sacked by a free runner, a free blitzer, so that turnover is not turn into points again the complimentary football thing. Defensively, the Packers dropped two interceptions that hit him right in
the hands, right in the chest. However you want, you want to say, it's so there were there were all of these missed opportunities where yes, the Packers had a twenty four to twelve lead after three quarters, but when you're looking at it strictly from the Green Bay perspective, and certainly there were things Atlanta did wrong, and they had their regrets in the first three quarters as well, But the Packers really felt like they should have been
ahead by a lot more than twelve points after three quarters. But then what it comes down to is in the fourth quarter, And this is what the NFL is all about, is when it's crunch time, when it's game on the line, if you want to call it winning time or whatever phrase you want to use. What you do in those moments either either magnifies your regrets from earlier in the game,
or it erases them, it takes them away. The Packers regrets became magnified, and the Falcons got to forget about all theirs because they walked out with a win.
Yeah, and you know, Mike, I don't want to pat ourselves in the back, because that's now why I'm saying here. But what did you and I talk about the most last week? There were two big tangibles I thought were in this matchup. It was, as you wrote in you know, one last look, who wins the ground game? Where's that game decided? And then the turnover margin Green they actually managed to win the turnovers in this with that pick
from Rasoul Douglas. But how different is this football game if that is three to zero or as Rasul even said in the locker room afterwards, five oh five. Because Rudy Ford had his hand on a ball.
I mean there were yeah, there were some deflected balls that deflected up in the air and the Packers couldn't come down with him.
The jay Yere one would have been a spectacular play if he made it. It would have been probably a highlight reel type play. The real gut punch for me, though, was the Quay one, just because it was almost a carbon copy exactly Chicago. He had a own drop, he had the read. It was something the Packers were looking for and you just couldn't quite bring.
It in a young quarterback who just didn't see him and threw the ball right to him. And and yeah, that was it was You're right. It was a carbon copy of Chicago. He caught the one in Chicago. He didn't catch this one. That's what that's that happens.
And last thing I'll just say on this quickly, b Jon Robinson came his advertise a really explosive young man two way player, as I joked an insideerr inbox, not even really a joke, it's the truth. You're kind of happy that he didn't end up in the NFC North. I mean, this guy looks like he's gonna be a real problem down in the South. But the other aspect of it, tip your cap to Desmond Ridder, because I didn't give him a whole lot of respect going in
this thing. I wasn't overlooking him. But you just to see the stats. You see how they play conservatively, and you're like, okay, like how good is this guy? What they're trying to do, what Arthur Smith's trying to do down there in Atlanta? The young man runs it really well. He had some good checks that that that slant play that Matt Lafleur talked about on the third down to be Jon Robinson. People can talk whatever they want about the containment on the keeper on the fourth and goal, Mike.
When I finally noticed he had the ball, he was crossing the end zone. I mean, it was a really good look. You have to defend it better. Yeah, but Atlanta did an exceptional job of executing their offense, and that was the difference.
Late yeah, I don't like. I don't want to. I don't want to take credit away from Atlanta. I certainly don't. But but I'm you know, I'm not going to be on the Desmond Ridder bandwagon after what I thought should have been a three interception game for a young quarterback. I don't think he really played all that well quite frankly, But the difference in the game was Bjon Robinson. Because yes, the Packers struggled to stop the run all game long.
It was it was a problem. But what made it a bigger problem is that when they were in position on a lot of plays to stop the run and the players were where they were supposed to be, Jon Robinson just made guys miss. And so that's you know, that's not about that's not about scheme, that's not about the call, that's not about whatever. That's about getting a really,
really dynamic offensive weapon on the ground. And there was one play Matt Lafuur even talked about it, and I know exactly the one he's talking about, where Robinson made four guys miss in a span of about a second and a half. And that you know, we had talked about that all last week, about about Okay, where is your tackling going to be in this game? And are you going to be able to is a mistackle going to lead to an explosive run or is a mistackle just going to lead to a couple of extra yards?
And uh and Robinson was Robinson was the was the difference in this game, hands down. When they had they had those fourth and ones, they knew that we're just gonna give the ball to number seven and he's gonna find a way to uh to move the chains. And even on some fourth and ones he's getting five seven yard runs that are that are pushing the ball downfield just too much, too much for the Packers to it made a.
Good adjustment to I mean, they stopped trying to run at Kenny Clark after the first quarter and they started to get more of the wide zone going. And when you have a guy that can accelerate that quickly and being able to win on the edges.
And cut and cut that quickly and and and move and the ship the shiftiness of it, and the Packers just couldn't handle it.
Yeah, it was. That was a real challenge. And again it's Mike, this isn't new. We we talked about this even before the opener. The Packers have some real tests coming up. Now. They're gonna avoid Elvin Kamara because it's the suspension, and you know, but you still got Gibbs after that, you still got you know, Josh Jacobs coming down the pipe. They have some tough run offenses they're gonna face, and you have to learn those lessons.
