Do not continue reading if you have a weak stomach for bad offensive line play. The Green Bay Packers are coming off a 27-10 loss to the New York Jets, in which quarterback Aaron Rodgers was hit nine times and sacked four. The offensive line as a whole didn’t play well, but it was an especially terrible outing for right guard Royce Newman.
Newman got off to such a bad start against the Jets that he was actually benched for backup Jake Hanson in the second quarter. Unfortunately, Hanson lasted only one series before suffering a biceps injury forcing the team to resort back to Newman for the rest of the game.
Newman’s benching has been boiling all season. He’s failed to take a second-year jump after starting in 16 games as a rookie last season, and this past week may have been the last straw. Newman struggled mightily against a pretty good Jets defensive line, allowing five pressures and a sack, according to Pro Football Focus.
Green Bay has not been able to rely on Newman for most of the year. So today, we are going to review the tape to see what led to Newman’s first-half benching and whether or not he should still be with the starters.
Let’s begin.
This appears to be a complete mental breakdown by Newman (No. 70). Everyone is blocking one way while he blocks down in the opposite direction, giving the defensive end a free lane to the running back. We see right tackle Elgton Jenkins attempt to pick up the corner blitz coming from off the screen, which means Newman should be reaching for the defensive end. Granted, it is a tough block to execute, but he doesn’t even know his responsibility. That can’t happen.
Maybe it gets a little better in pass protection. Nope, it doesn’t. To be a good offensive lineman, you have to have a strong base. In Newman’s case, he doesn’t have great length or strong hands, so having a strong lower body is a must. However, that obviously isn’t the case as he gets pushed back into Rodgers’ lap.
Again, we see Newman’s inability to anchor. When Newman isn’t first to get hand placement, he is prone to these types of bull rushes. Notice how he gets no arm extension leading to basically zero resistance or control over the defensive tackle. He also completely loses his footing, which leads to an embarrassing rep that eventually ends with him getting planted on the ground.
I don’t think words are needed to describe this rep. A grown man that is 6-5, 310 pounds shouldn’t be getting pushed around like this. If not for Rodgers’ putting on his cape and going superman mode, this would have been another sack allowed by Newman. It’s worth mentioning that this was one of his last plays before getting benched.
However, Newman wasn’t benched for the whole game. He was forced to return following the lowest moment of his NFL career, and the results didn’t get better. Here we see him looking for work after the linebacker showing a blitz drops into coverage. Newman makes the right decision of sliding to his left, where New York is running a twist. He is in position but fails to pick up the looper, leading to a sack.
Here is a picture to better illustrate how bad this was.
Picture 1: How does this
Picture 2: Become this pic.twitter.com/EfRWjasyiU
— Brandon Carwile (@PackerScribe) October 18, 2022
Initially, Newman is in good position, but because he doesn’t recognize the looper fast enough, he quickly loses leverage. Part of this is tied to a lack of processing and lateral agility.
Conclusion
Overall, the Packers’ offensive line needs to play a lot better. However, it is clear that Newman is the weakest link. Per PFF, he has already allowed 17 pressures and four sacks this season. After watching his film against the Jets, it’s apparent that he lacks confidence. His below-average length and play strength is being exploited and will lead to more teams taking advantage. They will also be more likely to send stunts at Newman to see how he handles them. Ultimately, I think it is time to send Newman to the bench indefinitely unless there is another injury. We’ve seen how one guy failing to do his job can derail an entire offense, and Newman has been the most frequent offender. In my opinion, Jenkins should move back to guard, so Yosh Nijman or Zach Tom can play right tackle. But if Green Bay is dead set on keeping Jenkins at tackle, I’d consider Tom or even third-round rookie Sean Rhyan at right guard.
Of course, my opinion doesn’t matter. The Packers are going to do what they feel is in the best interest of the team, and head coach Matt LaFleur made some interesting comments on Thursday about potential changes to the offensive line.
“That’s something we’re trying to feel that out right now,” he said.
“Do you move one guy…do you end up moving two guys…how does that work out? Or do you just work through what we’re going through right now and coach better and go out there and execute fundamentally at a higher level.”
LaFleur’s thought process, especially the part about working through everything, makes one think Newman could start again on Sunday. If he does, it will be interesting to see how he responds to all the adversity and if he can raise his play enough to not be a liability. On the other hand, if we see another performance like last week, the offense will continue to struggle.
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