The Green Bay Packers got terrific performances from several players on offense and a dominant effort from edge rusher Kingsley Enagbare but ended up losing 21-17 to the New England Patriots in a preseason game suspended in the fourth quarter after an injury to cornerback Isaiah Bolden.
Based on grades from Pro Football Focus, here are the best and worst performers from the Packers’ preseason game against the Patriots:
Top 5 offense
1. WR Romeo Doubs: 91.0
2. RG Jon Runyan Jr.: 87.0
3. QB Jordan Love: 86.9
4. WR Malik Heath: 83.0
5. QB Sean Clifford: 81.8
Doubs caught two passes for 52 yards on just nine routes, and both catches, including his 42-yarder, were considered contested catches. Runyan Jr. didn’t give up a pressure and earned the team’s top run-blocking grade. Love had a “big-time throw” (see: 42-yarder to Doubs) and earned a grade bump with his 11-yard scramble. Heath caught all five targets for 75 yards on 18 routes. He averaged over 4.0 yards per route run and had two contested catches. Clifford delivered two “big-time throws,” nine passing first downs and a completion percentage over 70.0.
Top 5 defense
1. OLB Kingsley Enagbare: 96.4
2. DL Karl Brooks: 80.4
3. LB Quay Walker: 79.4
4. OLB Justin Hollins: 78.7
5. CB Kiondre Thomas: 77.0
Enagbare produced two pressures (both sacks) on just eight pass-rushing snaps. It’s likely he’ll be one of the NFL’s top-graded defensive players during the week. Brooks delivered two pressures and a strong run defense grade, which was helped by a tackle for loss. Walker had two tackles, including a stop on a short completion against his coverage. Hollins had a quarterback hit on eight pass-rushing snaps. Thomas earned the team’s second-best coverage grade after allowing just one completion on three targets. He broke up one pass.
Bottom 5 offense
1. RT Zach Tom: 39.2
2. LG Elgton Jenkins: 44.8
3. TE Austin Allen: 46.0
4. TE Tucker Kraft: 49.7
5. WR Samori Toure: 51.3
Tom was good in pass protection but only average in the run game, and he committed two penalties. Jenkins was so-so in the run game and also got dinged by a pre-snap penalty. Allen and Kraft weren’t targeted in the passing game and earned below-average grades as run blockers. Toure ran 13 routes but didn’t have a catch. He was well-covered on his only target.
Bottom 5 defense
1. LB Tariq Carpenter: 25.1
2. OLB Arron Mosby: 28.7
3. DL Jonathan Ford: 32.6
4. CB Shemar Jean-Charles: 42.9
5. DL TJ Slaton: 53.1
Carpenter missed a tackle and earned the team’s worst run-defense grade. Mosby had 13 pressure-less pass-rushing snaps and was the second-worst run defender. Ford played 24 empty snaps. Jean-Charles gave up four completions, missed a tackle and committed an illegal contact penalty. Slaton did little over 13 snaps.
Special teams
Cornerback William Hooper and outside linebacker Kingsley Enagbare earned the top special teams grades. Both had tackles. Henry Pearson, Shemar Jean-Charles and Anders Carlson (delay of game) had special teams penalties. The Packers didn’t miss a tackle. Carlson made all three kicks, including a 52-yard field goal. Samori Toure averaged 18.0 yards per kickoff return and 1.5 yards per punt return. Rookie Anthony Johnson Jr. and running back Patrick Taylor played a team-high 11 special teams snaps.
Quarterbacks
Jordan Love: 86.9
Sean Clifford: 81.8
Love and Clifford combined for three “big-time throws” and zero “turnover-worthy plays” while completing 66.7 percent of throws and averaging over 8.0 yards per attempt. Both quarterbacks were excellent from clean pockets. And both quarterbacks had a completion on a pass thrown over 20 yards in the air.
First-round pick
Top pick Lukas Van Ness bounced back from a quiet preseason debut with a far more effective performance against the Patriots. He had a quarterback pressure and two stops over 17 snaps. His 75.8 overall defensive grade was the Packers’ sixth-best.
One grade to know
78.9: Rasheed Walker, a 2022 seventh-round pick, started at left tackle and was terrific, producing the offense’s sixth-best overall grade. He didn’t allow a pressure over 23 pass-blocking snaps and earned the team’s second-best run-blocking grade along the offensive line. Walker jumped Yosh Nijman on the depth chart at left tackle, and this performance should help his chances of being David Bakhtiari’s top backup.
