The Good, Bad And Ugly From The Green Bay Packers’ Loss To The Detroit Lions

Aaron Rodgers had played his worst game of the season. And in a year where the Green Bay Packers’ quarterback has been remarkably mediocre, that’s saying something.

With two minutes left, though, and the Packers in a 15-9 hole against host Detroit, Rodgers had the perfect opportunity to right his afternoon of wrongs.

Thanks to a tremendous stop from its defense, Green Bay took over at its own 43 with 2 minutes remaining and all three timeouts.

Throughout history, this is where the great ones shine.

Peyton Manning led 43 fourth quarter comeback wins, the most in NFL history. Tom Brady ranks second with 42.

Rodgers?

He sits down in 34^th place with 19 such drives, looking up at players such as Jay Cutler (23) and Kerry Collins (21).

Captain Clutch he is not.

So it should come as no surprise that when Rodgers had a chance to come up big, he wilted. Rodgers drove the Packers to the Detroit 17-yard line, then threw four straight incompletions against the NFL’s worst defense.

The Lions escaped with a 15-9 win, snapped their five-game losing streak and improved to 2-6 overall. That marked the first time Detroit held an opponent to single digits since Dec. 9, 2018.

Rodgers finished his miserable day with three interceptions and a dreadful 53.5 passer rating as Green Bay’s losing streak hit five games. That marks the Packers’ first five-game skid since 2008, when Rodgers was a first-time starter.

Those 2008 Packers finished 6-10. These Packers fell to 3-6 and seemingly have little chance of reaching the postseason for a fourth straight year.

“I played (expletive), but I never gave up,” Rodgers said. “I feel like we never gave up. We moved the ball well in the first half, and I threw a couple picks in the end zone, took points off the board. That obviously came back to hurt us down the stretch.”

Here’s the good, bad and ugly from Detroit’s win over the Packers, beginning with the ugly.

THE UGLY

ARON RODGERS: Green Bay’s future Hall of Fame quarterback looked nothing like a player destined for a trip to Canton.

Rodgers threw three interceptions for the first time since Dec. 17, 2017. And Lions’ safety Kerby Joseph intercepted Rodgers twice, becoming just the fourth player to get multiple picks against Rodgers in a single game.

“Just too many mistakes,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “Turnovers. I thought the guys played hard. It wasn’t for a lack of effort. Obviously I think everybody’s very, very, very disappointed right now.”

Green Bay drove 88 yards on its opening drive, moving from its own 7-yard line to the Lions’ 5. On first and goal, Rodgers had Allen Lazard open on an inside slant.

But Rodgers threw a low pass off Detroit defensive lineman Derrick Barnes. The ball flew high into the air and Joseph skied to snare the interception.

“Obviously the bounces haven’t gone our way the last couple weeks,” Rodgers said.

On the Lions’ next possession, Rodgers threw an interception in the endzone on a trick play intended for left tackle David Bakhtiari. And midway through the third quarter, Joseph undercut a route for Robert Tonyan and intercepted Rodgers again.

Rodgers had gone four straight games without an interception against Detroit, and this marked the first time the Lions picked off Rodgers since Dec. 29, 2019. Rodgers now has seven interceptions this year, his most in a season since 2016.

Through it all, Rodgers yelled and screamed and showed his noticeable displeasure. In the end, though, his horrendous decision making was the No. 1 reason the Packers’ losing streak continued.

“There’s still a lot of games left,” Rodgers said. “We’ll be counted out, probably, by many, and we’ll see how we respond.”

RODGERS TO BAKHTIARI??!! REALLY??: Green Bay had perhaps its strangest — and worst — offensive call in years on the first play of the second quarter.

Green Bay faced a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line, and left tackle David Bakhtiari reported eligible.

The Packers lined up with wideout Sammy Watkins on the left and Allen Lazard flanked right. Running back Aaron Jones then released into the right flat.

Instead of going in one of those directions, though, Rodgers rolled right and threw back to the left for Bakhtiari — a man with zero career receptions.

Rodgers badly underthrew the pass and rookie defensive end Aiden Hutchinson intercepted.

“There was only two options on the play, but I probably should have given him a chance,” Rodgers said. “I’ll definitely have to live with that throw for the rest of my life with our friendship.”

That was Rodgers’ second interception of the game, and marked the first time in his career he threw two interceptions in the red zone.

It seemed almost surreal that the Packers’ once high-powered offense would resort to trick plays for their left tackle at the goal line. But this is the reality of Green Bay’s offense in 2022.

