motife
10-10-2006, 03:19 PM
Rating the Packers vs. Rams: Missed block proves costly in the end
Posted: Oct. 9, 2006
Bob McGinn
Green Bay - Wherever former Green Bay Packers guard Tim Huffman is these days, he probably could relate better than anyone to what befell Tony Moll and Mark Tauscher on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
During a blizzard on a memorable Monday in mid-October 1984, the Packers were poised at the Denver 19 with 3½ minutes left at Mile High Stadium. They trailed, 17-14. Then Huffman enabled defensive end Rulon Jones to beat him inside, Jones forced Lynn Dickey to fumble and that was that.
"One block cost us the ball game," Huffman said that night. "The only players who should be embarrassed are the ones who made mistakes. I am embarrassed."
A blown tackle-tackle twist by Moll and a below-average pass set by Tauscher in the final minute led to Brett Favre's decisive fumble in the red zone and a crushing defeat.
Here is a rating of the Packers against St. Louis, with their 1 to 5 football totals in parentheses:
RECEIVERS (3½)
The Packers exploited rookie CB Tye Hill, who was subbing for injured Fakhir Brown, on bombs of 38 and 46 yards to Greg Jennings. Hill has better stopwatch speed than Jennings but it didn't look like it in their man-to-man matchups. Jennings beat Hill off the line, used his size advantage downfield and made two terrific catches. He caught the 38-yarder on his fingertips before taking a heavy shot from onrushing FS O.J. Atogwe. He hauled in the 46-yarder at the 18 and outran Hill to the end zone. Jennings was able to get single coverage only because Donald Driver gave one for the team by going the distance despite rib damage. Koren Robinson blocked out his legal problems, hauling in four of the eight balls thrown to him. He was in position for a much bigger day but Brett Favre overthrew him four times, including two inside the St. Louis 10. David Martin and Bubba Franks were wide open for what should have been TD passes but Favre couldn't get the ball to Martin on the decisive play and missed Franks in the second quarter. Of the two, Martin was the more effective blocker.
OFFENSIVE LINE (3½)
Scott Wells had three or four plays in which NT Jimmy Kennedy used his mass to get the best of him. Otherwise, Wells was terrific. Besides sorting out the Rams' shifting fronts, he consistently carved out running lanes with firm blocks on D-linemen and quick cuts against LBs. When the Rams jumped offside twice in the first quarter, Wells alertly snapped the ball immediately before they could get back, giving Favre a free play. Tauscher was very good on 56 of his 57 snaps against elite end Leonard Little, holding him to two tackles and no pressures. Then Little knocked the ball from Favre's grasp at the end on a speed rush against Tauscher. However, if Moll hadn't been late getting off a stunt and not given a free runner to Kennedy, Favre could have stepped up away from Little and hit Martin for the winning TD. Moll had to play the entire second half when Jason Spitz, who was having a rough outing, had to leave with a throat problem. LG Daryn Colledge left numerous Rams on the turf with effective cut blocks, then blew it at the end by whiffing on the recovery. Chad Clifton didn't yield a pressure to young ends Victor Adeyanju and Anthony Hargrove.
QUARTERBACKS (2½)
By the start of the second half, the Rams not only were without Brown but also starting cornerback Travis Fisher (groin). The protection was darn good. And Jim Haslett blitzed on merely 25.6% of passes, about half what the Rams' coordinator had averaged in the first month. In other words, Favre had the Rams right where he wanted them. Although Favre did put two home-run balls right on the money to Jennings, about 10 of his 39 passes were way off the mark. The bad ones were split almost evenly, with the 22-mph wind and against it. He was uncomfortable in the pocket and made some poor reads in the red zone. He avoided being intercepted but could have been about four times. Favre's feet weren't even set so he didn't have much on the errant, easy slant to Jennings that might have gone the distance. With the outcome hanging in the balance down the stretch, Favre couldn't deliver a victory for the seventh time in eight comeback situations over the last 1½ seasons.
RUNNING BACKS (2½)
There's a lot to like about Vernand Morency. He's quick to the hole. He has some shake and bake. He has adequate hands and can adjust outside the frame of his body. He isn't afraid to stick his nose in there. But after fumbling on his fourth play and then being saved a fumble when his knee was down on his eighth play, he was benched other than four snaps in the second half. Enter Noah Herron, whose 20 carries gained 106 yards (six for 37 from shotgun). You can't take advantage of big holes unless you see them, which Herron most assuredly did. He ran north-south. He dragged tacklers. He held on to the ball. Even linebackers can chase down Herron. A great back would have averaged even more than Herron's 5.3 yards. But it was the best game by a Green Bay ball carrier this season. The blocking by FB Brandon Miree (26 snaps) was OK. William Henderson played four snaps.