Yeah, and I think that's I think that's going to be the tough thing, because you know how this league works west. I mean, yes, opponents, you spend some time looking at, you know, the previous year's game film and whatnot when you're preparing early in the season. Once you get a couple of games on film, then everybody's looking at those in terms of how they game plan. This performance run defense wise is now on film for every single Packers opponent to look at and to pick apart
and to devise their game plan. The Packers are going to be forced to stop the run to improve in that area, and they can't. You're not just gonna be able to take the field and say, all right, we're going to score a bunch of points and take the
other team out of their running game. It was twenty four to twelve going into the fourth quarter, and the Falcons were like, no, we're not giving right, We're gonna We're gonna keep running the football and because they knew there would be enough possessions left in the game to win, and that's what they were able to do.
Did it with really good tempo too. I was impressed by that they got in and out of their their calls pretty quick, and that's that's not always easy to do in run calls.
And that's where and that's where I do give rid Or credit. And when you had mentioned the way he ran some checks, checked out a certain things. You saw the way they were running motions, getting a read on what the Packers were doing defensively. They had the time on the play clock to do that, and they made the Packers pay. I do want to get to some of those bright spots, certainly talking about young players first,
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of better. All Right, When you're talking about the bright spots and what the Packers were able to do here, it starts with the rookie wide receivers Jaden Reid with two touchdowns, Dontavian Wicks with another one. Wicks was the target on the opening play flea flicker that drew the pass interference penalty. Christian Watson was not in this game.
Romeo Dobbs got a lot of attention from the Falcons in their secondary, and those the two rookies the second rounder and Reid the fifth rounder, and Wicks, those guys stepped up and gave gave Jordan Love good targets and they made some very efficient and important plays in this football game.
Yeah, Mike, you got a chance to see Greg and Greg Jennings and James Jones right off the bat. I did not in terms of actually covering them, But I remember that twenty eleven season, and although I wasn't full time on the beat yet, I remember watching Randall Cobb and the limited opportunities he got that season. Just how much poise he showed, and just for a guy that entered the league at twenty years old, the first nineteen ninety birth year in the National Football League, but he
looks so much more mature than that. Jayden Reid gives me those same vibes. I mean, he's just a guy that gets it. That's not to say that you know he won't make mistakes. They're gonna come, yeah, But the receiver position, and especially with him on punt returns, that is a position where you can't be a deer in the headlights. You have to be ready for it. You have to be prepared, and you have to be able to stand up at those times. I really like what I've seen from Reid, and again it's going to be
a work in progress. The Packers have to find themselves here. They got to rally back from this loss. But you just sit there and think, man, oh man, if they can get Christian Watson back, we'll see when it happens. But the reps that Reid has taken, even Wix getting a big confidence boost for his thirty two yard touchdown in Romeo, Dobbs just being so consistent despite coming off
of that hamstring injury. The Packers have a wide array of receiving options here, and I think a guy like Reid is only going to keep getting better.
Yeah, And but even as good a game as Jayden Reid had, they're dealing with the offense with Love and Reid and the ups and downs that go along with it. There was a play early in the game where Reid didn't have his head turned and the ball kind of whizzes past him right. And then on the first play of the final drive, Love and Reed just not quite on the same page where he's running a quick stop route and Love thought maybe he was gonna, you know, turn a different way or something, and and the balls
a little bit off target. So you're you're still you're you're dealing with You're dealing with those ups and downs. But I am totally on board with you. You have to love what you see. There is a there's a smoothness
to his game. There is there is this presence that he has out there that just says, I belong in the NFL and I and I fit here, And and we were talking about it all through training camp in the preseason, how he just looks like he fits this offense and the things that Matt Lafleur wants to do with a receiver with with that kind of skill set.
So and the other thing. Unfortunately you cover the press conferences. I go into the postgame, you know, locker room. I was in the Jaden Reid scrum when they won and when they lost. And he's the same dude. Yeah, he was there for it. He had his foot up against the locker saying, hey, it is what it is. You have to learn from it. That that goes a long way. They got a lot of those guys in that locker room too.
One of the things I'll point out too, because we've mentioned the flea flicker, this is this this the second game in a row we've seen some real creativity from Matt Lafleur and his offensive coaching staff because they came out in the second half against Chicago looking for a spark offensively and they called the throwback screen. You know,
real deceptive play and everything. They took the field at Mercedes Benz Stadium, you know, all the noise in that dome and everything, and the first play of the game they run, they run the flea flicker. Not afraid to try to try some of this stuff to provide to provide a spark and you know, really other than you know, yes, there were there were certainly breakdowns in the running game. There was the one miscommunication and pass protection that led
to a sack. One of the plays on the final drive, Jordan Love was under pressure and unfortunately couldn't get a deep ball to read where Reed had actually run a really good route and had beaten his man, but Love just wasn't able to step into the throw. So again another regret there. But the Packers, you know, Rashid Walker stepped in at left tackle for David you had Royce
Newman ended up stepping in for Elton Jenkins. Sounds like Jenkins is going to be out a couple of weeks at a minimum with a knee injury, and yosh Nimen coming in and playing some snaps of tackle when Rashid Walker is playing as the sixth thougher lineman kind of that extra tight end thing, whatever you want to call it. Packers had a lot of moving parts on the offensive line in this game, and unfortunately things just didn't come
together in the fourth quarter. But twenty four points through the first three quarters on the road, that's not a bad performance. You just wish they could have added you know, all they needed was one drive and you don't even know if they necessarily needed points. They needed one drive something to get to get going, to move the chains, to flip the field, to kill some clock, you know,
take your pick. And unfortunately, just the fourth quarter didn't live up to how they had performed in the first thing.
