The Packers’ second game of the season gave a clearer picture of what Green Bay wants to do - and where the plan got blown up by injuries.
On offense, the biggest swing came up front. The Packers ended up using all eight of their offensive linemen against the Jets, and not by choice.
Left guard Aaron Banks exited with a toe injury, while Zach Bako-Bewele, the starting right tackle, was carted off in an air cast after just three plays. Head coach Matt LaFleur said Bako-Bewele’s injury could be long-term.
That chaos forced a reshuffle. Donovan Jennings, who started last week at left tackle after Banks missed the game with knee tendinitis, stepped in for Banks before leaving with a hand injury. From there, fifth-round rookie Jager Burton took over as the third left guard of the game, while Anthony Belton moved to right tackle for Bako-Bewele.
If Banks and Bako-Bewele are unavailable for Thursday Night Football next week, the Packers’ likely starting five would be Jordan Morgan, Burton, Sean Rhyan, Jacob Monk and Anthony Belton. Jennings, John Williams and Travis Glover - both Williams and Glover were healthy scratches Sunday - would likely need to be elevated to the 48-man gameday roster.
The running back picture has also shifted from what many expected. Coming into the season, MarShawn Lloyd looked like the favorite to lead the group while Josh Jacobs is out, but that hasn’t played out.
Lloyd was tied for last at the position Sunday with 14 snaps, matching Kaleb Johnson, who had not played an offensive snap against the Vikings. Chris Brooks, better known for his work as a blocking back, has been the most-used Packers back through two weeks.
At receiver, the roles have stayed tightly defined. Christian Watson handled 46 snaps, Matthew Golden had 42, Skyy Moore played 18, Bo Melton got 7, J. Michael Sturdivant had 6 and Jayden Reed played just 2 before getting hurt on the second play of the game and leaving on a backboard.
The Packers have kept their receiver spots locked in by alignment. Watson is the Z, Golden the X and Reed the slot starter, with Sturdivant, Melton and Moore serving as the direct backups at those same spots.
Players are not bouncing around the formation the way they used to. If Savion Williams returns, he will probably push Sturdivant out of the top backup role behind Watson at Z.
And if Reed is out for a while, expect more Moore - or more multiple-tight-end looks.
Tucker Kraft’s workload was another notable change. After the Packers brought up a pitch count for him, he played every snap against the Jets. Last week, he was on the field for 44 of 67 snaps, or 66 percent.
Josh Whyle remains firmly fourth in the tight end rotation, having played about six percent of the team’s total tight end snaps through two weeks, and those came against the Vikings.
On defense, the Packers kept leaning on the same core pieces. Zaire Franklin and Edgerrin Cooper each played all 72 defensive snaps, and that’s been the story all season. Four other linebackers - Isaiah McDuffie, Ty’Ron Hopper, Nick Niemann and Kristian Welch - have combined for just one defensive snap total, which came on a third-and-extra-long look against what was clearly a screen or draw possibility.
Up front, Anthony Campbell got his first regular-season action with Javon Hargrave and Warren Brinson out, and his snap count stayed modest.
The edge group continues to rotate around Lukas Van Ness, who played 52 snaps. Barryn Sorrell had 31, Brenton Cox Jr. 30 and Dani Dennis-Sutton 29, with Van Ness the one player seeing heavy usage while the rest of the group turns over.
At cornerback, Keisean Nixon and Brandon Cisse each played 72 snaps. Nixon has been every-down at left corner this year, and Cisse has done the same at right corner when healthy.
Carrington Valentine saw just 2 snaps, and Benjamin St-Juste and Kamal Hadden did not play. That tiny Valentine workload could mean the Packers used dime for the first time this season on Sunday.
Last week, St-Juste’s lone snap came on a kneel-down.
The safety setup hasn’t changed. Xavier McKinney and Evan Williams are the starters, and Javon Bullard remains the slot defender. Bullard’s role grew from 52 percent of defensive snaps last week to 75 percent this week.
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