Niners Game Clarifies Draft Needs
Weaknesses became clear in playoff loss.
I went back and re-studied the Green Bay Packers loss to the 49ers in the divisional round of the playoffs last January. I was hoping to gain a little more insight as to what the Packers need in the coming draft to be able to take the next step and beat a team like San Francisco in the post season.
First impression after revisiting that game: it’s easy to see why general manager Brian Gutekunst placed a priority on improving at the safety position. The lack of a quality safety really hurt Green Bay in this critical contest. If you were surprised the team let Darnell Savage walk, you wouldn’t be after watching this tape.
Savage dropped a potential interception thrown right into his hands in the first quarter. It might well have been a pick six, which would have given Green Bay an early 10-0 lead. Then Savage was late to the ball on a completion to Jauan Jennings, and allowed George Kittle to run past him on a 32 yard touchdown pass. In the third quarter Christian McCaffery ran through Savage on his way to a 39 yard score.
Jonathan Owens didn’t fare much better. Kittle brushed him off like a fly off a horse on a short pass that ruptured into a 23 yard gain. On McCaffery’s five yard, game winning touchdown run, Owens had a clean shot at the ball carrier in the gap, but offered only a meek bump that the Niners back ignored on his way across the goal line.
Anthony Johnson was a non-factor on his snaps. Clearly, the addition of Xavier McKinney addresses much of the need at this position, but the Packers should draft at least one, if not two solid safety prospects to upgrade this unit.
Another thing that jumped out from this game was the inability of the linebackers to cover across the middle. Brock Purdy made a living off of hitting Jennings, Kittle and McCaffery on short crossers. Quay Walker looked lost at times and seemed misused in coverage. It will be interesting to see if new defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley uses Walker more as a pass rusher than a dropback cover man in his new system. Ditto for Preston Smith, who was often late to the ball on short passes and then struggled to make tackles in space. There is a need in this draft for linebacker/safety hybrid types who can run, cover and tackle in the short zones.
The offensive line held up pretty well in this game. Jordan Love was not sacked, although several pressures forced incompletions that contributed to Green Bay getting just two field goals out of three trips to the red zone in the first half. It was interesting to note that Sean Rhyan continued to alternate with Jon Runyan at right guard, but in the fourth quarter, with the game on the line, the coaches kept Runyan in the game on all drives.
Could this indicate the coaches don’t have enough confidence in Rhyan to take over this coming season as the full time starter? At the very least, the Packers figure to draft competition for Rhyan and perhaps for center Josh Myers as well. Zach Tom was having a solid game at right tackle before leaving with an injury in the second half. Yosh Nijman did okay in his place, but Nijman is now a Carolina Panther. It’s a good draft for tackles, and Green Bay needs one not only for depth, but to push Rasheed Walker on the other side.
Christian Watson kind of disappeared in this game. He had just two targets and one catch for eleven yards. In a draft class loaded once again at the receiver position, would the Packers select a deep ball threat with an eye to moving on from Watson after this year? Especially if he continues to struggle with injuries?
Really though, when you finish watching this game, you shake your head and wonder how the Packers lost this thing. With 8:32 remaining in the game, they had the ball with a first and five at the San Francisco 32 yard line, leading 21-17. You’d have to like your chances in that situation.
A missed 41 yard field goal, a pass rush that couldn’t get home in the clutch, and a very bad decision by Jordan Love to throw late over the middle, did them in.
Yet, when I turned off the TV, I couldn’t help but feel this team is getting close to greatness. One more good draft could push them to a season that ends up Super.