Rodgers, Packers Aren’t Digging the Long Ball

By going back in time, the Green Bay Packers hope to find some deep-ball production against the New York Jets.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Remember that old Nike commercial starring Atlanta Braves pitchers Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine? During pregame, all eyes were on Mark McGwire hitting home runs; nobody was watching the Braves’ Cy Young Award-winners.

So, they bought some shoes, did some training, hit some homers during batting practice and caught the attention of two attractive women.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers remembered while in the midst of his third MVP season.

“I'm so glad you asked that,” Rodgers said in November 2020 when asked of his deep-ball prowess that season. “I've always wanted to say this: “Chicks dig the long ball,” as we saw and learned from those great commercials back in the day by the Atlanta Braves pitchers.”

In 2020, Rodgers completed 41.6 percent of his deep passes, defined by Pro Football Focus as 20-plus yards downfield. He led the NFL in yards and was third in touchdowns.

The Packers aren’t digging the long ball this year. Entering Sunday’s game against the New York Jets, Rodgers ranks 29th with a 27.3 percent completion rate. It’s a far cry from what the Packers are looking for.

“I think probably if you’re 50-50, that’s really good in that range, taking those shots,” offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said this week. “If you can get half of those, that’s pretty good odds.”

The struggles afflicting the deep game, and the passing game in its totality, are rather predictable. He might have been inconsistent, but Marquez Valdes-Scantling was a home-run threat on every snap. Meanwhile, Davante Adams was an elite threat on any level. So, coach Matt LaFleur could stretch the defense like taffy, north and south, east and west.

The Packers through five games have shown they can stretch the field east and west but not north and south. During last week’s loss in London, the Giants crowded the line of scrimmage to limit the damage done by running backs Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon and Rodgers’ quick-passing game. Their defensive coordinator, Wink Martindale, didn’t think the Packers would win deep. He was right. Rodgers didn’t complete any of his deep shots and the offense didn’t score in the second half.

This week, Rodgers and his receivers watched clips of some receivers who dug the long ball, including James Jones and Greg Jennings and especially Jordy Nelson and Adams.

“It’s the why. It’s always the why,” Rodgers explained. “What are we trying to accomplish on this play, and why do we do it a certain way? So, we just get to understand the why to allow us to play free out there and react. When a player is thinking, they’re always going to be slower and they’re going to count their steps, they’re not going to be free flowing. So, how can we get them to understand the why of the concept to be able to play free and react to whatever they see.”

Stenavich said digging through old film for teaching tape is commonplace, regardless of position. Sure, in this week’s clips, Nelson ran a beautiful route and Rodgers threw a perfect pass and the result was a Lambeau Leap. But what was Nelson thinking against that particular coverage? What was Rodgers thinking at this point in the route? The on-paper playbook says this is what to do but what should be done in reality, in the heat of the moment?

“You get these young guys and they don’t know stuff,” Stenavich said. “You know how it is. They just don’t know it yet. So, when you can show them guys being on the same page, reading it the same way as the quarterback, making the minute adjustments where you can really make some pretty cool plays, I think that’s completely so valuable for those guys. It’s super-valuable for those young guys to see those special players doing that.”

Packers vs. Jets: Noon Sunday at Lambeau Field

The #Packers are 8.5-point favorites for today's game against the Jets. Given how the Packers have played and that the Jets have won two straight, there are ample reasons to worry.
Here are three.https://t.co/rQC0IJ8DXB

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) October 16, 2022

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