Game 1 - Post game mourning

[Sandy]

3 hours ago, incognito_man said:

We're very likely to have 4 different starters on the OL than what we ended the game with Sunday.

Who's the 4th? Counting Bakh, Jenkins and JRJ.

 

7 hours ago, skibrett15 said:

Seems like folks here are waiting for the cavalry to arrive... but I don't really think it's coming.  This team is gonna have to win ugly and win on defense.  The O-line *could* get 2 guys back, but that's not all that likely IMO.  IDK if there is a trade out there in the offseason for Bak, but the staff needs to figure this out with the guys on the field, not the guys in the training room.

I understand the pessimism with Bakh, but I'd there any reason to doubt Jenkins won't be back early this season? Seems like a normal ACL recovery for him so far.

[Brat&Beer]

4th could be a new starter at RG. Either Newman or Tom.

[MrBobGray]

Alright so I finally made it through my film watch.  Since we're basically into week 2 already, I'll try and be as concise as I am even capable of being.

TL;DR

Tale of two halves in the end.  Pretty much everyone on both sides of the ball had some pretty rough low lights at some point or another, but both units looked markedly more competitive in the second half.  Got caught napping a bit I think.  OL was a real issue, and they need to get that settled.  Don't listen to the Tom hate, felt he was a borderline revelation in the second half which says more about how bad the level of play was up to that point.  But he plays with some real intensity, he's damn quick, and he fights till the whistle even when he's overmatched; he'll improve quick I think.  Overall though there's enough blame across the whole team that pretty much everyone can shoulder part of this loss.

Offense

Damn the OL was rough.  That's the biggest thing by far, and it's hard to overstate it.  But Rodgers was underwhelming as well, and his reluctance to throw anticipation routes really cost the team in this one.  I counted at three huge plays where he double-clutched on the open guy, and here's a shocker, two of them were to Cobb.  But first to drill down into the OL:

• OL - Basically a disaster until midway through the 3rd, when they at least turned the dial back to "approaching respectable".  As stated above, I think Tom would be the standout for me.  To be clear, he had plenty of ugly moments too, and he just does not have the size or anchor to be a starting G right now.  But the man fought his *** off even when he was overmatched, and rarely got just overwhelmed by his man the way Hanson did.  Good lord was Hanson rough.  One of the worst games I've seen from an OL, and unfortunately so much of it was him just being routinely physically dominated.  Could not drop the anchor in the slightest when bull-rushed, often got controlled by his man and shed in the run game, and rarely moved to the second level with good timing on his combos because he just could not get free without being held up any time he moved.  As far as the unit as a whole:
  • Yosh - Physically looks and moves the part.  Mentally not even close.  Repeated missed assignments and has no feel for the flow of the play when he needs to look for work.  Really need one of the starters to come back ASAP.
  • Runyan - Struggled big time with the power of the Vikings DL.  Got rag-dolled almost as much as Hanson, and really played much worse than I expected.  Got absolutely lit up by Jordon Hicks when he had him squared up in the gap, and as an OG you just cannot get put onto your back by a LB when you have a chance at a flush block.  When he gets back from his concussion he needs to improve ASAP.
  • Myers - So damn frustrating.  He's huge, he's fast, and he blocked nobody more frequently than it should be possible to do.  Re-watch Jones' big run in the second half and try to remember to laugh as the only person he blocks is Aaron Jones.  His feel for the game is just baffling.  Year 2 he can't be hesitating on his reads like he was; even if he's gonna block the wrong guy he needs to at least commit and get a hat on somebody.
  • Hanson - See above.  Think Hanson has value as a back-up but they need to get him out of the starting lineup as soon as possible.
  • Newman - Basically Myers at RT.  So much physical talent but doesn't know how to use it.  He's at least in the right spot and knows who his man is, so it puts him in the top of this group by default.  Really struggled with Hunter's hands; Hunter's a true freak so it won't be that bad every week, but he just could not get hands on him in the pass game because 99 would deflect or catch them damn near every time. 
  • Tom - Also see above.  He's quick and he's feisty, but he needs experience and an offseason in the weight room.
• Everyone Else
  • As noted above, Rodgers was up and down.  It wasn't an egregious game in any respect, but he left significant plays on the field and often just clearly had no faith in anyone in the receiving group.  He double-clutched Cobb more than anyone, and that's bizarre considering the background together.  The receiving group didn't really have a chance to show a ton, but they were getting open, Rodgers too frequently didn't have time to take advantage and when he did, was hesitant with the ball downfield.  But it's Game 1, and he didn't play in the preseason.  I hate that gameplan, but it does keep him healthy and I look for this part of things to improve as the rookies make plays.  He had a number of good reads and when he threw the ball he had generally good placement and velocity across the board; it wasn't a terrible day, just room for improvement.
  • Watson is just so fast.  Special talent, drop was obviously awful and I want to see him play more physically, but he's one to watch.  Doubs was as advertised, which is to say, good.  Needs seasoning though; he hung Rodgers out to dry on a scramble drill in the second half that should have been a big play.  Needed to cut inside across Harrison's face to prevent him having an angle to the throw, and definitely needed to not run right into the same zone Tonyan was already in.  Cobb isn't as washed as you'd think.  Still looks like he can contribute; he was getting open with some regularity and what speed he had is still there.  Watkins was just so whelming; his blocking was bad and he just doesn't stand out, but he's clearly capable of contributing.
  • Tonyan looked good; team needs him to be able to handle more snaps as soon as possible because Davis is sort of the quintessential JAG.  Just so nothing it's hard to describe him.  I will say though, that after routinely getting pushed around in the preseason his blocking was shockingly adequate.  Even blocked Z a few times, successfully which is crazy, and he lived to tell about it.  Deguara continues to be a freak open field blocker and I love it.  Think he could probably use more targets, but he'll offer big value in this system regardless because they run so many plays that need a move blocker going laterally.

