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Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur wants fewer big plays allowed on defense, fewer self-inflicted mistakes on offense and more consistency from the special teams as his team comes out of the bye and prepares for the final six games of the 2019 season.
The Packers spent the off week executing a “self scout” exercise, and LaFleur and his staff found areas of necessary improvement.
“There’s a lot of things that are pretty obvious in terms of what we need to clean up from a defensive perspective of giving up the big plays,” LaFleur said Monday.
The Packers allowed 38 passing plays of at least 20 yards and nine running plays of at least 15 yards through the first 10 games. All the big plays have added up against Mike Pettine’s defense.
Between Weeks 4-10, the Packers gave up the most total yards in the NFL (2,862) and the second-most yards per play (6.5). Only a strong red-zone defense and a consistent pass rush kept the Packers from completely dissolving on defense over the last two months.
The team won’t survive long in January without improvement from Pettine’s defense.
On offense, LaFleur wants better early-down execution and a reduction of the penalties and discipline errors that have often stalled drives.
“From an offensive perspective of staying ahead of the sticks and not having the negative yardage plays,” LaFleur said. “When you look at us, offensively, third down and long, we’ve had too many of them. We’ve been pretty solid when it’s 3rd-and-7 or less, those 3rd-and-manageable situations. It’s tough sledding in this league when you’re at 3rd-and-8 or more. It’s tough. A lot of it has been self-inflicted. Too many penalties, just pre-snap penalties, discipline penalties that we’ve got to clean up in order for us to be the team we want to be.”
The Packers have 16 false start penalties, the sixth-most in the NFL this season. Of those 16, 10 have come at home.
The Packers also have 24 runs or completions resulting in negative yardage this season.
Tacking on an extra yards has made moving the sticks on third down more difficult, according to LaFleur. The Packers are only converting 37.2 percent of third down opportunities, which ranks 19th in the NFL.
The Packers’ special teams have struggled throughout the season, especially in terms of returning kicks and punts and covering kickoffs. While Mason Crosby and JK Scott have been solid, just about everything else has been a problem.
“On special teams, we have to put a consistent product out there,” LaFleur said. “It’s been inconsistent. There’s been some really good moments and then there’s been some really bad ones. Consistency, really all across the board.”
The Packers are 8-2 and coming out of the bye week with clear and obvious areas of improvement. Can LaFleur’s team find answers over the final six weeks and cement their status as a Super Bowl contender, or will problem areas developed over the first 10 games prove to be fatal flaws?
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