The Green Bay Packers begin the offseason after a 22-10 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Sunday’s NFC Wild Card round.
The Packers, as the underdogs in the sportsbook, needed a lot of time to defeat the Eagles 14-3 at Lincoln Financial Field. Instead, a lot went wrong – especially early and then again slow – and the Eagles emerged with a relatively comfortable 12-point victory.
The combination of a ponderous start, more crippling injuries, a hard passing game, a lack of takeaways and a terrible finish was more than enough to end the Packers’ 2024 season.
Here are the five biggest reasons why the Packers lost on Sunday in Philadelphia:
Another ponderous start
After four previous losses to the Vikings and Lions, the Packers were at least two points behind and were unable to make up for the loss. The Packers got off to another horrendous start on Sunday, with an early fumble leading to a touchdown on the Eagles’ third drive, and Jordan Love’s two interceptions and a missed field goal helped create a 10-0 deficit that lingered into the third. quarter. It’s very hard to play from the back in critical games, especially away from home in the post-season. The Packers needed a quick start to gain momentum and confidence in their game, but they did exactly the opposite.
Elgton Jenkins injured
The Packers were already playing without Jaire Alexander and Christian Watson. When Elgton Jenkins suffered a shoulder injury early in the first half, the house of cards began to fall. Rookie Travis Glover committed three penalties before being pulled. Kadeem Telfort did not much better. The Packers offensive line, robust for most of the 2024 season, struggled significantly against one of the NFL’s most talented fronts. Not only did the substitutes commit a total of four penalties, but they also sacked Jordan Love twice and mostly smothered Josh Jacobs in the running game. The failure to select Jordan Morgan (injured reserve) in the first round of backup Jenkins was devastating. Injuries continued with Devonte Wyatt, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, Quay Walker, Josh Jacobs and Josh Myers all leaving or being hobbled by injuries.
Nasty passing game
Jordan Love threw three interceptions, took two sacks and averaged just 6.4 yards per attempt. His passer rating of 41.5 was consistent with his overall performance in the Packers passing game. Only once – on Dontayvion Wicks’ 29-yard catch during a rushing drive – did the Packers make a field goal. The rest was below finishing. Love passed the ball to Wicks on his first interception and missed Zack Baun on his second interception. Malik Heath missed two big-play opportunities — he stumbled coming out of halftime and just missed a touchdown catch, and he missed a two-footer on fourth down. Love wasn’t good enough individually and wasn’t the elevator his team needed to get to a place that mattered. The Packers didn’t perform well in the passing game, continuing a trend that started in the regular season that cost them dearly on Sunday.
No takeaways
The defense kept the Packers in the game for a long time, but Jeff Hafley’s team was missing one critical feature: takeaway. The Eagles scored five times, but played without turnovers. The Packers struggled to maintain drive and needed a spark or tiny field, but it never came. Green Bay forced 31 takeaways during the regular season, but failed to make a single one in the postseason. Thanks to four turnovers – three on offense and one on special teams – the Packers fought back from a 4-0 deficit. In Philadelphia, no one beats a 14-win team that loses the turnover battle by four points.
End
Josh Jacobs’ 1-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter cut the Eagles’ lead to 16-10. It was a six-point game with almost 15 minutes remaining that gave the Packers a real chance to overcome their early stumbles and take over the game. Four possessions in the fourth quarter – two from the Packers and two from the Eagles – decided the victory. After returning the touchdown, the Eagles calmly took the field, getting a fourth down conversion and a 15-yard field goal (Keisean Nixon) on a field goal. With the score at 19-10, the Packers had to go point-for-point to win. Instead, the Packers were stuffed on third down, with Malik Heath no longer able to clear two feet on fourth down. Turnover down. The Eagles then received another 15-yard field goal (TJ Slaton) and kicked another field goal with just over three minutes left to augment the lead to 22-10. Love’s interception in the end zone (which should have been neutralized by a defensive interference call) ended the fumble threat. The Packers had their chance. The finish was a failure.
