Packers Report Card: Grades From 24-10 Loss to Vikings

The Packers got off to yet another slow start in a divisional battle against the Vikings. It was the same old story with an inaccurate passing game and irrelevant rushing attack.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers entered Sunday's 24-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings looking to snap a losing streak and find some answers for their struggling offense in the first half.

They got neither.

The Packers did not get a first down on offense until the 4-minute mark of the second quarter.

The result was another double-digit deficit. Green Bay has trailed by 10 or more points in four of their last five games. The lone exception is a loss on Monday Night Football against the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Packers have been outscored 73-9 in the first half since Week 3.

They were able to win one of those games in miraculous fashion but have lost every game since. The losing streak has ballooned to four games, one shy of last year's skid.

Coach Matt LaFleur's message to the team during the losing streak was to keep working.

That work starts with the offense, which scored less than 20 points for the third consecutive game.

Jordan Love has taken plenty of blame for their struggles, but the issues on Sunday were all around him.

"There's plays that he wants back, but we have to make some plays for him, too," LaFleur said. "We have to throw better, we have to catch better, we have to block better, and stop having penalties that put us in obvious passing situations."

The Packers need answers and improvement to come fast, or this season could fall even further off the rails.

Here are our grades from the Packers' 24-10 loss.

Pass Offense

Former coach Mike Holmgren used to talk all the time about scripting the first 15 plays of the game. At this point, it feels like LaFleur scripts the entire first half.

The Packers' tendency has been to fall behind by at least two scores before finding any semblance of a rhythm.

Sunday's game against Minnesota was no different. Receivers were rarely open. When they were, Love either missed them or the receivers missed the ball.

The second half didn't start any better. Love's second pass attempt of the third quarter was intercepted by Josh Metellus and returned to Green Bay's 20. Jordan Addison's 20-yard touchdown made the score 24-3.

Only then, did the Packers find some success on offense.

Harrison Phillips reacts after Jordan Love was sacked :: Photo by Dan Powers/USA Today Sports Images

Their first touchdown of the day, a 1-yard pass from Jordan Love to Romeo Doubs, didn't come without drama.

AJ Dillon was stuffed twice and Love threw incomplete to Watson to set up a fourth down.

That's fitting for how things have gone for the Packers' offense. Nothing is easy.

Love and the receivers connected on one pass over 20 yards on the day. Another trend that has emerged.

Sometimes the receivers were soft at the catch point. Other times, they weren't able to connect due to Love's placement of the ball.

The Packers placed an emphasis on Love putting more air under the ball for his deep passes to improve his accuracy in that department. Love thinks that's something that needs to improve.

"Obviously, that's something we've been practicing," Love said. "It comes down to accuracy and me being better, giving guys a chance to make plays, it’s where I have to be better."

Love does have to be better on the deep ball, but guys have to make plays for him too. Aside from the frantic fourth-quarter comeback against New Orleans in Week 3, the offense has been struggling essentially since the fourth quarter in Atlanta in Week 2.

Sunday was no different. Green Bay's struggled to put anything together on offense. Ten points won't win many games. The Packers have to find a way to put more points on the scoreboard.

Grade: D

Rush Offense

The Packers' ground game is hard to judge because the first-half offense has been so bad. By the time the offense gets moving, the score is at a point where it's hard to justify running the ball because the team is trying to get back into the game.

Nonetheless, the run game is part of the problem in the first half. They are unable to find any traction, which contributes to their early deficits.

At the end of the day, the Packers' leading rusher was Jordan Love.

A team with a first-year starting quarterback is not going to win many games when that quarterback is also its leading rusher.

The run game was supposed to be what held this offense together while the passing game found its way.

Instead, they've been a total dud. They are yet to have a 100-yard rusher on the season.

As long as that trend continues, this offense will continue to struggle.

Grade: D

Pass Defense

Jaire Alexander and the Packers' cornerback group have talked a good game but failed to back it up against the Vikings.

Kirk Cousins was missing Justin Jefferson, but it didn't matter. Jordan Addison carved up the Packers' secondary.

Aside from a moment here and there, the front was unable to get any semblance of a pass rush against a much-improved Vikings offensive line while the game was in the balance.

This Packers' defense is set up to defend passing teams. They were able to slow down the Vikings' run game and it still didn't matter.

The Vikings converted four third downs of eight yards or longer in the first half.

Kenny Clark chases Kirk Cousins in the Packers 24-10 loss / Benny Sieu USA Today

They converted a total of nine such third downs. That includes one with backup quarterback Jaren Hall that finished off another embarrassing loss for Green Bay. 

With all the investment made in this specific phase of the defense, the Packers have expecting more than what they got today. 

Grade: D

Rush Defense

The much-maligned Packers run defense made history on Sunday. The Vikings came into the game having not run for a touchdown in any of their first seven games.

Perhaps predictably, the Vikings' first touchdown of the second came on a 6-yard plunge from Cam Akers to open the scoring. 

Overall, it felt like the Vikings were doing the Packers a favor when they decided to run the ball. 

The two running backs were held in check for most of the day. Alexander Mattison and Cam Akers did not have much room to roam. 

We will grade this on a bit of a curve because Minnesota's rush offense was one of the worst in football coming into the day. 

Grade: B- 

Special Teams

Anders Carlson missed a field goal late in the first half, but was given a mulligan when the Vikings jumped offside before the play started.

A missed field goal would have been Carlson's second in as many weeks. Instead, the re-do provided the only points the Packers got in the first half, continuing with the trend from the season. 

Keisean Nixon was hopeful to get more opportunities to return kickoffs as the temperatures turned colder. 

Nixon had plenty of chances. The Vikings didn't record a single touchback. He had one nice return, but was held in check via their directional kicking. 

The coverage teams gave up a kickoff return that would have set the Vikings up inside the Packers' 20 yard line had there not been a flag thrown for holding. 

Karl Brooks blocked a field goal that gave the Packers a little bit of life, and saved this group from dropping below the Mendoza line. 

Grade: C- 

Coaching

Another slow start. Zero points in the first quarter. Zero first downs in the first quarter. 

Matt LaFleur can say every week that they're searching for answers and that those things start with him. 

Everyone loves to blame defensive coordinator Joe Barry for the team's struggles, but after each disappointing loss LaFleur that their troubles start with him. 

The Packers' offense is putrid. LaFleur's background is on offense. His peers around the league have made their offense work with far less talent. 

At some point, LaFleur's words are nothing more than a hollow cliche. 

The reality is that LaFleur was hired to revitalize Aaron Rodgers and groom the next quarterback. 

His first mission was a success. The second mission? That's trending poorly. 

LaFleur, like Love, has 10 more games to right the ship, but through seven games, there's little to inspire any confidence that the offense will find its footing. 

Grade: F

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