The Green Bay Packers scored a dramatic, come from behind victory over the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field Sunday night. Down 20-0 with Aaron Rodgers out of the game with a knee injury, all appeared lost. But Rodgers returned and led the team to four straight second half touchdown drives and a dramatic 24-23 victory.
It’s always good to win the season opener, and even better to win a divisional game against the Bears. But here are 10 things we learned from this game that will have real significance for the rest of the Packers 2018 season:
- Aaron Rodgers is just… wow!
What can you say about Rodgers’ performance? He kept his cool, overcame limited mobility and pain and put up 24 second half points on a defense that finished in the top 10 last year and improved itself heading into 2018.
Rodgers knew he couldn’t extend plays with his legs in the second half, so he threw pinpoint passes with quick drops and releases. His accuracy was superb, he came through in the clutch and never lost his cool.
The Packers rely heavily on Rodgers, who only added to his legend Sunday night and reinforced why he is one of the best quarterbacks ever to play this game.
- Geronimo Allison Looks Ready to Contribute
Many experts questioned whether Allison was ready to step into the third receiver role but the third-year man out of Illinois had a solid game. He was prepared, ran the right routes and came up with a big touchdown pass that helped energize the team in the right corner of the end zone. Allison won a contested ball on a play that had a very small window. Rodgers is clearly comfortable throwing to Allison. He finished with five catches for 69 yards and the touchdown. Allison is off to a great start, now he needs to show he can do this consistently.
- The Offensive Line Made Adjustments in the 2nd Half
In the first half, the Bears defensive line was beating the Packers offensive line off the ball. The Bears were putting consistent pressure on Green Bay quarterbacks and the results were four sacks including a strip sack/fumble recovery by Khalil Mack and a pick-six by Mack that gave Chicago a commanding 17-0 just before the half.
But the Packers adjusted after halftime. Bryan Bulaga changed his approach to blocking Mack and the entire offense went to quicker, rhythm passes. Justin McCray also had a solid second half after struggling in the opening two quarters.
The offensive linemen knew Rodgers couldn’t scramble and they made it a point of pride to protect their hobbling quarterback. Rodgers was not sacked at all in the second half. The result was 24 points and a dramatic win.
- Randall Cobb Looks Healthy Again
So many people seemed willing to write off Randall Cobb who heading into the final year of his contract. But Cobb proved he can still play at a high level Sunday night. He finished the evening with nine catches for 142 yards and the game-winning, 75-yard touchdown with just over two minutes left in regulation. That play was almost all Cobb who grabbed a short pass and ran the final 65 yards through the defense for the score.
Cobb also contributed on punt returns and was a willing run blocker. Overall, Cobb showed he can still be an integral part of the Green Bay offense in 2018.
- The Rookie DBs Can Play
Both Jaire Alexander and Josh Jackson were credited with three tackles for the game, but the best part was they both looked comfortable in coverage.
The potential is there for both players to make more dynamic plays as they get more familiar with the defense.
For openers, both Alexanders and Jackson looked like they belonged. There will almost certainly be some rookie mistakes, but the potential for big contributions from these players is very real. Expect both rookies to get more playing time as the season goes on and the coaching staff learns they can trust them in all situations.
- Clay Matthews Struggled
OLB Clay Matthews had a shaky opening game. He made only one tackle and did not provide any kind of pass rush throughout the game. The Packers had four sacks as a team, but Matthews was not a factor.
He did commit a critical roughing the passer penalty on a fourth down play late in the fourth quarter. Without that foolish penalty, the game would have been over, but the Bears got a new life as a result of Matthews infraction.
It’s too early to say Matthews is over the hill, but he definitely needs to make more of a positive impact in the coming weeks at a position the Packers are already considered thin at.
- Mike Pettine Made Helpful Changes at the Half
Mike Pettine’s defensive adjustments and philosophies worked well. The Bears only scored 16 points on offense and 10 of them came on the opening two drives. After that, the Packers defense really shut down Mitch Trubisky and the Bears offense.
Pettine’s philosophy is to stop the pass first and it worked very well against the Bears. Trubisky averaged only 4.9 yards-per attempt in the game. The Packers prevented the Bears offense from getting into a rhythm passing the ball.
Pettine’s halftime adjustments worked very well. Trubisky was limited to 62 yards passing in the second half and his quarterback rating fell from 99.1 at halftime to just 77.2 for the game.
Halftime adjustments on defense were an issue for the Pack the past few seasons under Dom Capers. Early on, it looks like Pettine’s in-game adjustments were much more effective.
- Ha Ha Clinton-Dix Showed Improvement
Safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix had an off year in 2017 after making the Pro Bowl the previous season. It’s only one game, but Clinton-Dix looked much improved over a year ago.
The veteran safety finished the game with seven tackles, second on the team behind Kentrell Brice.
More importantly, Dix took better angles to the ball, made some good, open-field tackles and generally played the smart brand of football he displayed in 2016.
- DeShone Kizer Is Not Ready for Prime Time
While Aaron Rodgers showed how valuable he is to the Packers, backup DeShone Kizer showed he is not yet ready to take over for a long stretch if Rodgers goes down with another significant injury.
Kizer did show off his talent. He has a strong arm and can move in the pocket. But his consistency is lacking. He led the Packers down the field on his first drive but had the ball simply stolen from him by Mack deep in Chicago territory. Then he threw a pick six that put the Packers down 17-0 just before the half.
Kizer may have more talent than Brett Hundley, but as of right now, he seems no more prepared to lead this team than Hundley did a year ago.
- The Rushing Game a Work in Progress
The Packers finished the game with only 69 yards rushing as a team and 15 of them came on a scramble by Rodgers in the first half. Taking that away, the Packers ran the ball 17 times for 54 yards, which is a 3.2-yard average.
Sure, few teams run the ball effectively, or all that often, when they fall behind 20-0 and the Packers are a pass-first team. But the team must do better than 3.2-yards per carry if they hope to have any kind of balance on offense.
Jamaal Williams wasn’t bad, but there weren’t a lot of holes to run through. Ty Montgomery added a spark when called upon, but his lack of ability to pass protect prevented him from seeing the field more.
The return of Aaron Jones in Week 3 may give the running game a bit of a boost. Overall, this area remains a work in progress for the Green Bay offense.
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