Packers Stock Report Week 9: The L.A Black Out

Today, I present a very bleak week 9 stock report but I am still bullish on this team overall. 

Nothing went right in the Packers 26-11 loss to the Chargers on Sunday Afternoon, it was a power outage for lack of a better word.  From the opening kick-off the Packers were out of sync and could not get on the same page.  Anyone who is an avid follower of the team got the sense that it was just one of those days where the Packers had no answers and were out of it early.  

Buy, buy, buy:

1. Law of averages:

The Packers literally could not have played any worse than they did on Sunday afternoon.  They have one game left before the bye so a little R&R is in the plans.  The embarrassment of Sunday's game will be enough to light a fire under their ass on Sunday and the bye will allow them to rest, refocus, and fix their deficiencies.  We can all exhale and R-E-L-A-X.  

Other than that, there is nothing to buy from Sunday's performance, it was really that bad.  

Sell, sell, sell:

1. The Packers Offensive Line:

This is one of the only times this season that I have sold the o-line's performance, but on Sunday they were completely out of sorts.  They allowed pressures, sacks, hits, and could not get out of their own way.  They struggled with cadences and counts which led to false starts and a ton of frustration for the entire sixty minutes.  

2. The Packers Defensive Line:

I guess when you get pounded at the point of attack on both sides of the ball you are prone to a 26-11 ass kicking.  The tandem of Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler destroyed the Packers defensive line for a combined 202 scrimmage yards and 2 touchdowns.

3. Blake Martinez:

According to Pro Football Focus, Blake Martinez had his worst game of the season.  The NFL's leading tackler hasn't exactly impressed the sabermetric community this year with a rating of 59.8.  The Chargers were able to expose his weaknesses by dominating the point of attack and taking away open tackling paths.  Once these tackling paths were taken away the middle of the field was exposed and the backs made him look silly.  

4. Special Teams:

The special teams have been steadily declining over the past month.  Shawn Mennenga has made changes by removing Darrius Shepherd (Cut) from the return game and replacing him with Tremon Smith but the results have not dramatically improved.  The unit is beginning to miss blocks, commit penalties, and whiff on tackles.  This decline has caused them to lose the field position battle and put their defense in some tough positions.  In order to turn this around JK Scott needs to be the star of the unit this Sunday against Carolina.  

Forecast:

A 7-2 start still puts the Packers on the fast track to 11 wins and a division title.  DO NOT SELL! THIS IS FIXABLE! 

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David Michalski is a staff writer for Cheesehead TV. He can be found on Twitter @kilbas27dave 

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3 points
 

Comments (26)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
Lphill's picture

November 06, 2019 at 11:03 am

hopefully the Packers want to erase that bad game with a solid win at home against the Panthers.

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Sureshot's picture

November 06, 2019 at 11:16 am

Regarding OL, I think that being more focus will help to correct the penalties.

Regarding Run defense, It's more difficult to see easy improvement. Maybe playing more often with 2 ILBs would help. We seem to be definitely too light on front 7 which is often a front 6. But then you open the door for big plays in the secondary.

Regarding ST I am very, VERY concerned.
I don't see any improvement from last year, except for the kicker and punter. Return game and coverage units are so bad that I don't see it being fixable.

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splitpea1's picture

November 06, 2019 at 11:39 am

If anyone watched the Ravens-Seahawks game a couple of weeks ago, the announcer described a couple of the Ravens' defensive lineman as "short, stout fireplugs that are difficult to move and give offensive lineman problems." Actually, they're not short at all, but when they showed a picture of these guys, the "stout fireplug" part was very accurate.

The point here is that this is what the Packers should be looking for when it comes time to improve this area: wide bodies, low center of gravity, and definitely difficult to move. Elite athleticism should be considered a bonus, but not the primary concern. On average, the Ravens defensive tackles weigh about 35 lbs. more than their Packer counterparts- a pretty substantial difference.

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murf7777's picture

November 07, 2019 at 07:51 am

You might be onto something there. Maybe it has something to do with Pettine scheme? He has stated he wants to stop the pass more then the run, ultimately you want to stop both but that is what he stated as more important.