No, and I think it ultimately, Yeah, it's hard to get into a rhythm when you're you know, when you have one team that controls the ball for thirty six minutes, it runs seventy eight, seventy six plays whatever it was, and the other one's at forty seven. Yeah, and unlike out of the you know, the break in Chicago where you had Aaron Jones, you had a veteran to turn to Green Bay didn't really have that in this game.
I thought that showed down the stretch. But I'll tell you what, man, those are the type of crucibles though, that guys learned from, especially when you have to like kind of look at each other and be like, Okay, how are we going to figure this thing out? And it's going to be an eighteen week ride and you hope that obviously it gets you to its peak by the end of it. Yeah.
Well, the New Orleans Saints are up next for the home opener. Four days after that, the Detroit Lions will be coming in. So it's worth talking about where things stand in the NFC North.
The same as last week, Packers.
And Lions at one and one. The Vikings and Bears are at zero and two. So nobody in the NFC North emerged from the first two weeks of the season unscathed. The Lions are certainly, you know, regretting what went down for them on Sunday because they had gotten the big win on the road over the Chiefs. They've got their
home opener, all their fans behind them. The Seattle Seahawks, who had lost a tough home game in week one, they come in and, you know, kind of a shootout, much like the Lions and the Seahawks have had those kinds of kinds of games in the past. It was interesting catching the highlights later how that game unfolded. Jared Goff threw a pick six in the fourth quarter. It looked like the Lions were dead and gone. They come back.
They score ten points down the stretch in the fourth quarter to force overtime, but then their defense can't get off the field in overtime, they give up the opening touchdown drive and the Lions aren't able to get the ball back on offense in the OT so Seattle leaves Detroit one and one. Detroit comes out of that at one and one. And we'll see here after week three with when the Lions and the Packers will both be on a short week. Who's going to be two and one? Who?
Who is somebody going to be one and two? Long way to go here, but it's already looking like that that Week four game at Lambeufield is going to be awfully big. No matter what happens in Week three.
It will be. And again we're really earlier in the week, but it sounds like David Montgomery here possibly a thigh injury, you know, potentially taking him down. That was another thing you and I talked about in preseason that you know, he's a talented guy, but he's had a lot of injuries and that was one of the issues that kind of prevented him from being in every down player consistently for the Bears. That's gonna be big because it looks
like Gibbs as talented as this young man is. The pass pro is probably the area game where he's still trying to catch up. There is no Jamal Williams to go back to, very interested to see how they handle that. This doesn't have anything to do with the North, but I mean, a real nice, strong gut check by Seattle, a disappointing loss, they rally back for a win on
the road. I thought Gino Smith showed a lot of poise, and certainly when you have someone like Tyler Lockett, who was kind of quiet in Week one, being able to bounce back the way he did. A lot of talented teams in the NFC, I mean, I think there's a few that have sort of really separated themselves early on, but especially in this division, in the NFC North, it is going to be anyone's race, and even a team like Chicago that is really struggling right now, there's still only one game behind here.
Yeah, and you know, and you know that the Vikings are as happy as anyone that both the Packers and the Lions lost in Week two, because the Vikings had that tough task going to play Thursday night football at Philadelphia. They gave the Eagles a run for their money, ended up losing that ended up losing that game by one score.
The Vikings are oh and two, but now they get a little bit of extra rest heading into week three, and they're looking at it as hey, yeah, we're owing two, but we're only one game out of the of the NFC North lead, and it sure feels like it's going to take a while to see if anybody in this division is actually going to be able to take control of things.
And it's funny, it seems like every year we do this show and we start talking about games in week two and week three and week four in the narrow margin of victory. Yep, you have the Minnesota Vikings at oh and two now going to be going up against an LA Chargers team that is oh and two and has lost those two games by combined three points. Right now, Austin Eichler, we'll talk about this later in the week. Whether or not he's back, whether or not he's not,
that changes the entire complex this game. As I was talking about yesterday, you know Dalton Reisner now signing with the Vikings after their banged up offensive line, trying to get some more depth moves and counter moves yeah, and seeing exactly how those things are going to equate to a win. It will be interesting to watch.
Yeah, And everybody's talking about that seat getting hot under Brandon Staley with the Chargers after the playoff Debaco last year, and now they're starting zero to two and twenty twenty three, they've got the Vikings. On Sunday, the Packers are gonna have their hands full with a Saints team that is coming into Lambellfield at two to zero off of a
road Monday night victory over the Panthers. We will talk about that and that entire Saints team some more on our next show, but for now, we'll call it a rap on this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure to follow all of our coverage of the team on Packers dot com. For Wes, I'm Mike. Thank you for tuning in everybody. We will see you next time.