When London Bridge Falls Down: Green Bay Blows 10-Point Lead to Giants

October 10, 2022

Well, this recap is going to be an interesting one.

The Green Bay Packers’ experience in London was like being in a lucid dream and then being rudely woken up by an alarm clock. After Green Bay led by 10 points at halftime, the New York Giants scored 17 unanswered points in a 27-22 comeback victory over the Packers on Sunday.

The Packers offense looked right at home at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as they scored on 4 out of 5 possessions in the first half. Aaron Rodgers completed 18 of 24 passes for 147 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a 2-yard pass to Marcedes Lewis for his first touchdown since the 2020 season. The backfield duo of Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon were effective in moving the ball as both backs averaged 5 yards a carry. This would allow Rodgers to set up the passing game once the Giants had respected the run.

For the first time this season, the defense did not let their opponent score on their opening drive, and they forced two straight 3-and-outs on the Giants' first 2 possessions.

So what changed going into the second half for Green Bay?

Game control played a huge role in the shift, as the Giants scored a field goal on the first drive of the half that took 7 minutes off the clock. The Packers’ responded by moving the ball to the Giants' 36, but a Dexter Lawrence sack on Rodgers on 3rd down forced them to punt, which pinned New York on their own 9-yard line.

The Packers defense struggled to get the Giants offense off the field. The league's best 3rd down defense would allow 2 conversions on a 15-play, 91 yard drive that took 8 minutes off the clock and was capped off with a 2-yd touchdown run by Gary Brightwell that tied the game at 20-20 with 10 minutes remaining in the 4th quarter.

With the amount of time left, the Packers would just need to orchestrate a scoring drive, eat as much time off the clock as they could, and allow their defensive unit to catch their breath after being on the field for a combined 15 minutes of game time on 2 drives.

What happened on the next series would completely change the course of the game.

On the first play from the GB 25, Rodgers tried to go downfield to Allen Lazard, but couldn't get the ball to his top receiver. 2nd down, Rodgers looked for his veteran wideout Randall Cobb towards the middle, but he could not make the reception either. On 3rd down, Rodgers heaved a desperation ball to Lazard once more, but the 6'5'' receiver was well guarded and it fell short of his reach for a disappointing 3-and-out on a drive that lasted a mere 26 seconds.

The Giants would almost give the ball right back to Green Bay on a special teams gaffe as the ball bounced off their returner's legs, but were fortunate that it rolled out of bounds and remained in their possession.

From there, they took advantage of a worn-out Packers defense, which was highlighted by a 41-yard play by Saquon Barkley that brought the Giants inside the red zone. 4 plays later, they got to the goal line after an unnecessary roughness penalty called on Rasul Douglas. Barkley punched in the go-ahead score, and the Giants now had a 27-20 lead with 6:08 remaining in the 4th.

Now the Packers had to really move the ball downfield to set up a game-tying touchdown while also not leaving enough time for one more Giants possession. Rodgers would keep the offense flowing as Green Bay picked up 4 first downs through the air as they marched down to the Giants' 6 yard line. Facing a 3rd and 2 with 2 timeouts and 1:11 left, the Packers just needed a first down conversion from the run game to set up first and goal.

Instead, Rodgers would throw out of the shotgun on the slant to Randall Cobb, but the ball was tipped by rookie DE Kayvon Thibodeaux and fell incomplete, which set up 4th down.

With the game on the line, Rodgers would again take the snap from the shotgun and intended to go to Lazard on the drag, but the ball was knocked down at the line by Xavier McKinney and the Giants defense came up with the turnover on downs.

There would be one more shot for Green Bay. After calling their final 2 timeouts and forcing the Giants to take a safety with 11 seconds left, it all came to a Hail Mary attempt from the Green Bay 36. Rodgers's last successful prayer of a score came against the same Giants back in the 2016 NFC Wild Card Game at Lambeau, but this was a completely different team from the one he faced back in that January game.

This Giants defensive front disrupted Rodgers' plea, as he would be hit on the rollout and the ball knocked out of his hand with no time left. He never had a chance to make a throw, and the "Giant" comeback was complete.

As mentioned earlier, game control was a big factor in why the Packers fell apart but the missing presence of the run game contributed. Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon combined for only 47 yards on 8 carries in the second half. The poor playcalling on their second drive of the half that saw no usage of either running back and three straight incompletions by Rodgers hurt the Packers deeply, especially as it put their tired defense back on the field.

With 2 timeouts in their pocket and only needing to pick up just two yards with a minute left in the game, the decision to have Rodgers throw out of the shotgun on 3rd and 4th downs rather than have either Jones or Dillon convert was also questioned heavily.

Defensively, the Packers secondary has struggled to contain receivers on crossing routes. Green Bay has given up 885 passing yards through the first 5 games, the 2nd-fewest in the league, but has allowed 327 yards on crossing routes- the most of any defense. The Giants had 4 different pass catchers that averaged over 10 yards a catch, with most of these plays being effective on patterns. 2nd year defensive coordinator Joe Barry will need to make adjustments on which defensive back will play in the slot, as Douglas struggled inside Sunday.

This is the worst start to the Packers season since 2018, when they started 2-2-1 after 5 weeks. If the overall struggles continue next Sunday back at home against the New York Jets, it will show that there is a strong lack of identity on the field and re-tooling the simple things will be needed.