Quarterback Jordan Love started slow, Jeff Hafley’s defense struggled early and the Green Bay Packers were unable to crawl out of a 28-0 hole despite going on a 22-0 run during Sunday’s 31-29 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Love’s struggles against pressure and the Packers’ inability to consistently pressure Sam Darnold were primary causes for the defeat. Matt LaFleur’s team also missed two field goals, dropped an interception and had four giveaways, including two turnovers in the fourth quarter.
Based on grades from Pro Football Focus, here are the best and worst players from the Packers’ Week 4 loss to the Vikings:
Top 5 offense
1. RT Zach Tom: 89.0
2. WR Jayden Reed: 75.7
3. LT Rasheed Walker: 74.0
4. RB Emanuel Wilson: 71.5
5. QB Jordan Love: 68.8
Tom allowed only two pressures over 58 pass-blocking snaps and earned an elite grade as a run blocker. Reed caught seven of eight targets, averaged 3.09 yards per route run, created 44 yards after the catch and caught both of his contested catch opportunities. Walker gave up four hurries over 58 pass-blocking snaps and didn’t have a penalty. Wilson forced a missed tackle and was solid over nine pass-blocking snaps. Love hit four passes thrown over 20 yards in the air but did have three turnover worthy plays.
Top 5 defense
1. S Xavier McKinney: 91.0
2. S Evan Williams: 81.0
3. LB Quay Walker: 68.1
4. LB Isaiah McDuffie: 68.0
5. DL Kenny Clark: 66.0
McKinney had four tackles without a miss, a quarterback hurry and an interception, creating an elite coverage grade. Williams didn’t allow a completion into his coverage over 10 total snaps. Walker had a sack, three stops and a solid day in coverage. McDuffie didn’t have a missed tackle, produced a stop and nearly had an interception. Clark had two stops against the run and two hurries.
Bottom 5 offense
1. TE Luke Musgrave: 49.3
2. LG Elgton Jenkins: 55.3
3. TE Tucker Kraft: 55.6
4. WR Romeo Doubs: 55.9
5. WR Malik Heath: 57.4
Musgrave struggled as both a run blocker and pass protector, and he turned 16 routes run into just 13 receiving yards. Jenkins Kraft got dinged hard for his fourth-quarter fumble and a penalty negating an explosive run. Doubs ran 51 routes but caught only four passes, and he was 1-for-3 on contested catches. Heath caught two passes for 12 yards but received poor grades as a blocker.
Bottom 5 defense
1. DL TJ Slaton: 34.2
2. DE Kingsley Enagbare: 39.0
3. DL Devonte Wyatt: 40.6
4. LB Edgerrin Cooper: 41.0
5. LB Eric Wilson: 41.1
Slaton had three pressures, including a quarterback hit, but he earned the worst run-defense grade on the team. Enagbare had two hurries over 12 pass-rushing snaps and missed a tackle. Wyatt didn’t have a single pressure over 18 pass-rushing snaps. Cooper missed a tackle, gave a 12-yard catch and had a 15-yard face mask penalty. Wilson gave up a touchdown pass in coverage.
Special teams
Malik Heath, Isaiah McDuffie and Zayne Anderson all had special teams tackles. Bo Melton recovered a muffed punt but missed a tackle. Robert Rochell also missed a tackle. The Packers didn’t have a special teams penalty. Brayden Narveson missed two field goals, including a 37-yarder. Daniel Whelan averaged 55.0 yards per punt, put two inside the 20-yard line and had a net of 51.7 yards. His hangtime was over five seconds per punt.
Quarterback play
Jordan Love: 68.8
Love had one big-time throw and three turnover-worthy plays, and he was hurt by three drops and a 3-for-11 finish on contested catch opportunities. Love completed 4-of-10 passes thrown 20 yards down the field. He struggled under pressure, completing only 7-of-19 passes with a pair of interceptions. The Vikings blitzed him on over half of his dropbacks. When kept clean, Love completed 25 of 35 passes, averaged 8.3 yards per attempt and threw three touchdown passes.
Stat to know
Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold was under pressure on 11 of his 33 dropbacks. When he was kept clean, Darnold completed 16 passes for 200 yards and three touchdown passes. The pass-rush wasn’t good enough or consistent enough. Overall, Darnold had as many turnover-worthy plays as Jordan Love, but the Packers dropped a pick on the first series.