Packers named 3 underperforming stars who must step up after the bye week

Three Packers players who aren’t performing well need to improve after the break.

The Green Bay Packers are exactly what we anticipated when the season started. A young, talented team that is unprepared to compete.

The only offensive player older than 30 at the start of the regular season was David Bakhtiari.
Green Bay’s average offensive age is 24.04 with Bakhtiari on injured reserve.
28-year-old Aaron Jones is the oldest.
There are no players older than 27.

Although this team has a lot of potential, especially on offense, the Packers lack experience. Unsurprisingly, the play is inconsistent. Jordan Love made two or three offensive mistakes for every gorgeous pass he made to Romeo Doubs.
This might be due to a miscalculated route, an inability of the quarterback and receiver to gel, or simply a lack of awareness.
Over time, these things will get better.

The Packers can still enter the playoff race despite this.
Although they might not be prepared to compete with NFC heavyweights like the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles, this team has a chance to earn a wild-card spot.

These three underwhelming players must improve following the bye week if they are to get there.

3. Alexis Jaire.

There’s no need to worry when Jaire Alexander is around.
He’ll return to his All-Pro form soon.
Alexander, however, hasn’t had a great start to the year.

Alexander has permitted seven completions on nine passes for 93 yards and a touchdown, according to Pro Football Reference.
Having a passer rating of 146.8, that 77.8% completion rate is impressive.
In contrast, quarterbacks who threw his way last season had a passer rating of 63.07.

In the three games he has played, Alexander has recorded two pass defenses but no interceptions.

With games against the Los Angeles Chargers, Detroit Lions, and Kansas City Chiefs coming up over the next seven weeks, the Packers need All-Pro quarterback Jaire Alexander to be at his best when they return from their bye.

2.
By AJ Dillon.

In the first five regular-season games, the Packers’ run game has significantly underperformed expectations.
The offensive line bears a sizable portion of the blame.
When watching defensive linemen regularly run into AJ Dillon in the backfield, it is not shocking that the Packers are ranked 29th in run block win rate by ESPN.

Additionally, Dillon hasn’t performed well enough.
He is averaging a career-low 1 point 4 yards before contact per attempt, according to Pro Football Reference.
This illustrates how poorly the team blocks runs on the offensive line.
However, Dillon only gains an average of 1.7 yards after contact per attempt.

Dillon’s supposed strengths are running through defenses and breaking tackles.
Against the Las Vegas Raiders, we witnessed this more frequently, but Dillon has been taken out at the first sign of contact far too frequently this year.

In 2020, Dillon averaged 5.3 yards per carry.
In 2021, he averaged 4.3 yards per carry.
He is averaging 310 yards per try this season.

Dillon isn’t always able to see running lanes, even when the Packers have made them.

The performance Dillon had against the Raiders—20 carries, 76 yards, and one touchdown—was unquestionably the best of the year. He played well despite having to overcome subpar blocking and fight for yards after contact.
To relieve Jordan Love of some of the pressure, which would benefit Dillon, the Packers’ running game must advance.

1.
Michael Love.

Jordan Love can take the Packers as far as they want to go. He played well enough to win the first two games, throwing for 396 yards and six touchdowns against no interceptions.
The fact that Green Bay’s offensive line only allowed two sacks in those two games while playing its best football is no accident.

Love has thrown for 687 yards, two touchdowns, and six interceptions over the course of the subsequent three games, though.
Eight times, he has been let go.

Not everything can be attributed to love.
Love’s performances have significantly deteriorated recently, and he needs strong protection up front and contributions from his receivers.
For rookie quarterbacks, especially those who are part of an offense with little experience, that is how things go.

Love needs to resume his previous level of performance, though, for the Packers to recover and begin winning games.

For his young quarterback, Matt LaFleur needs to find better ways to assist him.
If the protection is inadequate, he ought to have Love move around. Love had success with bootlegs against the Raiders, but LaFleur didn’t use them frequently.
It is important to play the run game. The burden is off Love if the Packers can create manageable third-down scenarios.

Nevertheless, perfection is uncommon. Every team deals with key player injuries, missed catches, and errors.
The barriers put in their path can be surmounted by great quarterbacks.

For the Packers to recover from the bye week, love must get better.