DEFENSIVE LINE (2½)
Back from a concussion, LT Orlando Pace out-pointed Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila (55 snaps). "KGB" scrapped against the run but, given 40.7% double-teaming, he still should be expected to apply more pressure than one partial hurry and one partial sack (coming against two tight ends). Aaron Kampman led the unit in snaps (58) and tackles (six), beat talented RT Alex Barron for one sack and also had one flush. Kampman continues to grow as a complete defensive end. His value to this defense is hard to exaggerate. Cullen Jenkins was off to a disruptive start but had to leave after eight plays with an ankle injury. Still, coordinator Bob Sanders didn't call his first blitz on a pass play until 5 minutes remained. In all, he blitzed on a season-low 9.4% of passes. Ryan Pickett (48 snaps) set up a sack by beating RG Adam Timmerman. Corey Williams (43) and Colin Cole (28) couldn't take advantage of Timmerman or aging LG Todd Steussie.
LINEBACKERS (3)
Nick Barnett played a strong game, although he did have a lapse or two in coverage. Otherwise, he ran all over the field, tackled crisply and played with emotion. A.J. Hawk registered the team's only knockdown of Marc Bulger on a delayed blitz. However, he dropped an interception and lost back-side contain on a 10-yard run by Steven Jackson. Brady Poppinga dived and missed three tackles on the edge and gave up a 17-yard pass to Jackson on a well-executed fake counter.
SECONDARY (2½)
Given modest pass rush, Bulger's quick arm and the Rams' four talented wide receivers, there was potential for disaster. Of the four balls throws to Torry Holt against Al Harris, the only completion was a 6-yard TD when he didn't get a good jam. Harris did catch a break when his two penalties were declined. On his crucial dropped interception, he tried to run before securing the ball. Charles Woodson made some knifing tackles and foiled a third-and-2 naked pitch to Jackson. However, Woodson jumped when he didn't have to and dropped an interception, and allowed four completions in six attempts for 57 yards, not counting a 15-yard interference penalty. Marquand Manuel enjoys getting physical in the box. Nevertheless, he gave up inside leverage on Kevin Curtis' 3-yard TD reception, let rookie TE Joe Klopfenstein eat him up on an old-fashioned 22-yard post pattern and whiffed on another open-field tackle. In his debut, nickel back Patrick Dendy was adequate.
KICKERS (2)
Dave Rayner made two of three field goals and had averages of 67.3 yards and 4.04 seconds on four kickoffs. Jon Ryan had four-punt averages of 48.8 (gross), 34.5 (net) and 3.85 (hang time).
SPECIAL TEAMS (2½)
A line-drive punt by Ryan into the wind led to Shaun McDonald's 28-yard return, setting up a Rams field goal. Woodson continues to display amazing hands and feel on punt returns.
OVERALL (2½)
Posted: Oct. 9, 2006
Bob McGinn
Green Bay - Wherever former Green Bay Packers guard Tim Huffman is these days, he probably could relate better than anyone to what befell Tony Moll and Mark Tauscher on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
During a blizzard on a memorable Monday in mid-October 1984, the Packers were poised at the Denver 19 with 3½ minutes left at Mile High Stadium. They trailed, 17-14. Then Huffman enabled defensive end Rulon Jones to beat him inside, Jones forced Lynn Dickey to fumble and that was that.
"One block cost us the ball game," Huffman said that night. "The only players who should be embarrassed are the ones who made mistakes. I am embarrassed."
A blown tackle-tackle twist by Moll and a below-average pass set by Tauscher in the final minute led to Brett Favre's decisive fumble in the red zone and a crushing defeat.
Here is a rating of the Packers against St. Louis, with their 1 to 5 football totals in parentheses:
RECEIVERS (3½)
The Packers exploited rookie CB Tye Hill, who was subbing for injured Fakhir Brown, on bombs of 38 and 46 yards to Greg Jennings. Hill has better stopwatch speed than Jennings but it didn't look like it in their man-to-man matchups. Jennings beat Hill off the line, used his size advantage downfield and made two terrific catches. He caught the 38-yarder on his fingertips before taking a heavy shot from onrushing FS O.J. Atogwe. He hauled in the 46-yarder at the 18 and outran Hill to the end zone. Jennings was able to get single coverage only because Donald Driver gave one for the team by going the distance despite rib damage. Koren Robinson blocked out his legal problems, hauling in four of the eight balls thrown to him. He was in position for a much bigger day but Brett Favre overthrew him four times, including two inside the St. Louis 10. David Martin and Bubba Franks were wide open for what should have been TD passes but Favre couldn't get the ball to Martin on the decisive play and missed Franks in the second quarter. Of the two, Martin was the more effective blocker.
