Packers defense has allowed 4th most big plays this season
By Paul Bretl
It’s been a very disappointing season for the Green Bay Packers defense–and we all know this. Among the many issues that have plagued this unit, giving up big plays to the opposing offense has been far too prevalent.
According to Arjun Menon of PFF, the Packers’ defense has allowed the fourth-most big plays this season with 84 in total. Only Houston, the New York Giants, and Seattle are ahead of Green Bay.
A big run play is defined by Menon as a gain of 10 or more yards, while a big pass play is a play of 20-plus yards. Individually, the 46 explosive run plays allowed by Green Bay are tied for the fifth-most, and the 38 explosive pass plays are tied for the ninth-most.
Perhaps what makes this stat even more disappointing — beyond the fact that the Packers are severely underperforming — is that one of the core principles of the Joe Barry defense is to take away the big passing play by sitting in a two-high shell. Green Bay wants to keep everything in front of them, but playing too soft, which creates YAC opportunities, missed tackles, and frequent miscommunications, have resulted in far too many big plays given up.
However, despite the persistent issues, the Packers have rarely deviated coverage-wise from this approach. According to PFF, the Packers have one of the more predictable coverage schemes in football this season. Predictable doesn’t always have to mean bad either, there are some very good defenses that fall into this category, but when the results aren’t there, the inability to adjust in a timely fashion is worrisome and frustrating.
With the Packers primarily playing two high, along with lightboxes in Barry’s system, the run game is always going to be a bit susceptible to the big play. This isn’t meant to be an excuse for their performance, but the system doesn’t always do the defensive front a ton of favors either. Look at the Philadelphia game as an example of this when Barry continued to utilize the Packers’ base nickel defense against the run-heavy Eagles.
With that said, tackling again has been a major issue, and the interior defensive line group as a whole — including Kenny Clark — has underperformed. Meanwhile, the edge rushers have struggled to set the edge with any regularity, and rookie linebacker Quay Walker has very much had some growing pains in run defense. Not to mention that mobile quarterbacks continue to give this defense fits.
At the moment, the Green Bay Packers playoff hopes are still alive, and any chance of making it begins with winning their final four games, along with receiving quite a bit of help. The offense is moving in the right direction, having their three highest-scoring performances over the last month, and Green Bay should be getting Romeo Doubs back as well. When it comes to the defense, however, there are very few positives for us to grasp on to right now.