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5 questions with LeRoy Butler: Packers back on top; 11-2 Broncos next
LeRoy Butler is excited about the growth he sees in Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love and the maturity he showed against the Chicago Bears.
- The Green Bay Packers’ pass rush was less effective without defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt.
- Wyatt’s absence was noticeable on a key late-game scramble by Bears quarterback Caleb Williams.
- The Packers may use linebackers like Micah Parsons, Quay Walker, or Edgerrin Cooper to create more inside pressure.
GREEN BAY – Each week during the NFL season, PackersNews reporter Pete Dougherty and Eric Baranczyk break down game film from the Green Bay Packers game, looking for significant developments.
The following is an excerpt from last week’s story. For the full story, click here.
Packers miss Devonte Wyatt’s inside rush
GREEN BAY – As much as the Packers missed Devonte Wyatt against the run, they missed him more as a pass rusher.
Without Wyatt at defensive tackle after his season-ending knee injury at Detroit two weeks ago, the Packers had almost no pass rush up the middle in their 28-21 victory against the Chicago Bears. Nowhere did that show up more than late in the game, on Caleb Williams’ scramble and throw to Devin Duvernay for 24 yards that got the Bears in position to tie or win in the final seconds.
On a second-and-10 from the Packers’ 47, Micah Parsons beat right tackle Darnell Wright around the edge a few steps after the snap to get pressure on Williams. Though Wright wrapped his arm around Parsons’ neck momentarily and probably should have penalized for holding, Parsons still forced Williams to step up in the pocket.
However, neither Colby Wooden nor Warren Brinson got enough push up the middle to take advantage of Parsons’ pressure. That left Williams with a big escape hatch up and to his right, which he took and then delivered a pinpoint pass along the sideline for the big 24-yard gain.
There’s a good chance if Wyatt were on the field, he’d have gotten enough push to get a shot at sacking Williams.
So where are the Packers going to find the inside rush without Wyatt the rest of the season? They’ll have to hope Lukas Van Ness can give them a little more inside pressure if they occasionally bump him inside when he returns from a foot injury. They also can rush Parsons even more than they already do from linebacker.
More likely, defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley will have to send either of his fast linebackers, Quay Walker or Edgerrin Cooper, through an A-gap to take away the quarterback’s ability to step up in the pocket.
Walker had one creative blitz in this game on a third-and-15 late in the first quarter. He and Cooper stood up in the A-gaps threatening to blitz, then at the snap both began bailing out in coverage. However, after taking only one step back and opening his shoulders to the sideline, Walker quickly reversed and blitzed.
He rushed right up Parsons’ back – Parsons lined up on the inside on this play – and was in the backfield quickly. But Parsons beat his one-on-one block so fast that Williams had already bolted out the back of the pocket with Parsons in hot pursuit before Walker could be a factor. The quarterback simply fired the ball into the stands after he got outside the tackle box to avoid the sack.
