The Green Bay Packers suffered a loss in their season opener and suffered a multi-week injury to quarterback Jordan Love during a 34-29 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the first week of the 2024 season.
The loss, while disappointing, was far from devastating. The Packers had numerous opportunities to take control of the game or win it behind schedule, and wasted opportunities are almost always costly. Several stars in green and gold shined under the vivid lights in Brazil, but a disappointing performance in the red zone and Jeff Hafley’s defense ended the international business trip in defeat.
Love’s injury could be a tough one to overcome. Matt LaFleur’s team is now 0-1 and faces the prospect of playing three or more games without Love in center. At least this team knows how to dig itself out of an early-season slump.
Here are the stars, stars and shadows from the Packers’ Week 1 loss to the Eagles:
Stars
WR Jayden Reed: The opener was a magnificent collection of game music, orchestrated by Reed, who converted just five touches into 171 yards and a pair of breathtaking scores. His uncommon combination of explosiveness, vision, creativity with the ball in his hands, long speed and endurance make him unique in many ways. On his 33-yard touchdown run, Reed burst through a hole and missed in the open field. On his 70-yard touchdown run, Reed escaped coverage on a deep over route, then fooled the last man. In the second half, he made a running catch, moving from right to left, then immediately took a challenging hit. On his final drive, his spinning catch down the sideline gave the Packers hope behind schedule and will likely go down as one of the best catches by a Packers player in 2024. If he can avoid nagging injuries, Reed could have a special sophomore season.
RT Zach Tom: Against a deep and talented defensive line, Tom nearly threw a shutout in the passing game and dominated the running game. The only pressure Tom allowed all night was when asked to get to Jalen Carter’s block — a statuesque order for any lineman. Bryce Huff, the Eagles’ free-agent acquisition, accomplished almost nothing as a pass rusher against Tom.
Pegs
RB Emanuel Wilson: His four carries accounted for 46 yards, including runs of 14 and 18. He has good legs and threw a 226-pound ball. The sophomore also made a tough catch in a crowd for the first pass, and his block on Reed’s touchdown run helped set up a gigantic play. The Packers may not be in a hurry to move on MarShawn Lloyd, as Wilson looked more than ready to be the RB2 in the opener.
S Xavier McKinney: McKinney showed his playmaking ability on the first series. On his second down, he moved right to assist break up a throw down the line. He later moved left to intercept a Jalen Hurts throw down the seam. As a last-second linebacker, McKinney made some confident tackles in the open field. The “X” appeared as advertised.
TE Tucker Kraft: The Packers probably would have liked more of Kraft’s 30-run impact in the passing game, but he had 29 catch-and-run yards that helped set up the touchdown. He’s in the “all-star” game for his work as a run blocker. Both in the line and on the move, Kraft got the job done. He’s a physical player who seeks contact and doesn’t shy away from hunting down defensive ends and linebackers as a blocker in the Packers’ running game.
LB Edgerrin Cooper: Speed and playmaking ability came off the screen in just 11 plays. On his second drive of the second half, Cooper made a confident and physical tackle on Saquon Barkley for a 2-yard gain. On the first play of the fourth quarter, he came on a blitz, returned a quick throw flat and likely prevented a gigantic play by AJ Brown. The rookie also had an impact on special teams, making a tackle inside the 20-yard line while covering a kickoff in the first quarter. Expect to see more from No. 56 in the future.
LG Elgton Jenkins: He didn’t allow a single pressure in 43 pass-blocking attempts, and he was a driving force in the running game. Showing his versatility again, Jenkins moved to center for the final two touchdowns of the game when Josh Myers left the game with cramps.
Duds
(Photo: Pedro Vilela/Getty Images)
CB Jaire Alexander: The interception was a huge play, no doubt. Alexander came out of coverage and made an instinctive play while Jalen Hurts navigated the scramble. But Alexander still had a scratchy start. AJ Brown beat him with four catches. On the first, Brown won inside on a slant. Later, Alexander was playing 10 yards from the ball when Brown quickly ran out, caught and rounded Alexander’s 20-yard attempt on third-and-8. He also beat Alexander on a deep kick for 13 yards. The killer play was a 67-yard bomb. Brown overcame idle coverage and outscored Alexander for six.
Defensive line leader Isaiah McDuffie: The 20-year-old linebacker missed two tackles, threw a touchdown pass to Saquon Barkley and committed a special teams foul. While he plays challenging on every down, it’s fair to wonder if the Packers can have a run-plus defense with McDuffie playing nearly 100 percent of the defensive snaps.
Lieutenant Rasheed Walker: Committing three penalties in a game is a sure-fire way to end up in the duds. Walker was penalized for holding on third down after intercepting Xavier McKinney, which helped force the Packers to settle for a field goal. He then committed a false start on a field goal. Finally, Walker’s second holding penalty turned a second-and-1 into a second-and-11, and Love was intercepted on the next play. As a pass protector, Walker had a team-high four pressures.
WR Dontayvion Wicks: He dropped his first target in traffic. On his second target, Wicks slipped coming out of a break and couldn’t recover in time to catch the ball despite being completely free — a complex result given the field conditions. Then Jordan Love’s throw from the sideline bounced inside, and Wicks couldn’t catch the ball through contact. He ran 16 routes but didn’t have a catch.
TE Luke Musgrave: He played just 17 snaps and was surprisingly demoted to TE2 on the opener. At this point, Tucker Kraft is simply a much better all-around tight end. Musgrave was tackled twice and didn’t get a chance to catch the ball, and coaches can put some — if not all — blame on Musgrave for Jordan Love’s interception. He was drifting and not attacking the ball in the air. In the run game, the difference between Musgrave and Kraft as blockers is huge.
