Packers Game 1 Recap | Eagles 34 Packers 29
The Green Bay Packers fall short to the Philadelphia Eagles in the first ever American football game at Corinthians Arena Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Costly Missed Opportunities
The Green Bay Packers had three trips to the red zone resulting in 3 field goals which ended up costing them the game. The refs were main characters in the plot penalizing the Packers 10-71 yards including some questionable calls on the Eagles' last drive that kept it afloat. The Packers won the turnover battle 3-1 and had a timely interception by CB Jaire Alexander in the fourth quarter, but the Eagles responded after the Brayden Narveson field goal made it 31-29 with a 16-play 7:25 drive leaving only 27 seconds left for the Packers to try and pull off a miracle-in-Brazil . The Packers' defense created two early turnovers against the Eagles (first time Packers had two takeaways in in first quarter of an opener since 2007). The Packers' offense stalled in the red zone as they unfortunately had to settle for two field goals, which proved to be costly.
Love Hurts
On the Packers' last drive, the franchise $220 million QB Jordan Love had to be helped off the field as an Eagles' sack further injured a nagging calf injury preventing him from playing the last two plays. Love finished 17-of-34 for 260 yards with two TDs and one INT for an 83.0 passer rating. One of Love's touchdowns was a 70-yard completion, the longest touchdown of his career, to the star of the show WR Jayden Reed. Reed also had a 33-yard rushing touchdown and finished with 4 REC 138 YDS and one TD. Love also connected with WR Christian Watson for a 6-yard touchdown. RB Josh Jacbos started slowly accumulating only 4 yards in the first half, but picked up the run game in the second half finishing with 84 yards on 16 carries. Rookie kicker Narveson finished 3-4, missing a critical 43 yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
Packers' Defensive Woes
The Packers did not have an answer for Eagles' RB Saquon Barkley as he finished with 24 carries 109 yards and three total touchdowns. Although the Packers' defense was able to contain Hurts for most of the game, they gave up too many big plays in the second half. The 67-yard touchdown pass to WR AJ Brown was a blown cover by Alexander. CB Keisean Nixon dropped a for sure pick-6 in the fourth quarter that would have given the Packers the lead. LB Quay Walker and rookie S Javon Bullard led the Packers with 11 total tackles. DB Rashan Gary kept the pressure on Hurts and was a monster in the middle finishing with a sack. Although the Packers' defense showed signs of potential, there's still lots of room to grow for new DC Jeff Hafley as the repetitive habits of giving up untimely first downs are still present.
5 Fascinating Stats:
Total Plays: GB 58 PHI 74
Total Yards: GB 414 PHI 410
Rushing Attempts: GB 21 PHI 38
Time of Posession: GB 27:13 PHI 32:47
3rd Down Efficiency: GB 3-11 PHI 4-14
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Mitchell Adams is a passionate lifelong Packer fan bringing a unique West Coast perspective, and also produces multiple podcast platforms, is a published author, and a proud Packers shareholder. Follow him on X at @mitchadams209.
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Comments (6)
marpag1
September 07, 2024 at 04:02 am
All this talk about moving to 18 games, and yet the season seems to be over so quickly.
$#^@!
Working on a time machine to roll back the clock, just in case we need it. Wish me luck...
PatrickGB
September 07, 2024 at 05:11 am
Lots to talk about. But I enjoyed having Packers football.
rstain99
September 07, 2024 at 07:25 am
Love looked at times like the Jordan that opened las season, throwing into double coverage many times. Just don't think he played enough in preseason. Still looks like MLF has has not learned the art of time management burning all your timeouts. Just like seasons past. Now the elephant in the room besides injury what's with those terrible penalties how many? Rasheed Walker at left tackle long season if he continues that way. 1 game does not make a season but it was there for taking and GB got pushed around need to find the testicular fortitude going forward otherwise that will be blueprint for 24/25 yikes
TKWorldWide
September 07, 2024 at 07:42 am
Very inconsistent. Enough mistakes to cost a W against a good opponent. Is Love going to miss some games? Does 56 cover that first TD pass to Barkley better than 58 did?
SinceLombardi
September 07, 2024 at 08:19 am
It’s very hard to watch a defense with Alexander Nixon and Quay Walker. Especially Alexander. The Packers made their move last year when he wasn’t playing. The three of them were collectively the worst part of the game ( along with Love who looked like he thought it was the 5th quarter of the 49ers game) . Even Alexander’s interception was marred by his stupid decision to take it out of the end zone.
We need smart players to make up for a certain lack of talent on defense. It’s getting ridiculous. I don’t see this unit ever being a strength. I wish Alexander would make himself a captain again so they can just move on from him.
Slim11
September 07, 2024 at 08:41 am
Getting six points instead of 10 or 14 following two turnovers deep in Eagles’ territory proved decisive. If just one of those was a touchdown, the Packers win. I also question the decision to take the XP off the board and try the unsuccessful 2Pt attempt.
Overall, the defense looked decent until they started getting gassed. Last season, the Packers usually won when they held the advantage in time of possession. The Eagles won that battle along with the game. This coaching staff seems to have forgotten this fact.