Studs and duds from Packers' Week 1 loss to Vikings: Watson shines - Packers Wire
The Green Bay Packers allowed 29 straight points to the Minnesota Vikings and lost the season opener on Sunday, 39-22, despite leading 22-10 deep into the third quarter. It was a collapse in which directing blame was an easy task. The maligned offensive line crumbled under the weight of unrelenting blitzes, and one too many missed opportunities to put the Vikings away combined with far too many sloppy moments and penalized plays produced another meltdown.
While this space recognizes the studs, who played notably well, and the duds, who played notably poorly, quarterback Jordan Love did not fit neatly into either category. At times, he was heroic in the way he created explosive plays under intense pressure. In fact, for most of the contest, Love was matching Brian Flores blow for blow. But when the barrage hit late, Love turned the ball over twice, and what was a 25-22 game erupted into a 17-point blowout loss.
WR Christian Watson: Months after signing a contract extension, Watson caught six of eight targets for a game-high 147 yards and two scores, including an 81-yard touchdown that showcased his fearlessness over the middle and elite athleticism. On his second touchdown, Watson sold the run fake as an insert blocker and then sprung wide open behind the coverage. He also completed two contested catches, including one for 32 yards while fighting through interference on a 50-50 ball against Minnesota's best corner. One of his other catches converted a third down on a scoring drive. Sunday was Watson showing off all his talent; as a big-play threat to all areas of the field, a contested-catch winner and versatile red-zone weapon.
CB Keisean Nixon: Justin Jefferson beat him three times for catches that moved the sticks, including two on third down. But the damage wasn't severe; 35 yards, with almost nothing after the catch. You can live with that against a truly elite player. Nixon himself made a bunch of plays, including a tackle for loss on the game's first play, an interception on the game's second play and a shared sack late in the first half. Both of his pass-rushing opportunities created pressure. He also didn't miss a tackle, and on a day when the defense got lit up with flags, Nixon wasn't penalized. No corner is going to be perfect against Jefferson, and Nixon wasn't. But he competed hard all day and was in on three of the defense's most disruptive plays. Blitzing Nixon off the edge could be a card Jonathan Gannon plays often this season.
LB Edgerrin Cooper: His disruptive ability when playing downhill is something to behold. Cooper spent plenty of time in the Vikings backfield on Sunday, shooting gaps and timing out snaps to put himself in position to make menacing plays. He flew downhill and helped stuff Jordan Mason for a 4-yard loss. He was in position (but slid off the tackle) on another toss play to Aaron Jones. He timed out the snap, shot the gap and sacked Carson Wentz is under a second. He had a second sack negated by a dubious penalty. On one coverage snap, Cooper lined up on the edge, helped re-route a receiver and then found the running back on a checkdown, making the stop well short of the sticks on third down. Of Cooper's eight tackles, five were made within three yards of the line of scrimmage.
Offensive line: There was temptation to single out each individual offensive lineman, but the truth is, Sunday's failure along the offensive front was a collective one. Brian Flores threw the book at the Packers offensive line, and not a single player up front handled the challenge well. There was mishandled stunts. Unblocked blitzers. Missed assignments. Blown blocks. Once the Packers fell behind and were forced to pass-only mode, the offensive line folded, and both resulting turnovers were pressure-induced. While first-time starting guards Jacob Monk and Donovan Jennings really struggled, offensive tackles Jordan Morgan and Zach Bako-Bewele also produced disappointing performances.
CB Carrington Valentine: He played only 16 snaps but was at least partially responsible for two of Minnesota's touchdowns. On the first, Valentine was the edge defender on a toss play and had zero chance of containing the run or keeping Aaron Jones out of the end zone. Later, Justin Jefferson ran away from him underneath the formation, made the catch on the run and easily broke through Valentine's tackle attempt along the sideline for a 9-yard touchdown.