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splitpea1's picture

November 07, 2019 at 11:24 am

The Packers haven't had a really wide body on the DL since B.J. Raji retired a few years ago. And his effectiveness dwindled toward the end of his relatively short career, especially as far as getting penetration in the backfield and hitting the quarterback.

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Since'61's picture

November 07, 2019 at 09:03 am

In other words the Packers should be looking for Mike Daniels type of DLs!?!?!? Who cost less and who are healthy. Thanks, Since '61

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splitpea1's picture

November 07, 2019 at 11:10 am

I'm thinking more of a Tony Siragusa clone: VERY wide, very strong, and almost impossible to move. Somebody like that would certainly command a double team and free up other defenders to make plays around the line of scrimmage.

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Koostyroosty's picture

November 06, 2019 at 11:47 am

This game will show a lot about this team. A solid victory should show that the Chargers game was their "clunker", and that this team is a contender. A repeat of the 3 - phase meltdown means that the team might not be as good as first advertised. Carolina & 49ers, Giants & Skins, and 3 division games. It is all right there for this team. Sunday will give us an idea of what to expect the rest of the way. I'm hoping for the former. GO PACK GO!

4 points
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GBPDAN1's picture

November 06, 2019 at 12:03 pm

All this team needs is;

2 quality ILBs who can stuff the run and cover TEs and RBs

A difference making DT to play next to Clark

A true shut down CB

2 more starting caliber WRs

A Stud TE who can block and stretch the field

And ultimately a younger stud Tackle

Maybe these players are already on the team, but they definitely haven't shown themselves yet

I do expect a bounce back win this Sunday (Please show some gritt)

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ILPackerBacker's picture

November 06, 2019 at 01:17 pm

The difference in the run game between GB playing with 1 INLB and 2 is mind blowing. We don't need players.

We need the coaching staff to correctly assess the players, change the stragey to meet the players they actually have, and move forward

A top staff would have done this already, we can only hope it is done over the bye week.

Snap counts for Lowry need to plummet and basically be obvious passing only. Blake needs to be sat on sure running downs and on sure passing downs. He snap count is at least double what it should be. The film doesn't like.

Blake behind Lowry is an abomination

3 points
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Qoojo's picture

November 06, 2019 at 12:14 pm

The Chargers game showed what happens when the offense epically fails. Now that the season is further along, offenses aren't shaking the rust off. This isn't a defense that can carry the team, unless they get some help. The defense is the ol' bend but don't break. The OL had a very bad day, and did nothing until the chargers went to a prevent defense. Rodgers didn't get enough time to do anything, and/or OL penalties put them in repeatedly bad down and distance situations.

The coaching staff needed to recognize that the Chargers' DL was whipping the OL, and provide more help/call quicker hitting plays/ or whatever.

So I wouldn't buy or sell based on this game. I kind of think it's a preview of any playoff game beyond the wild card round.

2 points
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TarynsEyes's picture

November 06, 2019 at 12:28 pm

If anyone never had the unfortunate event of stepping in sh%t, well last week against the Chargers is what the result looks like on your shoe.

Many might be reflecting back to the Rodgers quote " We have a defense " and feel that's another thing that adds more stink to the smell of the shoe covered in sh%t though the offense offensively helped find that pile of sh%t to be stepped in and MLF apparently doing much as assuring/guiding that sh%t pile to be at their footsteps all week and game long.

GB just came off an emotional win in KC and traveling to the West Coast has not been a historical plus in recent years.Perhaps we should chalk this one up to simple let down with hope that they realize the sh%t on their shoes.

A loss to Carolina going into the bye and depending on it's look if occurs, would then give more credibility to worry about the teams defense and added concern as to the offense. A loss to SF out of the bye will most assuredly make the realization of another early playoff exit,less they miss it altogether, a near absolute.

I wouldn't sell any playoff stock at this moment but one might want to make sure your broker is on speed dial if losses surround the bye week.

My optimism is holding but that speed dial button could grow larger in my eyes over the next 3 weeks.

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DavidMichalski's picture

November 06, 2019 at 01:35 pm

*shit

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TarynsEyes's picture

November 06, 2019 at 01:54 pm

Is that an unneeded spelling correction or your thought on my comment?

