This upcoming bye week gives the Green Bay Packers an opportunity to hit the reset button to a degree on offense and figure out what concepts they want to emphasize more often and which ones less often.
One thing we might see more of coming out of the break are designed play-calls to get Jordan Love out of the pocket and onto the perimeter as one way to stress opposing defenses.
“I thought it was good to get Jordan out on the perimeter,” said Matt LaFleur following the Raiders game. “We probably didn’t do it enough, if I’m being honest about it. He’s made some plays with his legs.”
The obvious benefit of doing this is it would give Love more opportunities than in the pocket to pick up yards with his legs. Although Love has run the ball just eight times this season, four of those attempts have gone for 10-plus yards. In total, he’s averaged 7.1 yards per rush and forced four missed tackles.
In addition to that, from a passing game perspective, moving the quarterback can be a great way to attack openings in coverage by changing the quarterback’s launch point. It also forces the linebackers and defensive backs to choose between staying in coverage or trying to limit Love’s scramble opportunities.
Specifically for the Packers, getting Love out of the pocket would buy both him and his pass catchers more time. In the last two games, the offensive line has been shaky from a pass-protection standpoint. The young receivers and tight ends have also struggled to create separation in order for consistent passing windows to open up. Along with providing more time, this could also give them the opportunity to catch defenses off guard by ad-libbing.
“You’ve got to be careful when you have a guy like Maxx Crosby on the edge,” added LaFleur in regards to getting Love outside the pocket, “whether he’s lining up on your right or on your left. Did not want to get back into him at any time. He jumps around blocks, and he can make you look silly in a hurry. We wanted to be very particular when we called those plays. But just looking back, there was probably a few more opportunities there we could have taken advantage of. Give credit to the Raiders, they did a very good job of disguising.”
With all of that said, this can’t become the Packers’ identity on offense, either. When Love moves out of the pocket, basically, the half of the field he is moving away from is eliminated and can’t be used. There are also only so many routes that can be run in a confined part of the field as well, making these types of plays easier to defend from that perspective.
Similarly to picking up the tempo and going into two-minute mode, where Green Bay has found success moving the ball this season, designed plays to get Love outside the pocket are going to have their time and place based on the situation, but they’re a tool in LaFleur’s play-calling tool belt. You wouldn’t show up to the job site with only a hammer. There are specific times when using a hammer will be helpful, but you can’t expect to build an entire house with it.
In general, the Packers offense needs to simplify things. They are struggling to execute the routine details of the play calls right now, and getting Love out on the perimeter more is one concept that can help accomplish that while still creating big play potential, whether on the ground or through the passing game.