Green Bay Packers 3-4 Debut and Other Observations

The Green Bay Packers debuted their new defense Saturday, Aug. 15, by shutting out the Cleveland Browns.

Granted, Cleveland is no offensive powerhouse, and helped the Packers by getting called for holding on a 31-yard field goal after their first possession, then missing the re-try. But the Packers held them to just 191 total yards and just 59 rushing, the one supposed weakness of the 3-4 defense.

In addition, the Packers generated four interceptions and three sacks for 20 yards, including one of each by Desmond Bishop, who I am awarding the game's MVP. Newly acquired safety Anthony Smith also had one of each, bouncing back from a flagrant facemask penalty to get his pick in the endzone.

Performances like this led to the offense controlling the clock, getting 39:56 of the 60 minutes with the ball. There were plenty of notable perfomrnaces on the offensive side of the ball, too:

1. Aaron Rodgers led the Packers to touchdowns in both of his possessions, going 5-10 for 102 yards, 1 TD, and no picks—a 119.6 passer rating. On the first possession, he was 2-2 on third down, including stepping up to avoid pressure and nailing a 53-yard TD on the run to Donald Driver.
   
2. Rookie free agent Tyrell Sutton ran 16 times for 91 yards (5.7 ave.), although much credit has to go to the line for opening some big holes for him. (This is actually to be expected, since the team has such depth on the line—second-liners are being counted on to step up because what the team lacks is solid first-stringers.)
3. Kregg Lumpkin, who never gives up on plays, was able to turn a loss into a sizable gain en route to his eight carry, 48-yard performance. In fact, all five running backs looked good, getting 231 yards on 44 carries—a 5.3 yard average. The coaches will have some difficult decisions at this position.
4. Matt Flynn was 5-6 for 50 yards and a 101.4 passer rating. While he failed to lead to any scores, Mason Crosby did miss two very long field goals (55 and 60 yards)—all the more reason the defense was impressive with the field position that resulted from those misses.

The only bad spots were that there was nothing impressive about any of the fullbacks, and the offense really sputtered under Brian Brohm. The 2008 second round draft pick was 3-10 for 18 yards with two picks and a passer rating of 0.0.

That's right, absolute zero, where all life freezes instantly.

Granted, one of the picks was off a receiver's hands and he was hit on the other one, but that does not mean they were not his fault. He has the slowest release I can ever remember seeing, and he overthrew as many passes as he completed.

At this point, he appears to be an absolute bust even though he has yet to step on the field in a live game. Let's hope he never has to, unless it's as a Viking...

Which brings me to Favre...but that is an article in and of itself.

Team Notes:

1. First-round pick B.J. Raji signed a contract this week and is expected to play Saturday against Buffalo.
2. Cullen Jenkins sat out with a minor injury, and Mike Montgomery appeared to have the inside track at defensive end over Johnny Jolly, as he was the starter against Cleveland. However, Jolly had one series in which he was in on all three stops of a three-and-out and is listed ahead of Montgomery on the depth chart.
3. Coach Mike McCarthy rotated linemen, with both Scott Wells and Jason Spitz seeing time at center with the first team. For now, Allen Barbre is the team's first-string right tackle.
4. JerMichael Finley continues to push Donald Lee for time at tight end and appeared to be stronger in blocking than last season, but Lee made an impression on his 19-yard catch and also was stronger than expected in run-blocking.
5. Ryan Grant looked strong, but Brandon Jackson still looks better to me. I see no reason to go back on my declaration that he will take time from his higher-paid colleague, and were it not for the contract, he might earn the starting gig.
6. James Jones was easily the most impressive receiver, grabbing a team-leading three catches and finishing second behind Driver in yards with 43. On one, he emulated the veteran by deftly cutting back and knifing between two defenders after the catch.
7. The Packers special teams gets mixed reviews in limited action. Crosby had a 45-yard field goal to go with his two long misses. Durant Brooks had just one punt for 39 yards, but with a 36-yard net that kept it inside the 20. The team had only one kick return (Will Blackmon) for a pedestrian 22 yards, and there were three punt returns for 25 yards (8.3 ave.). Kick coverage gave up an average of 25 yards per return, with the long of 32 coming after a kick six yards deep into the endzone.