Packers: Risers and fallers from the 20-10 win over the Saints
The Green Bay Packers defeated the New Orleans Saints, 20-10, on Friday night and as expected, there was both good and bad on display for four quarters. Who helped their stock the most and who hurt their stock? Let's dive in and find out. Risers QB Jordan Love This one is obvious. Love wasn't perfect […]
The Green Bay Packers defeated the New Orleans Saints, 20-10, on Friday night and as expected, there was both good and bad on display for four quarters.
Who helped their stock the most and who hurt their stock? Let's dive in and find out.
Risers
QB Jordan Love
This one is obvious. Love wasn't perfect by any means, but he looked comfortable, poised and like a completely different quarterback from what we've seen in the past.
Head coach Matt LaFleur backed that up after the game, saying Love is "light years ahead" of where he was at this point last year.
"I know the numbers don't necessarily reflect probably how I feel," LaFleur told reporters after the game. "He stood in the pocket and was throwing on rhythm. Unfortunately again we had too many drops.
"He was decisive. I think that's the big thing from him. I see a much more decisive player out there. I think that's going to lead to a much more effective player."
Love only completed 50% of his passes, but he made huge plays and he made the right reads throughout the night. The Packers receivers struggled with drops, again, which didn't help.
Overall, it was a very good night for Love.
RB Tyler Goodson
It was a good night for Goodson, who had 52 total yards on 11 touches. He also had 61 total yards on 14 touches against the 49ers.
Goodson, like Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon, is both a good runner and receiver. But, whomever locks up the RB3 job isn't going to see many reps on offense considering how much playing time Jones and Dillon will receive.
Therefore, special teams is where the RB3 job will be won and LaFleur made that clear Friday night.
"He's done a nice job," LaFleur said regarding Goodson. " … He made some nice runs and then also, one thing you see from him quite frequently in practice is he has good hands."
"I think a lot of it, for our third running back, is going to come down to how they do on special teams," said LaFleur. "That is an area where the third back has to contribute. And so, that's really where the battle lies with all those guys right now."
Right now, Goodson has out-snapped Patrick Taylor, 16-12, on special teams. Goodson has a kick return for 19-yards while Taylor has logged a tackle as a special teamer.
It's obviously a close call right now, but I'd give the advantage to Goodson because of his hands.
DB Micah Abernathy
Abernathy has the Packers' lone interception through two games and he was just signed on August 10.
How can he not be on this list?
Abernathy likely survived the next round of roster cuts based off this play. And it's not because it was a great play. It's because Abernathy showed off his football IQ by recognizing and diagnosing the action then making the play.
“It was just play recognition really," Abernathy said about one play. "I feel like that’s a good part of my game. I can really think critically when I need to and I could see the running back sliding out and I could see the big lineman, I didn’t want them to touch me, so I had to slide under them and be as fast as possible, and just make the play.”
Coaches want to see a mental understanding of the game in the preseason and Abernathy showed he's capable of grasping a playbook in a short time and then applying it on the field.
That will keep a player around before anything else.
Fallers
WR Danny Davis
Davis is nursing an ankle injury he suffered during Wednesday's joint practice with the Saints, so it's not like he did anything himself to earn the label of "faller".
However, Davis really needed to show that he could stack another good game on top of his prior performance against the San Francisco 49ers, where he caught two passes for 45-yards that included a 33-yard touchdown.
Even though there are questions surrounding the Packers receiver room, the top-5 spots are filled via Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb, Amari Rodgers, Christian Watson, and Romeo Doubs. You could even make an argument for the top-6 by including Sammy Watkins in the conversation.
In other words: There isn't much room for a seventh receiver. And that's if the Packers even choose to carry seven guys. The fact Davis couldn't get on the field Friday night -regardless of reason- is not a good harbinger moving forward.
Packers special teams
For all the talk and all the action geared toward improving the special teams, Friday night was certainly a let down.
Highlighted by Kirk Merritt's 59-yard kick return, the Saints averaged 34.3 yards per kick return and Marquez Callaway got loose for a 15-yard punt return at one point. There were missed tackles and poor angles on just about every return.
Punter Pat O'Donnell had a good night and Ramiz Ahmed made all his kicks, but overall, Rich Bisaccia's unit has a long way to go, still.
LaFleur knows it, too.
"It is what it is," said LaFleur. "That's something we're well aware of and we'll clean it up."
You can check out LaFleur's presser below:
Featured image via Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
