Green Bay Packers: A Puzzling and Troubling Start Offensively This Season

The 1-2 start for the Green Bay Packers in 2014 is not that surprising. Not if one looks at the recent history of the team.

Since 2009, the Packers have only had one great start with the way they opened their season. That was in 2011, when the Packers won their first 13 games of the season. Other than that, the team has started out 2-2, 3-3, 2-3, 1-2 and 1-2 again this year.

The major difference between those teams and the 2014 version is the play of the offense. Since Mike McCarthy became head coach in 2006, the Packers have been in the top 10 in total offense seven of eight years.

The only year that the Packers didn't finish in the top 10 was 2012, when the team finished 13th. The Packers have also finished in the top three in total offense three times, including last season.

That has not been the case in 2014, as the Packers are ranked only 28th in the NFL in total offense. That is shocking. Not to mention puzzling and troubling.

There are a number of reasons for that situation when one takes a close look at the first three games the Packers have played.

Part of the problem has been the teams the Packers have played. All three of their opponents, the Seattle Seahawks, the New York Jets and Detroit Lions, are in the top 10 in total defense so far this year.

Currently, the Lions are ranked first defensively, while the Jets are ranked second and the Seahawks are ranked eighth.

All of those teams have very productive and physical defensive lines. That situation has caused issues with the offensive line of the Packers, which may be the biggest reason the team is struggling on offense.

The Packers right tackle Bryan Bulaga sprained his knee in the game against the Seahawks, which caused him to miss the rest of that game, as well as the game against the Jets.

His replacement, Derek Sherrod, was shaky against Seattle (gave up two sacks), but played a bit better against the Jets.

The rest of the offensive line's play has been uneven. Nobody has been consistent. In fact, rookie center Corey Linsley may be the most consistent player on the offensive line this year.

The run-blocking has not been up to par. The Packers are ranked only 27th in run offense this year, after finishing seventh in that category last season.

USA TODAY Sports

The running game has looked okay in spurts, but it hasn't been able to get untracked consistently, even when the defense plays a two-deep safety scheme like the Lions did this past Sunday.

Eddie Lacy, the 2013 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, only has 113 yards rushing in 36 carries (3.1 average) and no touchdowns. This is after averaging 4.1 yards a rush last season, when he ran for 1,178 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Lacy had his first fumble since the 2013 season-opener in San Francisco on Sunday, and that fumble was recovered and run back for a 40-yard touchdown by Don Carey of the Lions.

Coach McCarthy even called out Lacy at his Monday press conference via Packers.com:

"Eddie needs to play better," McCarthy said. "I don't correct individuals in the media. We've seen the film, corrections have been made, our running game wasn't nearly what it needed to be. Not even close."

James Starks has fared better this season, as he has 75 yards rushing in 15 carries (5.0 average). Even though he had some success against the Lions on Sunday, he didn't get many opportunities in the second half against Detroit, when McCarthy spelled Lacy with DuJuan Harris at running back.

The Packers have only one rushing touchdown this season, and that was supplied by fullback John Kuhn.

The passing game has not been that much better, at least in terms of consistency. The Packers are ranked just 21st in passing offense.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has thrown five touchdown passes compared to just one pick for 697 yards. That adds up to a 95.1 quarterback rating.

That rating is fine with some players, but it isn't with Rodgers. No. 12 is the all-time NFL leader in quarterback rating with a career mark of 104.6.

In fact, Rodgers has had five straight seasons with a quarterback rating of over 100.

But this year something seems to be amiss. Rodgers has been sacked nine times, which is third in the league. Rodgers has held the ball too long on a number of those sacks.

The most glaring stat is the accuracy of Rodgers so far in 2014. He has completed 62.7 percent of his passes so far this season. That seems like a nice percentage, but not when one looks back at the career of Rodgers.

The former Cal Bear has never completed less than 63.6 percent of his passes in any given season since he became a starter, and he has had a career completion percentage of 65.8 going into this season.

This may seem like a minuscule thing to look at, but sometimes the difference in a game is the accuracy of a quarterback down the stretch.

Just think about the fourth-down pass Rodgers missed when he threw behind Jordy Nelson with about 7 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. An accurate throw would have given the Packers a 20-yard touchdown and pulled them within five of the Lions at the time.

Rodgers has made that same throw a lot more times than not in his career.

USA TODAY Sports

A number of things factor into why Rodgers has not played up to his normal level of excellence. For one, the pass-blocking. Another reason is the play-calling and the adjustments made (or not made) based on the schemes the Packers are facing defensively.

Also, besides Nelson, the Packers are struggling to find another wide receiver who makes big plays between the end zones. No. 87 has 23 receptions for 351 yards (15.1 average) and one touchdown.

The Packers don't have any other receiver on the team with a reception average over 10 yards. Randall Cobb (9.6), Jarrett Boykin (8.5) and rookie Davante Adams (8.7) all fall below that.

At least Cobb has three touchdowns, but overall his play in 2014 has been very disappointing.

So has the production at the tight end position. Only Andrew Quarless has caught the football, as he has eight receptions for 77 yards and a touchdown.

The good news is that the season is still very early. Next week the Packers will be facing a Chicago Bears secondary which has been depleted severely due to injuries. But then again, the Packers played against a Detroit secondary which had similar problems last Sunday.

The overall success of the offense of the Packers has to start in the trenches. The blocking has to get better, both in running the football and passing it.

The play-calling and the offensive adjustments have to improve as well. McCarthy and Rodgers need to get on the same page. It seems like they aren't right now, especially if you read the article by Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Bottom line, the playmakers have to start making plays and start making better decisions. Backs need to run to the correct hole and receivers need to create separation and stop dropping passes.

Rodgers needs to start playing with his usual bravado and quit playing tentatively at times.

History says those things should start happening at some point this season.

The Packers hope it starts this Sunday, as they don't want to go 1-3 for the season and 0-2 in the NFC North.