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DavidMichalski's picture

November 06, 2019 at 01:57 pm

I actually do agree, Tayrn. If they lost 3 in a row we'd get the typical "the sky is falling" but realistically there's 3-4 more wins on the schedule. Should win against Washington, the Giants, and either the Bears/Lions or both. No reason not to win 11 this year.

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TarynsEyes's picture

November 06, 2019 at 02:11 pm

I see your scenario but let's not forget how the Packers seem to make themselves look inferior against inferior teams. losing 3 in a row makes it hard to believe they will at near seasons end win 3/4of 5, especially when the bye is deemed part of 4 losses in a row by proxy with the loss to SF.

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DavidMichalski's picture

November 06, 2019 at 02:23 pm

Yea I hear you, I don’t think they’ll lose 3 in a row, I see them winning a close one on Sunday, losing in SF and winning at NYG.

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murf7777's picture

November 07, 2019 at 07:59 am

Com on Taryn.....just say the obvious “if we lose three in a row we’re in trouble”. I see a very different team this Sunday by dominating 31-17 with 3 TO’s...

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TarynsEyes's picture

November 07, 2019 at 09:13 am

Nobody likes when I say the obvious and apparently some don't like it when I try to be appeasing.

1 points
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AKDan's picture

November 06, 2019 at 02:57 pm

It seem that the defensive problems have been getting progressively worse as they try to minimize the big plays. Maybe they need to take a step back, go back to playing a more aggressive style as they were doing early in the season and quit worrying about the occasional big play.

Offensively, I noticed when Jake Kumerow played the majority of offensive snaps the team was more successful. I am not suggesting Jake is the energizer bunny for the offense, it may be more a function of blocking within the run first offense. Blocking and being physical appears to be something that both Jake and Alan Lazard are good at as well as catching the ball.

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mamasboy's picture

November 06, 2019 at 05:33 pm

The Pack leads the league in giving up plays of 40 yards or more. It appears that they quit worrying about the big play a few games back.

1 points
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Since'61's picture

November 07, 2019 at 09:11 am

David if this was an actual financial market the advice this week after a collapse like last Sunday's would be to buy, buy, buy. Buy low and sell high.

For myself I'm buying into the offense and the defense to rebound this week against the Panthers. As for the Special Teams the best thing to do either in financial or football terms is to hold onto your cash and stay on the sidelines.

Speaking for myself if someone told me back in August that the Packers would be 7-2 at this point of the season I would have said "where do I sign?" We just need to go 1-0 this week and then enjoy the bye week. Go Pack Go! Thanks, Since '61

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ILPackerBacker's picture

November 07, 2019 at 11:59 am

In all seriousness I am not sure a win going into the bye week would make a majority of packer fans happier than a loss. It sure seems like there is far more energy and effort in posting after a loss.

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Since'61's picture

November 09, 2019 at 09:05 am

ILPacker it is easier to be critical than to be positive. That is why there is more chatter following a loss. Over coming adversity is part of every season. How well the Packers do that will determine how the rest of this season plays out. As long as AR is standing we have a chance. Thanks, Since '61

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calabasa's picture

November 07, 2019 at 12:33 pm

“The Packers literally could not have played any worse than they did on Sunday afternoon.”

Please, world. Stop overusing the word “literally.” Yes, they could have played worse, and not scored any points at all.

Sincerely,

Grouchypants

4 points
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Leatherhead's picture

November 08, 2019 at 09:16 am

I'll buy what you're selling. I'll take the offensive line for a better showing this week and we'll score more than 11 points.

I think you're off target about Martinez and Lowry. Lowry just got paid big time by the Boss, Gutekunst. He's durable, plays a ton of snaps on defense, and is one of our core defenders . He's big and long. He helps us.

Martinez is a topic for later, but he plays 99% of the snaps and has twice as many tackles as anybody else on the team and three times as many as most. He's young with proven durability. He's Stanford Smart. In about 6 months, this guy is going to sign a contract for many, many, millions of dollars. It'll be here in Green Bay or somewhere else. IMO, our defense needs more guys who can play defense, not fewer.

To Be Continued...…..

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