3 Key Matchups to watch in Green Bay Packers v. Giants
By Paul Bretl
The 3-1 Green Bay Packers are coming off a pair of hard-fought wins and will now face the 3-1 New York Giants overseas in London.
Before that game begins, here is a preview of three key matchups that will likely carry a lot of weight in determining Sunday’s outcome.
Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers vs. Wink Martindale
Aaron Rodgers going up against the Giants’ defensive coordinator Wink Martindale is going to be a very intriguing matchup to watch. Last week against New England, I discussed the unknown that comes with facing a Bill Belichick defense, and to a degree, there are those same question marks with Martindale, who does a very good job of disguising looks.
What we do know, however, is that the Giants are going to blitz a lot, as they currently lead the NFL in blitz rate through four games. But Rodgers has been very effective when blitzed this season, completing 77% of his passes at 8.7 yards per attempt with two touchdowns and an interception.
Under Martindale, the Giants also run a mixture of zone and man coverages and do a very good job of rotating defenders, specifically the safeties, even after the ball is snapped.
On one hand, for a Packers passing game that is still trying to find consistency, these disguised looks and late rotation could cause some issues. With that said, if Rodgers has time in the pocket against the blitz, it could lead to him exploiting some matchups in the secondary.
Against the run, the rushing yards have been hard to come by between the tackles against the Giants but setting strong edges has been an issue, and that’s also where Aaron Jones has found the most success running the ball this season. The Giants’ heavy usage of nickel and dime defenses and question marks at the linebacker position could make slowing Jones and the run game challenging.
This is going to be an interesting game of cat and mouse between Martindale and Rodgers. There are certainly ways for this Gaints’ defense to wreak some havoc on the Green Bay Packers; however, that aggressiveness and lighter personnel could also be exploited by Rodgers.
"“Wink is a great coach,” said Rodgers on Wednesday via Packers.com. “There are a lot of different things he’ll throw at you. So you’ve got to be ready for a lot of different coverages, themes of the week, pressures, it’s a big challenge for us.”"