Defense

This will be a lot shorter because there isn't as much to say.  They looked more rusty than anything; a lot of bad reads in zone that can be chalked up to being Week 1.  Talent looks like it'll be legit this year tbh.  I'll pick a few guys to highlight:

• Stokes had the roughest outing on D.  Ugly angles in the run game is one thing, and Cook is elite at forcing them, but he really struggled in coverage.  Too many instances of playing with bad fundamentals and giving his man open field.  He really doesn't look natural trying to play off-coverage so much.  Eg, on a Cover-3 play against Thielen in the 2nd half he inexplicably shaded outside on the short half of the field, giving Thielen the world's easiest dig route and getting no use out of the sideline or his frame speed combo; desperately want to see him play a little more inside and use the sideline to squeeze, trusting his speed to break on the ball if they want to throw the out-breaking routes.  Don't give your man the shortest path to the ball for free.
• Amos and Savage were disappointing, but more because they're generally better than this.  Good moments from both, but the rust was evident and they blew a number of coverages.  I'm higher on Savage than most, even after this game, but he's still a first read and go kind of guy and they need to find a way to simplify what they're asking of him.  Amos is a stud, he just needs to clean his game up.
• Campbell had a rough day for a guy voted Captain this year.  Was tentative filling at times, and he frustrated me with how far back he was when scraping.  Gave the Vikings OL too many free paths to him off their combo blocks because he was triggering from downhill too far away.  Had some moments that looked like 2021 Campbell too, so all is far from lost.
• Walker is some kind of athlete.  Holy cow I did not appreciate the physical talent there.  Ceiling is in the stratosphere, but he needs to learn how to play LB first.  So slow to diagnose in the run game, and frequently just couldn't get into good position in time because he was the last one moving.  Zone drops were frequently in the wrong place or depth, but I will say he looks natural in coverage and is scary explosive when he can just click and close.
• DL/OLB - for the most part they look like they just need a few weeks to gel.  Only two people I'll highlight:
  • Lowry is really underrated.  Has no anchor if he gets doubled but he's so damn quick at scale and he's brute strong and experienced.  Had some downs but a lot of bright spot plays as well.  Bull rush is still his main strength but he slips so well.
  • For all the hype I need to say way more from Reed.  Really struggled, but you can see the talent is there.  He's gonna lose snaps to Wyatt at a scary pace if he doesn't get better.

[R T]

Sean Payton not a fan of Aaron Rodgers visible frustration in loss to the Vikings - Sports Illustrated Minnesota Sports, News, Analysis, and More

The Rodgers hero worshippers about to put Operation: Cancel Sean Payton in motion. 

[incognito_man]

3 hours ago, Sandy said:

Who's the 4th? Counting Bakh, Jenkins and JRJ.

I counted Tom as well.

[ThatJerkDave]

3 hours ago, MrBobGray said:

 

• Walker is some kind of athlete.  Holy cow I did not appreciate the physical talent there.  Ceiling is in the stratosphere, but he needs to learn how to play LB first.  So slow to diagnose in the run game, and frequently just couldn't get into good position in time because he was the last one moving.  Zone drops were frequently in the wrong place or depth, but I will say he looks natural in coverage and is scary explosive when he can just click and close.
•  

Would you say Nick Barnett-ish? It took him a bit, but he was a really good LB by the time he ended his Packers tenure.

[HokieHigh]

8 hours ago, ThatJerkDave said:

Would you say Nick Barnett-ish? It took him a bit, but he was a really good LB by the time he ended his Packers tenure.

a lot more thump in his game than barnett, when barnett was kept clean by the DL he could  move sideline to sideline and fill a hole. barnett could read and react well by the tail end of his career, decent in coverage

 

with the exception of when he put his helmet on AP's knee, barnett never had wyatt's stopping power 

 

[beekay414]

14 hours ago, R T said:

Sean Payton not a fan of Aaron Rodgers visible frustration in loss to the Vikings - Sports Illustrated Minnesota Sports, News, Analysis, and More

The Rodgers hero worshippers about to put Operation: Cancel Sean Payton in motion. 

He's just stoic 

[rthom348]

16 minutes ago, beekay414 said:

He's just stoic 

He should’ve gave Watson a bear hug and a nice tea. As if throwing a bomb to a rookie on his first ever snap isn’t enough of an uplifting gesture as there could be. The best part is, I never saw anyone suggest Rodgers played even a “good” game. I just defend against dumb, pointless criticisms. The same dude who caught a bomb td from Mahomes on Thursday got thrown into the doghouse by Tom Brady two seasons ago and no one hates on Brady for poor leadership. 

[Starchisaga]

That is pretty good.   I can’t disagree - if they make the Super Bowl.  We have several years of continued behavioral consistency.   Tonight - they won.   Tonight - they ran the ball and AR read 1,2,3,4 receivers coming back to 2 when open.   We didn’t see that “much” last year or the year prior.