Packers vs. Redskins: Full Report Card Grades for Green Bay
The Green Bay Packers are in free fall.
With their 42-24 loss to Washington Sunday night, the Packers dropped to 4-6 on the season and third place in the NFC North. Their losing streak is now four in a row.
This is Aaron Rodgers' longest losing streak since he became Green Bay's starter in 2008, as The Cauldron's Katie Sharp pointed out on Twitter.
Where do the Packers go from here? The slate of games that included the Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans and Washington was supposed to be a reprieve in the schedule.
But they've lost all three of those games, and now they will face the Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks before finishing out the year by meeting all three of their division rivals consecutively.
Let's take a look at the grades for this week's performance and try to figure out where it went wrong.
Quarterback
1 of 10
The box score tells one story. Aaron Rodgers finished his night with 351 yards and three touchdowns and completed 63 percent of his passes. He protected the football and threw a couple of deep balls, an area of the offense the Packers have struggled to get going this season.
But the tape tells a different story. Rodgers continued to look lost Sunday night. He regularly missed wide-open receivers and seemed to have trouble scanning the field.
The Packers' drives often stalled because Rodgers couldn't hit his receivers on short, quick completions. You can blame the wind for that, but it didn't seem to be much of a problem for Kirk Cousins.
Of course, the Packers' injury-stricken offensive line shares the blame for that.
Rodgers' play was adequate—not amazing, not awful. But this season, if he is anything short of spectacular, the Packers don't seem to have a chance.
Grade: C+
Running Back
2 of 10
Once again, Aaron Rodgers was the Packers' leading rusher on the night with three carries for 33 yards. The Packers need to retire this script because it's getting old.
Green Bay involved James Starks, Ty Montgomery and fullback Aaron Ripkowski, but they were not even able to amass 50 yards between the three of them.
The Packers' newly signed halfback, Christine Michael, was not active against Washington. They have to hope he can spark something for this lackluster rushing attack in Week 12 against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Grade: D
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
The Packers have been lacking big-play ability and production from their tight ends for years, and they got a glimmer of that back when Jared Cook returned to the lineup from injury.
Cook was the Packers' leading receiver on the night with six receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown, including an explosive 47-yard gain.
However, his fumble late in the fourth quarter when the Packers, down by 11 points, were driving into Washington territory was the nail in the coffin of their chances at staging a comeback. Of course, we can't place this loss on Cook's shoulders; the defense gave the offense no help.
Good things happened when the Packers got Randall Cobb involved, including a 47-yard connection with Rodgers early in the fourth quarter that set up a touchdown later that same drive. However, it seemed to be too little, too late.
Jordy Nelson is lucky that his touchdown in the second quarter was allowed to stand, because if he had made that catch in the field of play, it likely would have been called back.
The wind was a factor in the passing game, but the receivers and Rodgers just couldn't get hot until, once again, it was too late. They need to come out in the first quarter the way they eventually start to look in the fourth quarter.
Grade: C
Offensive Line
4 of 10
The Packers offensive line is in rough shape.
Green Bay came into the game starting Don Barclay in place of T.J. Lang at right guard. Barclay consistently lost his battles, and then, to make matters worse, he was lost to a shoulder injury. As a result, the Packers had to bring in the rookie, Jason Spriggs.
Aaron Rodgers was sacked twice and hit four times. It could have been a lot worse.
But though the offensive line was able to limit contact on the quarterback, it struggled in pass protection. The O-line was part of the problem in an offense that, on its first three drives, gained six yards on nine plays.
As with many of the positional units on this team, injury is making life difficult for the offensive line. But the grade still reflects the play on the field.
Grade: C
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Thank goodness for Mike Daniels, because there's little else to feel positive about regarding the defensive line right now.
Robert Kelley rushed for 137 yards on 24 attempts, including a breakaway run of 66 yards. He also found the end zone not once, not twice, but three times.
Granted, the defensive line got little help from a decimated inside linebackers group, but it was a rough night for the front seven all around.
Daniels got a costly roughing-the-passer penalty that essentially gave Washington three points, but it appeared to be a clean hit. Letroy Guion and Kenny Clark were quiet.
This front seven started the season as one of the stoutest units in football. On Sunday, it gave up more than 150 rushing yards for the second week in a row.
Grade: D+
Linebacker
6 of 10
Nick Perry is one of the best things about this Packers team right now.
