2021 Packers Stock Report: Week 18
Take a look at the stock report for the Green Bay Packers after a 37-30 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 18.
By GunnarDavis
While the Green Bay Packers managed to leave Detroit on Sunday night relatively healthy and unscathed before the playoff push, unfortunately they didn't leave with a victory.
The team from Titletown took a loss to its division rival in the final week of the NFL season.
In the long run, this game didn't mean anything, and you really could tell it didn't mean anything by the lack of urgency on the visiting sideline.
But it's time to move past the loss that dropped the Packers to a final regular season record of 13-4. Well, almost time. First, let's get into the stock report for the Green Bay Packers after a 37-30 road loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday in Week 18.
Buy
The returners- Don't look now, but you know that thing that everyone has been hoping for? You know, the guys that were speculated to return before the playoffs? Well, it may have taken a bit longer than initially expected, but gosh dangit, it's finally happening. David Bakhtiari returned on Sunday, and by all means, played well considering he missed pretty much the entirety of the season. Josh Myers did, too. Jaire Alexander has been practicing with the intention of playing in the playoffs. Billy Turner came off the COVID-19 list. Randall Cobb wants to play. And wouldn't you know it? Za'Darius Smith might even get in the mix. Don't look now, but the best team in the NFC is getting even better.
Dean Lowry- Here's a name I've hardly written this season. At the defensive line position, that's not necessarily a bad thing. Dean Lowry had a couple rough games to start the season. But since then, he's been absolutely solid in the middle of the defensive line. Is he a standout player? No. Has he done his job effectively all season? Emphatically yes. Sunday, he was blowing through Detroit's interior all game. Four total tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack is a pretty good stat-line for Lowry. His presence next to Kenny Clark will continue to be important moving forward.
Sell
Chandon Sullivan- If offenses want to throw at one particular defensive back on the Packers (that plays often) and gives them the best chance at success, it seems they throw toward Chandon Sullivan. He was fooled on both of the trick plays against the Lions and gave up a couple first down catches. With the potential return of Jaire Alexander to this defense, which gives Joe Barry many options, I'm going to go out on a limb and say Sullivan may see less time on the field. Sell.
Oren Burks- I'm selling Oren Burks the defender, mostly because he won't see the field as much in the playoffs due to De'Vondre Campbell's return. Burks has been OK on special teams, but he struggles at the linebacker position making plays. Campbell's presence on the Packers defense was missed sorely on Sunday. Burks has yet to prove himself as a consistent player on defense, which doesn't bode well for someone in his fourth season in the league.
Hold
Krys Barnes- Speaking of linebackers, Krys Barnes might be the most inconsistent player on the Green Bay Packers. One Sunday he plays horrible and you just want to sell him. The next Sunday he makes a couple splash plays and looks like a hero. You just never know what you're going to get. Against Detroit, it was the bad Barnes, who finished the day with the defense's worst individual grade (32.8). Yes, I know that PFF grades aren't everything, but there is a sliver of truth in there somewhere. However, I'm not going to sell, because I've got a feeling he'll make one of those splash plays in the playoffs that will make me look silly in hindsight.
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Gunnar Davis is a lifelong Packers fan and a recent graduate of Simpson College, where he was a 3-year letterwinner on the offensive line and graduated with a degree in multimedia communications. You can follow him on Twitter at @Gunnar57Davis.
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The Green Bay Packers didn't waste any time addressing their need at safety in the NFL Draft.
Comments (31)
Coldworld
January 12, 2022 at 12:30 pm
The only stock movement of note for me was that of Taylor, who hopefully won’t be needed much. If he is, I’m not going to worry seeing him coming on the field.
King may well get playing time from Sullivan.
splitpea1
January 12, 2022 at 01:06 pm
Hold, tenuously: Sullivan. The Packers will be prepared for trickery now that it's been brought to their attention; better to get caught napping in a meaningless game than when it matters. Deebo Samuel also had a nice TD pass in their game vs. the Rams, so this stuff happens sometimes.
