Packers @ 49ers preseason review
Packers football is finally back.
And of course, their first game is against the team that put them out of the playoffs last January. And yet again, the 49ers score another victory.
Thankfully, this game doesn’t count.
The Packers fell to the 49ers 28-21 in a closely contested game. Both teams would trade scores to open the game, before the Niners would jump to a 20-7 lead. The Packers would respond late in the 2nd quarter with a TD to cut it to 20-14, before taking back the lead in the 4th.
The Niners would respond with a TD drive of their own, which would prove to be the game winner (by “Mr. Irrelevant” Brock Prudy no less!). For a preseason game, it was mildly entertaining.
Before we look at the highs and lows of the Packers first outing, I would like to highlight a few things from the 49ers end that I thought looked promising.
Trey Day
The future of San Francisco is finally here. Trey Lance came as advertised in the game, going 4 for 5 for 92 yards and a touchdown and adding seven more yards on the ground. The second year QB looked poised in the pocket and looked more crisp than last year. Take a look at this bomb he threw to another standout of the game, Danny Gray:
Lance led the team on two scoring drives in the first quarter before he was pulled for Nate Sudfeld, who had an opening salvo of his own:
Sudfeld also performed well, going 8 for 11, 103 yards, and one touchdown. Other noticeable performances came from the aforementioned WR Danny Gray (Two catches for 99 yards and a score),WR Ray-Ray McCloud (Four catches for 63 yards and one score, along with a fumble), RB JaMycal Hasty (5 carries for 36 yards and a catch for 11 yards), and QB Brock Prudy (3 for 6, 36 yards and the game winning touchdown).
Having a Ball
On the opposite side of the ball, the 49ers would force three interceptions, two of which went to 5th Round cornerback Samuel Womack (arguably the best defender on the field for his team for the game) and another to linebacker Marcelino McCrary-Ball, who returned it 50 yards at the end of the 1st quarter to set up the Sudfeld touchdown on the very next play.
Other standouts included former Green Bay linebacker Oren Burks, who was all over the field with eight total tackles, and long-time 49ers cornerback Dontae Johnson (Four tackles, one sack).
No Love in Levi’s
As announced earlier in the week, Jordan Love would start the game for the Packers, giving the fan base another look at the former 1st round pick with another year under his belt.
The results were…. mixed, to put it lightly.
After stalling on a three and out on the opening drive, Jordan Love flashed his potential on the next drive, which culminated on a 4th and 3 conversion for a 33 yard touchdown to Romeo Doubs (more on him in a bit) to take the lead 7-3.
The next two drives would prove to be less kind to the third year signal caller. Deep into 49er territory, Love would throw a bullet that ricocheted off TE Tyler Davis’ hands and into the arms of McCrary-Ball. Hard to pin the blame on Love for that one.
On the following drive, Love looked for Doubs again, who fought with Womack for the ball and seemed to have got a first down. However, after a challenge by the Niners, it was actually Womack who came down with the ball, thus leading to back-to-back drives with unfortunate interceptions for Love.
After a punt, Love would throw his third interception, this time right to Womack, which led to another field goal for San Fran. Love would have some redemption on his last (technically second to last if you include his lone scramble to end the first half) drive of the evening, as he would hit WR Danny Davis on another 33-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to six.
Overall, Love would finish 13 of 24 for 176 yards with 2 scores and three interceptions, and a passer rating of 66).
Romeo, oh Romeo
Throughout the offseason, many wondered who would be the wide receiver to step up for the Packers with the departure of Davante Adams (which you can read about here). During offseason activities, there were rumblings of one particular WR, who was making great plays and even caught the eye of Aaron Rodgers.
It wasn’t his old pal Randall Cobb, or even 2nd rounder Christian Watson (who is actually on the PUP list at the time of this publication). It was a guy named Romeo Doubs.
Yes, Romeo Doubs, the 4th round wide receiver the team took in this year’s draft, was once again turning heads, this time in real game action.
While his outing only lasted a half, he proved to be Love’s favorite target on the night, catching three passes for 45 yards and a score. The stats don’t show it, but Doubs was all over the field, whether it was catching the 33-yard strike for a touchdown, or making some nice blocks, the rookie is off to great start in proving his worth to the team that desperately needs new weapons for their four-time MVP.
Best of the rest
Even in defeat there were positives to come from this preseason outing outside of Doubs.
Danny Etling, the former New England Patriots QB, looked impressive in the second half, as he would drive the team down the field for a potential score (thanks large in part by a BJ Baylor catch and run for 68 yards).
This was only to have his fourth down conversion taken away on a rare offensive offsides, and ensuing field goal attempt be shanked by backup kicker Gabe Brkic. Two drives later, Etling would hit Amari Rodgers for a 22-yard Touchdown to take the lead for the Packers once again.
Although the comeback bid would come up short, Etling looked like the better QB and should get another shot at a roster position next week when the team takes on the Saints at home in Lambeau.
While the ground game did not impress as much as the aerial show on both sides, the Packers could have another sound running back on their team in Tyler Goodson. The undrafted free agent (UDFA) running back looked comfortable in his first game, rushing 12 times for 37 yards and catching two passes for 24 yards.
Other noticeable players from the game include WR Danny Davis, another UDFA, whom had two catches for 45 yards and a TD, RB BJ Baylor (seven carries for 19 yards and two catches for 75 yards), and WR Amari Rodgers (a 22-yard TD and a 50-yard kick return).
Defense?
Defensively, there was nothing too noticeable. Most of the starters were out for the team, but we did get a look at newly converted CB Rico Gafford, who did a solid job for his first time at the position.
DL Chris Slayton and LB Isaiah McDuffie lead the team in tackles with six each, Kobe Jones, Kingsley Enagbare, and Tipa Galeai (with the help of Slayton) each recorded a sack, and Krys Barnes recovered a fumble caused by Safety Dallin Leavitt (who would be injured on the play).
I was not particularly impressed by the defense in the first half, but they did better in the second half, aside from giving up a go-ahead score late in the 4th.
Final thoughts
Overall, the Packers second and third stringers were a mixed bag. I can’t judge them too harshly since it was the first game of the preseason, so there are many kinks to be worked out. Next week should see most of the starters play, so we should have a better understanding of how the team will function ahead of their Week 1 matchup in Minnesota. T
he Romeo Doubs hype is real, and I am excited to see him work with the first team offense in the future (maybe next week?).
I also would not mind seeing more of Goodson and Baylor, as they could provide more depth at the RB position behind Jones and Dillion, since it is still unclear if Kylin Hill will show the same potential he flashed last preseason before going down with an ACL tear. I would also like to see more from their defense.
The starters should play for the most part, so I would like to see if they are as advertised as a top unit in the league.
That’s it for this week’s Packers recap, Next stop: home for a meeting with the team that buried them 38-3 in Week 4 of the pre….I mean, Week 1 of the regular season last year, the New Orleans Saints.
