3 Big Things from Green Bay Packers Regular Season Finale
By Paul Bretl
The Green Bay Packers couldn’t escape Detroit with a win–although they were able to mount a comeback. But fortunately, with the NFC’s No. 1 seed already locked up, it didn’t matter.
Now that we’ve had time to digest what took place, I have my 3 Big Things from Green Bay’s performance.
Observations along the Green Bay Packers OL
There are a few big takeaways from the performance and configuration of the Green Bay Packers offensive line. The first is that with Josh Myers and David Bakhtiari back in the mix, Matt LaFleur chose to move Lucas Patrick to right guard and Royce Newman to the sidelines.
Patrick was the Packers’ primary right guard in 2020, where he was very reliable. According to PFF ($$), Patrick ranked 12th among 86 guards in fewest pressures allowed, he ranked sixth in ESPN’s pass-block win rate metric, and 31st in PFF’s run-blocking grade. Although Newman has certainly improved over the course of the season and is playing some of his best football, regularly once or twice a game, there is a play or two that leaves you scratching your head–and not in a good way.
As far as Bakhtiari and Myers go, both held up well, especially coming back from injury. According to the PFF game recap, Bakhtiari didn’t allow a pressure and only lost one of his 20 pass-blocking reps.
Meanwhile, Myers would allow just one pressure and no sacks while he was in the game. Although Myers is expected to be a starter, it’s important to keep in mind that he has only about four and a half games of NFL experience. As promising as he’s looked, there still may be some ups and downs experienced.
Now, I know, this Lions’ defensive front ranks 28th in pressure rate this season, but this healthy Green Bay Packers offensive line looked quite impressive–especially on that opening drive when Aaron Rodgers had all day to throw on several plays. We will see what the next two weeks hold for Billy Turner, but there is the possibility that despite all of the injuries, Green Bay could have four of their five preferred starters along the offensive line available for the playoffs.