Those expecting immediate results from Matt LaFleur’s change at defensive coordinator likely left Week 1 disappointed after Jeff Hafley’s Green Bay Packers defense gave up 34 points and over 400 yards to the Philadelphia Eagles in a season-opening defeat.
Hafley, in his first game calling plays as an NFL defensive coordinator, couldn’t find enough answers for the star power of the Eagles.
Saquon Barkley ran for 109 yards and scored three total touchdowns. A.J. Brown caught a 67-yard touchdown pass and went over 100 receiving yards. Combined, Brown and Devonta Smith totaled 12 catches and over 200 receiving yards.
Afterwards, LaFleur expressed his displeasure with both the disruption created by the pass-rush and the gap integrity of the run defense. The Packers sacked Jalen Hurts only twice, and Barkley ripped off several chunk gains on the ground.
Three turnovers couldn’t even salvage the performance. The Packers got a pair of takeaways — one on a Xavier McKinney interception on third-and-long on the opening series, and another lucky one on a botched snap — in the first quarter, and the defense even took points off the board on Jaire Alexander’s pick in the end zone in the second half.
It still didn’t matter. The Eagles made six trips into the red zone, gained 25 first downs, rushed for 144 yards and finished with 410 total yards, while controlling the football for almost 33 minutes.
After settling in after the first two turnovers, the Eagles scored on four consecutive possessions. They would have scored on three straight to end the game had Hurts not made a bone-headed decision to throw back across his body to the middle of the field in the red area.
In typical Week 1 fashion, there were missed tackles and penalties on both defenses. Against top playmakers, the Packers didn’t tackle nearly well enough. And two questionable penalty calls — one on Alexander and another on Kenny Clark — extended the Eagles’ final drive.
The Packers offense did gift the Eagles a 24-yard scoring drive following a Jordan Love interception. And it wasn’t necessarily easy sledding for the Eagles, who averaged 3.8 yards per rush and 5.5 yards per play. Hurts’ passer rating ended up at 80.3. Against a talented offense, the Packers will take those numbers.
But giving up 31 points between the second and third quarters broke the defense.
Under Joe Barry last season, the Packers’ season-high for points allowed was 34. Hafley’s defense hit the mark in Week 1.
A highly touted defensive line wasn’t disruptive against a top offensive line, and Brown and Smith mostly had their way with the Packers secondary, especially in a few big spots. Throw in another productive performance from Barkley against Green Bay, and the new-look Packers defense — despite the takeaways — mostly flopped in the season opener.
