Injuries are a part of professional football and no coach is willing to blame or point to injuries for failures. It’s a “next man up” league and teams are expected to replace even their most valuable players with capable substitutes.
However, in crucial matches, when you need the best to win, even one or two injuries can torpedo everything.
The Green Bay Packers felt that pain on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles, and it likely cost them a chance to win the game and advance to the NFC playoffs.
After four games, veteran left back Elgton Jenkins was hit challenging on the right shoulder, suffered a sting, left the game and never returned. Travis Glover and Kadeem Telfort were completely overwhelmed as the reserves and offensive line – a strength for most of 2024 – fell apart. Glover and Telfort committed four penalties and were major pass protection burdens.
However, an injury suffered in the season finale could have cost the Packers offense just as dearly.
Matt LaFleur’s team performed poorly on Christian Watson’s pitch on Sunday.
The passing game was desperately lacking his speed and ability to pressure the defense to extend his range to cover a vertical threat. The Eagles were under fire for most of the game, and the Packers continued to have trouble attacking the midfield.
While his presence was overlooked, the real disaster was the lack of plays from the players behind him on the depth chart.
Turning even one of the negative moves below into a positive one could have made a massive difference.
In the first action of the second quarter, Dontayvion Wicks easily defeated veteran corner kicker Darius Slay. Wicks got a good dismissal and had a step. However, he failed to effectively get Slay upright and wasn’t quick enough to get away, and Love’s lightly crossed shot was intercepted as Slay made a stunning recovery move and grabbed the ball. Imagine for a moment that Watson was directing the route. He either runs away from Slay or draws a penalty. There is a chance for six points. Instead, Slay made the play and created the turnover.
Another turnover came later in the second quarter when backup Malik Heath ran into bad depth and Love was intercepted by Zack Baun. LaFleur said the burglary route should have been 20 yards. Instead, Heath launched it at 3 p.m., and the geometry of the passing window changed. Love’s throw needed to hit where it was supposed to go, not deeper and layered over the curtain toward the window, and Baun had no trouble intercepting the ball. Does Watson – a much more experienced receiver – run routes correctly when he is in the game? Another massive play was possible.
A challenging day was just beginning in Heath’s office.
In the third quarter, Heath tripped coming out of halftime after rushing out of the 10-yard line. The Packers had a perfect route and offensive call, but Heath’s stumble messed up the timing of the throw, and Love’s pass went just past the receiver’s hands. Again, is Watson better at this route? Without tripping, a chance for an basic throw-and-catch touchdown. Instead, the ball fell harmlessly incomplete, and the Packers ultimately settled for a low field goal to get on the board two plays later. Four points lost.
The last costly mistake came delayed in the fourth quarter. With five minutes left, they were down 19-10 and the Packers had to convert on their fourth. Heath ran another low route in coverage and was open, but he jumped on Love’s pass and missed two feet down on the way down, leading to a turnover on downs and essentially ending the game. A lack of awareness of what should have been a relatively basic catch from the side resulted in an incomplete pass at a critical moment. Will Watson come up with an idea?
Overall, Love was 2-of-10 for 39 yards when targeting Wicks and Heath on Sunday, including 0-for-4 when targeting Heath.
In a massive game where the margins are so skinny, missed plays hurt that much more. And while there’s no guarantee Watson would have played in all (or even any) of the plays Wicks and Heath missed on Sunday, the likelihood of success would have been much higher.
The Packers led by six points at the start of the fourth quarter. Even 1-2 more plays in the passing game could have made a massive difference.
It turned out that LaFleur’s team didn’t have to play a perfect game to beat the Eagles. Despite all the mistakes they made in the first three quarters, the Packers led just 16-10 after one drive in the fourth quarter and had two more possessions – both offensive and defensive – to erase a six-point deficit.
Injuries in attack turned out to be a crippling factor. The offensive line couldn’t handle the Eagles’ offense without Jenkins, and Watson was severely missed in several massive moments in the passing game.
