Photo by Emma Pravecek - packers.com
Malik Willis vs. the Titans, Sept. 22, 2024
Malik Willis vs. the Titans, Sept. 22, 2024
In his second start for the Packers, Malik Willis was once again outstanding running an offense specifically tailored to his strengths. Willis completed 13/19 passes for 202 yards and a score and added an impressive six carries for 73 yards and an additional touchdown against the team that sent him to Green Bay for a late, day three pick in the 2025 draft. Matt LaFleur’s game plan leaned heavily into using RPOs, and simple designed throws to take advantage of Willis’ mobility, and even allowed him to push the ball down the field to Christian Watson on a few occasions.
Willis and the run game, led this time by backup Emanuel Wilson (12 carries, 50 yards, 2 receptions, 35 yards, 1 TD), dominated early, allowing the Packer defense to play from ahead, and get after Titans’ quarterback Will Levis.
The Titans may very well be wishing they had Malik Willis back, as Levis has been a disaster in the early going. After three games, Levis has five interceptions and seven fumbles, while taking 15 sacks for a league leading 101 yards. The Packers intercepted Levis twice, first on a terribly thrown pick-six to Jaire Alexander, who was all over DeAndre Hopkins in coverage. The second, from Green Bay’s new star safety Xavier McKinney, was his third in as many games, and effectively ended the game with two minutes remaining.
Pass Rush
Levis tends to hold the ball too long, and is often his own worst enemy, however his offensive line did not help matters. Green Bay’s pass rush had been limited in their first two games of the season, but they exploded for eight sacks against Tennessee, with Devonte Wyatt (2), Preston Smith (2), and Kingsley Enagbare (1.5) leading the way. Wyatt now has three sacks on the season and is one of the only Packer pass rushers to provide consistent pressure in every game this year. But while Wyatt’s star is rising, it’s worth keeping an eye on Kenny Clark and Rashan Gary. The incumbent defensive stalwarts have largely been no-shows in the early going, and do not seem to be adapting well to defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley’s new 4-3 look. If either can right the ship, the Packers should boast one of the best fronts in the NFL.
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Next week, Green Bay opens NFC North play against a surprising juggernaut in the form of the Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota is 3-0, and they’ve blown out each of their three opponents including an impressive 34-7 victory over Houston on Sunday. The Vikings have operated in similar fashion to the Packers, running a clever offense tailored specifically to the talents of quarterback Sam Darnold to get the most out of all-world receiver Justin Jefferson. They’ve also leaned a fair amount on beloved former Packer Aaron Jones, who is averaging 5.4 yards per carry in the early going.
Minnesota’s defense has also been stellar under coordinator Brian Flores, who runs one of the most ingenious, and unpredictable defenses in the league. No defense blitzes more than Minnesota, no defense rushes three or fewer more than Minnesota, and no defense rushes a typical number of players less than Minnesota. Running a blitz-heavy scheme has paid dividends this season as, per the football grading site Pro Football Focus, NFL quarterbacks have their combined lowest grade against the blitz since at least 2019.
Pushing Penalties
One additional factor to keep an eye on is penalties. The NFL decided to make illegal procedure penalties a point of emphasis this year, and it has had a disproportionate effect on offenses that use pre-snap motion, and diverse formations. The Packers routinely push the envelope on proper pre-snap procedure, and penalties have been a huge factor for them as a result, as they are the fifth most penalized team in football. Making matters worse, while the Packers have been flagged 26 times, their opponents have been flagged a league low 12 times, among the largest disparities in the league. The Vikings have been flagged a league-average 19 times; however, their opponents have been flagged 24 times, the fifth most in the league. The Packers need to get better in their pre-snap operations, and hopefully these start to even out a bit this weekend,
The battle of wits between Matt LaFleur and Kevin O’Connell should make for an outstanding football game, and hopefully Green Bay will have their starting quarterback, and most valuable chess piece, back for the matchup.
