Packers Report Card: Grades From 34-31 Loss to Lions

The Green Bay Packers played well enough to hang with the best team in the NFC but didn’t do enough to beat the Detroit Lions on Thursday night.

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs scored three touchdowns against the Detroit Lions on Thursday. / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

The Green Bay Packers dropped a heartbreaker at the hands of the Detroit Lions, 34-31, on Thursday night at Ford Field.

Their chances of making the playoffs are still very good, barring a historic collapse. Their chances at winning the NFC North or securing a bye are all but over.

The harsh reality for the Packers is all four of their losses have come against three teams that are ahead of them in the NFC standings.

They did prove they’re able to stay on the same field as the NFC’s best, but there are no moral victories in a city named Titletown.

Here are our grades, which have high marks for the run defense that stood up to the challenge, and low marks for the coach who lost his cool before the game even started.

Pass Offense

You may not have been able to draw up a worse start for Green Bay’s protection unit.

With the Lions missing a bunch of key players, they should have been able to dominate the line of scrimmage.

Instead, former Packers star Za’Darius Smith set the tone for the first half on the first play of the game for Green Bay’s offense. He powered around right tackle Zach Tom and buried Jordan Love for the first sack of the night.

Love would be under siege, being pressured on six of his 10 dropbacks in the first half.  The Lions were creative with their pressure packages.

Love had 31 passing yards in the first half. Twenty of them came on a play that ended with Christian Watson fumbling the ball back to Detroit.

It was as ugly of a half as it could be for the passing offense.

The second half?

That started with a bang, with Love connecting with Watson on a deep ball for 59 yards, nearly doubling their total from the first half.

That drive was finished off with a touchdown pass from Love to Tucker Kraft.

Love looked like a completely different player in the second half.

He was under duress most of the night. He escaped pressure and delivered to four different receivers. Watson caught four passes for 111 yards and Dontayvion Wicks looked like his old self with four catches for 49 yards.

Pass protection left a lot to be desired in the first half, but was good in the second half for the most part as Love was more comfortable.

There was one questionable offensive pass interference called on Watson, which took a go-ahead touchdown off the board. Instead of leading 35-31, the Packers settled for a field goal that tied the game at 31.

LaFleur did not like the call, but the official did throw the flag, so it all counts.

Love extended his streak of not throwing an interception to three games.

Grade: B

Rush Offense

Green Bay’s first touchdown drive of the night came with a clear theme.

A 12-play series consisting of 10 runs and two passes, capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by Josh Jacobs.

There’s no question where this offense runs through, and when it is at its best.

Why the Packers were so intent on passing early in the game is befuddling to say the least.

Despite the early issues with getting the ball in his hands, Jacobs’ nose for the end zone was on full display as the Packers made their comeback.

Jacobs finished the night with three touchdowns, giving him eight in the four games since the bye.

The Lions may have the billing as a physical force running the football but, on this night, the Packers were just as physical as the Lions.  

Their physicality bodes well for a potential postseason run.

The only complaint for this phase of the game is the Packers did not lean into it early in the game to settle the rest of their team down.  

Grade: B

Pass Defense

With Jaire Alexander and Corey Ballentine inactive, the Packers were swimming upstream in the defensive backfield.

Then, Evan Williams left the game with a concussion. Later, Javon Bullard left the game with an ankle injury; he had crutches as he left the locker room after the game.

Zayne Anderson, a career special teams player, spent most of the game playing safety alongside Xavier McKinney.

Eric Stokes continues to find his way onto the field, and he continues to get victimized. On fourth-and-goal midway through the fourth quarter, Tim Patrick beat Stokes for a go-ahead touchdown.

The pass rush, which desperately needed to heat up Goff, did not do a good enough job doing so.

Rashan Gary had a sack early in the game, but that was it for a group that looked like it was finding its rhythm after a five-sack performance on Thanksgiving.

Ultimately, giving Goff that much time to throw results in problems for a defense.

He finished 32-of-41, including completing his last 13 passes. He was 10-for-10 in the fourth quarter, including the dagger of the game on a dig route to Amon-Ra St. Brown that gained 16 yards on second-and-17.

The Packers slowed down the run game and dared Goff to beat them.

He did.

Grade: D

Rush Defense

The Lions run the ball. The Packers traditionally do not stop it.

The Packers were coming off games where they slowed down Christian McCaffery and De’Von Achane.

A matchup with the Lions was an opportunity to prove if that was real or a mirage. 

The Packers held the dynamic rushing tandem of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs to 94 yards on 29 carries.

That’s a great night by any stretch, with one giant asterisk.

When the game was on the line, the Lions gave the ball to Montgomery on fourth-and-1.

A stop would’ve given Green Bay the ball with a chance to kick a game-winning field goal. Instead, even though Jared Goff was stepped on, he was able to get the ball to Montgomery before the play turned into a complete disaster.

Montgomery ran for 7 yards, and the Lions were able to run out what was left of the clock before a chip shot field goal.

They get high marks for the effort, but fall short of an “A” thanks to one big blunder at the end.

Grade: B

Special Teams

A domed stadium means no kickoff return opportunities.

Both teams were unable to return a kick tonight, which meant no opportunities for Keisean Nixon.

Otherwise, it was a relatively nondescript night in this phase of the game.

Brandon McManus made all his kicks, including a game-tying 32-yard field goal. There were no kickoff or punt returns by either team, and the Lions did not do anything in terms of a fake in the kicking game.

Packers punter Daniel Whelan kicked two times in the first quarter, pinning the Lions at their 8- and 11-yard lines.

It was a solid if unspectacular night from Rich Bisaccia’s group.

Grade: B

Coaching

This game was billed as a clash of the titans. One of the biggest keys in big games like this is keeping your emotions in check.

That goes for the players and the coaches, both of which failed.

Linebacker Quay Walker was flagged for a personal foul in the first quarter for a late hit on Detroit’s left tackle, Dan Skipper.

Those are the types of plays that have happened too often this season. The Packers are one of the most penalized teams in the NFL and added seven more to that total vs. the Lions.

Couple this with another sloppy start, a bad challenge and undisciplined play, it was not a banner night for coach Matt LaFleur.

Grade: D 

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