The Green Bay Packers squandered opportunities early and then failed to protect a 12-point fourth-quarter lead en route to a disappointing 25-24 defeat at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The Packers struggled at the line of scrimmage and fell apart in the fourth quarter. Despite leading for the majority of the first three quarters, Matt LaFleur’s left Atlanta with a 1-1 record.
Buy Packers TicketsHere are the stars, studs and duds from the Packers’ 25-24 loss to the Falcons:
Stars
DL Kenny Clark: The Packers defensive front got pushed around, but No. 97 was a dominant force for much of the game. He had at least five pressures in the first half, including the pressure that forced Rasul Douglas’ interception. Clark also combined with Rashan Gary for a third-down sack in the red zone. Quick off the ball and powerful, Clark can be unblockable at times. In a game more closely called in the trenches, Clark would have forced several holding penalties.
WR Jayden Reed: The rookie produced his first two NFL touchdowns. His speed was evident on both scores. Reed got around the corner on a jet motion pop pass and later sprung wide open off a run-action fake.
Studs
LB Quay Walker: The second-year linebacker stuffed the stat sheet, producing a career-high 17 total tackles. PFF credited Walker with four pressures and four stops. He also should have had an interecption on third-and-long in the second half. Despite all the tackling opportunities, Walker didn’t have a miss. His tackling ability was one of the only things holding the Packers defense together for much of Sunday.
WR Dontayvion Wicks: He drew a 44-yard pass interference penalty on the first play from scrimmage and made one of the biggest plays of the game on 32-yard touchdown catch that featured two forced missed tackles. He was inches away from another touchdown on a perfect ball from Jordan Love, but veteran corner A.J. Terrell made a terrific play on a slot fade.
Duds
CB Jaire Alexander: Drake London caught four passes against Alexander’s coverage, including a 24-yarder to start the game-winning drive and a first-half touchdown catch. Alexander also missed two tackles in the open field, dropped a potential pick-six on fourth down and was ineffective assisting against the run.
DL Colby Wooden: The Falcons ran at No. 96 relentlessly. The rookie could not handle the point of attack against the run and only had one hurry over 13 pass-rushing snaps. Wooden also missed a tackle on Tyler Allgeier. Expect teams to go after the rookie until he proves he can play the run at a higher level.
S Darnell Savage: He missed two tackles and was slightly out of position on several run-defending snaps. Savage also got Moss’d by Mack Hollins on the flea flicker. The Falcons exposed him on the perimeter.
RB A.J. Dillon: At times, Dillon lowered his shoulder, won the leverage battle and looked like a punishing back. But on too many other attempts, Dillon lost his footing, stumbled around and cost the Packers precious yards in the run game. On the pivotal 3rd-and-1, Dillon couldn’t get one yard. Was the run blocking good? On many snaps, no. But good backs have to create on their own, and Dillon’s ability to create is so limited.
