A Week 9 meeting with the Chiefs brought the highly-anticipated debut of Jordan Love, providing us with some insight into the second-year QB's development to-date and potential as a successor to Aaron Rodgers. Facing the spiraling Kansas City Chiefs, a Rodgers-less Packers team was given every opportunity to steal a win on the road.
A lack of basic execution by the Packers, however, prevented an eighth-consecutive win on Sunday. Especially guilty were Green Bay's special teams and its passing game, along with the coaching staff that should have positioned their respective units for success. For first-year special teams coordinator Maurice Drayton, the seat is continuing to grow warmer.
On Offense
By most standards, Love did not perform as well as one could have expected from young passer who's had a year and a half to learn and grow within Matt LaFleur's offense. Facing one of the league's worst defenses, Love looked uncomfortable early on, turning to his legs when his first read wasn't there and making several ill-advised throws to avoid sacks.
A phenomenal ground game, however, paved the way to two early trips deep into Kansas City territory. Unfortunately, neither translated into points, as mechanical breakdowns between Crosby, holder Corey Bojorquez and new long snapper Steven Wirtel led to one missed field goal and another kick that was blocked. The way that the Green Bay backfield kept the offense afloat in this one will go unjustifiably overlooked.
There are plenty of hard-nosed takes on Love's performance during his first NFL start. Truth be told, his level of comfort in the pocket looked closer to 2017 Brett Hundley than 2007 Aaron Rodgers. As one could have expected from the Chiefs' defensive game plan, Love was under constant pressure, failing to find outlets on longer-developing pass plays. Kansas City D-coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was successful in his bet that Love wouldn't be able to find open receivers with only a second or two to unload the ball.
While some blame should be cast to the offensive line and on LaFleur's perhaps overly-ambitious play calling, it's hard to dispute that Love should have been able to step up and find options underneath during many of those plays. Either due to limited live reps, inadequate coaching or both, Love hasn't been able to operate at NFL speed in his brief time in the league.
On Defense
During the Chiefs' first drive, the Green Bay defense had trouble getting off the field, allowing Patrick Mahomes and the KC offense to convert on three separate third downs and go up seven early. But, instead of allowing the re-ignition of a vintage Chiefs' offense, Joe Barry's D tightened up. Amongst the most prominent individual performances were those of linebacker Krys Barnes and safety Darnell Savage, who each made big time stops that halted promising drives by the Chiefs.
One highlight of this defensive gem was keeping Kansas City out of the end zone after yet another disastrous special teams blunder that spotted the Chiefs' offense with starting field position inside the Packers' 10 yard line. A rejuvenated Green Bay front seven playing without Kingsley Keke orchestrated an uncharacteristic goal line stand that held the Chiefs to three before halftime.
Regardless of the fact the Chiefs offense was far from its best self, the Packers' defense played at a championship level for a second straight week, providing a real source of optimism next to an otherwise ugly loss. Still missing some of its best players (including its top two cornerbacks and elite pass rusher) - and without relying on a single turnover by the Chiefs - the defense held Kansas City in check and kept the Packers in the game until the very end.
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