The Packers traveled to Raymond James Stadium on Sunday trying to recover from a disappointing performance against the Buffalo Bills. While the offense recorded 431 yards to just 109 yards for the host Buccaneers, the game was still in question heading into the fourth quarter.
A 25-yard field goal by Mason Crosby extended the lead to 10 points, and a one-yard touchdown pass to Jordy Nelson from Aaron Rodgers on fourth-and-goal with 2:45 remaining was the final dagger. The team was able to get the sour taste of a previous loss out of its mouth, as it prepares for the most important game the team has played all season this coming Sunday.
Quarterback: B+
Aaron Rodgers (+2.0 overall, +2.4 pass, -0.4 penalty) finished 31 of 40 for 318 yards with one touchdown and zero interceptions for a passer rating of 108.1. He was battling a flu bug and strained his calf early on in the game, so his conditioning and mental sharpness were understandably not up to MVP-level. He still managed to dink-and-dunk the ball down the field, usually to Randall Cobb out of the slot, and he took what the aggressive Tampa Bay defense gave him.
He has now fumbled in four straight games, which is unacceptable. He is going to get sacked every once and awhile, and he needs to be able to hang onto the ball. As I said previously, a turnover like that could swing the momentum of a playoff game or even this Sunday's showdown with the Detroit Lions. Regardless of the fumbling problems, his performance against the Buccaneers was a huge step forward from the disaster in Buffalo.
Running Backs: B-
Eddie Lacy (+1.0 overall, -0.2 pass, +1.5 rush) rushed for 99 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries, while John Kuhn (+0.6 overall) added 22 yards on four carries. James Starks (-1.5 overall, -1.4 run) added three yards on seven carries, and caught four passes for 22 yards.
Lacy showed off some impressive speed of a man his size on his 44-yard touchdown run in which he shrugged off linebacker Danny Lansanah and beat safety Bradley McDougald in a foot race. He appeared to be a little banged up towards the end of the game, but still managed to get on the field on the final series from the goaline. James Starks made some bad decisions with the ball on Sunday. He is usually pretty sharp when he decides to cut plays back, but he made the wrong read on a few plays in which he could have gained three or four yards by plowing straight ahead. Instead, he ran east-west and lost yards.
John Kuhn looked quick on his four carries, and wasn't afaird to lower his shoulder on bigger defenders. His run blocking was equally impressive, although he did leave early on a few stretch plays that could have been bigger if he had stayed on his original block.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: A
Randall Cobb (+3.0 overall) caught 11 of 14 targets for 131 yards, while Jordy Nelson (+3.5 overall) caught nine of nine targets for 113 yards and one touchdown.
While Cobb had a career day from the slot, it was Nelson who made the biggest difference in the game. A week after having two terrible drops, Nelson caught every single target thrown his way. The majority of those passes were on third-down when the team was struggling to put drives together. Cobb set a career-high in receptions with 11 receptions, and was very fluid in his cuts across the middle of the field. Nickel back Leonard Johnson had a tough time staying in front of him, and Cobb took advantage.
Andrew Quarless (+2.0 overall, +0.5 screen block, +1.4 run block) caught two passes for 22 yards, while Davante Adams (-1.1 overall) caught two passes for 17 yards, and Richard Rodgers (-0.8 overall) caught two passes for 13 yards.
Quarless and Rodgers were both adequate run blockers, but struggled as an extra edge blocker in pass protection. At this point, defenses won't be losing any sleep over their abilities as pass catchers, so their biggest asset to the team will be as run blockers.
Offensive Line: A-
Against a defensive line that has steadily improved in the second half of the season, the offensive line was able to pretty much stonewall the Buccaneers efforts. Corey Linsley (-3.4 overall, -4.0 run block) was charged with a sack on a stunt by Michael Johnson, in which he and Josh Sitton (+2.3 overall, +1.2 pass block, +0.9 run block) didn't communicate well and allowed Johnson inside leverage.
David Bakhtiari (+2.3 overall, +1.6 pass block) struggled to match Johnson's speed, but he was able to contain him with his quick jabs and footwork.
T.J. Lang (+6.3 overall, +1.7 pass block, +4.4 run block) was probably the most consistent player in the unit, and seems to be finally recovering fully from his ankle injury that has slowed him down recently. Bryan Bulaga (+0.3 overall, +1.6 pass block, -1.6 run block) allowed one hurry, and wasn't able to get much movement in the run game, but it was an expected drop-off after Bulaga didn't practice all week.