Buy: Dillon. Can anyone imagine not having our offensive hammer for the playoffs to hopefully finish off our opponents?
Sell: Amari--may be invisible for the playoffs.
Non-Packer transactions: Hold, Flores. He might be a good fit for the Bears given the type of organization they are. But if they do hire him, he'd better find a coordinator who can get some production out of their offense, for once.... Buy, Burrow. Living in the AFC North neighborhood, I've seen watched quite a few Bengal games and seen Burrow make some Rodgers-esque throws. It will be interesting to see how far they go in the playoffs; there are probably a few people here who were not even born the last time the Bengals won a playoff game.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 04:43 pm
Excellent post Spiltpea1
croatpackfan
January 12, 2022 at 12:58 pm
Clever choice not to mention Jordan Love. Or not. It depends from which angle you are looking from...
Other mentioned, I agree completely. I wonder why they play Sullivan at all. He was liability, despite he had 2 INT this season. Here, in Croatia, we have adage - even blind chicken will find grain...
Johnblood27
January 12, 2022 at 01:12 pm
or...
Even a blind pig finds an acorn now and then...
Savage has been a long time between acorns...
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 06:29 pm
Very good Johnblood.
egbertsouse
January 12, 2022 at 07:33 pm
Here in Minnesota we say, Even a blind squirrel occasionally finds a nut. Small world.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 09:51 pm
That’s the way I know it Egbertsouse.
CWolf
January 13, 2022 at 03:18 am
We have the same adage in German (Switzerland).
Ya_tittle
January 12, 2022 at 01:35 pm
Burks is useless and I hope they replace him in the draft.
Guam
January 12, 2022 at 03:22 pm
Burks is useless, Barnes is wildly inconsistent and McDuffie is invisible. Gute must keep Campbell and also find him some help for next year. Campbell has shown what a significant difference a good ILB can make in a defense. Maybe the Packers finally change their evaluation of the position and spend a high draft choice on ILB.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 04:45 pm
Agree with Ya_tittle and Guam.
stockholder
January 12, 2022 at 02:53 pm
Buy - #12 Rodgers - I don't care what it costs, I'd keep him here. - Sell- Love. - If I really Wanted Gutey Gone. I'd Dump Rodgers for Love. DraftAce is very good in their draft evaluations. This is their scouting report. ///Accuracy, especially at the intermediate level. Love struggles to throw on-target and it will prevent him from being a high-level starting quarterback. At this stage of a player’s career, you can’t teach accuracy anymore. That doesn’t mean he can’t do other things (mainly mobility) to make up for it and be productive in spurts, but you can’t play at the highest level without at least reaching a league-average level of on-target passing. Additionally, Love appears to lock on to his receiver and struggles seeing defenders down the field. Lurking linebackers cause him trouble and NFL DCs will take advantage of that early in his. Love also struggles dealing with pressure, which will hurt in the short term, but that’s an issue that can be fixed./// Hold- Draft Picks!!! ///. It's here in black and white.
13TimeChamps
January 12, 2022 at 04:03 pm
Josh Allen's completion percentage in his first two years...52.8 and 58.8.
His last two years...69.2 and 63.3.
Apparently you can teach accuracy after all.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 04:47 pm
I agree—the accuracy issue can be fixed. Will it happen?
13TimeChamps
January 12, 2022 at 05:38 pm
I'll get back to you in a couple years with an answer.
jurp
January 12, 2022 at 04:40 pm
A cut and paste job... no wonder it's lucid. And for your edification, here is some more draft analysis:
"He's a system quarterback. 3-, 5-, 7-step guy. Can't create on his own. Panics under pressure. Gets flustered easy. I don't think there's a quarterback in the draft worthy of a first-round pick. I'm dead serious. None of them are worth it."
"I don't think he's in the class of the quarterbacks that came out last year. Strong arm. Pretty good athlete. Still has some holes in his game."
