After re-watching the Packers game, here are three plays that made me go hmmm, for various reasons. In general, I either focus on a theme, more nuanced observations, or just things I didn't notice watching live. These can be but are less likely to be "highlight" plays. I present these to you with a short explanation why I picked them and then let you readers discuss the plays.
There won't be a "Three Plays..." from me next week as I'll be on vacation. Hoping I can at lease get Polluted Mindset done for Wednesday morning.
Here are three quick things that made me go hmmm...
Hmmm, so Josh Jacobs still needs better OL play to be a real difference maker. I'll start with Jacob's very first carry as a Green Bay Packer in 2026. The one thing you can see immediately is Jacob's vision and decision-making. There is a running lane there initially, but he spots two Lions coming in to fill that hole. He cuts quickly to his left where there is a new gap but Jordan Morgan has failed to at least get in the way of Adrian Hutchinson behind the play, and Hutch is able to come across and take Jacobs down from behind. One more thing. Why are there four Packers on the right side of the line mashed together to block two Lions? Someone wasn't where they were supposed to be.and there was no blocking at all on the second level. The linebackers and DBs were all free to crash and attack the line of scrimmage.
Hmmm, so a lack of backside blocking is a consistent problem, huh? Next up is the first down handoff to Jacobs from the six yard line. Watching live, I wasn't happy that they ran the ball twice here. But upon rewatching, I realized this is how Jacobs piled up those touchdown stats in previous seasons.Of course, that was behind a different better offensive line. With some adequate blocking on the backside, this was a run Jacobs could have scored on. We've seen Jacobs have success with this before - he spots a crease, changes direction, squeezes through it and powers through to the end zone. Alas, Tomlinson's man easily sheds his block with only one arm and comes from the other side to take down Jacobs before he can get through the hole. Jordan Morgan doesn't do much either, and his man likely gets an assist on the tackle. Finally, Morgan compounds his poor play with a desperate (too late) attempt to reach his man and ends up crashing on top of Jacobs. Not pretty.
Hmmm, I was calling for some outside runs during the game, and when they finally did it, here you have Jacob's longest run of the game. In fact, Jacobs' second longest run of 8 yards was also off of Belton's outside shoulder. On this play, Belton and Redmond double the defensive end and then Redmond peels off to block a linebacker. Kraft handles the outside linebacker and Sturdivant helps out with some downfield blocking. This looks so easy, yet it took until 0:23 of the third quarter for the Packers to even try to run Jacobs anywhere but between the tackles. And there's an added benefit here - a lack of blocking on the backside doesn't matter. Morgan barely gets a hand on Hutchinson, but it's ok, there's just no way he's going to affect this play.
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"Jersey Al" Bracco is the Editor-In-Chief, part owner and wearer of various hats for CheeseheadTV.com and PackersTalk.com. He's a lifetime Packers fan living in the land of the Giants (and Jets). Follow Al on twitter at @JerseyalGBP.