Top Performers for the Green Bay Packers against the Saints

We are a little over a week away from when the Green Bay Packers have to have their 53-man roster set. With several positional battles still taking place, every opportunity matters.

Here are the top performers from the Green Bay Packers preseason matchup with New Orleans.

Jordan Love

Once again, the stat sheet doesn’t reflect Jordan Love’s performance, but the numbers over at PFF help.

As Zach Kruse of Packers Wire pointed out, Love was credited with three “big time throws” when kept clean in the pocket–taking advantage of that time. He was one-for-three on downfield passes, but he realistically could have completed each pass as on one of them, Romeo Doubs didn’t adjust correctly to the ball, and the other went through Samori Toure’s hands.

Love also didn’t have any turnover-worthy plays, and he had PFF’s second-highest grade among all quarterbacks in Week 2, despite his receivers dropping four of his passes. Love also was effective on play-action, completing four of six passes for 52 yards.

Those numbers help to better illustrate the performance we saw from Love, where he was confident in the pocket and delivered some beautiful downfield passes along with a few throws into tight windows.

Tyler Goodson

Patrick Taylor got the start at running back, but it was Goodson who found more success. The undrafted rookie averaged 4.7 yards per rush, including a 15-yard gain. He also had one reception for 10 yards.

Goodson has displayed terrific burst with the ball in his hands and has been the more productive running back. However, as Matt LaFleur told reporters, the third running back role will come down to special teams play.

Juwann Winfree

Romeo Doubs has certainly been more flashy in making the big plays, but Juwann Winfree has been steady, which we know is very important to Aaron Rodgers, and likely a big reason why the MVP continues to praise him.

Against the Saints, Winfree led all pass-catchers in receiving yards with 41 on three receptions. In the two preseason games, Winfree has caught six of nine passes for 68 yards.

Zach Tom

Tom was the highest graded offensive player for the Packers by PFF, and he is yet to allow a pressure in two preseason games.

While it was tough sledding in the run game early on for Patrick Taylor, Goodson had bigger running lanes to work with, which just happened to form when Tom was on the field. On four carries, Goodson totaled 33 rushing yards when running towards Royce Neman and Tom on the right side.

Chris Slayton

It remains to be seen whether or not the Packers will keep six defensive linemen, but if they do, Chris Slayton’s name is firmly in that mix with his recent performances.

As a pass rusher, Slayton logged two pressures, which was the third most on the team. He would also lead the team in tackles against the run and recorded one run stop.

Kingsley Enagbare

There are a lot of question marks at the edge rusher position, most notably, who is going to make up the four-man rotation, but Kingsley Enagbare’s play over the last two weeks has earned him a roster spot and very well some playing time.

Enagbare finished with a team-high four pressures and a pass rush win rate of 22.7%. For reference, over the course of last season, that figure would have ranked as the fourth-best among all qualified edge rushers.

Isaiah McDuffie

We hear a lot about second-year players making that Year 2 jump. Well, Isaiah McDuffie is one of those players for the Packers as he is flying around the field making plays.

McDuffie totaled six tackles against the Saints, including two that ended drives for New Orleans on third downs, and four stops. McDuffie’s overall grade from PFF ranked ninth among all linebackers in Week 2.

Kiondre Thomas

Thomas was impressive, both in coverage and against the run. He was targeted four times and didn’t allow a completion. He had three tackles in the run game, including a pair of stops, and 12 special teams snaps, the fifth most on the team.

As I wrote recently, Thomas is making the most of his opportunities and is challenging for that sixth cornerback role.

Micah Abernathy

With Vernon Scott leaving with an injury, Micah Abernathy probably saw a bit more playing time–which he took advantage of. Abernathy allowed one completion on two targets for minus-five yards, making a play in the backfield where he split the blockers. He also came away with an impressive interception.

All stats courtesy of Pro Football Focus