"I think he has some upside although there are some things that are just ordinary about him."
"I like him. He's a very talented guy. A lot of quarterbacks that were system people have not done very well. That puts up a red flag. Not that he is one of them. He could be an exception. But I can't get it out of my craw."
"I think he has a good chance of being a bust. Thing I struggle with him is he gets sacked a lot. He doesn't have great ability to change the release of the football. He's mechanically very rigid."
"He's a little short. The thing you worry about is those (Jeff) Tedford guys. They don't do anything for a couple years and then they have a good year or two. Who of his quarterbacks has done what they're supposed to do? None of them. Is he just working magic with great college quarterbacks or just manufacturing guys?"
THESE ARE ALL ABOUT AARON RODGERS IN 2005. Draft analysts certainly can make mistakes, can't they?
stockholder
January 12, 2022 at 06:02 pm
It's just to bad you want to compare him to Rodgers. Thats just stupid. Scouts say things to push a player. Draft Ace has been around for years. Their success on where a player will be selected,- is second to none now. ( after the draft perfection !) Smith and Rodgers were rated at #1. Smith went first. Rodgers fell because teams had other priorities first. Not because of accuracy.
Coldworld
January 12, 2022 at 06:41 pm
There are times, and posts that just make me walk away. No acorns here.
jurp
January 12, 2022 at 09:06 pm
To paraphrase, "It's better to not post a comment and be thought unknowledgeable than to post a comment and remove all doubt."
stockholder
January 13, 2022 at 07:23 am
Huh? You need Medical help.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 04:52 pm
Sullivan gives me an uneasy feeling, but with Alexander, Stokes, Douglas, and Amos (not sure about Savage?), on the field with him, I feel somewhat better.
I’m not certain what the coaches see in Burks?
Alberta_Packer
January 12, 2022 at 05:20 pm
I think this is Lowry's last contract year - which may explain his recent "noticeability." Prior to this, he was virtually persona non grata for 2+ years. If I was to buy Lowry stock - it would be as a short sell.
Also N.B. - if you see no. 24 (Yiadom) on the Packers defense - call 911. Something bad is about to happen.
dobber
January 12, 2022 at 05:36 pm
He's up in 2022, but has a significant savings if he's cut this off-season that the Packers might not be able to ignore given their tight financial situation.
https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/green-bay-packers/dean-lowry-19091/
Alberta_Packer
January 13, 2022 at 11:50 am
Generally "savings" are good - so...
Coldworld
January 12, 2022 at 06:47 pm
I’m less high on Lowry. He’s been invisible when Clark is not in there and against the run he’s been mostly just bad. On Sunday he showed up once their back up C had to be replaced by a back up. He’s decent depth but played and paid as a starter. Until we replace him we will always just be ok at best and leave Clark to carry the load.
Tundraboy
January 12, 2022 at 07:52 pm
Call 911 is right. He's a magnet for a disaster even on ST. Great post.
As for Lowry we just need 3 more games of the Mean Dean version, then he can retire to broadcasting and maybe on to the Packer HOF.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 09:48 pm
Excellent Tundraboy—made me smile—3-more games—bam!!
Tedlyflyfisher
January 12, 2022 at 09:39 pm
Yiadom, aka Highway 24. All lanes open to the opposition.
Starrbrite
January 12, 2022 at 06:36 pm
Lowry—-Ron Kostelnik —reincarnated.
joejetson
January 12, 2022 at 08:54 pm
I know it's only been two games, but I haven't seen any "Wow" moments from Love. That is disappointing, because I've been hoping he'd show more potential than he has, even just a few glimpses. He seems to lack the pocket awareness good QB's have to feel the pressure without taking his eyes off downfield. The late incompletion to a wide open ESB was because he flinched and threw off balance with a pass rusher in his face. That could have been a big confidence boost for him. Instead it was another downer. Serious doubts.