Green Bay Packers: 3 Things to do Differently Against the Bucs
By Kenny Jilek
More RPOs and Play Action
The way the Buccaneers beat the Packers the first time was by playing all out, downhill, and fast. They flew to the ball in the run game and were relentless in the pass rush, blitzing heavily and getting to the quarterback for five sacks on the day.
The best way to counter this type of play is to run Run-Pass options, and play-action passes. Similar to pre-snap motion, it makes the linebackers have to freeze for a second as they dissect where the play is actually going.
They had some nice success with both of these things in week six. A slant to Adams, an outside completion to Tonyan for a first down. These are little things, but if the linebackers constantly find themselves out of positions because of the option of a pass, they might be more inclined to stay back, which would open up more running lanes.
Play action has been extremely effective for the Pack all year long, including last week against the Rams, with the big play being the late touchdown to Lazard deep down the middle. Play action, especially on early downs, helps to hold the pass rush, as well as bring the safeties and linebackers up, making throws behind them available. Both of the interceptions Rodgers threw in week six were off of straight dropbacks, so they will likely go with some extra play action to keep the Buccaneers guessing.
It’s all about the concepts that have helped this Green Bay Packers’ offense be so successful this season, making similar plays look different with various window dressings and bells and whistles and making them think instead of playing fast. It’s even more important when you’re playing against a defense that wants to come after you from opening kickoff to the final whistle.
Now that we have a couple of changes for the offense to make, let’s look at some things they can do differently on defense to prevent another 30-point outburst from Tampa Bay.