Packers Report Card: Grades From Thanksgiving Victory Over Dolphins

The Green Bay Packers raced to a big lead and trounced the Miami Dolphins. One longtime weakness got an “A” on Thursday.

Green Bay Packers defensive end Kingsley Enagbare (55) tackles Miami Dolphins running back De'Von Achane on Thursday. / Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The biggest test on the Green Bay Packers schedule will come next week against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field.

If Thursday night’s victory over the Miami Dolphins is any indication of how the Packers are going to play down the stretch, next week’s game will pit two of the best teams in the NFL.

The Packers led 24-3 at halftime but the Dolphins pulled within 27-11 and had a chance to make it a one-score game, but Quay Walker put an end to that with a fourth-and-goal sack of Tua Tagovailoa early in the fourth quarter.

As can be expected with a performance like this, there are a lot of good grades in the weekly Packers report card.

Pass Offense

No Romeo Doubs, no problem.

With Doubs out due to a concussion sustained in Sunday’s win over the 49ers, the Packers went to someone that Matt LaFleur referred to as a “war daddy” last year.

Jayden Reed was the focal point of the passing game on Thursday.

He looked like he was moving at a different speed than some of Miami’s defenders. He scored two of the team’s first three touchdowns, as they raced to a three-score lead in the first half.

Jordan Love was efficient, and played the role of caretaker while showing off some of the arm talent that led to the Packers giving him a big contract extension in the offseason.

Early in the third quarter, Love hit his back foot and threw a seed to Christian Watson, which the receiver made a diving reception on for a gain of 46, the longest of the night.

It was not an aerial assault from Love and the offense, but it was about as efficient as coach Matt LaFleur could have asked for.

Love finished 21-of-27 for 274 yards and two touchdown passes. Most importantly, Love did not turn the ball over, and has only done so once since the bye.

Grade: B-plus

Rush Offense

The first half gave the Packers visions of having another big night on the ground. They ran for more than 100 yards in the first half behind the power of Josh Jacobs, speed of Emanuel Wilson, and tackle-breaking ability of Chris Brooks.

Highlighted by a 23-yard run by Jayden Reed, it marked the fourth time this season the Packers had 100-plus rushing yards in the first half.

However, Jacobs was not as dominant as four days earlier.

Instead, he was largely bottled up. He finished with 43 yards on 19 carries, a woeful 2.3-yard average. He gained 10 yards on eight carries in the second half.

Wilson and Brooks were solid as complementary pieces, though, rushing for 48 yards on five carries.

The Packers’ ground game is the strength of their team.

Their offensive line is physical. The receivers are willing blockers. It all works in unison, which is what makes the elite ground games what they are.

That’s why it was surprising to see them struggle throughout the second half, in general, with nine carries for just 12 yards and the end of the game, specifically, when they tried to close things out after Reed recovered an onside kick.

Grade: C

Pass Defense

Coming into the game, the key question was how the Packers were going to cover Miami’s dynamic receiver tandem of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle with Jaire Alexander out with a knee injury.

As the Packers built a commanding lead in the first half, Waddle and Hill were largely silent.

Whether it was Green Bay’s pass rush, coverage or just flat out misses from Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the Dolphins got two catches in the first half from their top two receivers.

Because of it, the Packers led 24-3 at halftime. It was as dominant a performance as they’ve had all season.

The pass rush finished with five sacks, including a big one from Quay Walker on fourth-and-goal in the fourth quarter to snuff out a Miami scoring drive that could have pulled it within one score. Kingsley Enagbare, Lukas Van Ness, Brenton Cox and Kenny Clark had the others; it was Clark’s first of the year.

The second half as a whole, however, was not pretty.

Tagovailoa wound up having a huge night, going 37-of-46 passing for 365 yards. Hill had a couple chunk gains and tight end Jonnu Smith caught 10-of-11 targets for 113 yards.

Of Tagovailoa’s total, 247 came after halftime. So, while it was a byproduct of garbage time, it could be concerning with the Lions’ passing game up next on the schedule.

One good half followed by one bad half gives this unit an average grade.

Grade: C

Rush Defense

Some of the Packers’ dominance was a byproduct of the game script. When a team is trailing by two scores early, as the Dolphins were, it’s hard to commit to a run game.

Still, the Dolphins had just 14 rushing yards in the first half. Their leading rusher was Tua Tagovailoa with 6 yards on two attempts. De’Von Achane, Miami’s electric runner, had 5 yards on four carries.

This Packers’ defense has been horrendous against the run throughout coach Matt LaFleur’s tenure. During his first five seasons, no team allowed more yards per carry.

They’ve been much better to start this season, and very good against Miami. Achane finished with 14 yards on seven carries; 13 yards came on one run. The Dolphins finished with a 2.8-yard average.

They have a huge test coming up with next week’s rematch at Detroit. If the Packers are anywhere near as good as they were on Thursday night, they’ll be in really good shape.

Grade: A

Special Teams

What a start for this group. Keisean Nixon took the opening kickoff to the Packers’ 46-yard line.

The Packers would waste that drive but received a second chance after Daniel Whelan’s punt was muffed by Malik Washington. On the other end of the fumble, was Robert Rochell recovering the ball at the Dolphins’ 9.

Three plays later, Jayden Reed was doing a Lambeau Leap after a short touchdown pass from Jordan Love.

Whelan could be in the conversation for an All-Pro or Pro Bowl nod with the way he is kicking the ball. On a cold night, he averaged 43.0 yards per punt with three of his four kicks pinning the Dolphins inside their 20.

The Packers have had some issues with their coverage teams, but their kicking game has been rock solid since the addition of Brandon McManus. His attempts look effortless as they sail through the uprights.

As the margin for error shrinks in these games, McManus’ reliability could prove to be a difference-maker.

Grade: A

Coaching

The creativity of Matt LaFleur’s run game continues to show up early and often.

The Packers had 50 rushing yards in the first quarter, with Josh Jacobs moving around the formation to get him to gain some momentum before the play begins.

Emanuel Wilson had a 16-yard run to convert a third down in the first quarter, and Chris Brooks made an appearance in some of the two-back looks that LaFleur has liked to employ.

Of all the things LaFleur has done this season, leaning into the run game has probably been his biggest accomplishment with his background as a quarterback.

“I’m a quarterback guy by nature, so it can be a struggle at times to not want to drop back all the time,” LaFleur said on Tuesday.

The reality with this team is it is at its best when it is running the ball down the opposing team’s throat.

On the defensive side of the ball, something has to give.

The Packers have lined up in the neutral zone four times in the last two games. That does not include jumping offsides, which TJ Slaton did on a field goal attempt in the second quarter.

According to NFL Penalties, Kingsley Enagbare has been offside four times and Slaton three times. Both were culprits vs. Miam, as were Rashan Gary, Arron Mosby and Devonte Wyatt.

“It feels like it’s Groundhog Day. It’s been too many games in a row now,” LaFleur said.

Lining up is something that should be simple. Whether it’s Jeff Hafley or someone else, this needs to be a focus before Thursday night’s clash with the Lions.  

Apart from the issues with lining up, the first half went about as well as the defense could have hoped for against Miami’s speedy offense to take a 24-3 halftime lead. The special teams made two big plays.

This game went as well as it could. The self-inflicted wounds are the only thing that prevents an A.

Grade: B-plus 

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