Defensive Line: B+
Mike Daniels (+0.7 overall, +1.0 run) used his low leverage and quickness off the ball to beat Logan Mankins several times, registering three tackles with a half-sack. He is missed a tackle on Doug Martin that could have resulted in a safety, but other than that miscue, Daniels was a big reason why the Buccaneers only rushed for 16 yards on 14 carries.
Letroy Guion (-0.8 overall, -0.9 run) and Josh Boyd (0.9 overall, +1.2 run) weren't quite as disruptive, but they didn't budge against the run. Datone Jones (+1.9 overall, +1.3 pass rush, +0.5 coverage) played 22 snaps and flashed some quickness off the edge. He was in the right place at the right time when an interception feel in his lap, and he showed some athleticism on the return.
Linebackers: A
Clay Matthews (+3.4 overall, +1.2 run, +1.5 rush, +0.5 coverage) recorded six tackles, including 2.5 sacks. His quickness off the ball was no match for either Garrett Gilkey or Dotson on the edge, and his spin move off of blocks helped him make some strong tackles in the run game. He also added some solid pass coverage from the inside linebacker position.
Julius Peppers (+2.5 overall, -0.7 run, +3.1 rush) recorded four pressures by using his powerful bull rush to get Allen's feet moving and it was all over after that. It was nice to see Peppers' playing with high energy after a couple of disappointing performances.
If Sam Barrington (-0.6 overall, -0.7 coverage) can sharpen his grasp on the playbook and coverage awareness, he might be a long-term answer at linebacker. He is the hardest-hitting player on the team, and is starting to build a reputation as several Bucs wideouts cut their routes short instead of getting blasted by Barrington.
Mike Neal (-0.3 overall, +0.8 run, -1.2 rush) continues to quietly be one of most improved players on the team. He has speed and agility that Nick Perry (+0.2 overall) just doesn't possess. Neal is still susceptible to coverage errors, but his ability as a pass rusher is hard to deny.
Secondary: A
Morgan Burnett (+5.7 overall, +3.7 run, +0.9 rush, +1.0 coverage) led the defense with 10 tackles, including a half-sack. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (+1.2 overall, +1.2 run) added four tackles.
This might have been the most active Burnett has been against the run, and easily the most impressive game he's had in his career as a tackler in open space. He never second-guessed himself on his reads, flashed to the ball and made form tackles in the open field against a shift running back in Doug Martin. Clinton-Dix broke up one long pass to Vincent Jackson, but then failed to make a play on another attempt downfield. He seemed to be good position to make the interception, but Jackson was more aggressive and positioned himself well to catch the ball.
Tramon Williams (+0.5 overall, +0.1 run, +0.3 coverage) tackled well from his corner position, and frustrated rookie wideout Mike Evans with his press coverage.
Sam Shields (0.0 overall) allowed a 22-yard reception to Jackson, but was otherwise solid in coverage. Micah Hyde (+0.1 overall) played in the nickel, while Casey Hayward (+0.4 overall) worked in the dime. Hyde had the unit's only missed tackle, but both he and Hayward didn't give up any big plays through the air.
Kicker: B
Mason Crosby connected from 42 and 25 yards, but missed wide left from 48 yards out. His five kickoffs averaged 73 yards and 3.7 seconds of hang time, and four were touchbacks.
Punter: B
Tim Masthay punted twice for an average of 34.6 yards and 4.4 seconds of hang time.
Coaching: B-
Passing the ball four times from the one-yard line was a head-scratching philosophy, but I guess coach McCarthy might have been a little gun-shy after getting stopped at the goal line earlier in the game. I also thought that the team should have leaned on the run game more when your All-Pro quarterback is battling the flu and has a calf strain.
The defensive game plan was aggressive. Dom Capers knew he had to get pressure on the quarterback to avoid any Julio Jones-type performance from two big-bodied wideouts in Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson. He blitzed on the majority of the team's passing attempts, and the results were less than 100 yards passing allowed, and just 16 yards on the ground. If this team is going to do anything this postseason, it will need similar performances from both the pass rush and the run defense.
Up Next: The Packers host the Detroit Lions (11-4) in the battle for the NFC North and a first-round bye at 3:25 p.m. CST on Fox.
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