“We’ve got to do something different obviously because we’re not throwing and catching to the level that is conducive to winning football,” LaFleur said.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE: The Packers’ next three games are home with Dallas (6-2) and Tennessee (5-2) and at Philadelphia (8-0).

When this stretch is over, this lost season in Green Bay could have completely derailed.

“I definitely think we can turn it around,” Green Bay running back Aaron Jones said. “We have everything we need in this locker room. I feel like all these guys are capable. We just got to really nail the details and finish when it comes down to it. And execute in situations that are in our favor.”

Packers tight end Marcedes Lewis agreed.

“It’s a playoff mentality from here,” Lewis said. “Can’t afford to keep dropping games, so just going to keep chipping away at it. It’s all you can do.”

THE BAD

INJURY CENTRAL: The Packers entered the game with just one preferred starter out — inside linebacker De’Vondre Campbell. But that changed dramatically during the game.

Green Bay lost wideout Romeo Doubs (ankle), left tackle David Bakhtiari (knee), cornerback Eric Stokes (ankle/knee), wideout Christian Watson (concussion), outside linebacker Rashan Gary (knee), running back Aaron Jones (ankle) and guard Jon Runyan (knee).

Bakhtiari and Runyan returned later in the contest, while the others did not.

“Yeah, it just seems like that’s been the theme of the year in a sense,” Lazard said of the injuries. “But it’s the game of football. It’s the thing we signed up for. You’ve just got to bounce back from adversity.”

SAMMY WHO?: Green Bay’s only free agent addition at the wide receiver position was veteran Sammy Watkins. On Sunday, Watkins had just one catch for nine yards, and over the past two weeks, he has just two catches for 12 yards.

Green Bay was hoping Watkins would help make up for the loss of Davante Adams. Instead, he has just nine catches through nine games.

DARNELL SAVAGE: The Packers closed within 8-6 late in the third quarter, and for the first time all day, had some momentum.

But the Lions answered with a 13-play, 70-yard touchdown drive to surge ahead, 15-6. Detroit capped the march when Goff hit rookie tight end James Mitchell for a 3-yard TD on third down.

Mitchell worked free in a zone that Savage was supposed to be manning. Instead, Savage drifted too far to his right, leaving a wide open window for Goff to hit Mitchell.

THIS AND THAT: The Packers had eight penalties for 81 yards. … The Packers lost the turnover battle, 3-1.

THE GOOD

DEFENSE: Detroit entered the game averaging 35.8 points per game at home this season. Green Bay held the Lions to 42% of that total as its defense held up its end of the bargain.Detroit managed just two scores in its nine drives. The Packers held Lions quarterback Jared Goff to 137 passing yards and a 78.5 passer rating. And Green Bay limited the Lions to 3.8 yards per rush.It should have been plenty for Green Bay to win the game. “I thought our defense battled and did a really good job,” LaFleur said. “To not take advantage of that performance is certainly disappointing.”

ALLEN LAZARD: Green Bay’s wide receiver group was decimated by injury. But Lazard did all he could to give the Packers a semblance of a passing game.Lazard caught four passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. He had a season-long 47-yard reception and averaged 21.8 yards per catch.BIG STOPS: The Lions marched down the field on their opening drive and faced a fourth-and-1 from the 7. Detroit had run the ball at will, but went to an empty backfield.

Lions quarterback Jared Goff dropped to throw and was quickly under pressure from outside linebacker Rashan Gary. Goff had wideout Tom Kennedy open in the middle of the endzone, but Gary hit the quarterback as he threw and the pass came up short.

Then in the fourth quarter, the Lions had a fourth-and-3 from the Green Bay’s 43 while clinging to a 15-9 lead. Goff tried throwing for Amon-Ra St. Brown, but the Packers’ coverage was terrific and the Lions were denied.

That gave Green Bay one last chance on offense, but that unit couldn’t do anything with the opportunity.

JAIRE ALEXANDER: Very little went right for the Packers most of the day, but Alexander’s third quarter interception gave them a brief spark.

Alexander jumped a route for St. Brown near midfield and returned the ball 29 yards to the Lions’ 23. Unfortunately for the Packers, though, Rodgers threw an interception two plays later.

THIS AND THAT: Green Bay’s Keisean Nixon had a 33-yard kickoff return. … Krys Barnes, playing for the injured De’Vondre Campbell, had eight tackles. … Rodgers ran for a team-high 40 yards. He entered the game 20 rushing yards in the first eight games. … Green Bay had more total yards (389-254), yards per play (5.6-4.5) and had the ball 9 ½ minutes more than Detroit — yet still lost.