OFFENSIVE LINE (3½)
Scott Wells had three or four plays in which NT Jimmy Kennedy used his mass to get the best of him. Otherwise, Wells was terrific. Besides sorting out the Rams' shifting fronts, he consistently carved out running lanes with firm blocks on D-linemen and quick cuts against LBs. When the Rams jumped offside twice in the first quarter, Wells alertly snapped the ball immediately before they could get back, giving Favre a free play. Tauscher was very good on 56 of his 57 snaps against elite end Leonard Little, holding him to two tackles and no pressures. Then Little knocked the ball from Favre's grasp at the end on a speed rush against Tauscher. However, if Moll hadn't been late getting off a stunt and not given a free runner to Kennedy, Favre could have stepped up away from Little and hit Martin for the winning TD. Moll had to play the entire second half when Jason Spitz, who was having a rough outing, had to leave with a throat problem. LG Daryn Colledge left numerous Rams on the turf with effective cut blocks, then blew it at the end by whiffing on the recovery. Chad Clifton didn't yield a pressure to young ends Victor Adeyanju and Anthony Hargrove.
QUARTERBACKS (2½)
By the start of the second half, the Rams not only were without Brown but also starting cornerback Travis Fisher (groin). The protection was darn good. And Jim Haslett blitzed on merely 25.6% of passes, about half what the Rams' coordinator had averaged in the first month. In other words, Favre had the Rams right where he wanted them. Although Favre did put two home-run balls right on the money to Jennings, about 10 of his 39 passes were way off the mark. The bad ones were split almost evenly, with the 22-mph wind and against it. He was uncomfortable in the pocket and made some poor reads in the red zone. He avoided being intercepted but could have been about four times. Favre's feet weren't even set so he didn't have much on the errant, easy slant to Jennings that might have gone the distance. With the outcome hanging in the balance down the stretch, Favre couldn't deliver a victory for the seventh time in eight comeback situations over the last 1½ seasons.
RUNNING BACKS (2½)
There's a lot to like about Vernand Morency. He's quick to the hole. He has some shake and bake. He has adequate hands and can adjust outside the frame of his body. He isn't afraid to stick his nose in there. But after fumbling on his fourth play and then being saved a fumble when his knee was down on his eighth play, he was benched other than four snaps in the second half. Enter Noah Herron, whose 20 carries gained 106 yards (six for 37 from shotgun). You can't take advantage of big holes unless you see them, which Herron most assuredly did. He ran north-south. He dragged tacklers. He held on to the ball. Even linebackers can chase down Herron. A great back would have averaged even more than Herron's 5.3 yards. But it was the best game by a Green Bay ball carrier this season. The blocking by FB Brandon Miree (26 snaps) was OK. William Henderson played four snaps.
DEFENSIVE LINE (2½)
Back from a concussion, LT Orlando Pace out-pointed Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila (55 snaps). "KGB" scrapped against the run but, given 40.7% double-teaming, he still should be expected to apply more pressure than one partial hurry and one partial sack (coming against two tight ends). Aaron Kampman led the unit in snaps (58) and tackles (six), beat talented RT Alex Barron for one sack and also had one flush. Kampman continues to grow as a complete defensive end. His value to this defense is hard to exaggerate. Cullen Jenkins was off to a disruptive start but had to leave after eight plays with an ankle injury. Still, coordinator Bob Sanders didn't call his first blitz on a pass play until 5 minutes remained. In all, he blitzed on a season-low 9.4% of passes. Ryan Pickett (48 snaps) set up a sack by beating RG Adam Timmerman. Corey Williams (43) and Colin Cole (28) couldn't take advantage of Timmerman or aging LG Todd Steussie.
LINEBACKERS (3)
Nick Barnett played a strong game, although he did have a lapse or two in coverage. Otherwise, he ran all over the field, tackled crisply and played with emotion. A.J. Hawk registered the team's only knockdown of Marc Bulger on a delayed blitz. However, he dropped an interception and lost back-side contain on a 10-yard run by Steven Jackson. Brady Poppinga dived and missed three tackles on the edge and gave up a 17-yard pass to Jackson on a well-executed fake counter.
SECONDARY (2½)
Given modest pass rush, Bulger's quick arm and the Rams' four talented wide receivers, there was potential for disaster. Of the four balls throws to Torry Holt against Al Harris, the only completion was a 6-yard TD when he didn't get a good jam. Harris did catch a break when his two penalties were declined. On his crucial dropped interception, he tried to run before securing the ball. Charles Woodson made some knifing tackles and foiled a third-and-2 naked pitch to Jackson. However, Woodson jumped when he didn't have to and dropped an interception, and allowed four completions in six attempts for 57 yards, not counting a 15-yard interference penalty. Marquand Manuel enjoys getting physical in the box. Nevertheless, he gave up inside leverage on Kevin Curtis' 3-yard TD reception, let rookie TE Joe Klopfenstein eat him up on an old-fashioned 22-yard post pattern and whiffed on another open-field tackle. In his debut, nickel back Patrick Dendy was adequate.
KICKERS (2)
Dave Rayner made two of three field goals and had averages of 67.3 yards and 4.04 seconds on four kickoffs. Jon Ryan had four-punt averages of 48.8 (gross), 34.5 (net) and 3.85 (hang time).
SPECIAL TEAMS (2½)
A line-drive punt by Ryan into the wind led to Shaun McDonald's 28-yard return, setting up a Rams field goal. Woodson continues to display amazing hands and feel on punt returns.
OVERALL (2½)