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Green Bay Packers: Week 2 Special Teams Recap

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Week 2 didn’t go as we had hoped, did it Green Bay Packers fans?

The Packers lost a close and ugly game to the Vikings, with the offense continuing to struggle the way we saw them do throughout 2015.

Something that could help a struggling offensive group would be help from the other areas of the team.

The defense definitely held up their end of the bargain most of the game; outside of struggles by Damarious Randall in his attempted coverage versus Stefon Diggs, the defense was able to hold Adrian Peterson in check (before he tore his meniscus) and allow only 17 points from the group as a whole.

The special teams, however, was a different story.

Jan 16, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Green Bay Packers kicker Mason Crosby (2) against the Arizona Cardinals during the NFC Divisional round playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Kicker

Kickoffs:

Scoring:

While the majority of the special teams wasn’t able to help push the game in Green Bay’s favor, we cannot put any of the blame on Crosby.

In terms of scoring, he was given zero chances to even attempt a field goal, while making his two extra point attempts.

The kickoff game didn’t leave him much he could really do either; he had three chances to kick which turned into a touchback and a couple returns. On the surface, the second return attempt may seem like one where he should have gotten more into it, but that one saw him having to kick the ball from the GB 20 due to a 15-yard penalty incurred on the preceding touchdown by the offense.

Something he could do in the future is what other teams are beginning to implement with the change to touchback rules (they now go to the 25 yard line instead of the 20): kicking shorter.

Instead of booting the ball out of the endzone, if he pops the ball up to the front of it he could force returns that don’t get to the touchback spot. We sort of saw an example of that on the second kickoff, but kicking it with more hangtime could allow the coverage to get to the returner in time to pin the opposing offense within their own 15.

If done well, this could provide a useful bit of field position advantage to a team that routinely finds its offense pinned deep in its own territory to start many drives.

Dec 17, 2015 St. Louis, MO, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers punter Jacob Schum (5) against the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome. The Rams won 31-23. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

The Punter

Punts:

Speaking of setting up advantageous field position, that is something a punter can in theory affect; so far into his Packers tenure though, Jacob Schum has not been able to bring that ideal to fruition.

In 9 punts so far, only 3 have managed to be within what a touchback would provide. This isn’t all on Schum himself though; with the offense faltering on many drives — a good portion of which have been deep in their own territory — it means Schum would need to get a great deal of leg behind every punt to come close to that.

Schum wasn’t brought in because of his leg strength — moreso his directional kicking ability — so expecting him to do something that was seemingly outside of his particular skill set is problematic.

That being said, he must do better than he has shown so far.

Even if his leg does not have the power of some of the other punters across the league, it is disheartening to see his kicks maxing out around 40 yards even in situations where the team would be best suited to have him get everything he’s got behind the ball. Almost half of his punts have failed to get his opponents within their own 40, and just one of his punts has reached 50+ yards; practically all of these ended right at the spot he got it to (fair catches, downed, or out of bounds kicks).

Now, part of this could be strategy-based; Minnesota especially has at least one good return threat (Cordarrelle Patterson) and maybe the team — much like they used to do with the Devin Hester-era Bears — decided giving up some yardage initially would end up saving them from the potential of allowing a big play once Patterson got it in his hands.

That seems to be a somewhat hopeful ideal, but if it is the case, it might be better for the team to lean into the riskier side of things.

With the offense not playing well, field position is even more important in each game. The defense has mostly done well overall, but if the other team is getting the ball near midfield, barring a turnover the best the defense can do is usually force a punt — which, from the middle of the field, means likely bad field position for their struggling offense.

I’ve already heard comparisons of Schum to Tim Masthay, but honestly he would be an upgrade so far. I’m not saying we need to replace this man already (two games into a tenure with a team is a bit extreme, especially without any gigantic mistakes thrown into the mix), but this spot is one we and the team should be watching intently over the next few weeks.

Aug 29, 2015; Green Bay, WI, USA; Green Bay Packers wide receiver Ty Montgomery (88) runs for extra yards after catching a pass against Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Nolan Carroll II (23) in the first quarter at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

The Return Units

Punts:

Kickoffs:

This spot is the one that would seem to be where the biggest changes could be made to help in the field position game; after all, it is the first chance to move the ball forward once a team gains possession.

It isn’t quite that simple, however.

The kick return game is probably best suited to just take the touchbacks they are being given; 25 yards is tough to get on most returns barring some screw-up from the coverage unit, so just taking what you are given is in fact the best gameplan.

The punt game could in theory be where the change could come, but that (at least so far) has not really given any openings.

There have been 9 punts forced by Green Bay, and not a single one has actually been returned as of yet; 3 have been downed, 5 have been fair catches, and 1 was a block.

It is tough to do anything different from Green Bay’s standpoint with the punts that have happened so far, either. The opposing coverage units have been on their game, giving the returners for the Packers little opportunity to even consider trying to bring the ball up. The rules prevent the gunners on the outside from being blocked too early, so unless the punter out-kicks his coverage it is unlikely a returner will have the space for a return attempt to be the smart decision.

At some point we will see at least a few punts that do allow an attempted return, but again, without some error from the opposition (or at least better field position already being in effect; having the opposition around their own 30 would help immensely, and prevent the pinned-back element the shorter punts allow for) it will be hard to see those opportunities come too often.

When those chances do appear though, Green Bay must find a way to capitalize. Or we have to start banking on blocked kicks every week (unlikely).

Sep 11, 2016; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Green Bay Packers cornerback Damarious Randall (23) tackles Jacksonville Jaguars running back T.J. Yeldon (24) during the first half of a football game at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

The Coverage Units

Punts:

Kickoffs:

This is the one unit besides the punter himself that could be expected to make a field position impact each and every week; for the most part, they did their job on Sunday night.

On the five punts, there wasn’t a single return attempt. Like I said before, this might be because of strategy (keep the ball from Patterson), but regardless of how far the kicks traveled the coverage unit was able to get to the ball immediately.

The kickoff coverage was a bit different this time around. The first kick was a touchback, but the final two actually had a chance to return it.

The second of those showed the strategy to remove Patterson from the equation was a good idea; he returned the ball 37 yards, all the way to the Minnesota 44.

This of course wasn’t quite the usual kickoff due to the 15 yard penalty that caused it to be longer (which, besides making Crosby kick from further back, also made the coverage unit have to start from further away as well), but the missed tackles on the return are a concern.

All in all, the special teams has plenty of spots where they need to improve; this was likely one of the more difficult games on the schedule, but with a flailing offense the team needs it’s other areas to provide as much positive production as possible.

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