The outside linebacker seemed to benefit from the return of fellow pass-rusher Clay Matthews. In the seven games Matthews has also played this season, Perry has 6.5 sacks. In the games Matthews has missed, Perry has 0.5.
And sure enough, Perry sacked Kirk Cousins on Matthews' first series back with the Packers.
Though his return bolstered the linebackers as a whole, Matthews didn't have any pressures of his own.
Julius Peppers continued to defy his age, racking up a tackle, a sack, a tackle for loss and a crucial pass defensed that showed off his basketball skills.
The linebackers struggled in the middle due to injuries. Already missing Jake Ryan to start the game, the team's depth was tested when fellow starter Blake Martinez left with an injury, leaving it up to Joe Thomas and the recently promoted Carl Bradford to handle the middle.
The Packers are going to have a tough time against the Philadelphia Eagles if their middle is this banged up in Week 12.
Grade: C-
Secondary
7 of 10
Is Kirk Cousins one of the best quarterbacks in the league this season, or did the Packers secondary just make him look that way?
Cousins, seemingly unbothered by the wind that appeared to wreak havoc on the Packers, was on fire Sunday. He completed 70 percent of his passes for 375 yards and three touchdowns. He didn't turn the ball over.
Both Pierre Garcon and Jamison Crowder had more than 100 receiving yards on the night, and each scored a touchdown. Both also had explosive plays of 70 and 53 yards, respectively.
The secondary lost Demetri Goodson in the second quarter to a gruesome knee injury, and Washington tight end Jordan Reed had a field day as a result.
LaDarius Gunter was covering Garcon on the 70-yard play that resulted in a touchdown. Safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix moved in to help, but Garcon moved inside and beat them both for the momentum-swinging score.
Kentrell Brice did have a heroic moment by preventing a Crowder 54-yard touchdown, though Robert Kelley would pound the ball in from one yard for the score one play later. What's worse, Brice was injured on the play.
If the Packers miss the playoffs this season, their depleted secondary will be a huge reason why.
Grade: F
Special Teams
8 of 10
Sure, it was windy, and more than that, there appeared to be something in the water for special teamers Sunday, when there were a record 12 missed extra-point attempts throughout the day's games.
But Green Bay's special teams play against Washington left a lot to be desired.
Mason Crosby didn't miss any extra points, but he did miss a field goal. So, too, did Washington's Dustin Hopkins, so the wind was clearly a factor.
Meanwhile, the offense kept punter Jacob Schum busy; he came out three times and netted an average of 46 yards per punt. He pinned Washington at the 6-yard line on a 58-yard punt, so his effort brought this group's grade up a little bit.
Packers fans held their collective breath when Jeff Janis let a kickoff bounce at the 2-yard line rather than field it. Luckily, Richard Rodgers fell on the ball, but it was a head-scratcher for sure.
Grade: D+
Coaching
9 of 10
Here's a difficult question to try to answer after watching the Packers in multiple games this season, including Sunday night's: is Mike McCarthy or Dom Capers' coaching more to blame for the loss?
McCarthy didn't involve Ty Montgomery or Randall Cobb—two of his most versatile and talented offensive weapons—much until it was too late for them to make a difference.
He also doesn't seem to know how to use James Starks or, perhaps more accurately, how to prevent Aaron Rodgers from consistently becoming the team's leading rusher.
He also called a questionable timeout on defense to save the clock in the waning moments of the first half, and Washington scored on that drive.
Capers, meanwhile, has had his work cut out for him this season with the bevy of injuries the defense has suffered. That didn't change Sunday, when the team lost inside linebacker Blake Martinez, cornerback Demetri Goodson, safety Kentrell Brice and, briefly, outside linebacker Nick Perry to injuries.
However, putting inside linebacker Joe Thomas in coverage on Jamison Crowder was disastrous.
The coaching staff can only do so much with the talent general manager Ted Thompson gives it, and the coaches can only do so much once injuries start to pile up. However, McCarthy and Capers are not maximizing the talent they do have available to them, and it showed Sunday.
Grade: D
Final Grades
10 of 10
Quarterback: C+
Running Back: D
Wide Receiver/Tight End: C
Offensive Line: C
Defensive Line: D+
Linebacker: C-
Secondary: F
Special Teams: D+
Coaching: D
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